Body editing apps are the newest trend fuelling body image issues in men and women. More and more apps are created which allow you to edit your body shape, change your skin tone and apply unrealistic filters.
In the space of just 5 minutes you can completely alter your body in pictures and videos. Former athlete and body positive activist Victoria Garrick went viral when she revealed how drastically a video could be edited.
Social media creates a toxic space where people often feel pressured to alter their appearance. This is undoubtedly in order to gain online popularity and hence feel accepted. Editing apps contribute to this pressure significantly by creating a simple ‘solution’ for people to alter their body.
Instead of supporting us to accept that we are all different and embrace our individuality, editing apps encourage us to conform to society’s pressures. This has led to many of us only sharing a sculpted ‘version’ of ourselves on social media accounts.
For some people this may look something like this:
- Social comparison – It often begins by comparing ourselves to others on social media who seem to be popular and are often using editing apps themselves.
- Body editing – Next we may use an editing app and find a level of comfort and confidence in the version of ourselves we have created.
- Praise – The edited picture we create may then be praised, fuelling the belief that the sculpted version of ourselves is ‘better’ than the real version.
- Body image issues – In time it may become difficult to accept or even look at the real version of ourselves in the mirror and serious problems with body image and mental health may begin to arise.
Research surrounding body editing apps and body image
- 1 in 5 adults found images on social media made them feel worried about body image. These results increased to a shocking 40% for teenagers.
And at Natural Food Therapy, we completely agree! Body editing apps fuel weight stigma and promote the idealisation of thinness. This unfortunately contributes to an increase in body image issues and eating disorders in society. If you relate to this post, we strongly recommend reaching out for support. We also encourage you to the take the steps you need to revamp your social media accounts.
Social media can become a safe space that encourages you to embrace your true and authentic self. It can be a helpful reminder for you each day to continue your self- acceptance journey. However this can only work if filled with people who embrace this message. As an example, it can be really helpful to follow body positive or body neutrality influencers. It can be as simple as following three positive body image accounts each week and unfollowing three accounts you find triggering. Soon you’ll find that your social media page is growing into a positive, empowering space for recovery from negative body image.
Remember your body is not something that can be in and out of fashion. Rather it is a vessel to enjoy life and make amazing memories in. Instead of using apps to create bodies deemed desirable, we can start to heal from diet culture along with unrealistic body ideals. We can start to make peace with who we truly are. That is true freedom.
