The Struggle for Well-being and the Modern Teenager

A study into the causes of eating disorders, poor health and body image affecting today’s teenagers.

The paper discusses how, in an age where powerful corporate sponsors have come to inundate high school environments with fast food chains and high calorie snack foods, in cafeterias and vending machines, the need for healthier diets and healthier lifestyles amongst teenagers has never been greater. The paper shows how recent trends towards obesity in adolescence have reached a point of crisis, while the early onset of what has traditionally been referred to as ‘adult onset’ or ‘late life’ Type 2 Diabetes has become progressively commonplace. The paper studies the reasons behind these health issues and what can be done to prevent them.
In other words, despite the evidence for a crisis currently unfolding in the high schools, teachers, educational administrations, and governmental bodies alike have been slow to react to these trends. Nonetheless, their efforts remain essential in any attempt to counteract the devastating impact of eating disorders on today’s youth. Those efforts could be productively channeled towards advertising campaigns, the development and distribution of important textual resources on the issues at hand, the cultural promotion of a healthy fitness regime, and even formal classroom instruction, all of which might work to better educate teenagers on the realities of eating disorders, and also the effects of these disorders on an individual’s long-term physical and emotional health.