Bored Panda got in touch with Erin Vogel, PhD, Assistant Professor at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and she was kind enough to share some thoughts with us on beauty standards, what causes them, where they come from and what people can do to change their mindset.

“Beauty standards are rooted in systems of power. People with privilege set standards that are not attainable—and maybe not desirable—for most people. For example, in the United States, many beauty standards are centered around White people’s appearances.”

“Advertisements, both online and offline, reinforce the idea that we need to spend money on products and services to look a certain way to be attractive and feel good about ourselves,” she shared. After all, if you constantly feel like your own body, hair or face is a problem, chances are you’ll spend money to “fix” it.

We also wanted to know if there were any other “sources” of beauty standards. “Traditional media and social media both play a role in setting beauty standards. When people with certain features (e.g., thinner or more muscular bodies) are consistently shown in the media, we collectively start to believe that those features are ideal.”

So we also wanted to hear her advice on what people can do to try and “shield” themselves from the constant bombardment of certain body types and looks. “Follow people on social media whose content brings something good to your life. Social media can be great for staying in touch with friends, making ourselves laugh, and learning something new.”

“If you notice that you’re constantly comparing yourself to other people on social media and feeling bad about yourself, it might be time to follow some new people. There are plenty of body-positive people of all shapes and sizes on social media. Find someone relatable. Their content might be uplifting when you’re struggling with the pressure to look perfect.”

However, setting those standards aside, we also wanted to hear her opinion on the sorts of images seen here. After all, beauty standards are one thing, but some of these are so overly edited that there is no way they look “good.” “We spend a lot of time on social media, and we adjust to seeing and using filters!” she shared.

“Many people who edit their images may be trying to fit a certain ideal that seems normal and desirable on social media.” Unfortunately, if you spend too much time just looking at edited photos, you end up with a skewed idea of what human beings look like. So if 90% of the people you see are on Instagram, the photos here are not that far from the norm.