What to Know
The way pop culture and society views women’s bodies ebbs and flows. There was a period of time in the 90s and early aughts when low-rise jeans and hip bones were all the rage. Then, came a movement of celebrating all body types, including curvier ones. Celebrities even had surgical procedures to obtain that new look.
Ah, those were the days, am I right?
Now, however, as one user on TikTok named Ashe Wright put it, things are changing yet again. Except this time, there is “pro-anorexia” rhetoric, and no one is here for that, though they are here to support women who need it.
It all starts with reality TV stars in this case, per Ashe on TikTok. She explains in her video that she has noticed the stats of shows on Bravo and in The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives looking thinner than ever.
She also expresses concern for those women and others who might feel the need to not eat, or to eat very little to maintain an allegedly ideal weight. Ashe is tired of it, though, and plenty of women agree.
@yourdashofashe is anyone feeling as insane about this as me?!
♬ original sound – Ashe Wright
Somewhere along the way, average body standards changed yet again.
In her TikTok, Ashe explains that she has noticed a growing trend of an emphasis on rail thin women in entertainment. She cites the fan concern about Wicked stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande’s changed appearance after filming both of their movies in the franchise.
She also mentions women openly talking about using GLP-1 medicines like Ozempic on reality TV.
“Everyone is so f—ing skinny,” she says. “Like, single digit body fat percentage. Like, literally skin and bones. Bones everywhere. Bones showing in every single part of their body. And I’m so tired of acting like this is f—ing normal.”
She then says that if we don’t act like this is the norm, we are accused of being mean.
According to Ashe, it isn’t mean to call it out. Instead, it’s calling out “levels of being healthy” and “levels of being completely underweight.”
She adds that “people are sick” because “pro-ana culture is back.” Other TikTok users commented to share influencers that they specifically noticed what they believe is an unhealthy change in.
“The 180 from body positivity to pro-ana in the wake of Ozempic has given me whiplash,” someone wrote in the comments. “And it’s very upsetting.”
Another user agreed with Ashe’s assessment of the cast of Wicked.
“I really struggle to look at the Wicked cast,” they commented. “I hope they’re okay, but the way they look really triggers me.”
Others blame the “pandemic” of Ozempic and its growing trend. And, given the return of trends that saw popularity in the early 2000s, another person saw this coming from a mile away.
“I told my husband last year when low rise jeans started coming back that we were headed back to the 2000s of scary skinny,” a woman wrote. “I hate that I was right.”
Most of us have been alive through enough body “trends” that we know healthy and beautiful bodies come in all sorts of different shapes, sizes, and weights. The issue that some see now is a dangerous shift to people ensuring they are thin to the point of being unhealthy and not bringing in enough nutrition because they refuse to eat enough daily.
Do I have a solution to fight this? Yeah that’s gonna be a no for me, dawg. But users like Ashe have social media to continue to bring awareness to the potential dangers of loving up to a body trend.
