Too Thin Teens

It is common knowledge that being fat is unhealthy. However, being skinny is unhealthy? Ironically, the answer is yes when a person is extremely thin.There are people who purposely chose to starve themselves. These people suffer from anorexia nervosa and the number of anorexic patients has increased drastically within a period of a few years. The majority of them, being teenagers.
We live in a world where millions starve. They fight to survive every second of their lives. Yet there are people who choose to starve themselves. Many think that anorexic patients are mad. But just like the millions who fight to survive, anorexic patients fight for acceptance. Before 2002 there were only about twenty to thirty anorexic patients. However, in 2006, there were two hundred cases. This is an extremely worrying trend.
There are many causes to anorexia. Peer pressure is one of the key causes to anorexia. Teasing students who are plump is being done so freely and commonly that it is deemed normal by many students. However, many students go overboard and do not realise the severity of their actions. To the victims, the teasing is a form of a great psychological torture and anorexia is a psychological brain disorder. Victims who cannot take the torture will then have to lose weight in order for their friends to stop teasing them. To them, that is the only way their friends will accept them. Therefore, this is commonly the spark or catalyst for anorexia to happen.
The other major cause is the media. Almost everything a teenager of this modern society does is affected by the media. They frequently compare themselves with famous actors and actresses like Nicole Richie who are setting waiflike looks as the new trend. This causes teenagers to think that being skinny is being trendy. Some even compete with their peers to see who resembles their idols the most. This is another case of seeking for social acceptance. If they are not skinny, they are not trendy and therefore are despised.
However, in the past students do tease their peers who are plump and there is also some form of media influence. Why then are the numbers only rising in the recent years? I believe anorexia is a clear sign of low self esteem and an increase in self consciousness among Singaporean teens. Teenagers want to be acknowledged of their existence. To do that, they look, speak and think based on how they want people to perceive them. They constantly “change” themselves by chasing the different trends in order to fit into society. After a while, they don’t even realise who they really are. It is like “removing” your face and changing new masks one after the other so often that you lose your face in the heap of used masks. This is also a lack of self confidence. They think that by being themselves, they will be despised. Low self esteem and feeling insecure is also clearly shown by the latest “emo” trend. Whereby teenagers feel that no one understands them, they are all alone and they will lose.
These worrying trends may be the result of “kiasuism”. Due to the fierce competition in Singapore’s education where everyone is afraid to lose out, those who do not do well are often not acknowledged by their teachers, students or even parents. Therefore, they seek for acknowledgment in non academic areas like sports or by being in the “in” group. This causes them to be more self-conscious. The need for acknowledgement makes them do whatever it takes to stay in the “in” group even if it means becoming anorexic. Also “kiasuism” makes teenagers afraid to lose and the though competition all the more makes it hard for them to win. This will result in teenagers having a low self esteem. They would start to idolize and long to be like the actors and actresses they see on media. If their “idol” does not set a good example, teenagers will follow suit.
Anorexia is preventable if parents instill the right value into their children. Teachers should look out for those who are often bullied in school. Parents should also always encourage their teenage children to speak up. Only then can parents find out what is going on in school, the group of friends they mix with and whether they are being bullied. In this way, we can better tackle the problem of the rising number of anorexic patients.

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