A healthy self-image protects against false role models
Nutrition, fitness and body worship are omnipresent on social media. This world of filtered self-presentation is often difficult to understand, especially for children and young people. What can parents do to prevent their child from developing eating disorders or other psychological problems?
While young girls and boys used to compare themselves mainly with their immediate environment, their interactions today go far beyond their real peer group. Thanks to digitalisation, the whole seductive world of social media is available to them.
Influencers serve as role models whose values and ideals are emulated. The topics of nutrition, fitness and body culture play a particularly important role here - and the target audience is getting younger and younger. Even first-graders are concerned with beauty ideals and diets.
Very few people realise that these beauty ideals do not correspond to reality, as retouching images is literally child's play with today's technology. Apparent blemishes such as spots or annoying strands of hair disappear with just a few clicks. Even changing the shape of the face and body is just an app away.
Deception and trickery: all that glitters is not gold
But it's not just optical illusions that lurk on social media. Diet and exercise habits that suggest a healthy lifestyle are popular with children and young people. This is problematic in many respects.
The diets propagated often deviate from the scientific recommendations. For example, because certain food groups are omitted and therefore lack important nutrients or only cover a fraction of them.
What's more, the published photos are always just snapshots. How much of the staged meal the influencer has actually eaten and how the internet idol organises the rest of the day's meals remains an open question for young followers.
The amount of physical activity required for the supposed dream body is also rarely represented realistically. How much time influencers spend in the gym and whether they even use substances to boost their muscle strength remains an open question.
Dubious recipes for success and possible side effects
More and more companies are capitalising on social pressure by using influencer marketing to get their products in front of people. People with just a few hundred followers have discount codes and promise pills, powders, crazy diets and gadgets as the easiest way to a supposedly dream body.
However, not all of the products presented fulfil their promises. Often the advertised positive effects cannot be scientifically proven. Certain products ordered abroad may even contain substances that are harmful to health.
Genetic characteristics and individual needs, which also play a role in terms of diet and body shape, are rarely discussed in social media. This can increase the pressure to conform to a norm.
According to several studies, the number of young people suffering from eating disorders rose by around 20 per cent between 2008 and 2018. The direct link to social media has not yet been conclusively researched. However, according to a study by the University of Pittsburgh, just 20 minutes a day spent on social media can significantly increase the risk of an eating disorder. However, it should be noted that this is just one of many possible factors - there are usually several causes for the development of an eating problem.
What parents should bear in mind
- You too will often use your smartphone for your children to see. Talk openly about the fact that you as an adult are also sometimes influenced by social media.
- Open, non-judgemental communication ensures more transparency and education. Show an interest in what your children consume and talk about it; this can put many issues into perspective. By researching trends and products together, your child will learn to critically scrutinise information.
- A safe environment and boosted self-esteem can help children to better distance themselves from the influences of social media. Openly address distorted beauty ideals and educate your child about the possibilities of image editing. If you have the technical knowledge, carry out such image manipulations together with your child.
- If children and young people are interested in the recipes or diets of their online role models, let them try them out in the kitchen. This allows them to gain experience and see that not everything looks as spectacular in reality as it does on the screen.
- Find out from the school what nutrition-related content your children are taught. This usually provides a good basis for your child's healthy development.
Distinguishing between healthy and unhealthy trends is a challenge at every stage of life. However, it is particularly important for adolescents. This is because the diet learnt in childhood not only has a lasting effect on health, but also on the risk of illness later on.
Raising children away from social media is hardly an option for parents these days. But what can you do? It is important to teach children how to use digital media in a healthy way. After all, when consumed sensibly, social media also offers opportunities: more and more young people are exploring topics such as intuitive nutrition or self-love, and there is a trend towards authenticity and acceptance of one's own body shape, also known as a «positive body image».
