Instagram bans “plastic surgery” filters

We’ve come a long way from flower crowns and dog ears – from heart shaped glasses to fake lashes and anime eyes, if you want it on your face then Instagram has a filter for it. All of us have probably played around with filters at one point in our lives (read: every Friday night in a Revolution’s bar after happy hour). But while holographic filters can be fun, it’s the more nuanced ones that are an increasing cause for concern. Thankfully, Instagram is banning its so called “plastic surgery” filters.

Filters that make it look like you have undergone plastic surgery have been appearing on Instagram’s augmented reality platform, Spark AR, and are associated with what has become known as “Snapchat dysmorphia”.

With plastic surgery on the rise, those undergoing procedures are getting younger and younger. It seems impossible to deny social media’s role in this trend. Think about the Kylies and the NikkieTutorials of the world, and how easy it is to see the faces of your favourite Instagrammers change over the years. Cosmetic surgery is quickly becoming mainstream and increasingly accessible for a large number of people.

Thankfully, awareness of the harmful influence social media can have is also on the rise. I Weigh founder and actress Jameela Jamil uses her platform to speak out against dieting fads being promoted on social media and even helped Instagram set up new guidelines for diet and weight loss products promoted on the platform.

It seems Instagram is continuing this trend with a spokesperson stating it will be “re-evaluating [their] policies” and “removing all effects associated with plastic surgery from the Instagram effect gallery.” But at the moment they remain uncertain when the new policies will rollout and what kind of an impact it will have on users remains to be seen.

Sally Wijers