'Selfie' body image warning issued

10 April 2014 Last updated at 10:19 By Helen Briggs BBC News Women post more photographs on the internet than men Spending lots of time on Facebook looking at pictures of friends could make women insecure about their body image, research suggests.

The more women are exposed to "selfies" and other photos on social media, the more they compare themselves negatively, according to a study.

Friends' photos may be more influential than celebrity shots as they are of known contacts, say UK and US experts.

The study is the first to link time on social media to poor body image.

The mass media are known to influence how people feel about their appearance.

Continue reading the main story

The attention to physical attributes may be even more dangerous on social media than on traditional media because participants in social media are people we know”

End Quote Petya Eckler University of Strathclyde, Glasgow But little is known about how social media impact on self-image.

Young women are particularly high users of social networking sites and post more photographs of themselves on the internet than do men.

To look at the impact on body image, researchers at the University of Strathclyde, Ohio University and University of Iowa surveyed 881 female college students in the US.

The women answered questions about their Facebook use, eating and exercise regimes, and body image.

'Unrealistic images'

The research, presented at a conference in Seattle, found no link with eating disorders.

But it did find a link between time spent on social networks and negative comparisons about body image.

The more time women spent on Facebook, the more they compared their bodies with those of their friends, and the more they felt negative about their appearance.

"Spending more time on Facebook is not connected to developing a bad relationship with food, but there is a connection to poor body image," Petya Eckler, of the University of Strathclyde, in Glasgow, told the BBC.

She added: "The attention to physical attributes may be even more dangerous on social media than on traditional media because participants in social media are people we know.

"These comparisons are much more relevant and hit closer to home. Yet they may be just as unrealistic as the images we see on traditional media."

'Sense of identity'

A spokesperson for the Beat eating disorders charity said body image was a key part of our sense of identity and not a trivial matter or personal vanity.

A preoccupation with weight and shape was one of the key features of current popular culture, and was a global phenomenon, she said.

"The fascination with celebrities, their bodies, clothes and appearance has all increased the pressure that people typically feel at a time when they seek to establish their own identities and when their bodies are growing and changing," she said.

"Young people compare themselves to the images that bombard them and feel it is their fault that their bodies compare so unfavourably."

Warning over replacement for EMA

3 May 2011 Last updated at 18:42 By Ross Hawkins Political correspondent, BBC News The scrapping of EMA became part of the wave of student protests during the winter Plans to replace the Education Maintenance Allowance could lead to unintended discrimination, according to a government equalities assessment.

It says discrimination could occur because schools and colleges will decide which students get bursaries.

Sixteen to 19-year-olds in full-time education or training will be able to apply for the money for the coming academic year.

The assessment says the government is considering "some central arbitration".

The Equality Impact Assessment says the process is open to unintended discrimination on the basis of disability, gender or ethnicity.

'Flexibility'

The Department for Education is to set up bursaries totalling £180m a year to replace the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA), which was worth £500m a year.

They are designed to help young people who face financial difficulties stay on in education.

Announcing the plans to the House of Commons in March, Education Secretary Michael Gove said schools and colleges would have the freedom to allocate the bursaries because they were best placed to know the specific needs of their students.

He added then: "We will give professionals full flexibility over allocating support."

Continue reading the main story

He has taken a successful scheme that was good value for the taxpayer and turned it into a complete shambles”

End Quote Andy Burnham Shadow education secretary The Impact Assessment says : "We will consider whether there should be some central arbitration of the discretionary administration of funding or at least ensure transparency of administration to evaluate the impact achieved by providers, including value for public money."

A Department for Education spokesman said: "As we have always said schools and college will have freedom in how they allocate the bursaries to their students. We want to work with colleges to make sure that money is fairly allocated.

"The fact is consultation has not yet finished but we will consider what mechanism might help support colleges and students in making sure the money gets to those who need it."

The government's consultation on how the bursary scheme will work comes to an end this month.

The assessment goes on to say the new scheme will deliver better value for money. It says while some young people will get less money there is no evidence the changes in financial support will have a disproportionate effect on those with disabilities, learning difficulties, or on either gender or those of different ethnicities.

The shadow education secretary Andy Burnham said: "Michael Gove promised a better scheme for the poorest young people but now his own department says it is open to discrimination.

"He has taken a successful scheme that was good value for the taxpayer and turned it into a complete shambles."

James Mills, from the campaign to keep the EMA, said: "We have been saying since day one that there would be grave equality issues brought up by removing EMA and the government has finally admitted this by whispering it out in their own Equality Impact Assessment hoping no one would notice."

Warning over 3D games for young

31 December 2010 Last updated at 17:08 Earlier versions of the DS have proved hugely popular with children. The eyesight of children under six could be harmed by 3D games played on Nintendo's forthcoming handheld console, the company has warned.

The games giant posted the health warning on the website devoted to the 3DS handheld.

It said specialists had warned of possible damage that could be caused by 3D games which present different images to the right and left eye.

Younger children should only play 2D versions of 3DS games, said Nintendo.

Parental control

The 3DS, the successor to the hugely popular DS handheld, goes on sale in late February in Japan and in Europe and the US in March.

The new handheld has two screens like older versions of the console with the top screen being able to show 3D images without the need for special glasses.

Parents should turn off this function if the handheld is going to be used by a child under six years of age, said Nintendo. It said the advice it had received from experts also applied to other 3D content that younger children might be exposed to.

In issuing the warning, Nintendo joins Sony and Toshiba in alerting people to the ill effects that can attend watching 3D movies or playing 3D games.

Sony has already said that parents should get medical advice before letting children watch 3D content on the PlayStation. Toshiba has said parents should keep an eye on children watching its TVs that can display 3D images without needing glasses.

The companies have also warned that watching too much 3D content can cause adults discomfort.

View the original article here