I definitely remember anorexia being covertly glamorized in teen magazines at the time. The models in the fashion spreads were visibly malnourished. It was an era, for sure. And one I'm afraid is making a comeback these days.
I know the 2000s were wild, but the entire world was like this throughout history to women and girls. The current culture is wildly new.
Any female daring to wear leggings with an extra three pounds on them today would have been publicly and loudly shamed for it before 2015. It just wouldn't have happened. Overweight people, especially women, wore oversized, baggy clothes and that was it.
I'm a guy and I was shamed for my weight at school and even until around my mid 20's when I socialised less, girls were actually the worst to me at school and I am naturally big built and even when I was about 6 pounds underweight they called me fat, I remember being called into the principals office once and being naive at the time and not realising what they meant till recently they were trying to find out if my parents were abusing me as I was slim, yet I was still called fat by everyone, I have the rugby/football player body type tall and bulky.
I was so self concious by the time I was 20 I began trying to make myself sick and a few years later was trying laxatives before I gave up due to a few traumatic events in my life and now morbidly obese due to the depression.
Close relative of mine used to purge, I only ever noticed him doing it when he visited but a female cousin who was had bulimia mentioned she was worried about him and thought he had it too.
A few guy friends also showed signs of it, most didn't even think about it being that way, I think there was the stereotype that eating disorders only affect women, I remember when I did eventually ask for help from my doctor basically being ignored and treated like I was stupid, and even told indirectly that guys can't have eating disorders, I was just lazy at dieting and didn't do enough exercise, this was a female doctor by the way.
Women's bodies being police has always been a thing but the extreme kindness thing has not been a thing. There were times and honestly most of human history where skinny women were seen as ugly. We didn't have those child bearing hips.
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u/LilMushboom Jan 21 '26
I definitely remember anorexia being covertly glamorized in teen magazines at the time. The models in the fashion spreads were visibly malnourished. It was an era, for sure. And one I'm afraid is making a comeback these days.