Thinspiration Essentials
Thinspiration is a contraction of “thin inspiration.” The images and writings used as the basis for this inspiration come largely from women and teenage girls, not from men or teenage boys. In today’s world, the Internet serves as a primary outlet for thinspiration materials, although these materials almost certainly existed long before the formation of online communities.Pro-Ana Websites
Pro-ana is short from pro-anorexia. However, pro-ana websites don’t typically focus just on anorexia-related thinspiration. Instead, most of these sites also contain materials that focus on the eating disorder bulimia. Like thinspiration in general, pro-ana sites are largely produced and supported by girls and women. A significant number of these sites actually contain content warnings and make statements about the dangers of eating disorders. However, these warnings and statements may exist largely to help the sites avoid legal responsibilities or web-hosting restrictions.Promotion of Eating Disorders
In a study published in 2010 in the American Journal of Public Health, a team of American researchers conducted a large-scale survey of the content of pro-anorexia and pro-bulimia websites. These researchers found that most of the sites go beyond basic thinspiration themes and do things to actively promote the problematic eating behaviors that form the core of anorexia and bulimia. For example:- 40% of the sites had an advice section that explicitly promoted disordered eating
- Another 43% had advice that promoted disordered eating mixed more generally with their thinspiration content
- 50% of the sites gave advice on food purging techniques, and
- Over 70% of the sites posted advice on how to fast or follow detailed “thinspired” diets
