Beauty filters have come along way since the Snapchat dog ears and flower crowns of 2016. Now fuelled by artificial intelligence and augmented reality technology, filters have become increasingly more realistic – and more prevalent. What started as a fun effect has become an unavoidable part of life online, and it’s starting to impact the self-esteem of millions of social media users all over the world. What are the scary and subtle ways that beauty filters harm your self-esteem? And how can we start to fight back?
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What Are Beauty Filters?
The term “beauty filter” refers to digital tools and algorithms used to modify and enhance the appearance of users on social media. They can be applied to video or still image content. Some filters are built-into those platforms, such as on Snapchat, Tiktok, or Instagram. Other filters can be used outside of social media platforms, through apps such as FaceTune or FaceApp. Most are focused on facial augmentation, but in recent years new filters that can alter body proportions have also emerged.
Some filters offer whimsical augmented reality effects, such as dog ears, fairy wings, or crowns. Others are more subtle, and may add makeup, freckles, or smoothing effects. But most filters also include similar beautifying features meant to enhance the beauty of the user. It varies from filter to filter, but most include smoother skin, larger eyes, a more slender nose, and a more slim, chiseled face. It is these beautifying effects that are the most damaging, and one of the main ways that beauty filters harm your self-esteem.
Filters have exploded in popularity over the past decade. And they’re not slowing down anytime soon. Snapchat reports that over 90% of young people in the US, France, and the UK have used an AR beauty filter in their app. As filters become more widespread and more sophisticated, it begs the question: how do beauty filters harm your self-esteem?
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5 Ways That Beauty Filters Harm Your Self-Esteem
1. Beauty filters create unrealistic standards of beauty
Beauty standards have always been unrealistic for the average person. But beauty filters have created a new standard of beauty that has become more and more removed from what real people actually look like.
It is impossible for most real people to look like a filter because filters simply aren’t real. But that doesn’t stop society from popularizing filtered looks as the new beauty ideal.
Filters give all of us the ability to keep chasing a more beautiful version of ourselves. But at what point will we draw the line and decide that we are enough as we are?
2. Filters perpetuate toxic beauty standards
Not only do beauty filters create unrealistic standards, but the standards that they have set can be extremely harmful. The standard of beauty set by filters is very narrow – and often Eurocentric.
The goal of filters is to make everyone look the same – but beauty is not one size fits all. By smoothing and contouring all of our faces in the same way, they erase all of the things that make each of us uniquely beautiful.
They can make us believe that our distinctive features are flaws that need to be erased and changed, rather than the very thing that makes all of us so special.
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3. Filters encourage unhealthy comparison, both to ourselves and others
People have always compared themselves to others. But when you compare your natural beauty to someone else who has been artificially smoothed, snatched, and enhanced, it is impossible to measure up.
On top of comparing yourself to others, beauty filters harm your self-esteem by giving you another image to compare yourself to – the digitally enhanced version of your own face and body. Of course you will never look as perfect as the filtered version of yourself. Your face looks perfect with filters because the filters were programmed to make you look perfect.
When we compare ourselves to the false perfection created by filters, it becomes hard to appreciate our own imperfect, real beauty.
4. The use of beauty filters can cause body dysmorphia and impact mental health
The rise of social media and filter use has caused a dramatic increase in mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, and body dysmorphic disorder, particularly in teenagers and young adults. According to an internal document from Facebook, 32% of teenage teen girls say that when they feel bad about their bodies, Instagram makes them feel worse.
Body dysmorphia is a condition where individuals become obsessed with perceived flaws in their appearance. People with body dysmorphia can become extremely self-conscious about their appearance, making it difficult to live a happy and confident life.
One factor that many individuals with body dysmorphia have in common is their use of filters. Users can become obsessed with their filtered selves and disappointed that their real appearance doesn’t measure up. Filter use turns their normal appearance into a perceived flaw, even though there was nothing wrong with it in the first place.
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5. Increased filter use is correlated with an increase in dangerous cosmetic procedures
The rise of filter use has lead doctors to coin the term “Snapchat Dysmorphia” – a phenomenon characterized by the desire to look like a heavily edited version of oneself.
With beauty filters and editing apps, everyone can become their own virtual plastic surgeon. And some users are taking these enhancements out of their devices and into real life. Plastic surgeons like Tijion Esho, the doctor who first coined the term Snapchat dysmorphia, claim that more and more patients are coming to their clinics with filtered versions of their own face as inspiration for their procedures.
With plastic surgery hitting an all time high – surgical procedures increased by 54% in the US alone in 2021 – there is also increased risk of dangers and drawbacks associated with plastic surgery and procedures.
Especially when performed at unregulated facilities, plastic surgery patients are at risk of botched procedures, infection, and even death. And there are mental and self-esteem risks as well. Studies have shown that while procedures might cause initial boosts in self-image, they do not improve overall self-esteem over time.
How Can We Fight Back Against The Harmful Effects of Beauty Filters?
There’s no doubt about it – beauty filters harm your self-esteem. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t reclaim natural beauty, or fight back against the harmful effects of filters. Here are 3 ways we can fight back:
1. Reduce your use of filters online
Occasional use of filters can be fun. But if photo retouching, filters, and beauty mode are making you feel insecure about your real-life appearance, maybe it is time to cut back.
Try challenging yourself to share unfiltered images on social media. Recognize that filters do not define your worth or natural beauty.
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2. Diversify your feed with accounts that commit to posting unretouched images
If the profiles you follow on social media are posting filtered and retouched images, it warps our image of what real faces and bodies are supposed to look like. Instead, follow people and accounts that promote authenticity, body-positivity, and diverse representations of beauty.
Some of my favourites include Sarah Nicole Landry of The Birds Papaya, Spencer Barbosa, and Brynta Ponn. I also pride myself in keeping it real and authentic on my pages. Check out Finding Julianne on Instagram and TikTok for more unretouched positivity and self-love.
3. Seek help if you are struggling with your self-esteem
If your struggles with self-esteem and body image have negatively impacted your life, maybe it is time to seek help. There is a better life out there where you can learn to love yourself exactly the way you are.
Check out powerful books like Your Good Body, You Are Not a Before Picture, and The Body is Not An Apology that can help revolutionize your relationship with your body and authentic beauty. Or try finding a therapist, psychologist, or counsellor that specializes in body image. You can read more about my experience with online therapy service BetterHelp here.
My Story
In my late teens and early twenties, I almost never posted a picture online without heavily editing and retouching it first (I talk a little about that experience here if you’re interested in learning more). I thought that being able to post these idealized versions of my face and body would make me feel better about myself. In fact, my use of these apps and filters had the opposite effect. My self-esteem hit an all time low, and I was unable to accept and love the unfiltered version of myself. This was one of the experiences that inspired me to start empowering other women by sharing my self-love journey on Finding Julianne.
If you have a story about filter use and how it’s impacted your self-esteem, I would love to chat about it in the comments. There’s no question about it – beauty filters harm your self-esteem. But maybe if we start to speak up about the scary effects of these technologies, we can start to change that together.
Pin me for later!
I’ve taken a little break from posting over the past few months but I am back with some big plans for this summer’s posts. Is there anything you’d like to see from me in the next little while? Let me know in the comments! I’m thrilled to be back and can’t wait for you to read what else I’ve got to say next. Sending all my love,
Good points. I don’t use filters for these very reasons.
What an important post! I could not agree more about the dangers to using filters. I didn’t know that it is associated with increased cosmetic procedures either. Great tips, thanks for sharing!
I always thought I was pretty clued up when it came to spotting when someone had used a filter but when I started using TikTok especially it turned out I had NO clue. It’s scary how natural and seemless the editing can look with just a few presses! Thank you for sharing this!