One of the best tools for communication is social media. Social media has transformed how we interact with one another and the way we view society. Social media platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook allow us to connect and communicate with anyone, anywhere, by posting a picture, sending a tweet, updating our status, or calling our friends. Even though social media has various benefits in people’s lives, it can also cause damage when it comes to influencers and trends that promote an “impossible” standard. Despite social media alone is often not the only cause of having an eating disorder, it can play a significant role for people predisposed to eating disorders. The symptoms of eating disorders differ from one another. People with anorexia restrict their eating habits to an extreme. On the other hand, the most common symptoms of bulimia are binge eating and eliminating the food by purging or laxant. Eating disorders are extremely hard to treat since their symptoms can differ from person to person, moreover weight is not an indicator. Even though there are various types of treatments, like therapy, psychiatric evaluation, medicine, and nutritional counseling, people have difficulty seeking help and treatment. It has been found that 10% of people will experience a type of eating disorder over their lifetime. This alarming information on eating disorders has also demonstrated that this mental illness can cause heart damage, kidney failure, and anemia.
Unhappiness with body weight or shape is the primary contributing factor to altered eating behaviors among many people. These disorders are especially common among young teenagers. There is proof that consistent media exposure and the emergence of eating problems are correlated. The use of photo-based social media by teenagers can be used to predict the likelihood that they will develop eating disorders. Social media are responsible for creating and advertising trends. A lot of times, these movements that are considered cool can cause insecurity or trigger in people who are not satisfied with their bodies. Moreover, with social media comes influencers and celebrities who have the power to manipulate standards, but are also manipulated by it.
One strong example of an influencer who has both started a trend in social media but has also been affected by it is Kim Kardashian. Kim is an American socialite, digital influencer, fashion icon, businesswoman, and reality star. She and her family had been at the top of the media for years. Kim Kardashian always had an hourglass figure, and since she had a huge internet impact, women started to have the desire for an hourglass body too. According to the study, appearance perfectionism — like attempting to unhealthily attain the body of a Kardashian — can cause disordered eating, unhealthy weight-control behaviors, low self-esteem and social anxiety. The body acceptance influencer Mik Zazon, 26, told New York Post his opinion on how the Kardashians end up influencing and triggering people on eating disorders So, when social media feeds are drowning in “slim-thick” body worship and the pressure to fit their curvy mold is bearing down, it could be beneficial to hit “unfollow,” according to Zazon. Instead, she advised her fans to “follow people and surround yourself with those that inspire you and make you feel your most confident self.”
Just like everything on the internet, over the past year trends changed. Recently, people have been wearing and promoting 2000’s fashion. With their emphasis on baby shirts, exposed thongs, and low-rise jeans, these styles were perceived as celebrating a very certain body type, one that is typically found in teenage girls. The specification of pubescent females was made more common by these tendencies. Young women swallowed this message and began to pursue youth and thinness unconsciously for the rest of their lives, without pausing to question the unattainable body standards. Most people on social media who adopted this fashion are extremely skinny and “possum” an “impossible body”. Consequently, Kim’s body went “out of fashion” according to fashion trends. As a result, even Kim Kardashian who has always advertised an hourglass body with shape and curves, lost a lot of weight and took out her breast implant.
In conclusion, social media has a gigantic impact in people’s lives, especially teenegars. Celebrities and influencers advertise standards and body types that are extremely difficult to reach. This triggers online users to not be content with their own body. Many times this can develop into eating disorders, anorexia and bulimia nervosa. Even though this is not 100% the fault of celebrities and social media, there are several solutions to this issue. Spreading awareness and body positivity trends can be extremely beneficial for internet users.
EAC PRESS 