'Pro-anorexia' videos glamorizing weight loss are rife on TikTok New research shows that even a few minutes of exposure can trigger declines in body image satisfaction among young women TikTok needs to do more to control such content, researchers say FRIDAY, Aug. 9, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Women exposed to TikTok videos that make eating disorders look cool and glamorous tend to have worse body image, a new study finds. These videos include what researchers call "pro-anorexia" clips, as well as other videos focused on weight loss.
“Our study showed that less than 10 minutes of exposure to implicit and explicit pro-anorexia TikTok content had immediate negative consequences for body image states and internalization of appearance ideals," wrote study co-authors Madison Blackburn and Rachel Hogg , from Charles Sturt University in Australia. TikTok is incredibly popular among young users worldwide, and its algorithm creates a customized "For You" page based on user preferences. That means that if girls and young women show a liking for weight loss-oriented videos, such clips can quickly flood their TikTok feed.
To understand the impact of all this on viewers' psyches, Blackburn and Hogg surveyed 273 women between the ages of 18 and 28. They queried the young women on how much time they spent on TikTok, and also assessed symptoms of disordered eating (conditions such as anorexia and bulimia). These conditions also included what's known as orthorexia: An unhealthy fixation on res.