Food and Women



The media as discussed has and is very powerful over women and their body perception. The media has its way of conveying messages and having the audience believe in them. An example of this is food. Food obviously has a strong connection to body since it is the main factor in determining ones weight. The media has had its own way of framing food either it is good or very bad. What it is predominately seen in the media is food being used as a sex object or as a means to achieve the fabulous skinny body everybody dreams of. Magazines and commercial advertisements have been seen to use food as a sex object. Many times food advertisements include women and target men. The women are usually sexy and provocative while using that specific food item. This confirms many stereotypes; women are seen as objects by men, women do not eat men do, and women are seductive therefore they are able to sell food much easier. As seen in the picture above the woman is covered in rose pedals which have nothing to do with the advertised yogurt.



Diets in the media also impact women negatively. In order to sell their products many dieting companies use the before and after picture or testimony. Therefore women should be able to relate to their situation and buy the diet product in order to look like their after image. Diet products vary from pills, drinks, meals, meal points, and many more. All of the companies state that they are the best and that they actually give you results right away. Due to this many women receive mixed emotions about food and their body image. On one side they can use food as a sex object and to be seductive but yet on the other side it is the means to get the beautiful body. Therefore many women do not have good eating habits which affect their health due to the mixed messages the media conveys.