Proanorexia Communities on Social Media

* Abbreviations: CI —: confidence interval proana —: proanorexia anti proana —: anti proanorexia The Internet and social media have become increasingly important for children today, as they seek information, friends, and social support online. Social media is also home for communities that may advocate unhealthy behavior. Proanorexia (proana) and probulimia sites and online communities are publicly available; they are interactive and promote “thinspiration” (“inspirational” pictures of extremely thin bodies). 1 Such material is easy to access, and some children might find it by accident. According to a 25-country EU Kids Online survey, for example, 10% of children aged 9 to 16 had seen eating disorder sites online, with girls being more commonly exposed to such material than boys. 2 With the rapid expansion of social media, proana and other harmful online communities have a global audience. Proana communities are active on different social media sites, including Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Flickr, and Snapchat. 3 Members of proana communities report higher levels of disordered eating, and in addition to weight concerns, their members are motivated by support and belonging. 4 Content analysis of proeating disorder sites have shown that mutual support and solidarity is a strong theme1; hence, it might be difficult for … Address correspondence to Atte Oksanen, DrSocSci, School of Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Tampere, Finland FI-33014. E-mail: atte. oksanenatuta. fi