ArticlePLOS global public health2023
The social media diet: A scoping review to investigate the association between social media, body image and eating disorders amongst young people.
Article in PLOS global public health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 118 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
118 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Associations of Problematic Smartphone Use and Smartphone Screen Time With Eating Disorder Psychopathology in Non-Clinical Samples: A Systematic Review.JMIR mental health · 2026Pooled it
- Idealized Body Images and Fitness Lifestyles on Social Media: A Systematic Review Exploring the Link Between Social Media Use and Symptoms of Orthorexia Nervosa and Muscle Dysmorphia.European eating disorders review : the journal of the Eating Disorders Association · 2026Pooled it
- A comprehensive analysis of global, regional, and national trends in anorexia nervosa burden (1990-2021) and projections to 2040: insights from the global burden of disease study 2021.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Article
- Increasing social media use trajectories are linked to greater eating disorder symptoms.Annals of epidemiology · 2026Article
- "The Only Place I Feel Understood": A Mixed Methods Survey of Adolescent and Caregiver Perspectives on Social Media and Parental Controls.Clinical child psychology and psychiatry · 2026Article
- Social Media Use and Health: What We Have Known So Far, and What We Need to Investigate in the Future.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- TikTok and Eating Disorders: A Narrative Review.The International journal of eating disorders · 2026Review
- Attachment Anxiety and Disordered Eating Among Chinese Young Women: The Mediation of Different Negative Emotions.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Motivations for Restrictive Dieting and Cognitive Restraint Among Polish University Students.Nutrients · 2026Article
- Associations Between Social Appearance Anxiety, Disordered Eating Attitudes, and Orthorexia Nervosa: A Cross-Sectional Study.Brain and behavior · 2026Article
- Understanding vulnerabilities and resilience in binge eating disorder among female population and transgender individuals across the lifespan: a narrative review.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2026Review
- Bodies on Display: A Scoping Review of Appearance-Focused Social Media, Body Image, Self-Esteem, and Psychological Wellbeing in Adolescent Girls and Young Women.European journal of investigation in health, psychology and education · 2026Review
- "I Was Just Like a Sponge, Absorbing All the Wrong Information": Examining the Role of Social Media in Athletes' Eating Disorder and Recovery Experiences.The International journal of eating disorders · 2026Article
- Time to Address Eating Disorder Risk Among Medical Students.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Unmasking Atypical Eating Disorders: A Case Series Highlighting Diagnostic Delays and Underrecognized Populations.Cureus · 2026Article
- Clinical characteristics linked to persistent and emerging eating disorder risk trajectories in young people seeking mental health care.European child & adolescent psychiatry · 2026Article
- The association between social media use and eating disorders in young adults: a systematic review.Journal of eating disorders · 2026Review
- Eating Disorder Risk and Its Biobehavioural Correlates in Italian University Students: The UniFoodWaste Study.Nutrients · 2026Article
- From Family Patterns to Eating Disorder Risk: The Role of Social Media, Appearance Ideals, and Body Image Among Emerging and Young Adults.Nutrients · 2026Article
- The Relationship Between Premorbid Weight Status and Eating Disorder Onset in Adolescents: A Longitudinal Study.The International journal of eating disorders · 2026Article
58 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundEating disorders are a group of heterogenous, disabling and deadly psychiatric illnesses with a plethora of associated health consequences. Exploratory research suggests that social media usage may be triggering body image concerns and heightening eating disorder pathology amongst young people, but the topic is under-researched as a global public health issue.
aimTo systematically map out and critically review the existing global literature on the relationship between social media usage, body image and eating disorders in young people aged 10-24 years.
methodsA systematic search of MEDLINE, PyscINFO and Web of Science for research on social media use and body image concerns / disordered eating outcomes published between January 2016 and July 2021. Results on exposures (social media usage), outcomes (body image, eating disorders, disordered eating), mediators and moderators were synthesised using an integrated theoretical framework of the influence of internet use on body image concerns and eating pathology.
resultsEvidence from 50 studies in 17 countries indicates that social media usage leads to body image concerns, eating disorders/disordered eating and poor mental health via the mediating pathways of social comparison, thin / fit ideal internalisation, and self-objectification. Specific exposures (social media trends, pro-eating disorder content, appearance focused platforms and investment in photos) and moderators (high BMI, female gender, and pre-existing body image concerns) strengthen the relationship, while other moderators (high social media literacy and body appreciation) are protective, hinting at a 'self-perpetuating cycle of risk'.
conclusionSocial media usage is a plausible risk factor for the development of eating disorders. Research from Asia suggests that the association is not unique to traditionally western cultures. Based on scale of social media usage amongst young people, this issue is worthy of attention as an emerging global public health issue.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.