Being skinny is “trendy” again, thanks in part to now-banned hashtag #SkinnyTok #SkinnyTok content—a now-banned hashtag—recently became a viral hub on social media for glorifying thinness as the ultimate health and aesthetic goal, led mostly by young, female creators. At first glance, it could look like a standard weight-loss community tag, but scroll a little and it quickly turned into something more extreme. Posts under the tag often featured “body checks,” before-and-after shots, and intense tips posed as “tough love” or “discipline”—all pushing the idea that the only path to good health is eating less and moving more. The nuance and science behind weight, health, and nutrition? Largely ignored. And despite TikTok’s public health efforts like flagging misinformation and limiting certain content for teens, the tag gained massive traction.The trend has even formed bands of paying followers for groups like Liv Schmidt’s “Skinni Société,” a “wellness group” that exchanged extreme diet tips until it got demonetized by Meta for pushing toxic messaging. All of this content sparked pushback, not...
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