by Linda Mintle | posted in Sex and Sexuality keywords Sex, Sex and Sexuality, Sex,, Body, Image,, MTV:, winning, Battle, Over, Your, Teen's, Mind

IMAGINE WITH ME. IT’S YOUR daughter’s sweet 16th birthday. You’d love to surprise her with something she really wants —a car, new clothes, a cell phone, money… British teen, Jenna Franklin, had a different idea. Her 16th birthday request was to have breast enlargements. Specifically, Jenna wanted to go from her size 34A breasts to a 34 C or D via silicon implants. Even more shocking was her parents’ agreement with her request. According to the BBC,1 Jenna had been thinking about breast implants since age 12 and made her decision by age 14. Obviously influenced by her parents’ plastic surgery business, her reasons for wanting cosmetic surgery were reported in her own words, “You’ve got to have breasts to be successful. Every other person you see on television has had implants. I just want to be happy with my body and I think having my breasts enlarged will give me more self-confidence.” Jenna then referenced Pamela Anderson, Melinda Messenger and Emma Noble as celebrities who found success after breast implants.2 Set aside the fact that a woman’s breasts don’t fully develop until her 20’s, or that a teen’s body is still growing, developing and changing, and focus on the thinking of this British teen. Cosmetic surgery is seen as a viable path to success, happiness and more self-confidence. And her models are two porn stars and an actress. Pop culture is a very powerful influencer here.


MUSIC AND SYMBOLS; FASHION and materialism. American pop culture infiltrates the lives of young people through the mass media of television, Internet, music, movies, magazines and more. MTV, an international television network, sells its explosive brand and lifestyle by promoting themes that have influenced an entire global tribe of young people. Image obsession becomes idol worship on the worldwide, converged network. Combining television with the Internet, MTV’s targeted audience is teens, an obviously vulnerable group, who by virtue of their developmental stage, struggle with feelings of esteem and confidence. Physical appearance, especially as modeled on MTV, is of paramount importance. And teens are often judged by their peers in terms of culturally defined standards of beauty and fashion —those definers of culture regularly appear on the world’s mass media. Recently, MTV has pushed its image obsession to a new level. The latest reality program, “I Want a Famous Face,” is based on this programming concept— fans of famous people like Brad Pitt, Jennifer Lopez, Julia Roberts and Britney Spears undergo cosmetic surgery in order to look more like their idols. Television cameras document the desired transformation. Basically, young people do whatever is physically necessary to create a look similar to the stars they idolize. In most cases, this involves plastic surgery. Procedures shown have included facial and breast implants, gastric-bypass surgery, and even transsexual hormone therapy. Comments of participating fans reflect a similar belief to the one expressed by Jenna Franklin. They want to feel more confident and improve self-esteem. Plastic surgery is not only gaining acceptance on reality TV, but is becoming the new obsession among our teens. According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, cosmetic surgery has tripled since 1992, with breast augmentation and liposuction increasing in record percentages, 533 percent and 313 percent respectively. More young people have had cosmetic surgery than ever before. In 2001, 6.9 percent of all procedures were sought by teens.3 The stated motivation is usually to improve physical characteristics, become more self-confident and improve self-esteem. And whom do they idolize and hold up as physical examples to imitate? Pop culture celebrities.


IT IS A FRIGHTENING TREND TO use cosmetic surgery as a solution to anxieties, emotional problems, body dissatisfaction, or self-esteem issues. One has to wonder if the pop culture’s obsession with body image is a contributor to the growing problem of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). While the disorder is rare, affecting between 1.0-2.0 percent of the general population and 10-15 percent of psychiatric outpatients, researchers believe it is on the rise.4 BDD is a time-consuming and potentially disabling preoccupation with imagined or slight defects in one’s appearance. A person becomes obsessed with his/her perceived physical flaw, feels distressed or impaired in social, occupational or other important areas of functioning, socially isolates or goes to extreme lengths to hide the flaw. Onset is usually during adolescence, and can cause depression, social isolation, school or job problems, and in severe cases, suicide attempts. As a therapist who has spent years trying to help young women accept their bodies, shows like, “I Want a Famous Face,” make this acceptance more difficult. And as more teens are led to believe that physical appearance matters more than issues of the heart or character, the more they will be trapped in problems like eating disorders, depression, and body dysmorphic disorders. Television and other forms of mass media may not cause these disorders directly, but certainly reinforce development of obsession or clinical problems. In the case of BDD, negative comments and teasing regarding appearance, sexual abuse or harassment may also play a role. And some researchers believe that BDD may even be an OCD spectrum disorder, noting that similar medicines and psychological treatments are used for both. Whatever the etiology, pop culture is certainly not helping this problem.


GIVEN THE ABOVE, WE MUST BE intentional when it comes to fighting destructive and potentially harmful messages from pop culture. Parents must be aware of what is captivating the minds of their teens. If you don’t really know the specifics, try this—spend a few days sampling the MTV network each month. (One caution: If you have problems with pornography or lust, get the information from someone else who knows the programming.) Look for themes, beliefs, and messages. Typically you will find hedonism, impulsivity, self-love, materialism, body obsession, fashion, violence, addiction, suffering, sexuality, and idol worship. Then, visit and revisit these teaching points with your teen:


God looks at the heart, not the outward appearance.
While pop culture places high value on appearances, God doesn’t. Negative image is corrected through a proper understanding of the basis of esteem. The path taken to develop a healthy image is important. If you try to love yourself without understanding who you are in Christ, you’ll fail. You are highly esteemed because God created and chose you. Nothing you do makes you more acceptable to God. You are accepted just because you were created.


You are the reflected image of God and He declared His creation “good.”
Not only are you created in God’s image (Genesis 1:26-27), but also you are the glory of God (1 Corinthians 11:7). Those who don’t know Christ are blinded to this fact and do not have the truth of the gospel (2 Corinthians 4:4).


Imitate Christ.
Choose a healthy role model. Christ is the one to emulate and adore. Interestingly, there is no physical description of Christ given in the Bible other than a brief reference in Isaiah, which states, “There is no beauty that we should desire him” (NKJV). Instead, we have His teachings that instruct us how to live our lives in mental and spiritual health. Jesus’message was not about selflove. His energy on earth was not spent trying to help people love themselves. In fact, Paul warns us not to think more highly of ourselves than we should (Romans 12:3); not to boast or compare ourselves with others (2 Corinthians 10:12); and to acknowledge that we already have a tendency to love our own flesh (Ephesians 5:29). Sacrificial love, not self-love, was Christ’s message. We are to love God and others and allow His love to flood our very being. Anything exalted above God is idol worship and creates a spiritual stronghold. We are created to worship, but are to worship the One who created us. Biblically, we are instructed time and again to worship only God. As our Creator, He knows our human propensity to create idols. And God knows the power idols can have in our lives. Biblical history is full of people “creating other gods” and missing out on God’s best. God is a jealous God and doesn’t want to share His glory with any person or thing. A personal and intimate relationship with God is needed. It’s not enough to live in a Christian family or know about God. In order to resist cultural thinking, we need a personal experience of Christ. Christianity is the Great Adventure, not a list of do’s and do not’s. Use media to discuss how people search for truth, long for authentic love, purpose and passion. All can be fulfilled in relationship with Christ. Value what God values. Develop a biblical worldview and live your life accordingly. You determine the value of something by how much you pay for it. Jesus bought you for a price—His very life. Obviously, He places great value on you. Renew your mind daily with what He says about you and what He says is important. The contrasts with the culture are striking. Talk character, not physical characteristics. You can break the body obsession focus by shifting conversations away from physical attributes. Notice other qualities about peers and change the conversation to reflect your observations, (i.e.—she is really a kind person). MTV AND POP CULTURE ARE powerful influencers, but research also shows that a positive relationship with a parent is a deterrent to teen problems. As a parent, build relationship with your teen, be alert to the messages he/she receives from pop culture, and clearly, intentionally teach a biblical worldview. The battle for a teen’s mind is a battle that can be won.



Linda Mintle, Ph.D., is a Virginia based therapist, speaker and author of the new book, A Daughter’s Journey Home: Finding a Way to Love, Honor and Connect with your Mother (Integrity). She specializes in marriage and family therapy and the treatment of eating disorders and is seen regularly as the resident expert on the ABC Family’s Living the Life television show.


ENDNOTES 1 Mother defends teenagers breast op. BBC News, January 4, 2001, Retrieved on-line April 5, 2004 from http://news. bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1100471.stm 2 Surgeon rules out teenager’s breast op. BBC News, January 4, 2004, Retrieved on-line April 5, 2004 from http://news. bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1101015.stm 3 Plastic surgery not for teens, The Battalion, February 26, 2003. Retrieved on-line April 6, 2004 from http://www. thebatt.com/ news/2003/02/26/Opinion/Plastic. Surgery.Not.For.Teens-514865.shtml 4 Body image and body dysmorphic disorder, Interview with Dr. J. Kevin Thompson, 2002. Retrieved on-line April 7, 2004 from http://www.athealth. com/ Consumer/disorders/BDDInterview.html