I am very aware of my Facebook profile picture. Who isn't, right? I'll spend an hour choosing a new one, looking through a recent album for a photo that doesn't make me look like I have a double chin, or like one eye is twice the size of the other–but mostly, I really just don't want to look like a whale.
I've never been accused of being one, but still I am very careful about the pictures I put up. I knew that I wasn't the only one that carefully chooses what's on Facebook and what isn't because I have had friends untag photos which they thought were unflattering. But it turns out that the problem may actually be much worse than we previously thought. A new survey found that 75% of Facebook users were unhappy with their bodies and 51% said that Facebook makes them more conscious of their weight.
Read more ¿Qué más? No, I don't want to be your Facebook friend!
The survey was conducted by the Center for Eating Disorders at Sheppard Pratt where researchers pointed to Facebook comments like "I look so fat in that photo—untag me" and "Totally pigged out today—gotta start that diet" as a major cause for this Facebook body image problem. Dr. Harry Brandt, director of the Sheppard Pratt center, explains why:
Facebook is making it easier for people to spend more time and energy criticizing their own bodies and wishing they looked like someone else. In this age of modern technology and constant access to smart phones and the Internet, it's becoming increasingly difficult for people to remove themselves from images and other triggers that promote negative body image, low self-esteem and may ultimately contribute to eating disorders.
One of the more interesting things that they found is that Facebook is fueling people's need to be "camera ready." I can absolutely relate to this. Who hasn't seen a friend or family member pulling out their camera and wondered if they looked good enough for a pic, or plastered on a perfect smile and sucked in their stomach? The more I look at pictures of myself on Facebook, the more I think there's something I need to fix.
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But that needs to stop. Whenever a friend is critical of her picture on Facebook, I always assure her that she looks great. Not because I want to make her feel better but because it's true! We're much more critical of ourselves and others and it seems that this is only getting worse thanks to Facebook.
The truth is we're not perfect, so we don't need to always look perfect. Maybe next time someone pulls out a camera, I won't go to fix up my bangs and fix my top so that it lays just-so, I'll just smile naturally and remember not to hate my body just because it may not always look amazing in a picture.
Have you ever looked at pictures of yourself on Facebook and been critical of your body? Do you think Facebook has a major influence on your self confidence?
Image via Spencer E Holtaway/flickr
