Influencers all across these social media sites take part in these trends, using professional lighting, expensive makeup products and oftentimes filters and editing software to make themselves look the best they can be. This can even involve using intentionally bad pictures of themselves for their ‘before’ photo, making the ‘after’ look substantially better in comparison.
With sites like TikTok being largely dominated by younger audiences, teenage users – particularly girls – are subject to seeing these videos of older kids and young adults experiencing unrealistic glow ups while they struggle through their adolescent anxieties. These not only place pressure on impressionable teenagers, but can lead adults to believe they aren’t pretty enough too, comparing themselves to users who spend ridiculous amounts of time and money to look the way they do.
These unrealistic expectations are becoming more and more of a problem.
Glow-up culture is yet another example of the toxic beauty standards that the internet and social media place on people. It goes further than just makeup and lighting, though, as cosmetic procedures such as dermal fillers, rhinoplasty and butt lifts become increasingly popular. Many creators don’t disclose they’ve had surgery done either, which may lead users to believe these kinds of glow ups can be achieved naturally.
These unrealistic expectations are becoming more and more of a problem, with a Dove study in 2023 reporting that 9 in 10 girls follow at least one account that makes them feel less beautiful. And with trends like “slim arm summer” popping up this year, it feels like a constant cycle of insecurities that will never end. Beauty trends can be fun, and many that get popular aren’t always harmful. They should exist for people to have fun with, try something new and experiment with their style. But trends that push the idea that you need to be flawless to have value need to stop.
