P3.027: Snatched: An Analysis of Body Image Portrayal by Youth Fashion Brands

Background: The portrayal of bodies in fashion advertising has long been a concern, perpetuated by the addition of photoshop. Adolescents recently adopted the term "snatched" to describe a waist that narrows to a thin, hourglass shape. Shein, Temu and American Eagle (AE) are three popular fashion brands that are targeted toward teens, whereas Target, Walmart and Kohls target a broader audience. The objective of this study is to examine the difference in waist ratios between adolescent-focused and non-adolescent focused brands to determine if adolescents are consuming exaggerated hourglass figures.

Methods: 90 images were collected from six fashion brands: Shein, Temu, AE, Target, Walmart, and Kohls. 15 images were collected form each brand, including 3 tank tops, 3 other shirts, 3 dresses, 3 bikinis, and 3 leggings. Data coders selected form-fitting, unobscured outfits from the top-left of each website, avoiding repeats of models or clothing articles. The following data was gathered: 1.) waist:hip ratio, 2.) waist:shoulder ratio, 3.) waist profile:gluteal profile ratio, 4.) clothing price, 5.) discount from original price. All measurements were taken using ImageJ. Definitions: shoulder width was the distance between the outermost points of the shoulders, waist width was the narrowest torso section, waist profile width was the narrowest torso profile, hip width was the widest pelvic section, and gluteal profile width was the distance from the outermost glute to the front of the leg. Descriptive analyses were performed in R.

Results: The average waist:hip ratio was 0.715, with Shein (0.694) and Temu (0.691) falling below this average, while AE, Target, Walmart, and Kohl’s had higher ratios, ranging from 0.717 to 0.736 (see table 1). The average waist:shoulder ratio was 0.633, with Shein (0.610) and Temu (0.626) falling below the overall average. The waist profile:gluteal profile ratio averaged 0.782, with Shein, Temu, and AE showing lower ratios, ranging from 0.682 to 0.741. A two-tailed t-test revealed significant differences between adolescent-focused brands and non-adolescent-focused brands for both the waist:hip ratio; t(70)=2.164, p=0.034 and the waist profile:gluteal profile ratio; t(16)=4.014, p=0.001. No other significant differences were found.

Conclusion: Adolescent-focused brands, especially online-only ones like Shein and Temu, may perpetuate unrealistic body standards, with their waist:hip, waist:shoulder, and waist profile:gluteal profile ratios consistently below average. These exaggerated ratios are made possible by photoshop, and could become more common with generative A.I. Medical providers should discuss the unrealistic body standards perpetuated by adolescent brands with their patients.