Selfies That Kill

Stephanie Niemiroski

Thinspo - short for thinspiration - is a common term used to tag images and ideas posted on social media sites meant to encourage women to stay thin or become even thinner. Both men and women use thinspo as a motivational tool. However, the online movement has become dominated by anorexics who view their quest for extreme thinness. A growing number of pro-anorexic or “pro-ana” sites and blogs have rallied around thinspo as a kind of support group for those with no interest in recovery. As mentioned in class during Rachel’s lecture, thinspo is largely available on sites such as Tumblr, Instagram, and Pinterest. The 2008 International Internet Trends Study found that the number or pro ana and pro bulimia -- or "pro mia" -- sites increased 470 percent in the past two years.

Holly Temple, 17, was an anorexic who contributed images to thinspo sites. After a fall out with friends at the age of 14, she developed an eating disorder. She states she was unable to control how people felt about her and what they said, but the one thing she was able to control was her eating. She first began taking pictures of herself during the summer of 2011. She took regular selfies of her shrinking body frame as motivation to continue to lose more weight. The teenager uploaded the pictures onto a password-protected blog, which acted as a diary for her to monitor her progress. After being diagnosed with anorexia in December 2011, she was hospitalized in May 2012 due to her eating disorder. Today, she is in a better place receiving help and support from her family. Like Holly, there are many others that struggle with this disease. Thinspiration is an online community that hurts more than it helps. One of the top thinspo sites, prettythin.com, receives an average of 280,000 page views per day according to the web analytics site Alexa.com. But what can be done to combat this trend?

Many social media websites are teaming up with the National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) to monitor the use of their sites for posting content promoting eating disorders. Facebook was the first social media group to take a stand. In 2011, Facebook invited NEDA to form an alliance to help the company report and flag Pro-Ana/Mia content, including “the removal of individuals and groups, as well as photos or statuses, promoting unhealthy behavior.” Facebook also agreed to provide an FAQ section about eating disorders with information from NEDA about finding help and seeking treatment. Following the footsteps of Facebook, “Tumblr also in the process of removing all content that could trigger those susceptible to an eating disorder or further entrench the illness for those struggling, stating that ‘they want to do the right thing,” according to a 2012 NEDA press release.

Unfortunately, it’s virtually impossible to catch everything when there are more than 11.5 billion total users of social media. Social media networks increasing their awareness and responsiveness, combined with media literacy training and alternative pro-health communities cannot completely eliminate the allure of “pro-ana” online communities and thinspirational blogs for someone who is determined to find them.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2716823/Thinspiration-selfies-nearly-killed-Anorexic-weight-plunged-6st-speaks-remarkable-recovery.html

http://casapalmera.com/can-done-combat-pro-ana-thinspiration-trends/

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/thinspo-internet-content-promotes-anorexia-experts/story?id=18622088&singlePage=true