Instagram has recently announced a new update that will be featuring restrictions against types of body image-related posts to minors and will also be taking down some posts related to diet products and cosmetic surgery. 

The new update is to take place within the weeks to come.

Social media and the influencers within Instagram create a huge impact on the impressionable young minds of teenagers. 

Jameela Jamil, an English actress, struck controversy when giving bold statements on body image after calling out Kim Kardashian and her advertisement on appetite-suppressing lollipops from Flat Tummy Co. to her millions of fans. She believes that forming an education and business is more important to body image.

“…this family makes me feel actual despair over what women are reduced to,” Jamil lashed out on Twitter after the Kardashian’s upsetting advertisement.

In a recent Instagram post, Jamil shared her excitement with the news of Instagram’s update she has been pushing for and working with the app to put in place.

“After a bunch of shouting, screaming, and petitioning…” Jamil said in her post, “we have managed to get the attention of the people at the top, and they have heard us and want to protect us.”

The new update is to take place within the weeks to come.

I couldn’t agree more with Instagram’s new life-changing update. Body image and how teenagers perceive themselves are vicious and vulnerable, especially now with access to the internet that is available.

Diet detox products from places such as Flat Tummy Co. are negatively feeding the population into believing that in order to be skinny, one  must trick your brain into believing that you are not hungry. Not only is this unhealthy for your body and creates a lack of the essential nutrients, but for your mental health as well. It is simply handing eating disorders and body image problems to youth on a silver platter.

 According to a national poll by StageofLife.com, 56% of teens feel that the media’s advertisements are the main cause of low self-esteem.

Rather than these unhealthy ways, teens should be taught on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle, and how to be more comfortable with their bodies. The media should be exposing the youth to a more diverse spectrum with plus size models and imperfections, rather than trying to create an ideology that people have no flaws. Teenagers need to understand that what they see online is not what it seems.

Instagram’s new update can create a safe and welcoming environment for minors in a way they may freely go online without the pressures of diet products and cosmetic surgeries. It will create a more enjoyable experience on the app itself and will significantly cut down on teens struggling with self-esteem and body image.