As part of activities for World Mental Health Day last week, Cybersmile has released the 2023 Body Beauty report.
The Body Beauty report is a national report that saw 2000 participants aged 16+ asked a series of questions about how social media impacts how they view their bodies.
The research project had some concerning findings:
- 51% of respondents said that social media makes them feel insecure about their own body
- 50% of respondents said that social media makes them feel that they hate their own body
- 47% of respondents said they feel pressure to use filters or tools to edit their appearance on social media images or videos
- 55% of respondents said social media makes them feel they need to lose or gain weight
- 56% of respondents said they feel too anxious to share unedited or untouched photos of themselves on social media
The findings from the Body Beauty report will be used by Cybersmile to help them to continue to provide the best support, education and resources to those who need it.
To start this off they have launched an interactive educational module using the findings from the research to educate internet users about the impact social media and online life can have on their wellbeing.
You can access the module here.