How Does Social Media Influence Eating Disorders?

From so-called thinfluencers to the glamorization of harmful eating habits and online personalities promoting juice cleanses, diet culture and unrealistic body standards are nearly inescapable on social media. But how does social media influence eating disorders? In this article, we’ll explore this issue and offer proactive tips for parents.

Eating disorders and adolescents 

In adolescents, eating disorders are the third most prevalent chronic illness, with cases more than doubling in the past decade. While anorexia and bulimia are the most well known, disordered eating can take a number of different forms, such as binge eating disorder and extreme picky eating. These disorders tend to emerge in adolescence, and it’s estimated that 13% of young people develop one by the age of 20. 

Social media’s impact on eating disorders

Due to their complexity, no single risk factor causes eating disorders. However, research suggests that the misuse of social media platforms is likely a significant contributing factor.

Here are some social media trends that may influence eating disorders: 

What I eat in a day 

#WIEIAD or “What I Eat in a Day” is a social media trend where users detail everything they eat in a 24-hour period.

Why it’s problematic: #WIEIAD videos often endorse unhealthy eating habits that can lead to imbalanced diets, body image issues, and disordered eating. Even if the food featured in a video is healthy for the creator, nutritional needs vary from person to person. Kids who imitate these diets hoping to achieve the creator’s body type may not get the calories or nutrients they need to thrive. 

Thinspiration/fitspiration 

Thinspiration refers to images and text promoting and idealizing thinness. Fitspiration is the promotion of health and fitness. 

Why it’s problematic: Thinspiration is the more worrisome of the two, often highlighting bony body parts, emphasizing body comparison, and promoting restrictive eating. 

Fitspiration tends to be less extreme than thinspiration — but not all fitspo accounts are healthy. Studies comparing the two reveal that fitspiration often promotes similar problematic attitudes about fitness, body image, and restrictive eating. Both tend to endorse an unrealistic ideal of a “fit-and-thin” body type. 

Thinfluencers 

Thinfluencers are social media creators who post content promoting weight loss, often through extreme dieting, with the goal of fitting a thin societal standard. 

Why it’s problematic: Thinfluencers can become negative role models for impressionable kids. Young people who spent their formative years in the pandemic may be especially vulnerable. Because the internet was a big way kids found connection during that time, they may be more likely to form a parasocial relationship with influencers, making them especially susceptible to their messages. 

Clean eating

Another concerning trend is a hyperfocus on clean eating. While eating mostly whole foods and minimizing ultra-processed foods is generally a good idea, social media has turned clean eating into a trend that kids are encouraged to buy into. This shows up as sponsored posts for “detox” green powders and online personalities with no nutrition credentials promoting fads like juice cleanses and raw food diets. 

Why it’s problematic: Orthorexia is an eating disorder characterized by an unhealthy fixation on eating only healthy and clean foods. Social media content focusing on clean eating and detoxes may entice kids into unhealthy relationships with food or reinforce already existing habits. 

Eating disorder warning signs

Maiken Wiese, a Registered Dietitian and Certified Dietitian-Nutritionist specializing in eating disorder recovery for teens and adults, shared the following list of eating disorder red flags for parents to watch for: 

• Skipping meals
• Eating alone or away from family 
• Eliminating entire food groups 
• Increased concern about appearance 
• More stress and arguments around meals 
• Eating very slow or very fast 
• Generally not being as mentally present as usual during meal times

Although we’ve all been conditioned to imagine a person with an eating disorder as looking emaciated, that isn’t always the case. Wiese cautions parents that their child’s appearance may or may not change, but that has no bearing on how dangerous disordered eating can be. 

Tips for parents

Wiese emphasizes that parents don’t cause children to develop eating disorders. Instead, “they can be incredibly helpful and some of the best supporters of children building a better relationship with food and their bodies.”

Here are some actions parents can take: 

• Lead by example. According to Wiese, “By eating with your child and taking your own focus away from dieting or weight, you provide a powerful example and can make food experiences about more than just the food: the atmosphere, the conversation, and connecting with others.”
• Check your own attitude about food and weight. Wiese says that children can internalize messages parents put out about food and weight. She advises parents to “refrain from speaking negatively about your body, other people’s bodies, or food around your children.”
• Teach media literacy. Research has shown that an adolescent girl’s body image is significantly more negative after viewing images of thin bodies, suggesting an association between exposure to these images and an increase in eating disorder symptoms. Researchers point to media literacy as a potential intervention. Teaching your children to think critically about the content they view is an important step parents can take to minimize the impact of negative social media messages about food and body image.
• Stay involved in your child’s online life. Regularly talk to your child about the content they view online. Periodically sit with them to view their feed together, and use a monitoring app like BrightCanary to stay on top of the media they consume.
• Get help if you suspect your child has an eating disorder. If you think your child may have an eating disorder, don’t hesitate to reach out to a professional for help. Wiese also points parents to F.E.A.S.T., an online resource to help caregivers support a child with an eating disorder. 

The bottom line

There’s no single reason a person develops an eating disorder, but research suggests that the misuse of social media platforms is likely a significant contributing factor. Parents can help support their child to develop a healthy relationship with food by modeling a positive attitude about eating and their own bodies, teaching media literacy, and staying involved in their child’s activity on social media. 

BrightCanary can help you supervise your child’s social media use and show you what they see on their feeds, what they’re searching, and even what they’re messaging. The app’s advanced technology scans your child’s activity and messages, alerting you when they encounter something concerning.