More than 70 percent of Taiwanese teenagers are unhappy with their body image, and the average teen uses social media for 4.2 hours a day, the Child Welfare League Foundation said yesterday, calling on parents to help their children with a “digital detox.”
Children can be overexposed to social media as it is updated around the clock, and it eats into the family time children need, the foundation told a news conference in Taipei at which it shared the results of an online survey it commissioned on junior and senior-high school students.
Of the respondents, 57 percent said they touch up their photos before uploading them to social media, while 45 percent said they edit out what they perceive to be specific flaws and 39 percent said they felt insecure about sharing pictures.
Photo courtesy of the Child Welfare League Foundation
Heavy users of social media feel significantly more anxiety, with nearly 67 touching up their social media pictures and 27 percent editing out specific “flaws” in their features, the foundation said.
Social media is linked to body image anxiety, as 42 percent of heavy users said they use filters on their selfies, up 11 percentage points from the average of 31 percent, it said.
Of the respondents, 58 percent said they thought they should gain or lose weight and 14 percent said they have considered cosmetic surgery, the foundation said.
Girls are more likely to feel insecure about their bodies than boys, it said.
In nearly 95 percent of the 12,320 valid responses received, the teens said they were social media users, the foundation said, adding that girls are more likely to feel insecure about their bodies than boys.
The foundation called on parents to help reduce their children’s social media and Internet consumption, encourage them to take part in other activities and assist them with self-appreciation exercises, the foundation said.
For resources and support, parents can call the foundation’s hotline at 0800-532-880, while teens can call 0800-001-769, it said.
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