Instagram: The Underlying Effects Of Social Media

It is no secret that the things we see everyday effect the way we view ourselves and the world around us. While some may see social media as a harmless playground, the underlying effects of this generations need to stay connected go way beyond what the eye can see. While social media platforms are places where people can go to share their ideas and express themselves, “Instagram is imperatively filled with half-truths and optimizations of life, yet we still use it to gauge our own” (elitedaily.com) Beneath the glittery surface of apps such as Instagram and Twitter, there is a very toxic and judgmental side that no one seems to talk about. Like most young adults around the world, I spend a lot of time on Instagram liking and commenting on pictures …show more content…
Their are tons of articles on the Internet explaining the negative effects of todays media platforms. One says “Teens are constantly exposed to seeing this “perfect image” of who they should be, all provided by social media. They feel if they can’t become that “perfect image,” then they’re not good enough for anyone or themselves” (omahacentralregister.com). This can be seen if one were to look at the comments underneath the models pictures, nine out of ten would be of young girls saying “why cant i look like you?” and tagging their friends so they can talk about how perfect the model is. While the average American woman is a size twelve to fourteen, most of the models you will see on Instagram are below a size two. Even “plus sized” models are below the national average as anything larger than a size eight is considered to be plus sized. The average american woman is not represented in todays media, and without this, people are led to believe that what they see on the internet is the average. This is very dangerous for the mind of a young teenager, as I remember when I was about thirteen years old I went to the doctor for my yearly exam, and when they weighed me my doctor looked at me and said “your current weight puts you in the “average” weight category for girls your height and age”. While it may not seem like a big deal, that night I remember being very upset because in my head if you were average that meant that you were fat. When I was seventeen years old I was having a very open and honest conversation with my closest girl friends, I decided to open up to them about this story and they revealed to me that they have gone though similar situations. One friend said they began to diet when their size zero jeans no long fit them and they had to purchase a size two, while another revealed that one of her biggest fears while