A large portion of today's society is focused on achieving a “perfect body”. This image of perfection is fueled by constant sharing, and in many cases gloating, of so called successful workout plans, dietary restrictions, as well as other forms of health and fitness inspiration. While this socially backed distribution may be causing some to work towards a healthier life, it is causing many others to be pushed towards an unhealthy and overweight existence without realizing it. The social interactions that do provide the greatest, and most influential, connection to weight gain are those that are centered around the people that are highly involved in one's immediate social networks, such as friends or family, as well as interactions that take place on social media sites, including media networks and advertisements on the sites or on television. Within these social interactions, certain unattainable ideals can be found that provide an intense pressure to lose weight. This pressure will most often backfire and will usually cause a weight gain fueled by guilt and the need to “fit in”. This need to be accepted arises from judgement that “comes at us from all directions-from the media, from doctors and medical professionals, from school administrators, from politicians, from environmentalists, for pity’s sake. ...every modern problem has at some point been blamed on fat” (Brown xix) and fat people, proving that society has truly turned against those who do not fit perceived notions of perfection. In order to comprehend the immense magnitude of the obesity and weight gain from social networks issue, it is necessary to understand that psychological factors can greatly shift one’s self-perception and increase the affect that societal pressures can have on a person. It is necessary to reduce the amount of time spent focused on these societal pressures in order to limit the influence that social networks and social media can have on a person when false ideals of perfection are in play. This paper will review how society can influence weight gain by manipulating ideals of perfection, often through the people one interacts with or through electronic methods.

A false ideal of perfection is established in society by imagining, or envying one with, an idolized body, lifestyle, or personality. For many, their ideal person is created through an obsession with weight that eventually causes them as well as everyone around them to respectively hate the body they are in, later on shifting thoughts towards hating their essential self as well (Brown xxiv). Weight gain is connected to false perfection ideals through the fact that society is negatively influencing ones mental and physical states of being through the stereotypes, inherited beliefs, and false portrayals of a perfect person (Brown 151). This wanting for a perfect weight arises from the stereotypes presented on television, in the media, and through the imaginations of friends and family. Friends and family members participate in “fat talk …[which] reinforces the idea… that we should be thin and that our bodies need policing”, providing an opportunity to self bully in front of others in order to gain compliments and increase confidence levels (Brown 151). This method of calling attention to flaws produces images of oneself that are in some ways unattainable, yet it still occurs as young girls watches their mothers and grandmothers pressure themselves and they begin to believe it is what they must eventually do as well. Society is “a culture that tells us our bodies worth comes in large part from our bodies and our appearance” (Brown 158) , yet there needs to be a shift away from the negativity towards one’s weight and physical appearance. This negativity derives from the idea that “what we know about our own lives… inevitably bumps up against what society ‘knows’ or at least insists is true”, that there is a need to not be over-weight and keep up with what society believes is healthy and beautiful (Brown 150). The act of imagining yourself in a more perfect body that is conformed to societies ideals can cause a significant increase in weight. The pressure that causes weight gain arises from an individual’s social environment, meaning friends, family, and those they interact with on a daily basis. These interactions are meant to be comfortable while increasing confidence and self acceptance when more often than not, the opposite is what occurs.

False ideals of perfection are created through idolizing certain body types and lifestyles. This falsely represented idol is created from negative interactions with weight that forces a self-hatred upon everyone around them causing a respective dislike for the body they are in, later shifting these negative thoughts towards hating their essential self as well (Brown xxiv). There is a connection between weight gain and perfectionist ideals due to the fact that society can negatively influence both mental and physical states through stereotypes, inherited beliefs, and false portrayals of a perfect person (Brown 151). In the media, this idolization and need to achieve something similar arises from stereotypes on television, within media networks, and the actions of friends and family members. Friends and family members can affect these states of being through participating in “fat talk …[which] reinforces the idea… that we should be thin and that our bodies need policing”, which provides the opportunity to openly self-hate without receiving judgement, instead gaining compliments, and increasing one’s own confidence levels (Brown 151). While “fat talk” can cause a short-term boost in confidence, calling attention to flaws through producing hopeful images that can be unattainable, yet it will continue to occur as families pass down the traditions of self-hate, watching mothers and grandmothers pressure themselves and their younger relatives under the assumption that it is a natural part of life. While this may appear as natural, it is due to the fact that society “tells us our bodies worth comes in large part from our bodies and our appearance”, even though worth should not be derived from this point there is still a negative connotation surrounding weight and physical appearance. The main issue arises from the knowledge that “what we know about our own lives… inevitably bumps up against what society ‘knows’ or at least insists is true”, the fact that perfection is not derived from a slim waist but instead from a person’s true, essential self (Brown 150). Even just imagining that a more ‘perfect’ body would increase happiness can cause a downwards spiral of events that leads towards weight gain from the pressure of becoming ‘perfect’. The majority of the pressures that cause weight gain stem from one’s social environment, including friends, family, and people who one interacts with daily. It is assumed that these interactions would be relaxed and comfortable when, in reality, they cause a great decrease in self-confidence and acceptance.

Acceptance is usually found in the immediate friend groups and family members that one will interact with on a daily basis, also known as one’s immediate social networks. Most weight influences arise from networks where people are “embedded influences”(Whale) in a person’s weight, networks of belonging and support, and from networks that develop around someone’s weight (Powell). Networks with embedded influences in one's weight include friends and family whose eating habits are mirrored, cultural groups that have practices aligned with food, and those who are in immediate social proximity whose eating habits are mirrored, so as to mimic a sense of inclusion felt in friend and family networks. Networks of support are found where a sense of belonging is established, a greater sense of trust can lead to an increase in weight gain due to less judgement being found. Networks developed around someone's weight often include online support groups. These groups can have positive effects on health but may cause weight gain due to feelings of judgement and exclusivity, causing one’s social networks to fall apart (Powell). Sadly, when beginning to work towards a societally idealistic body, competition can undermine motivation and the pressure to perform as well as other may reduce weight loss with the potential for weight gain (Whale). While those that one views while exercising can increase pressures, family and friends can as well. Interactions with friends and family in environments surrounding food tend to undermined weight loss through increasing consumption as a means to gain acceptance and fit in with how others act (Whale). Where comfort, encouragement, and support should be found while one partakes on a weight loss journey, instead weight gain is side effect that many people do not realize can come from minuscule interactions with those around them. These interactions are often focus on acceptance through mirroring those immediately around, and while it is seen that it will cause oneself weight gain in terms of eating, it can also produce weight increase over a longer span of time. It is believed that obesity is an epidemic, once one person begins to gain weight, those around them will gain weight in order to mirror and maintain similar lifestyles for acceptance purposes (Christakis)(Social Networks and Health).  

The most popular form of acceptance seeking in this day and age is through the sharing of social media. Social media allows people to share insignificant and in somewhat rare cases, informative or important details about every moment of a person’s day. Social media platforms allow for the direct comparison of oneself to others who are either the false perfect image one strives to be, or the larger companion who is put down in order to make oneself fell less insecure. What others put out into the world can affects an individual’s weight gain through posting pictures of societally perfect scenes, yet also through sharing pictures of meals online or pictures involving food, encouraging one’s brain to respond to food cues and cause unnecessary hunger (Landa). Nearly of 63% of all social media of people ages 13-32 consists of food related media, and 70% of American household meals are then influenced by this digital media, effectively causing uncontrollable hunger followed by weight gain for a good portion of the American population (Landa). While the sharing of food or body pictures has a great influence through social media, there is also a great influence from these same images being shared in the form of media advertisements. Television is the easiest method for society to manipulate through displaying media, and these media portrayals have the greatest effect on child weight gain, given that children are easy influenced by their peers and how they act. The portrayal of advertisements, unhealthy options, and increased accessibility to media all play a role in the downfall of a child’s health through weigh gain. It is believed that the advertisements of junk food increase one’s appetite for said foods, and when children are seen consuming the unhealthy products other children will want to as well (Council). On average, most children watch five and a half hours of television a day, with nearly 72% of the advertisements played during this time are for junk foods (Lallanilla). What children view can often impact their action as well as the actions of their family members. Nearly “three out of four requests for grocery items made by children were for products advertised on television” causing their parents to purchase items that are unhealthy, affecting the dietary habits of the entire family. The consumption of unnecessarily purchased unhealthy options can increase the amount of weight gained by the entire family. It is important to understand how social media can negatively affect both children and adults with the viewing of false perfection and inessential advertisements. 

While social media, social networks, and false perfection can cause weight gain, there is also the possibility that weight loss can occur. People who partake on weight loss journeys often share the steps that they take on social media. This sharing can increase support and influence others to start on journeys of their own (Neighmond). If one is feeling discouraged or unmotivated, followers of their media platforms, be them strangers or friends, can easily provide encouragement in a very short period of time. Followers can keep those on weight loss journeys on track to their overall goals while also maintaining healthy connections. The important difference between in person encouragement and online is that “in-person support groups help, but most only meet once a week, while social media is ubiquitous” and causes constant accountability (Neighmond). While social media sharing can be helpful for weight loss accountability, the social networks that one interacts with can help as well. In order to begin to lose weight, or keep weight lost off, “incorporating friends and family [as a] group treatment may help” (Huff). In a study performed in 1999, two thirds of people who worked towards weight loss goals with friends and family members were able to keep weight off for nearly six months after their goals had been reached (Huff). Comparatively, those who did not have the extra support saw results with much less success. What can help as well is lowering expectations of amount of weight lost within certain time periods. Often the expectations that people have for themselves are overly exaggerated, so by making their expectations more realistic it’s possible to encourage weight loss for an extended period of time (Huff). While it is possible to lose weight through posting on social media and sharing weight loss journeys with friends and family members, social media and social networks more often cause weight gain. The few instances that cause weight loss pale in comparison to the multitudinous occurrences of weight gain. Weight loss can be achieved because people refuse to adhere to what society asks them to be, while weight gain occurs because of how society naturally reacts. The risk of weight gain from societal pressures greatly outweighs the less likely benefit of weight loss. The only way weight loss is possible is through understanding why these false ideals of perfection are in play and actively working against them.

Overall, social media, social networks, and false ideals focus on the fact that society reacts to certain events in order to gain acceptance from those around them. This acceptance is found in matching friends and family in amounts of food consumed, eating what others are eating in order to maintain the idea of oneness or liken oneself to them, and through fat shaming and accepting pressure to lose weight and attain the ideal body. Although some of these pressures are unavoidable, knowing how weight gain can be derived from these situations can prevent major defragmentation of the body. Most people do not see these societal factors as a threat to their health or weight, although they can cause major weight gain and obesity in extreme cases. It is important to be knowledgeable about health threats and to learn to accept our bodies as they appear, regardless of how others look or how society wants you to appear. In order to prevent weight gain from these factors without removing oneself from society as a whole, inner ideals of beauty need to be reset by “look[ing] at all kinds of shapes and sizes, not just the one kind we see most often in media and marketing” (Brown 192). This is an important step because society essentially morphs how one is portrayed through what they are shown, told, and given to see as the perfect, ideal body. In terms of social media, screen time should be reduced, perhaps monitored for younger and more easily influenced children, in order to keep oneself more restricted and protected from unnecessary advertising of food and “perfect” ideals (Council). Mindless eating in front of the television can occur as a result of increased screen time with food advertisements that can increase hunger. Social media feeds should be regulated, if seeing food makes you hungry or seeing certain people makes you unhappy, there is no need to force negative emotions on oneself (Landa). In terms of social networks, if you wish to actively lose or maintain your current weight, eating habits should be monitored in order to ensure that you are not overeating to mirror those around you (Christakis, Powell). Perhaps the people that one is spending time with should be changed, it is possible that they could be detrimental to both ones mental and physical health. It is important to understand how social media and social networks can shift how people view themselves and ultimately cause weight gain. Using social media and interacting with different social networks are inevitable parts of todays society, but with this information it is possible to understand how to respond to the negativity in these different situations and remember that perfection is not something to be strived for. It is important to be self accepting and understand how the actions of others can negatively affect one’s life. Society may believe that there is one way to look and one way to act, yet these negative ideas create immense pressures that cause people to fall victim to weight gain. It is important to understand individuality and recognize that how society perceives the population is not how one should be perceived. Once it is understood how society functions then measures can be taken to avoid weight gain. 
