In the age of Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and other social media sites, people are constantly scrolling through content. Much of this content is by models and influencers deemed the epitome of beauty. Whether consciously or subconsciously, scrolling through these sites affects your perception of beauty and can contribute to negative perceptions of your own body image.
It is crucial to understand these potential effects to maintain good mental health. It is also important to discover healthy ways to improve body image. Schedule a consultation with Mark Solomon MD, to learn more about improving your body image perception.
Negative Effects of Social Media on Body Image
Constantly seeing thin, fit, and beautiful people on your social media feed may cause you to take a closer look at your own body. It can also cause you to criticize any perceived flaws you think you have.
A study from Project Know, a nonprofit organization specializing in addiction and substance abuse, shows a link between social media and the worsening of eating disorders. There is no direct link between social media and the development of psychological disorders.
Still, there is significant evidence to show that it can trigger or worsen pre-existing psychological disorders. While an eating disorder is a negative effect, there are other ways to improve body image without causing damage to your body. Plastic surgery and other aesthetic procedures can help improve confidence.
Social Media and Plastic Surgery
The number of people seeking plastic surgery to help improve negative body image is on the rise. Mark Solomon MD in Beverly Hills and Philadelphia helps people improve body image in a safe and healthy way.
He knows that social media can negatively affect someone’s perception of themselves and works to combat those feelings with surgical and non-surgical procedures. Social media can be a great resource to explore aesthetic procedures to see if they are right for you.
Many beauty influencers try the latest treatments and document their experiences on social media. This can help you make an informed decision about your body.
Positive Effects of Social Media on Body Image
Fortunately, social media doesn’t just have negative effects on body image. There are plenty of health and wellness pages that can encourage and inspire people.
If you want to try a plant-based diet, there are countless social media personalities to follow for delicious recipe ideas. If you want to lose weight, there are many social media users who have undergone impressive health and fitness journeys that serve to inspire.
Social media is also an excellent platform for highlighting all body shapes and sizes. There are many influencers that don’t have thin, fit bodies but rather embrace their curves or excess fat.
These people can serve to help others embrace themselves. Social media can also show safe and effective ways to improve self-esteem and perception of body image, such as surgical and nonsurgical procedures.
Beauty influencers highlight the advancements in aesthetics that allows others to subtly enhance their natural beauty without drastic measures. Click here to learn about subtle procedures such as Botox, dermal fillers, and chemical peels that can help enhance natural beauty and have a positive impact on body image.
How to Help Prevent Body Image Issues
The rise of social media is still a relatively new phenomenon. Therefore, not many studies have been done to learn how to prevent body image issues related to social media.
However, some experts suggest that users put down their phones if they start to have negative feelings about themselves based on the content they are scrolling. If putting down your phone isn’t an option, you can try to customize your social media feed to purge it of the content having a negative effect on your perception of body image.
You can unfollow influencers that make you feel bad about yourself and replace those pages with content about animals, tasty food, or beautiful places. It is essential to educate people on the effects social media can have on their body image and work to help minimize these effects.
A negative perception of body image can lead to other issues such as low self-esteem, depression, and anxiety. Learning your triggers and working to avoid them is a helpful step in the right direction for preventing body image issues.
Final Thoughts
There is no doubt that social media can have positive and negative effects on the perception of body image. It all depends on the content you consume as you scroll. It is crucial to identify triggers if you have any, that cause you to perceive yourself in a negative light.
It is also important to know that there are options to help you enhance your natural beauty if you decide that is the right decision for you. This age of social media is also the age of technological advancements in aesthetics and plastic surgery. So, if you find yourself seeking these services, you can rest assured the results will be natural-looking and rejuvenating.
Be mindful when scrolling through social media and avoid pages that cause negative feelings. Embrace the pages that bring you joy and comfort. Maintaining good mental health is crucial for many reasons, and navigating social media in a responsible way is a great way to cultivate positive mental health and maintain a positive perception of body image.