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Social Media and Eating Habits in Female Teens

Author(s): Shuchi Shivangi1, Jennifer Cotton2

1. Candor International School 2. Headwaters Science Institute

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Summary:
Social media usage has increased in the lives of adolescents and also affects adolescents’ mental health. (1) The number of pro-eating disorder communities on social media has increased, which encourages users to participate in disordered eating…

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Social media usage has increased in the lives of adolescents and also affects adolescents’ mental health. (1) The number of pro-eating disorder communities on social media has increased, which encourages users to participate in disordered eating behavior. Many parents and educators are unaware of the scope of these pro-eating disorder communities and how these communities affect teens. (2) In Western societies, specifically the United States, mass media contributes to the appearance, body shape, and weight concerns of individuals. This dissemination of ideal body imagery in the mass media, such as magazines and social media, increases the likelihood of an individual developing an eating disorder. (3) New data suggest that there is a relationship between an individual’s body perceptions and their perceived “perfect” body type, such as a smaller waist and a larger bust for females, and a muscular figure for men. (4) The data linking media exposure to eating disorders (EDs) has increased over the last decades after the rise of supermodels in the 1900s. Women’s body anxieties have increased when they consume images of supermodels with idealized body mass indexes and weight proportions.

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Version 1.0 - published on 03 Feb 2023 doi:10.25334/9P39-5W30 - cite this

Description

With all of the issues surrounding social media today in this new digital age, Shuchi decided to explore how it impacts eating habits in teens. 

 

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