As I am thumbing through fashion magazines to find letters for a project, I am also slowly losing hope in humanity. These magazines have a wonderful opportunity to empower teenagers by featuring pictures of the ‘average’ human and providing articles related to topics such as mental health and physical well-being, but they instead feature glossy pictures of photo shopped models and articles analyzing the “Top 10 Best Ever Outfits of Nicole Kidman.” (Spoiler alert – they all look the same and have price tags in the upper thousands). Is this really what they think teenagers think about? Perhaps there are a few who are purely material and egotistic, but I think that the majority of teenagers would like articles that promoted the idea that all humans are different, but still equally important.

Issues such as depression and mental health are almost mocked in these magazines. Instead of articles such as how to recognize depression and help those in need, we are presented with articles such as “Change the Life of Your Hair”… Isn’t this backwards? Shouldn’t we focus on things that matter, and create articles titled “Change the Life of Your Loved Ones?” Perhaps I don’t understand because I’m not a girl that bases my self-worth solely on my appearance, as the media dictates. While it is important to look nice and be presentable, I believe morals and virtues define a person, not the condition of their hair.

The worst part of showing pictures of starving, photo shopped models is that they set unreasonable expectations for children regarding beauty and body image. 41% of girls 1st through 3rd grade want to be thinner, and a staggering 81% of ten year olds are afraid of getting fat. More than half of teenagers think they should be, or are on, a diet, and 3% are so desperate to lose weight they are anorexic or bulimic. We are setting up our future leaders for failure; they will never be able to achieve the body of a model. After all, the average American female model is 5’11” and weighs 117 pounds, while the average American woman is 5’4” and weighs 140 pounds. Our future President may be in front of his or her mirror right now, sucking in their gut while comparing themselves to a picture from a magazine.

The change has to start with our generation; it has to start with us. Refuse to buy into the idea that you are substandard, because I promise you are beautiful. Refuse to be told that you aren’t worth anything because of your appearance, because I promise that you are worth the world to somebody out there. Refuse to change, refuse to give up. Never try and change your appearance because it’s ‘in’. Always be proud of who you are.