The summer season brings its share of slimming trends on social networks that intrigue and influence teenage girls. Problem, these are not always recommendable. The “toblerone tunnel,” a reference to the gap in your upper thighs, is the latest slimming fad on Instagram that has mental health experts worried. Why invoke the name of a chocolate bar to advocate very thin thighs? American stars Emily Ratajkowski and Kendall and Kylie Jenner have posted photos of themselves in swimsuits showing off their very slim legs with this triangular gap on the upper thighs. For teenagers and fans of these celebrities, this #tobleronetunnel with its pyramid shape could appear to be the ultimate way to be “hype” and parade around in a swimsuit this summer… At least that’s the (dangerous) false belief that this viral fad could convey, exposing some young girls complexed at risk of anorexia and eating disorders.
British advocates of “body-positive” images have expressed concern that the trend could damage the self-esteem of some teenage girls. “We’ve seen this before with the thigh gap trend, which has seen many young girls trying to conform to a standard of beauty that’s not only impossible for the majority of them, but also encourage them to use unhealthy methods”, observed Liam Preston, head of the British campaign Be Real for the positive promotion of the body, during an interview with the British site Unilad and taken up by USA today.
Slimming dictates and counter-attack on social networks
Fortunately, social networks are also vectors of rebellious movements against these diktats of thinness who denounce them and advocate self-acceptance far from clichés. Recently, the hashtag #objectivebikinifermetagueule created by a French actress has been talked about a lot.
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