The Pink Patch

So this story was in the news a few months ago, but the issue is still apparent. So called 'miracle' pills or patches which claim to aid you in losing weight. This particular product, The Pink Patch, was advertised on websites, including the social networking site, Facebook. This is what people were particularly up in arms about; that young women were being put under further pressure to reach an unattainable image. Looking at one of the Facebook groups about The Pink Patch shows some of the issues it raises.
Now I don't know about you, but I'm actually a bit sick of hearing the whole 'the media makes young girls have eating disorders' malarkey, because I didn't consider much comparing myself to celebrities until they kept banging on about it. So I can imagine the whole fuss that has been made about it may have created more of a problem that existed in the first place. But however it began, I have found that, unfortunately, some people are obsessed with losing weight in whatever way is possible. Just a look on the (rather dull) drugs and medications section of the Yahoo health message boards, shows that there isn't a more popular topic that 'slimming pills'. (Although Viagra comes a close second but that's another topic altogether).
So why do people do it? Why is it so important to some to be skinny? And why are people going to the extremes of tampering with their natural self to feel like they fit in in society?