Join us and #EnterTheChat
Body appearance content, from edited photos to diet and fitness posts, can have an unintended negative impact on body image.
Butterfly is joining forces with Instagram to launch ‘Enter the Chat’, encouraging users to discuss the impact of social media content on body image and support themselves online.
We’re aiming to empower and support creators to minimise unintended impact and think about creating more consciously, so we can foster a social media experience that supports positive body image.
Follow @thebutterflyfoundation on Instagram to #EnterTheChat
Watch six creators April, Riley, Milo, Mark, Lucy and Cooper #EnterTheChat
Why is conscious creation so important?
- 59% of Australians say diet and fitness culture on social media impacts their body image – but a majority (68%) aren’t supporting themselves online
- 63% compare their image to what they see on social media
- 1 in 5 millennials say diet and fitness content makes them feel dissatisfied with their bodies.
- Gen Z were the most likely to make changes to their eating habits of fitness routines because of social media (26%), and almost half (44%) considered acting on health and fitness advice shared by a creator on social media.
- The majority of Australians (69%) agree that influencers (also known as content creators) have a responsibility to be role models for their audience
- Over 88% of Australians said influencers shouldn’t share advice when it comes to diet and exercise or should only post if they’re qualified
- 27.8% said they don’t think people should share body metrics or work out progress.
- Only 1 in six (16%) unfollow accounts or pages that promote unrealistic beauty standards or trigger negative feelings about their body image
This research presents an opportunity for every user, whatever the size of their following, to play a positive role in responsibly sharing and posting appearance-led, diet and exercise content online.
“I wish I could go back to my younger self when I was consuming so much diet and fitness advice, when comparing my body to what I saw on social media was my ‘normal’. I noticed when I started posting more authentic content of myself, that was more popular with my following.” – Lucy Neville (@lucymneville)
Take a break
Sometimes we need time to reflect and reset to be a Conscious Creator. Head to settings → Time spent (under ‘How you use Instagram’ → Break reminder → Schedule a reminder to take regular breaks from scrolling so you can be more mindful about your time online.
Nudges
If you’ve been looking at the same type of content on Explore for a while, you might see a nudge from Instagram (“Choose what to explore next”) that offers suggestions for different types of content to discover. Remember to view content that has nothing to do with your appearance or body!
Hidden Words
Use the Hidden Words tool to automatically hide triggering comments and messages – go to settings → Suggested content (under ‘what you see) → specific words and phrases → enter any words, phrases or emojis you don’t want to see in comments, messages, captions and hashtags.
Personalise your feed
When you see a post that you don’t find interesting or impacts your wellbeing, tap the three-dot menu and then select ‘Not Interested’, or tap the X at the top right of a suggested post on Home.
Want to share these tools on your own socials?
Download our resource pack and share these tips and tools to your story or in-feed to encourage others to create consciously and think about the impact of content on our body image.
How to be a Conscious Creator
Get Involved in #EnterTheChat
