Young Australians “never” or “rarely” speak to someone when experiencing negative feelings about their appearance, a recent report from the Butterfly Foundation found.
The national charity for eating disorders and body image concerns reported that 57.2% of young people aged 12 to 18 believe social media contributes to body dissatisfaction, but more than 73% don’t talk about feeling bad about how they look and 74% said they “never” or “rarely” take breaks from social media even when it affects how they feel about their bodies.
Multifaceted approach to addressing online harm
Lived experience advocate Varsha Yajman shared how social media aggravated her eating disorder:
“Social media exacerbated my eating disorder and continued to exacerbate it. I have to manually block out all the diet culture content, and it’s frightening how normalised it is,” she said.
“Young people urgently need more support to tackle these issues, with or without age restrictions in place, because harmful content does not stop once you turn 16.”
With the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill set to introduce age restrictions by the end of 2025, research by the eSafety Commissioner found that 80% of eight- to 12-year-olds had used social media in 2024, despite existing platform rules.
Butterfly Foundation’s director of education initiatives Danni Rowlands said that addressing social media’s impact requires a multifaceted approach beyond simple age restrictions or content bans.
“Body image and the influence of social media is a complex issue, and we need to take a multifaceted, strength-based approach to better protect our young people. Harmful messaging, misinformation and inappropriate content and imagery will continue to exist and evolve both online and offline, posing ongoing risks,” she said.
Digital program aims to build body image resilience
To address this, the organisation has developed BodyKind Online Education (BKOE), a digital eLearning program designed for secondary schools. BKOE is Australia’s first evidence-informed body image education tool specifically designed for students aged 12 to 16. The program is divided into two tracks – one for Years 7 and 8, and another for Years 9 and 10.
BKOE aims to strengthen students’ social media literacy, critical thinking, and self-compassion. It addresses issues such as appearance-based content, online teasing, artificial intelligence, misinformation, algorithms, and beauty and health ideals. Its development follows calls from nine in 10 students who believe schools should do more to promote positive body image.
Findings from a 2024 pilot study conducted by the University of the Sunshine Coast revealed statistically significant progress in students’ critical thinking around appearance-related media, with accompanying behavioural shifts in online activity, help-seeking, and self-care.