In an effort to combat toxic beauty standards promoted online, Instagram announced it will tighten its policy on posts related to weight loss products and cosmetic surgery by hiding related posts from users known to be aged under 18. The policy update, which will also be applied to Facebook, includes the removal of any content that makes a “miraculous” claim about a diet or weight-loss product which was simultaneously linked to a commercial offer such as a discount code or affiliate link. Finding a discount code for some unhealthy meal supplement isn’t hard work, just head to Khloe Kardashian’s Instagram profile — who advertises to almost 100 million followers. As influencer culture has creeped its way into almost every business model, it has unsurprisingly increased the promotion of dieting products including “appetite-suppressing” meal supplements. Inevitably, this has raised concerns about the impact that diet and detox content can have on young people, especially their mental health and body image. In 2017, a study titled “#StatusOfMind” by the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH), found that Instagram is rated as the worst social media platform when it comes to its impact on young people’s mental health. This policy update has been praised by countless users of the platform, including actor and body positivity activist, Jameela Jamil, who has previously called out influencers on Instagram for posting toxic content.
— Jameela Jamil ? (@jameelajamil) May 16, 2018 On Twitter, Jamil described the update as “a major step in the fight with the dirty side of diet/detox industry.”
— Jameela Jamil ? (@jameelajamil) September 18, 2019 It’s only now we’re admitting the detrimental effects toxic posts like weight-loss promotion can have on people’s physical and mental health. It’s reassuring to see Instagram and Facebook take responsibility for what the platform has previously been exploited for. But it’s yet another reminder that platforms need to prepare themselves to be continually responsive to changes in society and media.
