It is no secret that social media has taken over the social landscape of today’s teens. In my research, I aimed to examine the parasocial relationship between eating disorder culture and various social media platforms. I interviewed my best friend Isabel to have a candid discussion about how social media can inadvertently cause eating disorders and the renormalization of “thinspo.” This is a newsworthy topic because there has been a resurgence of pro-eating disorder content on social media with the rise of the app Tik Tok, making it an extremely prevalent issue.
“It went from Tumblr to ED Twitter to tik tok, everyone body checking themselves and like TW anorexia, TW ed TW self-harm like everything having to do with the body image on Tik Tok can be so harmful to people.”
Tumblr was a haven for eating disorders in teens. Has TikTok replaced it?
The incidence of eating disorders has been steadily increasing since 1950, NEDA reports. This includes eating disorders among adolescents. Each decade since 1930, the number of anorexia nervosa cases among young women ages 15 to 19 has increased. In addition, the incidence of bulimia in women between the ages of 10 and 39 tripled between 1988 and 1993. Anorexia statistics for teen girls and young women are especially alarming: For females between 15 and 24 years old who suffer from anorexia nervosa, the mortality rate associated with the illness is 12 times higher than the death rate of all other causes of death.
Monroe, Jamison. “Scary Truth on Teen Eating Disorders.” Newport Academy, Newport Academy, 18 Aug. 2020, www.newportacademy.com/resources/mental-health/scary-truth-teen-eating-disorders/.
If you or someone you know may be struggling with an eating disorder, please utilize the resources below.
National Eating Disorders Helpline
Mayo Clinic Eating Disorder Treatment Options