‍This article will talk about the following points:

• What is body dysmorphia?
• What are the reasons behind body dysmorphia?
• How is body dysmorphia related to Zoom? 

Disclaimer: This article talks about body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), we are aware that this is a sensitive topic. Please do not self-diagnose, and seek out help from a professional. 

What is body dysmorphia?

Throughout different eras in humanity, being beautiful carried a positive outcome for many individuals. There is much evidence demonstrating that beautiful people have higher levels of satisfaction, happiness, social competence, and they even tend to earn more [10]. When something comes with many benefits like these, everyone wants to be considered “beautiful”. So, what exactly does “being beautiful” mean? 

Most of us are exposed to a beauty standard via the culture that we grew up in and how much social media content we see. However, in the current state of the world the meaning of “being beautiful” is changing everyday and more people are starting to break the stereotypes found in distinct cultures [10]. With the toxic social media culture, most of us are exposed to “beauty standards”: you have to dress this way, look this way, pose this way, etc. The trends of influencers and photoshopped images of skinny men and women have been affecting many people starting from really early ages (as early as 5-6). Being exposed to perfect looking people alters one’s self-perception on how they look. 

Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD)[10] also known as dysmorphophobia[2], can be described as a psychological disorder of how a person sees themselves. People who suffer from this disorder have problems with the way they look (e.g. being obsessed with small or non-existent “flaws”). These “flaws” make them feel ugly and can sometimes cause them to hide these parts of themselves. For example, some patients reported sitting in certain ways to hide their body parts [10]. Additionally, individuals with BDD have distinct opinions on attractiveness and weight, compared to people who do not suffer from BDD. For instance, people with BDD are more likely to report themselves as being overweight compared to people without BDD, and their attractiveness ratings are heavily affected by visual information compared to people who do not suffer from BDD[6]. 

What are the reasons behind body dysmorphia?

There are many reasons behind body dysmorphia, and the antecedents differ for each patient. This article focuses specifically on the way social media contributes to people’s perception of their own bodies. One of the reasons why body dysmorphia is common amongst such a young audience is indeed because of social media. A study showed that most adolescents around the age of 16-18 are concerned with how they look. The results of the study can be seen from the figures below[2]:  

Left - males // Right - females. 

As it can be seen from the figures, male and female adolescents are concerned with distinct features. Female adolescents are more bothered by looking fat, whereas male adolescents are more worried about looking less muscular [2]. Teenagers grow up seeing what is a good looking body and what is not so good looking body shape: they create a perception in their minds and feel like they have to live up to in order to feel validated by society's stereotypes. Moreover, a review showed that a higher amount of social media usage in females was linked with searching for information and comparing themselves to other people in terms of attractiveness[9]. 

On the other hand, the role of social media platforms can also be specific to each app. Many researchers have been talking about the existence of Snapchat Dysmorphia[3]. In the past five years, more people have been going to plastic surgeons to look similar to what they appear like with filters on. Some researchers suggest that this is not a new disorder, it is just another justification for people. While on the contrary, other researchers suggest that the use of Snapchat gives other ways for teenagers and young adults to obsess over how they look. Instead of constantly checking the mirror, they check their snapchats or cameras. This topic is still under discussion, thus not many conclusions can be drawn, but it is definitely a new  reason for why people give more attention to their looks[3]. 

How is body dysmorphia related to Zoom? 

With the pandemic entering our lives, we had to adapt to a lot of new changes, and one of them was the excessive usage of virtual platforms such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams. Since the pandemic is still going on, research on this topic is really scarce and new. However, some plastic surgeons recognized that patients have been referencing how they look on zoom calls as a reason to seek treatments in terms of acne and wrinkles[7]. It should be noted that many plastic surgeons neglect the role of BDD when it comes to why patients want to do plastic surgery. Patients who suffer from BDD may not be satisfied with plastic surgery and may demonstrate severe versions of the symptoms[5].The authors of this paper think that people may be more interested in their looks due to exposure of video of themselves which increases the attention a person gives to how they look. For example, there was a 41% increase in teenagers looking for rhinoplasty compared to 2019 numbers[7]. In addition to this statistic, 56% of patients asked for eyelid procedures to appear less tired on screen[1]. Before the Zoom era, another trend was seen when Snapchat filters became really famous and used by many young adults and teenagers. According to American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (2020), 72% of plastic surgeons reported patients asking for procedures to make their selfies look better.

But, why does this happen? Why are we even more self-conscious of how we look in the times of social media? Well, we are not used to seeing ourselves when we attend lectures, meetings, interviews etc. Being exposed to how we look while we are talking, showing emotions and feelings with loved ones, lecturers, employers and coworkers is a new thing for most of us. Another factor that may contribute to our perceptions on how we look is the quality of our cameras. Some cameras are really good at capturing every single detail of our faces, whereas some cameras may distort our reality based on how we look. This will create an inconsistency between what we think we look like vs what we actually appear like on the screen. Furthermore, it will end up with people being unhappy with what comes up on the screen[8]. 

In conclusion, as Shrink It Out we want to remind you that you should create your own beauty standards and work to love yourself instead of working to satisfy other people’s thoughts on how you look. You are the star of your own life, don’t let other people define how that star should shine. This article touched upon what body dysmorphia is and why it occurs. Additionally, it looked at COVID-19 and how plastic surgery numbers may have increased due to excessive usage of video platforms such as Zoom and Microsoft teams. 

Additional resources: These videos can be triggering to some people. In these videos patients of BDD are shown and how they think about their bodies. Please do not watch these videos if you think that it may trigger you. 

1. A BDD patient talking about their experience: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vf4Sigud3Pw&ab_channel=ABCScience 
2. Living with BDD: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lr6bsE-G978&ab_channel=CNAInsider 
3. What BDD feels like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5de6dP1bXXE&ab_channel=BBCThree 
4. Podcast: Stuff Mom Never Told You https://open.spotify.com/episode/1bPjM7NhRskswSA7RUC8BS?si=aLRzFNb1Q-K2SYShSMlsWQ 

References

1. American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (2020). 2019 Annual Survey Statistics. https://www.aafprs.org/Media/Press_ Releases/New%20Stats%20AAFPRS%20Annual%20Survey .aspx?WebsiteKey=760f3515-2fb0-441b-a8b4-28f94313fffc Accessed April 28, 2021.
2. Himanshu, A. K., Kaur, A., & Singla, G. (2020). Rising Dysmorphia Among Adolescents: A Cause for Concern. Journal of family medicine and primary care, 9(2), 567.
3. Karel, R. (2018). ‘Snapchat Dysmorphia’ Identified as a New Variant of Body dysmorphia. Psychiatric News, 53(21). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.pn.2018.11a11
4. Kugler, T. (2021). American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Inc. https://www.aafprs.org/Media/Press_Releases/PageTemplates/New%20Survey%20Results%20Announced%20Feb.%201,%202021.aspx Accessed April 28, 2021. 
5. Kyle, A. (2012). Body Dysmorphia and Plastic Surgery. Plastic Surgical Nursing, 32(3), 96-98.
6. Moody, T. D., Shen, V. W., Hutcheson, N. L., Henretty, J. R., Sheen, C. L., Strober, M., & Feusner, J. D. (2017). Appearance Evaluation of Others' Faces and Bodies in Anorexia Nervosa and Body Dysmorphic disorder. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 50(2), 127-138.
7. Rice, S. M., Graber, E., & Kourosh, A. S. (2020). A Pandemic of Dysmorphia:“Zooming” into the Perception of our Appearance. Facial Plastic Surgery & Aesthetic Medicine, 22(6), 401-402.
8. Rice, S. M., Siegel, J. A., Libby, T., Graber, E., & Kourosh, A. S. (2021). Zooming Into Cosmetic Procedures During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Provider’s Perspective. International Journal of Women's Dermatology, 7(2), 213-216.
9. Ryding, F. C., & Kuss, D. J. (2020). The use of Social Networking Sites, Body Image Dissatisfaction, and Body Dysmorphic Disorder: A Systematic Review of Psychological Research. Psychology of Popular Media, 9(4), 412–435. https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000264
10. Vashi, N. A. (2016). Obsession with Perfection: Body Dysmorphia. Clinics in dermatology, 34(6), 788-791.