Social media has become part of everyday life, shaping how people connect, communicate, and perceive themselves. But in highly visual online spaces, they are also repeatedly exposed to curated images, appearance-focused content, and social comparison. 

As a result, body image concerns can manifest as repeated behaviors, such as body image dissatisfaction or continuously monitoring one’s body shape, size,  or appearance. Understanding what drives these behaviors is especially important in Lebanon, where high social media use intersects with social and economic pressures.   

In the study “Social Media Use and Body Checking Behaviors: The Roles of Stress, Emotional Eating, and Self-Esteem,” published in Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, Dr. Nadine Zeeni, associate professor of nutrition at the School of Arts and Sciences, examines the correlation between body checking, social media use, perceived stress, emotional eating, and self-esteem.   

The researchers conducted a cross-sectional online survey, involving 423 Lebanese adults, aged 18 to 50, who use at least one social media platform. The participants completed a questionnaire measuring body checking, stress, emotional eating, self-esteem, and media use.  

The study found that active social media users more often reported increased personal and repeated monitoring of their overall appearance, focusing on specific body parts. The same applied to individuals who felt stressed, reported more emotional eating, and had a greater number of online friends or followers.

Self-esteem showed the opposite pattern. Participants with lower self-esteem tended to report more body dissatisfaction, and those who had been diagnosed with an eating disorder also reported higher levels of body checking. 

While social media use was shown to have a lesser effect on body checking than stress and emotional eating in Lebanese adults, it can still contribute to body dissatisfaction and monitoring. However, it has a greater impact on individuals already experiencing stress, difficulties with self-control, or dealing with stigma, who become caught in a cycle. To cope with stress and the negative emotions it triggers, they find comfort in food. This, in turn, leads to guilt or dissatisfaction with one’s appearance, reinforcing stress and negativity. The findings applied to both genders.

“Body checking is a complex behavior, so it is normal that many other factors also play a role,” said Dr. Zeeni. “These could include body dissatisfaction, BMI, eating disorder symptoms, perfectionism, appearance comparison, weight stigma, comments from family or peers, and the type of social media content people are exposed to, such as fitness, diet, or appearance-focused posts.”  

Reducing body checking may start with stress management, healthier coping strategies, and being more selective with social media content, she added. “But it also starts with us: How we talk about our own bodies, food, weight, and appearance in front of children can shape the way they see themselves and their bodies.”  

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