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Gauri Shah

English 1201

Professor Sandra E. Riley

6 July 2020

Literature Review

Social media. It is an inevitable part of modern life. With increased speeds in physical

transportation, people and goods can travel faster and to places never touched before, as can data

and media. The following question then arises: How are teenagers who spend more time on

social media and the internet more or less susceptible to depression, anxiety, and eating

disorders? Throughout all the sources related to this topic, one overarching theme is that there is

a clear connection between social media network use and mental illnesses such as anxiety,

depression, low self-esteem, and eating disorders.

According to Igor Pantic, MD, PhD, of the School of Medicine at the University of

Belgrade in Belgrade, Serbia, there are over “one billion active users” on social networking sites

such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Dr. Pantic states that “some researchers have

associate online social networking with several psychiatric disorders, including depressive

symptoms, anxiety, and low self-esteem.” The abundance of social media around the world

causes everyone to be connected, but this can also lead to everyone to compare themselves to

each other, thinking they are not good enough. In a research conducted by the Serbian Library

Consortium for Coordinated Acquisition, as search was done “using a total of 50 different

keywords related to social networking and mental health” (Pantic 2). Some words used were

“Facebook”, “Twitter”, “Depression”, and “self-esteem” (Pantic 2). This shows the explicit

connection between the social media and mental health, and the fact that users of social media
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acknowledge it. Another article that agrees with this topic but expands to discuss eating disorders

is by Carrie Hunnicutt of the Clementine Programs, who states that social media creates an

“unrealistic perception of body image”. There is great risk for cyberbullying, feelings of

exclusion, and more on social networking sites that may not be explicit, but when one digs

deeper into it, it can be impactful in a negative way. Another source of good information is from

the Staff of Mayo Clinic, who states that according to a 2018 Pew Research Center survey, 45%

of 13-17-year-olds are online at all times and 97% in total use any type of social media. The

article goes to state that “social media allows teens to create online identities” which can cause

separation of reality and fantasy and create identity disorders.

Many tips for keeping young children and adolescents off social media are listed

throughout these various articles. Some sources say that is the responsibility of parents and

guardians to teach proper social media etiquette and set boundaries for their children. For

example, Mayo Clinic states that it is necessary to set limits, monitor accounts, explain what is

and is not okay, and to encourage face-to-face contact with people (“Teens and Social Media

Use: What's the Impact?” 2). But what these self-help and parenting articles on provide

information on is what goes on inside a child’s head and on the other side of the internet. It is

important to realize that external factors are not the only thing that affect children, there are

internal impulses and thoughts that cannot be seen but are there. It is imperative for parents and

guardians of young children and teens to reinforce the fact that children are good the way they

are, and that social media shouldn’t define beauty. Getting this validation from people that care

about them can do a world of good.

Furthermore, it is important to understand the other sources on the internet that are

accessible and how these make an impact on people who view them. For example, there pro-
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anorexia (pro-ana) and pro-bulimia (pro-mia) sites that perpetuate and encourage these eating

disorders. According to Kristen Depowski and Kelly Hart on behalf of the Royal College of

Psychiatrists, these websites “advocate anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa as a lifestyle choice

rather than a serious mental disorder.” This shows the activity that happens on the backend of the

internet that may not be obvious but can be very detrimental to anyone’s body image and mental

health. These are important considerations to take into account when dealing with social media.

Some misconceptions when it comes to social media’s effects on mental health is that it

is a choice. It is simply not a choice. According to Nation Eating Disorders Organization, “[T]he

causes of an eating disorder are complex. Current thinking by eating disorder researchers and

clinical experts holds that eating disorders are caused by both genetic and environmental factors;

they are bio-sociocultural diseases. A societal factor (like the media-driven thin body ideal) is an

example of an environmental trigger that has been linked to increased risk of developing an

eating disorder.” It is important to note these misconceptions and how they may lead to false

portrayals of this topic. Hunnicut also says “Social media can easily make someone feel

excluded. Seeing your friends doing something fun without you, or even seeing total

strangers appearing to have a great time, can cause you to feel left out.”
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Works Cited

Depowski, Kristen, and Kelly Hart. "Pro-Ana Websites Should Be Regulated." Eating Disorders,

edited by Roman Espejo, Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. Gale in

Context: Opposing Viewpoints, https://link-gale-

com.sinclair.ohionet.org/apps/doc/EJ3010128250/OVIC?

u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=cec7bdb8. Accessed 22 June 2020. Originally published

as "'Pro-Ana' Web Sites Glorify Eating Disorders," ABC News online, 2006. Accessed 22

June 2020.

“Eating Disorder Myths.” National Eating Disorders Association, 22 Aug. 2019,

www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/toolkit/parent-toolkit/eating-disorder-myths. Accessed 4

July 2020.

Hunnicutt, Carrie. “5 Ways Social Media Can Trigger an Eating Disorder - Clementine -

Adolescent Eating Disorders.” Clementine, 13 Mar. 2020, clementineprograms.com/social-

media-trigger-eating-disorder/. Accessed 24 June 2020.

Pantic, Igor. “Online Social Networking and Mental Health.” Cyberpsychology, Behavior and

Social Networking, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., Oct. 2014,

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4183915/. Accessed 24 June 2020.

“Are Social Media Bots Taking Over the Internet?” RSS, www.responsival.com/post/are-social-

media-bots-taking-over-the-internet.
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“Teens and Social Media Use: What's the Impact?” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical

Education and Research, 21 Dec. 2019, www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/tween-and-

teen-health/in-depth/teens-and-social-media-use/art-20474437-. Accessed 24 June 2020.