How Body Image is Influenced by Social Media Ahead of Summertime

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This article contains potentially triggering content, including discussions of body image, diet culture and eating disorders.

It’s no secret we’re nearing the summer or, as some say, “bikini season.”

Every Instagram story you tap through is interrupted with an ad for the hottest new swimsuit on a flawlessly slim and toned model. However, in the few months leading up to summer, there is increased attention to body image as people compare themselves to the overly edited models they see on social media ahead of the summer. As we near the summer season, altered images of models reinforce the idea of a need for weight loss or “getting into shape” to be swimsuit-ready. 

An article by Eating Disorder Hope explains that studies have found that 47% of fifth to 12th-grade girls reported their desire to lose weight after looking through magazines with pictures of virtually unattainable body shapes and sizes. These advertisements in magazines and on social media perpetuate unrealistic beauty standards with little to no body inclusivity. 

Although there is nothing wrong with changing to have a healthier lifestyle, social media platforms like Instagram present these ideals in a harmful way. As these influencers display their calorie tracking or the supplementing of a meal with extra water intake, unhealthy and damaging practices start to be ingrained into viewer’s minds. Almost 40% of all Instagram users are under the age of 24 – which is the same age range as those who are most vulnerable to the development of eating disorders – and anyone can fall victim to the life-altering changes of EDs. It can begin to feel as though there is no way not to be absorbed into following the influencer’s healthy, “it-girl” lifestyle. 

Pamela Keel, a psychology professor at Florida State University, highlights how confirmation bias is seen in this issue, as social media can affect “somebody who’s already thinking they need to be thin, or thinner, and is looking for other people to agree with them that it’s an important thing.” 

This confirmation bias is not solely centered on influencers or social media posts. A large amount of urgency to meet a specific body weight or size can be triggered by seeing one’s friends or peers posting their pictures. Instagram has become a platform meant for only the most perfect pictures. We take 200 to 500 pictures at once to be narrowed down to two, maybe three, “postable” photos. Even then, we can pick apart each insecurity we see in ourselves. 

These social media platforms are not blind to this issue. The Wall Street Journal exposed that Facebook researchers had repeatedly found that Instagram is a “toxic platform” for users, specifically young girls. The Journal continues to explain that Facebook shared in an internal presentation slide, saying, “We make body image issues worse for one in three girls.”

Similarly, TikTok has created a place for video content promoting unhealthy lifestyles with “What I eat in a day” videos, “thinspo” posts or the “legging legs” phenomenon, as an article from The New York Times explains. Experts are worried that the app is particularly dangerous for people susceptible to eating disorder relapses. TikTok’s algorithm makes it almost impossible to find a way out of the deep hole of videos centered around “body checking,” meal skipping and more unsafe behaviors.

The constant comparison of bodies has made it hard to find any enjoyment while scrolling on these apps. I have even found myself deleting social media platforms in hopes of reducing my intake of seeing edited figures and being told how to eat.

If a healthier lifestyle is what you strive for, then your inspiration shouldn’t stem from these unattainable Instagram or TikTok models. Motivation should be found through a positive desire to be healthy and happy. Next time you see a swimsuit ad on social media, remember that you’re not meant to fit into clothes; clothes are meant to fit you.