Experts find social media contributes to eating disorder behaviors among vulnerable users
University of Nebraska student reporter Amber Rodriguez showcases how social media contributes to eating disorder behaviors in this recent article for the Nebraska News Service. Dr. Casey Tallent is featured in the piece, noting how social media platforms serve potentially harmful content that perpetuates body image standards and can trigger eating disorders. The article also shares stories from those in recovery impacted by social media content.
At 15, Gracie Firebaugh spent countless hours obsessing over her body image through social media. From secretly saving "thinspiration" content, scrolling through images supporting anorexia and learning new eating disorder behaviors, she said using social media fueled her disorder instead of helping her recover.
"It [An eating disorder] takes away almost everything from you. When you go down that road, there's not one part of your life that's not affected by it," Firebaugh said.
About nine percent of Americans will experience an eating disorder in their lifetime, according to the National Eating Disorder Association.
