Media, Advertising And Eating Disorders

EDM number 151 in 2010-12, proposed by Jo Swinson on 03/06/2010.
Categorised under the topics of Food, Health education and preventive medicine and Media.

That this House notes that 1.6 million people in the UK are affected by eating disorders; further notes that an increasing body of research indicates that the media has a role in providing a social context for both the development and maintenance of eating disorders; further notes that the Royal College of Psychiatrists suggests that the irresponsible use of digital enhancement or airbrushing is one aspect of this problem; urges the Government to establish a forum for the development of an editorial ethical code regarding the media's portrayal of body critical issues and the Committee on Advertising Practice to introduce a kitemark scheme to declare the extent to which digital retouching technology has been used to create overly-perfected and unrealistic images of women and men, as suggested by the Royal College; and supports the promotion of media literacy within schools as outlined by the eating disorders charity Beat in its new manifesto.

This motion has been signed by a total of 29 MPs, 1 of these signatures have been withdrawn.