100% Locally Owned, Independent and Free

100% Locally Owned, Independent and Free

USC researchers look into eating disorders and interaction with social media

Do you have a news tip? Click here to send to our news team.

Suburb sets trend as prize home winners choose to stay

A Sunshine Coast suburb is bucking the usual prize home trend, with recent lottery winners choosing to move in and stay put. The Endeavour Foundation More

Industrial park powers ahead amid calls for road upgrades

Work is ramping up on a major expansion of an industrial hub that could inject $65 million a year into the Sunshine Coast economy, More

Rates to increase as ‘challenging’ $202m budget adopted

A $202m local council budget will see significant funds set aside for roads, bridges and facilities but it will come at an increased cost More

Planning ‘ramps’ up for new beach access

Plans are afoot for an all-abilities access ramp at a popular beach as Sunshine Coast Council undertakes to make it accessible to all. The new More

Photo of the day: river shack sunrise

Sunrise over the Maroochy River, where an old fishing shack is being repaired. Sandy Gillis observed the scene. If you have a photo of the More

Police confirm identity of man found in river

Police have identified a man whose body was found in a Sunshine Coast river more than 18 months ago. He has been identified as a More

The influence of social media on the risk and development of eating disorders is well-documented – but does this go both ways?

A new research paper from the University of the Sunshine Coast’s Thompson Institute is examining that relationship in reverse, with a new question: how are eating disorders affecting the way people interact with social media?

It’s not easy to answer.

PHD candidate and lead author Taliah Prince said “so little” had been done in this area.

“No studies have actually used neuroimaging to look specifically at how someone with an eating disorder engages with social media,” she said.

Ms Prince and researchers from the Thompson Institute have conducted a review comparing Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) scans from 38 studies identifying impairments in social cognition in the brains of young people with eating disorders.

Social cognition refers to how our brains process and interpret the information that feeds our social interactions.

The rise of social media has coincided with a rise in eating disorders, research suggests. Picture: Shutterstock.

Eating disorders can physically impair the brain’s ability to do this. For example, the strain of anorexia on the brain can impact memory and decision-making abilities.

By identifying which impairments are present in people with eating disorders, a complicated picture begins to emerge of how that could manifest on social media.

“It’s interesting that social cognition could impact social media use in such a multifaceted way. Different eating disorders could present similar impairments that affect social media interactions in similar ways,” Ms Prince said.

“For example, impairments in reward processing may increase the likelihood of seeking negative evaluations online, or making upward social comparisons.

Do you have an opinion to share? Submit a Letter to the Editor with your name and suburb at Sunshine Coast News via: news@sunshinecoastnews.com.au

“But other impairments could manifest in vastly different behaviours. People with bulimia are more impacted by their emotional state, which then cause impairments in attention and impulsivity, and could lead to higher levels of social media addiction, for example.”

The rise of social media has coincided with a rise in eating disorders.

They’re more than twice as prevalent as they were 20 years ago, research suggests.

Researchers are calling for further studies into the complex issue.

But the sudden explosion of social media into our lives means the science behind this relationship has a lot of catching up to do, according to the University of South Australia’s Dr Larisa McLoughlin, who supervised the research.

“Eating disorders and interaction with social media is complex and intertwined,” Dr McLoughlin said.

“Further research is needed (especially longitudinal research) to understand cognition development in relation to eating disorders as well as social interactions, particularly in regard to social media use.”

Ms Prince added: “Eating disorders are one of the leading causes of death in adolescents and they are associated with so many other mental health problems.

“It’s really important to research, identify and target some of the underlying mechanisms that may contribute to the onset and the maintenance of these disorders.”

Local journalists supporting local people. Help keep independent and fair Sunshine Coast news coming by subscribing to our free daily news feed. All it requires is your name and email. SUBSCRIBE here now.

Subscribe to SCN’s free daily news email

This field is hidden when viewing the form
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
[scn_go_back_button] Return Home
Share