When it comes to the forever-evolving world of social media, there has been an uprise in influencers and this as a whole has also evolved. for example, what we once deemed as influencers to be people who may have been born famous or had a career on television, it’s now become extremely easy to gain a huge following if you are a character that a large audience can relate to in some way.
Since social media, mainly Instagram, took people by storm, it was usually good-looking individuals or wealthy people who had flashy lives who gained a huge amount of followers but with the introduction of TikTok, it has completely changed and now normal individuals and those who may have had a poor background are earning enough through the creator fund to pursue social media as a full-time career.
Essentially, people have evolved to what they want to see on their phones and it’s become evident that they want to see real-life people do real things. There are many types of influencers, including your beauty, fashion, fitness and food. There are also just influencers who became large due to their natural talent for storytelling; there seems to be no quick cheat code to becoming an influential person nowadays and it might happen or it might just not.
When looking at how society’s obsession with these individuals has influenced many parts of our lives, the list is endless and a huge concern is eating habits. This is not just aimed at those who choose to film mukbangs but it goes much deeper than that and we are going to talk about it today.
Where’s The Proof?
While it’s easy to say that you are constantly being influenced when you are on social media, whether you are aware of it or not, there is evidence to suggest that it’s reality. According to a study that wanted to look at how much social media impacts young people’s food choices.
Research from the BBC in 2021 indicates that social media is altering some people’s relationships with food. A study predicts that roughly 30-189 videos or images are popping up on young individuals’ feeds on a weekly basis and are likely to contain high amounts of fat and sugar.
According to the same study, young people who were exposed to vloggers who promoted fatty food went on to eat 26% more calories than people who didn’t. This makes complete utter sense, as have you ever gotten hungry after watching someone eat on TV or even just watching your friend eat a takeaway they ordered but you didn’t want any 5 minutes ago?
Is Social Media A Bad Influence?
While the research suggests that watching countless videos of unhealthy foods can encourage negative eating habits, there are also sides of TikTok and Instagram that promote a healthier alternative and encourage people to eat healthier. Fitness TikTokers are constantly showing ‘What I Eat in a Day,’ and it’s full of head-to-toe of health meals and they are filled plates with nutritious vegetables and protein-stacked options, such as an Italian-inspired pre packed sandwiches recipe so everyone can see that you don’t have to eat less to be healthier but in fact just need to substitute the poorer options for healthier and lighter ones.
There is a huge debate about whether social media is bad for your health and can go on and on, but while the answer is more than obvious that social media does impact your eating habits, it’s not just because of the food that you see on your feed.
How Else Can Influencers Change Your Eating Habits?
As mentioned, seeing foodies on social media platforms can encourage you to eat good and bad foods, but there are a few other ways that I have been influenced to eat.
Promotion
It was only recently that ‘Bloom’ and other herbal drinks were all over social media and influencers were promoting it to help fix their ‘bloating.’ I wasn’t influenced to buy this particular product because it just seemed like I would be buying a useless green powder, but it still had a huge impact on women. This was essentially supplying a product to help with digestion but it’s not uncommon that people could have been using this to an unhealthy extent or even as a meal replacement.
Body Expectations
It’s very common for individuals to do well on social media if they have the ‘perfect body,’ and that usually is a tiny waist so this can promote unhealthy relationships with food, especially in women. Society puts these unrealistic expectations on women and it can have a lasting and damaging effect on eating habits. So while the topic may not be about food, unfortunately, when it comes to appearance, the focus is usually on if I eat less, you will look like that.
Informed Decisions
It all depends on the type of influences you follow and whether they pass over the correct information for you to make informed decisions. It’s always something new to fixate over to help you ‘lose weight’ or ‘gain muscle.’ I once saw a women advocate that her drinking full-fat milk is what helps grow her glutes, which now when I think about it, this advice was stupid but it did stay with me and I believed them. Surround your feed with individuals that deliver informed advice rather than listening to anyone with a bunch of followers.
Final Thoughts
When it comes to how Instagram influencers are changing our eating habits, it’s down to who is on your feed, whether it’s a positive or negative impact and how you absorb the content you see.
