While you are relaxing on your couch and scrolling down your social media accounts, you came across a picture of someone whose charming look and slim body shape you admire; your eyes capture the perfect picture, you hit “like” and keep browsing. Do you think the impact of this picture has ended at this point? If your answer is “Yes”, then you have to think again.
Needless to say, social media has created a fertile environment for interactions and engagement, and has allowed people to share moments of their life with others. However, we should peel away this glamorous surface and dig under the surface that hides an alarming aspect of this glittery story, which could harm youth mental health seriously.
Besides the mentioned role, social media has also set standards, sometimes unrealistic, regarding lifestyle, look, body image, habits, success, etc. These standards do not only stop at being displayed on homepages; they compose a kind of hidden pressure that can take its toll on you and make you unconsciously conform to them. The picture you have just liked could have a long-lasting effect on your mental health due to the comparison you hold between yourself and what you conceive as the “perfect” picture.
This comparison can promote increased body image concerns in youth who struggle to cope with the standards they are exposed to through social media. As a result, trying to obtain this perfect body may lead to two of the main eating disorders linked to mental health: Anorexia nervosa and Bulimia nervosa.
Anorexia nervosa
It is a serious psychological condition and a potentially life-threatening eating disorder that commonly involves emotional challenges, an unrealistic body image, in addition to an exaggerated fear of becoming overweight or obese. It is considered the third most common chronic illness among teens.
People with anorexia restrict the amount of food and calorie intake; they tend to vomit after eating or misuse laxatives. It does not stop at a certain point; they continue trying to lose weight out of fear of weight gain, even if they reach a very low weight.
Symptoms are divided between physical and behavioral. Physical symptoms can be evident in a very low Body Mass Index (BMI), dry or yellowish skin, and bluish discoloration of the fingers, thinning hair, absence of menstruation, dehydration, and intolerance of cold. Behavioral signs include restricting food intake, frequently skipping meals, exercising excessively, overusing laxatives, vomiting, avoiding to eat in public, repeated weighing, social withdrawal, and irritability.
Complications resulting from this behavior could be alarming since the lack of nutrients may cause:
- Cardiovascular problems such as low heart rate and blood pressure;
- Higher risk of developing leukopenia, or low white blood cell count, and anemia;
- Gastrointestinal problems such as constipation, bloating, or nausea;
- Lower levels of growth hormones that may lead to delayed growth during adolescence;
- Loss of muscle and bone fractures due to osteoporosis;
- Kidney problems resulting from dehydration.
On the mental health scale, people with anorexia commonly suffer from other mental health disorders: depression, anxiety, difficulty handling stress, being excessively worried or afraid, being a perfectionist and overly concerned about rules, having a high level of emotional restraint or control over their own behavior and expression.
Bulimia nervosa
It is a serious mental illness and eating disorder characterized by a cycle of excessive overeating (binging) followed by vomiting to undo the effect of eating. Unlike anorexia, people with bulimia can be overweight or obese and they use purging to manage their weight.
The physical signs can be evident in fluctuations in weight, stomach cramps, muscle weakness, unusual swelling of the cheeks or jaw, difficulty concentrating, sleep problems, feeling cold all the time, poor wound healing, and impaired immune functioning. Binging and purging, fear of eating in public, extreme mood swings, extreme concern with body weight and shape, and drinking excessive amounts of water are the most common behavioral signs.
Complications of these behaviors can be very serious, starting with the purging and binging that put severe stress on the body and heart, causing arrhythmia and heart attacks. Chronic stomach problems are also complications of bulimia, such as chronic gastric reflux and gastropareses; also, repeated vomiting can lead to rapid tooth decay and yellowish teeth. Moreover, fertility problems could occur.
Not perfect, only filtered
The good news is that both of these diseases can be treated through hospitalization and counseling; the patient may need to go through a cycle of psychotherapy treatment, family-based and individual. However, in order not to reach this point, we should believe that we are all different in look, body shape, way of thinking, and so many other things; that is what makes every one of us unique. By trying to listen to our inner voice and build an honest sense of self, we would be able to reach a safe shore of our own, away from all these filtered messages that try to show us that there is only one way of beauty.
Reference
mayoclinic.org
medicalnewstoday.com
nationaleatingdisorders.org
sciencedirect.com
theguardian.com
Photo credit Freepik