Overexposure to “perfect” bodies, culture of normalized thinness … A study points to a worrying link between time spent in front of screens and social networks and eating disorders in children from 9 to 14 years old.
- A study reveals that the more children aged 9 to 14 spend time in front of screens and social networks, the more likely they are to develop eating disorders, such as mental anorexia, bulimia and bulimic hyperphagia.
- Exposure to thinness ideals deforms their perception of reality and promotes the obsession with dangerous weight and food behavior. Networks normalize unrealistic standards, which makes it difficult to dexic toxic by parents.
- To protect young people, it is essential to monitor their news wishes, limit screen time and consult a professional in the event of disturbing signs related to food.
The impact of screens and social networks on young people is increasingly worried, and a new study adds an additional reason to worry about it: their association with eating disorders. Research, published in the journal Eating and Weight Disordersreveals that the more children aged 9 to 14 spend time in front of the screen, the more likely they are to develop eating disorders, such as mental anorexia, bulimia and bulimic hyperphagia.
Permanent exposure to unattainable ideals
The study, carried out on more than 10,000 children, highlighted a correlation between screen time and behaviors such as fear of gaining weight, hypervaluation of appearance, hyperphagia attacks or excessive exercise to compensate. Two years after the initial evaluation, participants inclined to excessive social networks had an increased risk of manifesting this type of symptoms of eating disorders. This is not the first time that researchers have made a link between overconsumption of screens and eating disorders, according to a press release : A 2021 study had notably shown that each additional time of screen increased the risk of hyperphagia disorder a year later.
The myth of “perfect bodies”
The link between social networks and eating disorders is based on several factors. Adolescents are exposed to images of “perfect” body, often retouched, which distorts their perception of reality. Imposing an unattainable ideal, some content even encourages dangerous eating behaviors, while other advertisements use the fact that young people are “bad in their skin” to sell weight loss products.
The pressure of the gaze of others, thus exacerbated, plays a major role. On social networks, appearance is constantly scrutinized, between compliments and criticism. “The culture of slimming, with unrealistic standards, is so standardized that it makes it difficult to detect these toxic content by parents”note scientists.
How to protect children?
Experts recommend that they examine the news wires of their children and integrate various content, including various bodies of morphologies and centers of interest to body image. Other simple measures can also reduce the risks: limit screen time, especially during meals, and be attentive to any change in eating habits or self -perception.
If a teenager has an excessive obsession with weight, appearance or diet, consulting a healthcare professional can be decisive to prevent or treat a food disorder. Doctors, for their part, should integrate the screen time as a potential risk factor when detecting food disorders in adolescents, conclude the authors of the study.
