Photo credit to Ryan McGuire via Pixabay

While scrolling through comments on Instagram or Twitter, “you could use a cheeseburger” or “you’re too fat” are only some of the many negative remarks made by people who are hiding behind their screens. Body shaming is defined as “an act in which individuals are judged negatively based on their physical appearance.” This has been happening more and more recently due to the fact that it’s so much easier to utter a snarky comment to someone over the internet, rather than in person.

Statistics show that 94 percent of teenage girls have been body shamed and 65 percent of teenage boys have been body shamed. Those percentages should not be that high. It used to not occur as often due to the fact that people are too scared to say things in person. It is much harder for people to be blatantly mean when confronting others face to face.

Unfortunately, the internet does help body shaming become easier for people to do. Although social media platforms are doing a lot to help prevent these things from happening, they still occur daily. For example, Instagram recently came out with a feature where people can mute their comments on their pictures that they post. This does somewhat help with body shaming because people are able to post what they want without worrying about the demeaning comments.

The issue as a whole is a very societal thing. We have this misleading vision of how men and women look, according to society’s standards. When people don’t look the way that they’re “supposed” to look, some see it as an opportunity to say something about it.

Instead of spreading this idea that everyone is supposed to look a certain way to fit in, many things are being done to show and celebrate the uniqueness of the individual. For example, magazines and makeup lines are using more of a variety in their modeling staff. This action expands their audience more because people feel more as if they belong. Magazines and makeup lines should continue in order to start putting a stop to body shaming.

Once people realize that it’s okay to embrace themselves the way they are, and that they don’t have to change or put others down to make themselves feel better, body shaming will hopefully start to become less of a daily occurrence.