A new study reveals the link between social media use and body image dissatisfaction in youth across six countries.
A new research published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics investigated the prevalence of body weight dissatisfaction among youth from six countries and its association with social media use and sociodemographics. The study sample comprised 21,277 youth (ages=10-17) cross-sectionally evaluated during the International Food Policy Study Youth Survey (2019-2020).
\Multinomial logistic regression analyses revealed that 45% of participants were satisfied with their body size, while 35% of participants believed they were 'larger than ideal,' and 20% thought they were 'thinner than ideal,' with Chile (42%) and Mexico (22%) representing the worst affected, respectively. Notably, screen time (social media) was positively associated with a greater likelihood of mild to severe perceived body weight dissatisfaction, with YouTube, Snapchat, Facebook, and Twitch contributing most to these outcomes. \Youth with higher BMIs were significantly more likely to report dissatisfaction, while those with lower BMIs were predominantly concerned with being 'thinner than ideal,' underscoring the role of weight status in body image perceptions. The present study investigates the influences of sociodemographic correlates and social media use on body size perceptions in children and adolescents (10-17 years). Study data was obtained across six countries – Australia, Mexico, Canada, the United Kingdom (UK), Chile, and the United States (US) – via the International Food Policy Study (IIFPS). Data parameters of interest included time spent online, the type of appearance-based platforms used, age, sex, body mass index (BMI), ethnicity, and family income. Study data was collected in 2019 (n=11,018) and 2020 (n=12,031) via online surveys and included: Additionally, statistical models were corrected using parent-provided sociodemographic characteristics (age, sex, ethnicity, BMI, and perceived income adequacy). Weight-related teasing, which emerged as a significant factor associated with body dissatisfaction, was also analyzed across countries. \Country-specific results were statistically analyzed using multinomial logistic regression models, revealing the relative and independent contributions of social media use and sociodemographic variables on body image dissatisfaction. Study Findings Male youth also showed considerable levels of dissatisfaction, with over 50% reporting concerns about their body size, emphasizing that body image issues are not confined to females. The study validated the assumption that body size dissatisfaction among children and adolescents is a global concern, with all evaluated countries depicting the condition, particularly for the 'larger than ideal' self-perception. Interestingly, size perception across countries shared similar traits; most notably, more than half of participants perceived themselves as small-medium in body size and considered small-medium the ideal body imag
SOCIAL MEDIA BODY IMAGE YOUTH DISSATISFACTION RESEARCH
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