Almost everybody in their lives has heard someone say “you are what you eat”. This is a popular saying that actually is very true since our bodies need a specific supply of daily nutrients to function correctly and the food we ingest provide this fuel. If the food that you ingest doesn’t contain the nutrients that your body demands, it will affect your general well-being.

Now, what happens if we transform it to “you are what you consume”? The consuming could come in many forms: Songs, movies, books, advertisements, TV shows, among others. All of these form part of our everyday and in the same way food nurture us physically, they nurture our minds and could affect our way of seeing the world.

Day by day, we are exposed to many behavioral examples through media. We see models recommending clothing trends, actors promoting various life-styles, politicians discussing social issues. Thanks to globalization, we can now access to a broad range of topics that a couple of years ago we would never imagine. And we, like a sponge, absorb every bit of information. Everything is processed in the brain and depending of the content, it end ups up having an impact in the formation of ideas and opinions.

The Good

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It’s not a secret that most people mirror what they see in TV or Internet. It is very common that a group of fans of a band or a popular show somehow start acting similar. It is part of how mass media works.

In my personal experience, I’m a huge fan of books and I have found myself adopting habits and expressions from different characters I have admired through the years. Consciously and unconsciously. All things considered, sometimes I feel like I am a collage of all the things I like.

I have actively changed the way I do something after watching a good explicative video. In other cases, I haven’t even noticed when I changed my mind about a sensitive topic, but I know it’s a consequence of reading different points of view from people who experienced it.

Internet, mostly, has made possible to create awareness about situations that occur very far away from us, but we still can somehow come into contact with it as if we were there. Learning so many things from different cultures around the globe makes me feel empowered and I keep searching for new information all the time.

When it comes to movies, I enjoy watching comedies, because they’re uplifting and I can instantly feel cheerful. Here in Steemit, I follow people who always have kind words and assertive advices to others, so the environment is welcoming to express my thoughts.

All I mentioned before give me energy to do my daily activities, just as food does. Nurturing content can help you grow up as a person and create ethics and values. However, since not all food is beneficial, that means that not all the influence we get from media is positive either.

The Bad

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We all know about the impossible stereotypes that social networks enforces. There is a term called “Instagram Envy” that refers to the feeling of inadequacy some people has when going through the profiles of famous celebrities. They see these “perfect” lives and feel like they’re failing.

Prejudices, hate and discrimination are all consequences of negative media and they all stop the development of a good set of morals and beliefs. We often find people who constantly pick up fights in comment sections of posts, excessive production (and consumption) of violent movies, songs that romanticize depression and suicide. In addition, it is almost impossible to watch news and don’t hear about school shootings and terrorist attacks. Nonetheless, we don’t have to shelter ourselves from this, but we can’t obsess about it either.

If you know that eating saturated fats and sugary drinks can lead to diseases, would you keep eating them indiscriminately? Probably not, most people at least have some control. So, if you know that constantly consuming negative content can drain you and lead to pessimism, would you keep doing it? Sadly, many still over-focus in horrific and shocking situations and live with fear and anxiety about the future. They feel like there is not any good left in the world and this is not true.

Everything in between

[Media] can harbor a flow of generally undesirable things such as anger and sadness, unhappiness, but good things also flow like happiness, love, altruism, and valuable information. Source

Personally, I try to surround myself of content that satisfy my demand of substance. Of course, that doesn’t mean that only the happy things have substance, because in the classic dichotomy of life, exposure to both sides of the coin is important. What we do with the messages we receive, is what makes the difference. I choose to transform everything in a lesson.

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So, the important question we need to ask ourselves is, am I nourishing my mind?

If the things you constantly watch/read/listen to make you feel strong, happy and invigorated, then the answer is yes. You are giving yourself a good and balanced diet. However, if you instead feel exhausted, frustrated and uncomfortable after checking out a specific content, then you are consuming unhealthy media and should stop immediately.

I invite everyone to share their “media diet” and analyze if you’re having healthy influences from what you consume.

Image sources: 1, 2, 3,4