Social media and body image have become a hot-button topic in recent years. It has strayed far from its originally intended use of fostering a connection with like-minded individuals and staying in touch with far-away relatives. The evolution of social media has caused negative effects on mental, physical and emotional levels. We compare and contrast the positives, and negatives and discuss strategies for maintaining a healthy relationship with digital platforms.
The Bad: Negative Effects of Social Media on Body Image
Let’s start off with the bad, ugly and downright hurtful.
Bullying and Keyboard Warriors
While social media has opened the portals for connection, it has come with a significant downfall: Accessibility. Bullying is a pervasive issue, often weaponizing and targeting a person’s body composition. Already, there exists an unfortunate relationship between obesity and bullying. Combined with social media, cyberbullying can be a relentless and torturous form of attack, as the attackers are typically hidden under the veil of anonymity. Negative body image and social media tend to go hand in hand, with vulnerable and marginalized kids being most at risk.
Reality-Distorting Filters
Let he among us who has not used the Snapchat Dog Filter cast the first stone.
In one tap, ruddy skin can be smoothed; blemishes can be erased into non-existence and sharp contours can be added. Gimmicky filters can make us look more attractive, skinnier and bronzed. While visually entertaining and eye-catching, these seemingly inoffensive filters have contributed to unhealthy social media and body image perceptions. They have warped what has been thought to have been attractive or desirable, causing unrealistic expectations.
Unrealistic Beauty Standards
Constant exposure to a parade of unattainable and unrealistic beauty standards on social media can have mental and physical ramifications.
Although we are aware that social media is often a highlight reel more than a series of candid posts, it can be easy to forget that much of what we see online has been altered and enhanced. A harsh reality came to light in 2020. According to the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, over 72% of patients requested cosmetic surgery to up their social media game. This highlights just how pervasive social media and beauty standards have become.
Constant comparison and exposure to curated grids, means levels of body dissatisfaction plummet. The social media effects on body image and eating disorders are alarming real, rendering people more vulnerable to anorexia and binge-eating disorders. Content which glorifies eating disorders can sneak its way onto teens’ FYPs, preying on insecurities and planting seeds for maladaptive coping mechanisms.
The Good: Positive Effects of Social Media on Body Image
However, it’s not all doom and gloom! While the intrusion of social media into our lives has brought with it a growing list of challenges, there is a variety of healthy and happy corners of the internet to be found. There are positive effects of social media on body image, among which include body positivity and acceptance.
A Place For Representation
In previous years, morphological standards for men and women were viewed through a toxic lens. And now that social media and body image have become enmeshed, the role of representation has never held such importance.
Body positivity on social media is a powerful tool: being able to see social media influencers who look like you is empowering. The sense of resonating helps curb loneliness and painful feelings of being misunderstood. By engaging with a diverse and inclusive community for teens and for adults alike. It’s even more powerful to increase visibility for minority groups.
Body Positive Culture
Body positivity promotes inclusion and acceptance of different body types. The social movement states that all shapes, sizes, skin tones, abilities and genders deserve self-love and respect. Social media has allowed advocates to challenge narrow and restrictive body ideals by promoting diverse representations.
Find Your Community
Community can be found and forged on your FYP. Like-minded individuals can band together to support, encourage and relate to each other. Though online, the support is strong, and real and has proven to be an important outlet for many when they have nowhere to turn. Certain communities can provide resources, suggestions and information to help members wrestling with poor body image. If you haven’t found your group yet, here are 7 ways to fit positive movement into a busy life.
How to Use Social Media In A Healthy Way
Social media can be enjoyed without it over-consuming our days, thoughts and emotions. Here are some tricks to decentralize digital from your life, if you find it having a detrimental effect on your mind.
Understand the Limitations of the Algorithm
Your favorite apps are designed to pique your interest and extend your engagement time by showing you similar content to before. A homogenous “echo chamber” can be forged, often pushing standardized beliefs of beauty and ideologies through confirmation bias. If your negative beliefs about your body are incessantly being reinforced on social media, then it’s time to actively source more positive content. Casting a critical eye on the content we consume or pausing to reflect on a questionable TikTok can yank us back to reality. Taking breaks from unhealthy social media that influences body image can help restore your self-esteem.
Time For A Social Media Detox
A social media detox is good for the soul and mental health in equal measure. If doom-scrolling leads to negative emotions and harsh criticisms of yourself, it’s time to take a step back from social media. Reducing screen time and hours clocked in online could help restore body image.
A study carried out in 2023 tested a pool of 220 students. Among this cohort of 17-25-year-olds, the students racked up over 2 hours of social media daily. The control group averaged 188 minutes while the treatment group were restricted to 60 minutes of screen-time. Distressed participants who were instructed to limit app use reported a significant improvement in how they perceived their weight and image.
It has become a less social place, making way for brands and influencers to reign supreme. So, get social! Organize activities with your friends and family that don’t require a phone (or waive a no-phone policy.) If you do find yourself reaching mindlessly for your device and your thumbs are itching to feel the scrolling of the smooth screen, consider placing a timer on your social media apps.
Comparison Is The Thief Of Joy
We’ve all heard the adage “Comparison is the thief of joy.” It has certainly been proven to be true as rising levels of comparison and self-critique go hand-in-hand with Instagram. A curated and plainly edited grid makes you wonder why it isn’t you lounging on a sun-drenched deck in the Maldives sipping on a tropical cocktail?
If you find yourself being overly critical and crest-fallen every time you open the app, think about accounts or creators you follow that make you feel this way. Bring it back to basics and try to use it for connection and not comparison. Focus on friends, passions and interesting pages that don’t revolve around body image. Take time to create a wellness vision board and cultivate healthier habits.
How To Get Help When It Gets Too Much
If you find that social media is having a detrimental effect on your overall body image and self-perception, it may be time to consult a professional. Body image issues can snowball into serious eating disorders if left unaddressed and untreated. Therapists, support groups and other mental health professionals can help you cultivate a healthier and less polarising relationship with social media.
Social Media and Body Image: Do The Positives Outweigh The Negatives?
Social media and body image have become inextricably linked. Self-esteem, eating disorders and a distorted view of self are some of the pitfalls of social media. However, many have found such apps to be a place of refuge, support and motivation. Everything should be done in moderation and social media usage should be no different.
