Social media filters are shaping the way we conceive of beauty and eliminating acceptance of diversity.
The filters social networks and appear to be part of our everyday life. However, their use has been changing over time and more and more are affecting the way in which young women and young men define their beauty , according to some studies conducted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
In the beginning, when they began to be used, social media filters were more of a game and prank tool than anything else. For example, Internet users took advantage of them to deform their faces or to pretend to have the features of an animal like a horse. Little by little, the filters that began to gain ground and become a trend among people were those that modified people’s factions to make them look more beautiful , completely changing the dynamics of the use that these options of social networks such as Instagram have, where everyone does their best to get likes.
And what would seem innocent has become a problem among young people who access these filters that make them look more beautiful . We tell you why.
For one thing, these filters promote beauty ideals that are actually unattainable and unnatural. For example, on many occasions they modify the features of the face to approach a stereotype that does not fit with everyone’s physique (and that should not be a problem). Some features that filters tend to accentuate are very fair skin, a very fine nose, large mouth, large eyes, and a thin face. Something that for many of us is unimaginable since we do not all have the same physical appearance and this, instead of being celebrated, is denied by these types of filters . This naturally goes against the celebration of diversity. (Also Read: These are Apple Music key strategies to compete with Spotify)
Body dysmorphic disorder
After the filters that make people look more beautiful became popular, many teenagers began to have symptoms of body dysmorphic disorder. This implies that people have an obsessive concern about their physical appearance and that they even begin to imagine imperfections with which they are obsessed and can spend hours and hours a day trying to correct. In social networks like Instagram, this problem went so far that even they decided to remove the filters with the effects of plastic surgery so as not to promote body dysmorphic disorder.
Which of these illusionary makeup looks will end up becoming a Snapchat Lens? Watch Fake Up to find out, only on Snapchat.https://t.co/wwXbB5l4aZ pic.twitter.com/GKNgVcq4qW
— Snapchat (@Snapchat) March 31, 2021
Excessive use of beauty products
Beauty products are not bad, in fact they can be a very fun part of the image that we want to present ourselves to others, since they allow us to experiment with the physical appearance that we invent every day. Especially now that men’s makeup is a new trend . However, with the use of beauty filters, there has been an increase in the use of makeup to hide imperfections and to resemble the way in which filters show us that it has worried the experts. Apparently very young people, around 14 years old, are wearing much more makeup than would be considered healthy for people their age in order to look more like the version they see of themselves on social media. (Also Read: Facebook is thinking of a app like Clubhouse, dedicated to voice chat)
The use of filters on social media is surprisingly popular. According to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in social networks such as Snapchat – which, although perhaps lost a bit of popularity, undoubtedly was a pioneer in the use of filters and also of disappearing publications – around 200 million users use filters every day. People use them both to have fun and play some pranks, and to look better. However, the predominant tendency of social media users with filters is to modify their physical appearance to approach a beauty stereotype . (Also Read: The new dating app from Facebook : Sparked)
That’s why the issue should not be underestimated and we should pay attention to understand how the filters of networks social are shaping our concept of beauty , to continue defending diversity and acceptance of young people with their own physical appearance.
