Edge Edibles: Don't let TV ruin your appetite
Sarah Zeeck
Issue date: 9/23/09 Section: The Edge
Last Saturday, I was doing my homework on the couch and needed some mindless white noise to fill the space, so naturally I tuned in to a rerun marathon of "America's Next Top Model." I'm used to that particular variety of white noise to flush my mind into my schoolwork.
I took a break long enough to hear bits of it, though, and to no surprise, I was disgusted with what I heard. One of the contestants was a size 10, which they referred to as "plus-sized." She didn't look unhealthy, or for that matter, much larger than the other girls on the show. She just looked normal.
Then, reality hit me - I'm a size 10. And though the ridiculousness of their label was already apparent to me, I couldn't help but feel fat as she, the other contestants and judges kept labeling her "plus-sized."
I finally snapped out of it and went to the kitchen to make French toast, mostly out of spite and hunger.
As I dipped and pan-fried the bread, though, I couldn't help but think about the damaging effects this show as well as others has on our youth, especially young girls. The influence to be thin and stay thin bangs into their minds daily, and not just through "America's Next Top Model." Media tells us every day that we should maintain a slim, even dangerously rail thin size. It's no wonder anorexia and bulimia are so prevalent.
Rather than shoving healthy eating habits down the throats of our children, the media shoves ideals of thinner, thinner, thinner, sizes that don't exist or that take intensive lengths to attain. Even those perfect magazine cover models have had their "imperfections" airbrushed away.
The saddest part is, this won't end. The media craze to be a perfect size zero is fed as our children starve themselves. And yes, I meant children and not girls - boys have just as many pressures to be "buff" and mighty, and they're targeted too.
This also isn't to say that all size zero people are unhealthy. That's just the size of some people and they can't help it if it's their natural size.
Here's a plus-sized opinion for you, Tyra Banks: do the world a favor and go shove some French toast in your plus-sized mouth, and don't hold back on the syrup.
Ingredients:
3 slices of wheat bread
2 eggs
equal parts mixed cinnamon and sugar
**secret ingredient** 1 tbsp. vanilla
butter/margarine
Pancake syrup (and not the "Lite" stuff. It doesn't taste as good.)
Directions:
Scramble up the eggs in a bowl with a tablespoon of vanilla. Mix up the cinnamon sugar in a spice shaker. Heat the skillet to medium heat, melting parts of butter as you go for lubrication. Dip slices of bread in egg/vanilla mix and sprinkle the cinnamon/sugar mixture on both sides. Fry in the skillet until each slice is cooked throughout. Garnish liberally with pancake syrup and enjoy!
I took a break long enough to hear bits of it, though, and to no surprise, I was disgusted with what I heard. One of the contestants was a size 10, which they referred to as "plus-sized." She didn't look unhealthy, or for that matter, much larger than the other girls on the show. She just looked normal.
Then, reality hit me - I'm a size 10. And though the ridiculousness of their label was already apparent to me, I couldn't help but feel fat as she, the other contestants and judges kept labeling her "plus-sized."
I finally snapped out of it and went to the kitchen to make French toast, mostly out of spite and hunger.
As I dipped and pan-fried the bread, though, I couldn't help but think about the damaging effects this show as well as others has on our youth, especially young girls. The influence to be thin and stay thin bangs into their minds daily, and not just through "America's Next Top Model." Media tells us every day that we should maintain a slim, even dangerously rail thin size. It's no wonder anorexia and bulimia are so prevalent.
Rather than shoving healthy eating habits down the throats of our children, the media shoves ideals of thinner, thinner, thinner, sizes that don't exist or that take intensive lengths to attain. Even those perfect magazine cover models have had their "imperfections" airbrushed away.
The saddest part is, this won't end. The media craze to be a perfect size zero is fed as our children starve themselves. And yes, I meant children and not girls - boys have just as many pressures to be "buff" and mighty, and they're targeted too.
This also isn't to say that all size zero people are unhealthy. That's just the size of some people and they can't help it if it's their natural size.
Here's a plus-sized opinion for you, Tyra Banks: do the world a favor and go shove some French toast in your plus-sized mouth, and don't hold back on the syrup.
Ingredients:
3 slices of wheat bread
2 eggs
equal parts mixed cinnamon and sugar
**secret ingredient** 1 tbsp. vanilla
butter/margarine
Pancake syrup (and not the "Lite" stuff. It doesn't taste as good.)
Directions:
Scramble up the eggs in a bowl with a tablespoon of vanilla. Mix up the cinnamon sugar in a spice shaker. Heat the skillet to medium heat, melting parts of butter as you go for lubrication. Dip slices of bread in egg/vanilla mix and sprinkle the cinnamon/sugar mixture on both sides. Fry in the skillet until each slice is cooked throughout. Garnish liberally with pancake syrup and enjoy!
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