Blog

What Educators Should Know About “#SkinnyTok” and the Rise of Body Image Pressures Online

Nine out of ten girls follow social media accounts that make them feel less beautiful, and more than 50% say they can’t measure up to the beauty standards they see online. 

While the pressure to be “skinny” has been around for generations, social media has amplified these pressures. Platforms like TikTok, combined with viral conversations about weight-loss drugs like Ozempic, have brought extreme body standards back into the spotlight, especially for young people still shaping their self-image.

One trend fueling this pressure is “#SkinnyTok,” a growing corner of TikTok where creators glorify extreme thinness and share restrictive eating content, including “what I eat in a day” videos featuring limited meals, calorie-counting routines, and so-called “hacks” for eating less.

While some students may scroll past without thinking twice, others may quietly internalize these messages that impact their confidence, self-worth, and relationship with food.

By understanding #SkinnyTok and how students engage with it both online and in daily conversations, educators have the opportunity to spark meaningful discussions that promote well-being, body positivity, and high-character choices, both online and offline.

What Is SkinnyTok?

#SkinnyTok is a trending side of TikTok where thinness is often portrayed as the key to confidence and success. It features videos like “what I eat in a day,” restrictive eating routines, and body-focused posts that can quietly promote unrealistic beauty standards, all under the disguise of wellness or self-improvement. 

For students still shaping how they see themselves, especially middle and high schoolers navigating body changes and social pressures, these subtle messages can chip away at their self-worth, fuel unhealthy comparisons, and lead to anxiety around food, appearance, and acceptance.

While some of these posts are framed as “wellness” or “fitness,” many promote unrealistic body standards and unhealthy habits, often in subtle ways that are hard to spot.

In the #WinAtSocial Lesson, Exploring the link between social media, gaming, and body image, thousands of students identified the kinds of content shaping how people think about appearance. 

These types of posts each ranked at the top for students:

• TikTok “What I Eat in a Day” (36%)
• Workout and Makeup TikTok videos (36%) 
• Instagram’s “perfect” lives, which are highly curated and filtered content that presents an idealized version of someone’s appearance, lifestyle, and success, (37%) 

Among all-girls schools, 55% of students identified TikTok alone as the biggest influence on how people want to look, showing just how powerful these social media trends are in shaping appearance pressures today.

Unlike more positive health and fitness content that encourages balance and strength, #SkinnyTok focuses on appearance over well-being, often framing thinness as the ultimate path to happiness, success, and confidence. For students still developing their sense of identity, this kind of content can quietly shape their beliefs, not just about food, but about what it means to be confident, accepted, or “enough.”

What makes #SkinnyTok even more influential is the power of algorithms. When a student watches even one body-focused video, their feed can quickly become filled with more of the same, creating a constant loop that reinforces unrealistic beauty standards and filters out body diversity.

And because this content is often wrapped in aesthetic videos, trending sounds, and relatable captions, it may not seem harmful at first glance, but it can still plant seeds that shape how students think, feel, and talk about body image.

Common Types of SkinnyTok Content to Know

• “What I Eat in a Day” videos featuring very limited meals, often presented as ideal for achieving a certain body type or maintaining thinness, rather than supporting balanced, healthy eating.
• Motivational posts that tie thinness to happiness, success, or confidence.
• Tips framed as “life hacks” for avoiding food or eating as little as possible.
• Body-focused videos that highlight one narrow ideal of beauty, often excluding body diversity.

Trends like #SkinnyTok remind us how important it is to help students pause and think critically about what they’re seeing, especially when content that seems inspiring on the surface may be promoting unrealistic or unhealthy habits.

And when educators are aware of these trends, they can open up meaningful conversations that help students think critically about what they see online and remind them that health and confidence aren’t defined by appearance.

Who Is Leading This Trend? Spotlight on SkinnyTok 

One of the most well-known creators fueling #SkinnyTok is Liv Schmidt, who built a following of nearly 700,000 before TikTok removed her account for promoting unhealthy weight loss behaviors. Schmidt became known for “what I eat in a day” videos, weight loss “hacks,” and tips on staying slim in everyday situations, like working a 9–5 job or attending social events.

While platforms like TikTok have taken steps to ban harmful accounts, some creators continue to find ways around these efforts. Despite her original account being removed, Schmidt has resurfaced under new usernames and expanded her reach to other platforms, including a private, paid Instagram group offering exclusive content and advice. For young people seeking belonging, these spaces can make harmful messages feel normal and even aspirational.

That’s why it’s essential to help students recognize the impact influencers have on how they view health, confidence, and body image. Guiding students toward creators who celebrate balance, strength, and self-respect can make a meaningful difference. By encouraging them to reflect on who they follow, and how those posts make them feel, educators can empower students to shape their feeds with content that builds them up, not breaks them down.

What Educators Can Watch for as Trusted Adults

Educators are often the first trusted adults to notice when something feels off. You may hear students casually mention “diet hacks,” skipping meals, comparing themselves to influencers, or making body-shaming comments about themselves or others. These moments offer powerful opportunities to:

• Start open conversations.
• Model body-positive language.
• Remind students that health, confidence, and success look different for everyone.

But sometimes, a conversation isn’t enough, and students may need additional support.

When you notice ongoing signs of distress, such as drastic changes in eating habits, persistent negative self-talk, body-shaming comments, or withdrawal from friends, it’s important to connect students to professional mental health professionals.

How to Empower Students as they Navigate Content Online

Trends like #SkinnyTok show us how deeply online content impacts students’ real lives. By understanding and addressing trends like #SkinnyTok, educators can proactively support students’ well-being and create a school environment that challenges harmful narratives about body image. 

By opening conversations and creating safe spaces for students to reflect, educators have a unique opportunity to shift the narrative, from harmful body comparisons to self-respect, balance, and belonging.

Here are 3 action steps to take today:

• Create opportunities for students to reflect on their feeds and the influencers they follow. Ask questions like:
  • Who inspires you online, and why?
  • How do you feel after scrolling?
  • What messages do you want to see more of, about yourself, health, and confidence?
• Teach students how to take control of their algorithm.
  • Help students understand that what they engage with shapes what they see, and that they can intentionally follow creators who make them feel strong, inspired, and valued for more than appearance. Consider brainstorming a list of positive influencers as a class.
• Celebrate body diversity and individual strengths.
  • Model conversations that highlight all body types, talents, and strengths, reinforcing that health, confidence, and success look different for everyone. Encourage students to focus on what makes them unique beyond appearance.

Trends like #SkinnyTok remind us that what students see online shapes how they see themselves. By helping students navigate these pressures with confidence and care, educators can foster a school culture where every student feels valued, for who they are, not just how they look.

Ready to start these conversations? Explore our #WinAtSocial Lesson on social media and body image to equip students with the tools to navigate online pressures in healthy ways, and spark meaningful discussions that build confidence and belonging.

The Social Institute (TSI) is the leader in empowering students by understanding students. Through #WinAtSocial, our gamified, peer-to-peer learning platform, we equip students, educators, and families to navigate their social world – in the classroom and beyond, online and offline – in healthy, high-character ways. Our unique, student-respected approach empowers and equips, rather than scares and restricts. We incorporate timely topics about social media, tech use, and current events that are impacting student well-being and learning. #WinAtSocial Lessons teach life skills for the modern day, capture student voice, and provide school leaders with actionable insights. Through these insights, students play an essential role in school efforts to support their own health, happiness, and future success as we enable high-impact teaching, meaningful family conversations, and a healthy school culture.