More than ever before, our teens and even younger children are hopping on the body-image bandwagon, in large part due to social media. It's a dangerous trend that can lead to extreme social media influences. We find out more with Elizabeth Milovidov, founder of DigitalParentingCoach.com.
This show aired on May 14, 2024.A programme produced by Amanda Alexander, Marina Pajovic and Georgina Robertson.
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This show aired on May 14, 2024.A programme produced by Amanda Alexander, Marina Pajovic and Georgina Robertson.
Visit our website:
http://www.france24.com
Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/FRANCE24.English
Follow us on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/France24_en
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NewsTranscript
00:00 Spring slowly makes its way toward warmer weather.
00:02 Many people are trying to get back in shape,
00:04 look their very best for the summer,
00:06 just like we do every year.
00:07 But this year, even more than before,
00:09 our teens and even younger children are hopping
00:13 on the body image bandwagon,
00:14 in large part due to social media.
00:17 Now, it can be a dangerous trend,
00:18 and we're gonna talk about some of the more extreme
00:20 social media influences out there
00:22 that are putting additional pressure on our kids
00:24 with digital parenting expert, Elizabeth Milovidov,
00:27 who joins me on the set.
00:28 Hi, Elizabeth.
00:28 - Hello, Jeanne.
00:29 - It's so great to have you on the show.
00:31 - It's a pleasure.
00:32 - So just kind of set the stage for us first, if you will.
00:34 Just give us a general overview
00:35 about this increasing social media pressure on kids today.
00:37 How bad is it really?
00:39 - Yeah, well, you know, social media has great uses
00:42 for connecting and keeping people in contact,
00:44 but of course, there's always that little bit
00:46 of negativity that comes up,
00:47 where there's so much peer pressure,
00:49 there are filters, people wanna put their best foot forward,
00:52 so to speak, their best face forward,
00:55 by using filters and things like that.
00:57 And so young kids and even young tweens,
00:59 so under 13, they're doing more and more
01:02 and they're putting themselves out there
01:04 and online to their detriment, I believe.
01:07 - And it's interesting because we tend to think
01:08 this is something that's very female focused,
01:11 or very feminine, when in fact,
01:13 this is something that's happening with boys as well.
01:15 So you told me about something that I never heard before,
01:17 looks maxing, what is that exactly?
01:19 - Exactly, so as the mom of two teen boys,
01:22 looks maxing is something that came up in my house.
01:25 And so basically, looks maxing is the idea
01:27 of maximizing your appearance.
01:29 And so there's soft maxing, where boys are becoming
01:32 more and more attuned to moisturizing
01:34 and something even called mewing,
01:36 which is where you try to thin out your jawline,
01:39 so to speak, there's a lot of things out there, Jeannie.
01:42 There's also hard maxing, and this is the flip side,
01:45 I would say, where young boys are turning
01:47 to cosmetic surgery.
01:49 And so really, it's a bit hardcore.
01:52 - And what's fascinating about all of this
01:54 is something like the soft looks maxing,
01:56 why not, boy wants to put on, whatever, make yourself happy.
02:00 But what interests me is it seems like some of this stuff
02:03 these kids really truly believe
02:04 is not based on any science at all.
02:06 - No, unfortunately not.
02:08 There are a lot of social media influencers
02:10 who are out there who are able to sell courses online
02:12 and sell look like me, be like me.
02:15 And our young boys are being very susceptible
02:18 to this kind of messaging.
02:20 - Right, okay, we're gonna talk,
02:21 let's talk about girls now for a minute.
02:23 And young girls, and this is something
02:24 that I've seen in my own house,
02:26 this whole phenomena of Sephora Kids,
02:28 so explain that to us.
02:29 - Right, so Sephora Kids, it's not just because it's Sephora
02:31 but it's all the retailers,
02:33 where young girls are flocking these places
02:36 to buy anti-aging products,
02:38 things that they've seen online, that they've heard about,
02:41 and actually they're buying out the stock.
02:43 And seven-year-olds looking for things like retinols
02:47 and creams that, you know, Jeannie,
02:48 you and I don't even need, and they're putting it on.
02:51 So this is a, it's an issue of concern.
02:53 - And to some point, it's really become an addiction
02:55 to these sort of age-inappropriate beauty products.
02:59 What can, I guess the real question here,
03:01 whether it's this or looks maxing,
03:02 is what can parents do to actually support their children?
03:05 For example, I know in my house, I said to my daughter,
03:06 "Let me take you to a real dermatologist
03:08 "and we'll talk about what your skin really needs."
03:10 And she shut me down.
03:11 - Oh, and she preferred to follow the influencers.
03:13 - Yeah, it's a discussion in my house, we're working on it.
03:16 - Okay, there we go.
03:17 Well, I think that it's important, again,
03:19 not to panic, right?
03:20 This, just think back when we were young, Jeannie,
03:22 and we had our little toy makeup kits.
03:24 Do you remember those?
03:25 And even with boys, they were looking at ads,
03:27 things like, you know, the 50-pound weakling
03:29 that becomes the, you know, muscular guy.
03:31 So it's the same thing.
03:32 It's just that social media is amplifying this.
03:34 And so it's that self-criticism and things like that.
03:37 So what parents need to do
03:39 is kind of pull out the social media part
03:40 and start teaching self-compassion, you know, body kindness,
03:45 to explain to our children
03:46 that so many of the things that we see online,
03:48 it's setting unrealistic standards,
03:50 unrealistic beauty standards.
03:52 This isn't real life.
03:53 I think those are some of the things
03:55 that parents can really do.
03:56 And if they see that there are some unhealthy behaviors
04:00 that are continuing, really,
04:01 it's, professional help is a good thing.
04:04 - What about for many people who just feel
04:06 that their kids are getting this
04:07 because they're just on their screens too darn much?
04:10 So what's, how do we negotiate that?
04:12 - You know the answer.
04:14 It's gonna be conversation and critical thinking.
04:16 If you think that it's too much,
04:18 talk with your child and say, "Listen," or your teen,
04:20 say, "We have to come to a common ground here."
04:23 And it is okay to say no.
04:25 It is okay to put in some boundaries.
04:27 We've discussed this before.
04:28 Balance and boundaries are key.
04:29 You're not a bad parent if you say no.
04:33 So I think we can do everything within limitation.
04:35 - And anything, just one last perhaps tip
04:38 to help our kids stop scrolling
04:40 when they get sucked into it, or for any of us.
04:42 - Yeah, I think for all of us,
04:43 we should be a little bit more mindful
04:44 about doom scrolling and just scrolling in general.
04:47 You know, there are all sorts of online,
04:49 offline activities that we can do
04:51 that express creativity and other types of expressions.
04:53 So let's get offline a little bit more,
04:55 especially with summer coming.
04:57 - Indeed, it's a good chance to go outside
04:58 and do activities that make you feel good.
05:00 - Yeah.
05:00 - All right, Elizabeth, thank you so much
05:01 for coming on the show. - It's a pleasure.
05:02 - That's our digital parenting expert,
05:04 Elizabeth Milovidov, thanks so much.