Latest news with #CaroleCopti
Free Malaysia Today
17-06-2025
- Health
- Free Malaysia Today
How social media can ‘trigger' eating disorders in the young
For professionals helping teenagers recover from eating disorders, misinformation from TikTok and Instagram influencers pose a huge problem. (Envato Elements pic) PARIS : Social media can push vulnerable young people towards developing eating disorders by glorifying thinness and promoting fake, dangerous advice about diet and nutrition, experts warn. Young women and girls are much more likely to suffer from illnesses such as anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder, though rates among men have been increasing. Research has shown the percentage of people worldwide who have had some kind of eating disorder during their lives rose from 3.5% in 2000 to 7.8% in 2018, a timeframe that captures the rise of social media. For the professionals trying to help teenagers recover from these disorders, misinformation from influencers on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram is a huge problem. 'We no longer treat an eating disorder without also addressing social media use,' French dietitian and nutritionist Carole Copti told AFP. 'It has become a trigger, definitely an accelerator and an obstacle to recovery,' she added. The causes of eating disorders are complex, with psychological, genetic, environmental and social factors all having the potential to make someone more susceptible. Social media 'is not the cause but the straw that may break the camel's back,' said Nathalie Godart, a psychiatrist for children and adolescents at the Student Health Foundation of France. By promoting thinness, strictly controlled diets and relentless exercise, social media weakens already vulnerable people and 'amplifies the threat' to their health, she told AFP. 'Vicious cycle' Just one recent example is the #skinnytok trend, a hashtag on TikTok full of dangerous and guilt-inducing advice encouraging people to drastically reduce how much food they eat. For Charlyne Buigues, a French nurse specialising in eating disorders, social media serves as a gateway to these problems, which are 'normalised' online. She condemned videos showing young girls with anorexia exposing their malnourished bodies – or others with bulimia demonstrating their 'purges'. 'Taking laxatives or vomiting are presented as a perfectly legitimate way to lose weight, when actually they increase the risk of cardiac arrest,' Buigues said. Eating disorders can damage the heart, cause infertility and other health problems, and have been linked to suicidal behaviour. Anorexia has the highest rate of death of any psychiatric disease, research has found. Eating disorders are also the second leading cause of premature death among 15- to 24-year-olds in France, according to the country's health insurance agency. Social media creates a 'vicious cycle,' Copti said. 'People suffering from eating disorders often have low self-esteem. But by exposing their thinness from having anorexia on social media, they gain followers, views, likes… and this will perpetuate their problems and prolong their denial,' she added. This can especially be the case when the content earns money. Buigues spoke of a young woman who regularly records herself throwing up live on TikTok and who had 'explained that she was paid by the platform and uses that money to buy groceries'. 'Completely indoctrinated' Social media also makes recovering from eating disorders 'more difficult, more complicated and take longer', Copti said. This is partly because young people tend to believe the misleading or fake diet advice that proliferates online. Copti said consultations with her patients can feel like she is facing a trial. 'I have to constantly justify myself and fight to make them understand that no, it is not possible to have a healthy diet eating only 1,000 calories – that is half what they need – or that no, it is not normal to skip meals,' she said. 'The patients are completely indoctrinated – and my 45-minute weekly consultation is no match for spending hours every day on TikTok,' she added. Godart warned about the rise of people posing as 'pseudo-coaches', sharing incorrect, 'absurd' and potentially illegal nutrition advice. 'These influencers carry far more weight than institutions. We're constantly struggling to get simple messages across about nutrition,' she said, pointing out that there are lifelines available for those in need. Buigues takes it upon herself to regularly report problematic content on Instagram, but said it 'serves no purpose'. 'The content remains online and the accounts are rarely suspended – it's very tiring,' she said. The nurse has even advised her patients to delete their social media accounts, particularly TikTok. 'It may seem radical but until young people are better informed, the app is too dangerous,' she said.
New Straits Times
11-06-2025
- Health
- New Straits Times
#HEALTH: How social media can 'trigger' eating disorders in young people
Social media can push vulnerable young people towards developing eating disorders by glorifying thinness and promoting fake, dangerous advice about diet and nutrition, experts warn. Young women and girls are much more likely to suffer from illnesses such as anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder, though rates among men have been increasing. Research has shown the percentage of people worldwide who have had some kind of eating disorder during their lives rose from 3.5 per cent in 2000 to 7.8 per cent in 2018, a timeframe that captures the rise of social media. For the professionals trying to help teenagers recover from these disorders, misinformation from influencers on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram is a huge problem. "We no longer treat an eating disorder without also addressing social media use," French dietitian and nutritionist Carole Copti said. "It has become a trigger, definitely an accelerator and an obstacle to recovery," she added. The causes of eating disorders are complex, with psychological, genetic, environmental and social factors all having the potential to make someone more susceptible. Social media "is not the cause but the straw that may break the camel's back," said Nathalie Godart, a psychiatrist for children and adolescents at the Student Health Foundation of France. By promoting thinness, strictly controlled diets and relentless exercise, social media weakens already vulnerable people and "amplifies the threat" to their health, she said. 'VICIOUS CYCLE' Just one recent example is the #skinnytok trend, a hashtag on TikTok full of dangerous and guilt-inducing advice encouraging people to drastically reduce how much food they eat. For Charlyne Buigues, a French nurse specialising in eating disorders, social media serves as a gateway to these problems, which are "normalised" online. She condemned videos showing young girls with anorexia exposing their malnourished bodies — or others with bulimia demonstrating their "purges". "Taking laxatives or vomiting are presented as a perfectly legitimate way to lose weight, when actually they increase the risk of cardiac arrest," Buigues said. Eating disorders can damage the heart, cause infertility and other health problems, and have been linked to suicidal behaviour. Anorexia has the highest rate of death of any psychiatric disease, research has found. Eating disorders are also the second leading cause of premature death among 15- to 24-year-olds in France, according to the country's health insurance agency. Social media creates a "vicious cycle", Copti said. "People suffering from eating disorders often have low self-esteem. But by exposing their thinness from having anorexia on social media, they gain followers, views, likes... and this will perpetuate their problems and prolong their denial," she added. This can especially be the case when the content earns money. Buigues spoke of a young woman who regularly records herself throwing up live on TikTok and who had "explained that she was paid by the platform and uses that money to buy groceries". 'COMPLETELY INDOCTRINATED' Social media also makes recovering from eating disorders "more difficult, more complicated and take longer", Copti said. This is partly because young people tend to believe the misleading or fake diet advice that proliferates online. Copti said consultations with her patients can feel like she is facing a trial. "I have to constantly justify myself and fight to make them understand that no, it is not possible to have a healthy diet eating only 1,000 calories — that is half what they need — or that no, it is not normal to skip meals," she said. "The patients are completely indoctrinated — and my 45-minute weekly consultation is no match for spending hours every day on TikTok." Godart warned about the rise of people posing as "pseudo-coaches", sharing incorrect, "absurd" and potentially illegal nutrition advice. "These influencers carry far more weight than institutions. We're constantly struggling to get simple messages across about nutrition," she said, pointing out that there are lifelines available for those in need. Buigues takes it upon herself to regularly report problematic content on Instagram, but said it "serves no purpose". "The content remains online and the accounts are rarely suspended — it's very tiring," she said. The nurse has even advised her patients to delete their social media accounts, particularly TikTok.
India Today
09-06-2025
- Health
- India Today
TikTok says no to #SkinnyTok. Does it mean a win for mental health?
This is a digital-first world. Smartphones are no longer a true luxury but more of a necessity. And of course, this comes with a price, metaphorically (and yes, literally too). Then comes the Internet. It's a love-hate relationship, no doubt. On social media, you can express opinions, explore new things, and even use it to scout jobs. The pros are too many, and so are the you are someone who has been active on social media, chances are you have already been served the idea of a healthy diet culture in a reel, amongst all the other things the internet may push your way.#SkinnyTok is one such trend on TikTok. This viral trend's concept of fitness is being as thin as possible. Shrinking waistlines have become a social flex. In the guise of wellness or weight-loss tips, the content following this hashtag is about dangerously restrictive dietary methods. Now, the social media platform has banned the hashtag and instead redirects users to a mental health resource it is just like any other viral hashtag, trends like #SkinnyTok and 'What I Eat in a Day' are feeding more than just engagement, they are feeding eating disorders, to recent studies, social media plays a major role in this. Data further highlights that women are more susceptible to falling prey to these bans #skinnytokOne 'harmless' scroll (apparently), and the next thing you know, you have this urge to simply believe and start following whatever the reels and videos are showing. #SkinnyTok is a glaring example of takes just one video for you to show interest, then the algorithm floods you with more, even if you don't want it, until you do. #SkinnyTok idealised extreme weight loss. Under the guise of fitness, the hashtag promoted content about unhealthy weight loss. Eventually, it snowballed into an unsaid competition about waistlines, thigh gaps, and who is the thinnest of them all. Truth be told, it's a game you are meant to lose, and you might not even realise it comes to treating patients with eating disorders like bulimia and anorexia nervosa, experts have expressed how misinformation and social media influencers have become a major hurdle. "The patients are completely indoctrinated, and my 45-minute weekly consultation is no match for spending hours every day on TikTok," nutritionist Carole Copti told to of eating disordersIt may sound like a physiological problem, but eating disorders are a mental health issue (mostly). These are psychological disorders characterised by abnormal eating habits and distorted weight-control behaviours. Research shows that the prevalence of eating disorders has significantly surged over the years, from 3.5 per cent in 2000 to 7.8 per cent in much? Not quite. That timeline also matches the rise and diversification of social media into our everyday lives. Social media has become an inevitable part of our lives. (Photo: Pexels) "Eating disorders are more prevalent amongst adolescent females, with 5.7 per cent affected, compared to 1.2 per cent of adolescent males," a 2024 study in Front Psychiatry per a systematic review published in JAMA Paediatrics, teenage females are at an alarmingly high risk of developing eating problems, which have been linked to severe emotional anguish and medical issues. It states that, "Compared to boys, girls are three times more likely to exhibit an eating disorder by the age of 15."Why women?advertisementThe answer is twofold - it's the biology as well as the culture. 'Biologically, a woman's life is governed by certain hormones, and she experiences hormonal fluctuations throughout her lifetime. These hormones specifically influence her eating behaviours,' says Dr. Sonali Chaturvedi, consultant, psychology, Arete Hospitals, tells India Today. Women are more prone to developing eating disorders (Photo: Pexels) But that's not it. Unrealistic beauty standards for women are at play too."Society expects women to look in a certain way, to maintain a certain ideal body weight. They compare themselves with certain 'ideal' body images and have low self-esteem in case if they are not able to maintain that. So, that is the reason: where they grow up in an environment where they are not confident about how they look, their appearances, their body weight, and they end up having certain eating disorders," she validation that one gets on social media can take a heavy toll on the mind, body and soul trends thrive on self-esteem, one like and comment at a Reel
BBC News
04-06-2025
- Health
- BBC News
TikTok blocks searches for extreme thinness 'skinnytok' hashtag
TikTok is preventing users searching for "skinnytok" - a hashtag which critics say directs people towards content which "idolises extreme thinness."Content associated with the hashtag includes videos showing people's work-out routines or what they eat in a day. TikTok said it had "blocked search results for #skinnytok since it has become linked to unhealthy weight loss content."People using the hashtag will now be redirected to mental health support resources instead. According to the US-based National Alliance for Eating Disorders, the skinnytok hashtag has more than half a million posts associated with says the hashtag includes content such as low-calorie recipes which on the face of it appear to promote healthy lifestyle the organisation says, in reality, it "glorifies thinness and vilifies weight gain" and "promotes disordered eating behaviours."The trend has caused particular alarm in France, where experts have warned of how social media can push vulnerable young people towards developing eating disorders."The patients are completely indoctrinated -- and my 45-minute weekly consultation is no match for spending hours every day on TikTok," the nutritionist Carole Copti told the AFP news blocking of the hashtag has been celebrated by France's digital minister, who wrote on social media that "skinnytok is over" thanks to lobbying by European politicians. In its statement, TikTok said it regularly reviewed its safety measures to "address evolving risks"."We continue to restrict videos from teen accounts and provide health experts and information in TikTok Search," it is not the first time TikTok has been forced to take action over content which raised body image March, it blocked so-called "chubby filters" - a viral tool which made people appear overweight. Sign up for our Tech Decoded newsletter to follow the world's top tech stories and trends. Outside the UK? Sign up here.
South China Morning Post
04-06-2025
- General
- South China Morning Post
How SkinnyTok TikTok trend and others glorifying thinness can spark eating disorders
Social media can push vulnerable young people towards developing eating disorders by glorifying thinness and promoting fake, dangerous advice about diet and nutrition, experts warn. Advertisement Young women and girls are much more likely to suffer from illnesses such as anorexia, bulimia and binge-eating disorder, though rates among men have been increasing. Research has shown the percentage of people worldwide who have had some kind of eating disorder during their lives rose from 3.5 per cent in 2000 to 7.8 per cent in 2018, a timeframe that captures the rise of social media. For the professionals trying to help teenagers recover from these disorders, misinformation from influencers on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram is a huge problem. 'We no longer treat an eating disorder without also addressing social media use,' French dietitian and nutritionist Carole Copti says. Advertisement 'It has become a trigger, definitely an accelerator and an obstacle to recovery.'
