Taylor Swift isn’t just a pop superstar, she could also be helping ‘Swifties’ battle eating disorders, a study suggests.
US researchers claim that fans’ “parasocial” relationship with the global sensation, combined with Swift’s openness and references to eating disorders and body image in her work, helped create this effect.
The experts came to their conclusion after analysing 200 social media posts about the pop star, as well as more than 8,000 comments from fans discussing her, eating disorders and body image.
Unlike other celebrities, they found that Swift’s open revelations about her own struggles with eating and body image had reduced stigma and helped inspire recovery among fans.
Swift opened up about her struggles with the perception of her weight and the standards of physical beauty faced by women in general in her documentary Miss Americana, released in 2020.
Taylor Swift isn’t just a pop superstar, she could also be helping the “Swifties” battle eating disorders, a study suggests. Swift is pictured earlier this month on her Eras Tour in Switzerland
US researchers say fans’ “parasocial” relationship with the global sensation, combined with Swift’s openness and references to eating disorders and body image in her work, help create this effect.
She recalled that when she looked at photos of herself, “I would feel like I looked like my belly was too big, or… someone would say I looked pregnant and that would just make me starve myself a little bit, just stop eating.”
Swift added: “If you’re skinny enough, then you don’t have that butt that everyone wants.”
“But if you’re heavy enough to have a butt, your stomach isn’t flat enough. It’s fucking impossible.”
In 2022, she also made headlines after the music video for her newly released song ‘Anti-Hero’ featured Swift stepping onto a scale that read ‘fat’ while her alter ego berated her.
The researchers, who examined Swift’s fans’ online discourse on these issues, said their evidence suggested she had motivated them to change harmful behaviors.
A comment analyzed by the researchers, from the University of Vermont, detailed how Swift’s comments about eating disorders had a profound effect on them.
“After watching your Miss Americana documentary I was speechless,” the comment read.
“I’ve been struggling with a horrible eating disorder for a few years,” she added.
‘Hearing that Taylor had the same thoughts and the same issues as me and so many other people was so rewarding and so inspiring… I can honestly say that if I hadn’t had her inspiration, I wouldn’t be where I am today, I wouldn’t be in recovery.
“Thank you, Taylor Swift, for helping me and I’m sure hundreds of others to strive and improve. You are an inspiration and the best role model anyone could ask for.”
Another fan with an eating disorder who wrote specifically about Swift’s song ‘You’re On Your Own Kid’ wrote: ‘I think this song is the most important song she’s ever written.
They continued: ‘It’s so comforting to know that someone as famous as Taylor went through these kinds of battles and is now assuring her fans that we can really deal with this.’
Study co-author Lizzy Pope, a dietitian from Vermont, said: “Our findings suggest that fans who felt highly connected to Swift were influenced to positively change their behaviors or attitudes around eating or body image because of Swift’s revelations and messages in her music.”
Co-author and dietitian Kelsey Rose, also from Vermont, added: “Fans seemed to be inspired by the fact that Swift had recovered from an eating disorder and subsequently appeared to be thriving.”
Swift made headlines in 2022 when the music video for her song ‘Anti-Hero’ featured a moment where she steps on a scale that says ‘fat.’
She eventually removed the segment after fans took to social media to call the singer “fatphobic.”
The authors said their findings contrast with previous research suggesting that celebrities and media coverage of their bodies can trigger body image issues and eating disorders, especially in young women.
However, publishing their findings in the journal Social sciences and medicineThey added that fans’ interactions with Swift’s body image were not always entirely positive.
They highlighted how fans still commented on their idol’s body, like ‘she’s gained weight, she looks so happy and healthy now’, objectifying her body in a different way.
The researchers also noted how Swift’s famous “Anti-Hero” video led some fans to accuse her of having an “anti-fat” bias, providing another element of discourse about body image within the community fascinated by her.
Swift, while not addressing the controversy directly, did edit the video to remove the word “fat” from the scale.
In a statement accompanying the study, Ms Pope and Ms Rose said they had been inspired to explore the impact Swift had on eating disorders and body image by seeing students idolise her.
Experts said their study had a number of limitations, including a lack of demographic information on the users behind the social media posts and comments they analyzed.
They also said they only analyzed posts and comments made in English, meaning it was unclear whether the results would be similar among fans who spoke different languages.
Charities estimate that 1.25 million Britons suffer from an eating disorder, and the vast majority (75 per cent) are women.
This figure rises to 29 million in the United States, approximately one-tenth of the total population.