Another scholarly journal I viewed, “It’s Just Not Very Realistic”: Perceptions of Media Among Pregnant and Postpartum Women, studies the effects of social media on the body images of this less-studied demographic. The article begins with research and commentary on the "thin ideal" before transferring that image and relating it to how it affects pregnant and post partum women. For example, "a large body of research has explored impacts of media consumption on body image for women, generally suggesting that...exposure to media has been linked to body image disturbance if the media promotes a message that a thin body represents the most desirable appearance" (1). The paper argues that as women internalize this need to be thin, they attribute their worth based on their appearance. While this affects women of all ages (and men in their own ways, like not being fit enough), the article argues it increases depression in pregnant women who compare their changing bodies to both those of thin, desirable models and celebrities who remained thin or lost weight while pregnant or nursing.
The article highlights that "since the early 1990s, media has increasingly included depictions of celebrities during pregnancy and postpartum which typically focus on the appearance of the pregnant body, the ability of the celebrity to quickly lose weight after the birth of the baby, and criticism for celebrities who take more than 2 to 3 months to shed weight gained during pregnancy. These rigid depictions can have negative implications for female media consumers" (2) This presentation can result in the toxic comparisons and internalized fatphobia as discussed in the previous blog post. When seeing other women look thin and happy, externally validated by society, women begin criticizing their own figures and weight.
As I mentioned earlier, these posts depict only a moment in time and not the story behind the post- leading again to comparison and body shaming. "Media coverage of celebrities during the perinatal period...overwhelmingly focuses on appearance, ignoring elements such as the health of mother and baby or experiences of motherhood. This narrow emphasis reinforces the thin ideal and depicts women’s bodies as objects to be viewed by others" (2).
Through these scholarly journals, I've been made aware of increasing amounts of negative correlation between consuming social media and negative body image (for both women and men!) in society. The main question is...what can we do about it? If we want to continue using and engaging with social media, how do we do so in a way that promotes positive body image and realistic health?
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