Grammy-Award winning female singer and rapper, Cardi B has made a poignant statement with her recent post on Instagram & Twitter.
Giving fans another reason as to why she’s always staying true to herself and keeping things (very) transparent, the mother-of-two posted a poolside image of her (promoting her new single that has been newly released), with one version un-retouched.
“Filter on thighs, no filter on the thighs”
29-year-old Cardi B placed emphasis on how she edited her thighs on one of the images, where as the original photo showed the small imperfections that most women have.
Is #unfiltered the new way forward?
With more and more celebrities like Cardi B and influencers posting raw, unedited photos of themselves, it creates much more realistic beauty standards for those that follow them.
With over 2 billion active monthly users and the majority of users on Instagram being under the age of 34, the Facetune and editing epidemic has lead to very harmful ideologies on how women should ‘look’ and in many ways has prompted many people to develop body dysmorphia.
The Mayo Clinic describes Body Dysmorphia as:
Body dysmorphic disorder is a mental health condition in which you can’t stop thinking about one or more perceived defects or flaws in your appearance — a flaw that appears minor or can’t be seen by others.
When you have body dysmorphic disorder, you intensely focus on your appearance and body image, repeatedly checking the mirror, grooming or seeking reassurance, sometimes for many hours each day. Your perceived flaw and the repetitive behaviors cause you significant distress and impact your ability to function in your daily life.
The various filters available, combined with other 3rd party apps that allow you to blurr blemishes and alter your body shape are making more and more people see a feed full of pictures that aren’t ‘real’.
In fact, a psychologist Phillippa Diedrichs and the Dove carried out a study that found that 60% of girls are upset that their real appearance doesn’t match how they appear online, illustrating the harmful effects of people actually gaslighting themselves into editing themselves beyond recognition.
If you find that you are often comparing yourself online to others and are getting sucked into the editing game, there are thankfully ways to safeguard your mental health when using Instagram and other social media platforms.
Diversifying your feed conciously is a fantastic move that will help dimish the number of unrealistic standards and open your eyes to various types of ‘influencers’.
The other solution is all about mindset.
Being aware that many of these influencers and celebrities, such as Cardi B in this instance, probably feel the pressure to constantly look a certain way and these people are posting the ‘best’ versions of themselves online.
However, if you feel that your mental health is declining with the use of social media, it’s defintely best to talk to a healthcare professional and take a little detox break from socials all together.
What are your thoughts on social media’s impact on body image expectations? We would love to hear your opinions on Twitter @itpliveme.