Typically, when people think of a bikini body they might think of a slim body wearing revealing two-pieces. According to Perrernindy.com, all women should wear swimwear that makes them feel confident and a bikini body is a body that has a bikini. Liberty King, a Sophomore, says that a bikini body can be anyone who wears a bikini and feels comfortable in their own body.

“A bikini body, for me, is a body or a person who is comfortable wearing a bikini. I don’t see it as anything specific. Just if you feel comfortable, then you can wear what you want to wear,” said King.

The term bikini body came from an advertisement from 1961 to promote a weight-loss fad called “Slenderella”. Some believe that the term came from modern companies who promote only slim bodies when they advertise bikinis. Destinee Lopez, Freshman, thinks that the term comes from Barbie toys.

“I think the term ‘Bikini body’ came from Barbie companies and dolls because they were thin, skinny, white girls with bikinis and I guess that’s what people assumed a bikini body was and it just continued to today’s society,” says Lopez.

Modern companies such as Abercrombie, Lulu lemon, and Revolve are one of the many who advertise bikini wear and swimsuits for the summer. While shopping online or in stores, it is noticeable that models and fliers from advertisements showcase the same body type, slim and fit. King noticed that advertisements for companies are not inclusive for all body types.

“Companies push out a certain advertisement that I think means that you have to look a certain way to wear their products. Most advertisements, especially by clothing companies, don’t show many body types as my opinion, as they don’t have a lot of diversity when it comes to the models and body types that they show to advertise their products,” says King.

For shoppers looking for summer wear, it is important that there are clothes that fit all body types. Especially when looking for bikinis and swimwear, many have noticed that there has been a lack of clothing options for plus-sized women. Kirsten Parker, Senior, looks at clothing companies and points out the lack of plus-sized models and clothing options.

“When I look on websites and see the models, they are all the same size, their plus-sized bodies are just mid-sized bodies. So there’s not really a variety of options, it’s just one body type. I have seen some companies start to be more inclusive, but if every company, not just a select few, could include all body types like slim, mid and plus, it would be a lot better,” says Parker.

For some people, having confidence in their body is hard, especially during summer when everyone is sporting the traditional ‘bikini body’. Having low confidence in a person’s body might be caused by a person being made fun of or unhappy and having low self-esteem. Emma Garibay, Sophomore, understands that the term ‘bikini body’ can be used as a negative way to influence women.

“I feel like the way the word ‘bikini body’ is used to push the skinny image on to other women and tell them that they have to look a certain way and that they have to change their body or who they are to fit the certain agenda of the perfect ‘bikini body’,” says Garibay.

One effect of low body confidence can be eating disorders. There are many different types of eating disorders that can develop.There is a site called ‘National Eating Disorder association’ that helps with eating disorders. They say it is important to seek help when struggling with eating disorders. Ann Guffey, Nutrition teacher, explains that it’s vital that people seek help if they struggle with eating disorders.

“It is healthy to go to therapy or get help when dealing with an eating disorder because most of the time it is not only the eating disorder you are dealing with, so there are so many things that are happening in life and we each deal with them differently. Some people may develop an eating disorder from stress eating or not eating for a certain period of time,” says Guffey.

Many girls in today’s society look up to the older generation for many things, such as make-up, clothes, and boy advice. Summer is approaching and the ‘bikini body’ term also affects the younger girls who look up to the different advertisements and companies of the stereotypical ‘beach bikini body’ look. Emylee Farias Ferreira, Sophomore, expresses that younger girls are being influenced by society’s terms of a perfect body.

“A lot of younger girls are trying to act older than they are and sometimes that can lead to them being influenced by negative terms like ‘bikini body’ because, like any other teen or woman, they want to fit into that category of having a perfect body when they are too young to be worrying about it,” says Farias Ferreira.