The Renfrew Center is an eating disorder treatment facility located in North Jersey whose goal is to help educate college students on the concern of body image issues. Renfrew hosted a full day of webinars on Oct. 10 of this year, the date of World Mental Health Day, that covered topics such as “Silencing Shame Before It Silences You” and “Nourishing a Healthy Mind”. This day may have become widespread in recent years, but mental health issues such as eating disorders are still prevalent throughout society.
Alyssa Korman, MA, LCAT-P, Site Director of Renfrew’s Paramus site, explained the various reasons body issues are so prominent on college campuses. “There are many reasons why body image issues are so present on campus,” she started. “It’s the first time so many students are away from home for the first time, having to cook their own meals and wash their own laundry. It is a huge transition time of figuring out who you are in this world and the kind of impact you want to make. There is a lot of pressure to have all the right answers and not make any mistakes. With so many uncertainties you may start to look for things that you know are certain, and that can be the size or shape of your body.”
According to OHSU Center for Women’s Health, the prevalence of eating disorders doubled from 2000-2008. Korman credits this rise partially to the increased presence of social media in people’s lives. “Social media is the biggest way that we communicate in today’s world It is impossible to have complete access to everything and anything that anyone is doing all the time and not be impacted by it in some way,” she explained. “Social media is home to body image trends like ‘What I Eat in A Day’ videos and exercise/diet advice from influencers. The number of advertisements for weight-loss drugs or ads for stores that only sell a certain number of sizes can bring up feelings like guilt or shame to anyone. Seeing it repeatedly can make those feelings unbearable. It’s important to tune into how we feel by what we see on social media, and understand that the people that are giving this advice are often not qualified therapists or dietitians,” Korman said.
General awareness of the increase in social media usage throughout the last decade is nothing new. For many people, it has become an element of their daily routine. Consistent usage of websites like Instagram, TikTok, X, and more has likely affected many users; recent research has focused on users’ relationships with food and body image and whether there have been adverse secondary effects. Researchers from UCL stated, “Among 680 users who followed health-food accounts [on Instagram], 49% of them were found to exhibit symptoms of anorexia nervosa.”
Dr. Andrea Hope, Ed.D., an Associate Professor in the Department of Health and Physical Education who has published and presented her research on body image dissatisfaction and other issues affecting women’s health, commented, “Certain types of social media content can have a strong effect on an individual’s body image and eating behaviors. For example, posts from health, fitness, and beauty influencers often highlight idealized body types and lifestyles, which can lead to unhealthy comparisons.
“Before-and-after transformation photos can set unrealistic expectations for body changes and weight loss and prioritize thinness or other body types over health,” Hope continued. She additionally pointed out, “Also, the use of filters and editing tools creates distorted portrayals of bodies, making those who view these images feel inadequate. Content that encourages extreme dieting or intense workout challenges can normalize dysfunctional food and fitness behaviors.”
Michele Van Volkom, Ph.D., is a senior lecturer specializing in social psychology. Similar to Hope, Van Volkom believes that particular types of social media content have a strong negative impact on viewers. Van Volkom said, “I think any photo of a woman with an ‘ideal body’ (e.g., very thin) or a man with an ‘ideal body’ (e.g., muscular) can be harmful to young viewers, especially those who do not consciously process that the photo(s) are likely enhanced in some way. An influencer showing off a lot of their body (e.g., in a bathing suit) could have devastating consequences for boys and even more for girls, especially in Adolescence.”
Young women may forget that the social media influencers they are taking advice from are not necessarily qualified to share the health and fitness information they post, and the influencers they aspire to look like might have closely edited their pictures.
Mary Harris, a Communication professor who specializes in social media marketing and health communication, said, “The types of content that may affect people most may depend on the individual social media user, but in general, content that is carefully curated, edited, filtered, and manipulated to misrepresent reality, as well as content that shares unsafe and false health information may be harmful to those exposed to that messaging.”
Further, some individuals may find it difficult to escape this topic while scrolling due to the format of social media apps.
Harris continued, “Algorithms are designed to keep social media users engaged as long as possible and recommend content to users based on user interests and engagement with similar content, so they promote a sort of feedback loop and echo chamber of similar information. This can be an issue with disordered eating and eating disorder-related content as well as ‘fitness influencer’ content because users who frequently engage in that space will have similar information presented to them via the algorithms.”
Although The Renfrew Center focuses on the mental health of women, non-gender, and female-identifying individuals, Korman mentioned how body issues can occur in anyone. “The only requirement for body image issues is to have a body, so anyone across any age or gender can struggle with their body image at any time,” she said. “Our bodies are constantly changing and evolving so it becomes easy to judge the way we look and/or the way we are perceived by others. There are a lot of studies that show that intersectionality is a risk factor for body image distress. For instance, a person with multiple identities (such as gender, race, ethnicity, body size, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status) can have a complex relationship with their bodies due to the way their experiences in our world overlap.”
The act of coming forward about one’s body issues can be a daunting experience, and the fear of it hindering one’s life is a significant concern among college students. “The Renfrew Center offers virtual outpatient groups for college students and athletes. We also have specialized college programming at our Coconut Creek, Florida Residential site, where students can participate in classes and keep up with coursework while in treatment. We have great relationships with college campuses and work with student resources to provide psychoeducation on how to recognize someone who might be struggling, as well as attend and host events on campuses where students can come for information and support,” continued Kroman.
“Someone who is struggling with their body image might also feel that they are not worthy or loveable unless they look a certain way. A person might cope with these feelings in a million different ways. For some people, it might look like starting a diet, spending a lot of time in the gym, or only wearing a certain type of clothing. For other people, it can look like changing the way that they eat or avoiding events where food is present. All of these behaviors might seem harmless in the beginning, but they also have the potential to become dangerous,” concluded Korman.
Korman and the entire Renfrew Center staff urge people who are struggling to seek assistance. “Reach out for help,” Korman urged. “I know that it can seem like it’s normal or that everyone is struggling with the same things, but that doesn’t mean you have to struggle. Go to your campus counseling center or someone you trust like an RA. There are a lot of online resources like ProjectHeal.com that can help navigate finding the right program and understanding insurance. At Renfrew, we offer a free assessment that can be scheduled by calling the 1-800-RENFREW line. Our assessments are really in-depth and even if you don’t think you struggling that much, it might be good to talk to someone who can see what you’re going through with fresh eyes.”
