June 29, 2011

We all know photoshopping has been used in the fashion, publishing, and advertising industries for years as a retouching tool. But according to the American Medical Association, it has gone too far. The AMA says that cropping and airbrushing and trimming down photos is creating a body image problem for millions of Americans, particularly women and impressionable children and teenagers.

The group says it's critical that ads stop exposing youth to body types, that are only attainable with photo editing software. "Exposure to media-propagated images of unrealistic body images" has been linked to "eating disorders and other child and adolescent health problems," the group said in a press release.

The AMA isn't the first to take a stand against photo manipulation. Last fall, Canadian fashion retailer JACOB promised that moving forward, it would stop retouching images of its clothing and lingerie models. And in both France and the UK, politicians have considered legislation that would require companies to attach a warning label to any digitally altered image.