Viral TikTok Trend for Weight Loss Is Harmful for Health

• “Skinny Tok,’ an extreme form of dieting that equates thinness with health, continues to trend on TikTok.
• Experts warn that the trend perpetuates negative body image and toxic diet culture.
• Extreme calorie restriction has mental and physical consequences.
• There are many sustainable, evidence-based ways to achieve a healthy weight.

A harmful and misleading body image trend continues to surface on TikTok.

So-called “Skinny Tok” is a controversial corner of the social media platform where proponents tout extreme thinness under the guise of wellness and lifestyle advice.

Leading the Skinny Tok movement is Gen Z influencer Liv Schmidt, who rose to internet fame by sharing what she referred to as “skinny girl hacks.”

Her content, which included low calorie “What I Eat in a Day” videos, sparked widespread concern about its potential to normalize disordered eating.

After being banned from TikTok in 2024 for violating the platform’s community guidelines, Schmidt resurfaced with a new username.

Skinny Tok content continues to gain traction. There are currently over 74,000 videos shared under the #skinnytok hashtag, many of which share extreme calorie deficits and regular body checks, where users document their shrinking bodies.

Registered dietitian Emily Van Eck, described the trend as a “dangerous” and “extreme” take on weight loss and health.

“Glorifying thinness as a marker of morality, health, or discipline is harmful to physical, emotional, and mental health,” she told Healthline.

“Dieting is a major risk factor for eating disorders, and the younger someone starts, the higher their risk. Because these videos often feature teenagers and young adults, they’re especially concerning.”

Van Eck noted the vilifying of essential macronutrients (in particular carbohydrates and fats) as another red flag.

“Our bodies need these nutrients,” she said.

Lindsie Meek, founder of HumanMend, an eating disorder and anxiety psychotherapy practice in New York City, said the trend perpetuates harmful diet culture, celebrates extreme thinness, and promotes unrealistic body standards.

“The ‘What I eat in a day’ content is particularly harmful because it suggests all bodies have the same nutritional needs,” she told Healthline.

“These posts don’t take into consideration individual body factors, such as genetics and health needs.”

Some influencers promoting this trend share very low calorie diets. Both experts agreed that extreme calorie restriction has mental and physical consequences.

“On 800 calories per day, it’s virtually impossible to meet your body’s nutrient needs,” Van Eck said.

“Deficiencies in iron, B12, and calcium are common, which can lead to fatigue, low mood, poor sleep, and muscle loss. Over time, undernourishment can cause immune dysfunction, hypothalamic amenorrhea (which causes infertility), and bone loss,” she noted.

From a mental health perspective, Meek said dieting to the extreme could contribute to “exaggerated or limited mood fluctuations and obsessive thoughts about food and body image.”

Many of these videos frame weight loss and extreme thinness as the ultimate sign of health, a narrative that is dangerous and misleading.

“Weight is not a reliable indicator of health status,” said Meek. “Health is multifaceted and cannot be determined by appearance alone.

“People in thin bodies may or may not be healthy, just as people in larger bodies may or may not be healthy,” she continued.

Meek noted that true health isn’t a body size; it encompasses physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual well-being.

Not all weight loss is bad. There are healthy, sustainable ways to reach a healthy weight, but with so much conflicting advice online, it can be difficult to know what’s helpful and what’s extreme.

“The line between intentional weight loss and disordered eating can be blurry, especially online, where extreme behaviors are often framed as wellness and get rewarded with massive attention due to their polarizing nature,” she pointed out.

For Van Eck, health-supportive behavior change feels like part of a broader self-care routine. “It’s flexible and rooted in nourishment, not fear or punishment,” she said.

Disordered eating on the other hand, often shows up as rigid food rules, food guilt, and obsessive control.

“If someone feels anxious deviating from a plan, skips meals to earn food, or thinks about food and their body constantly, that’s disordered, even if it’s normalized online,” Van Eck said.

If in doubt, Meek recommended assessing how the behaviors impact your daily life.

“If weight loss is the goal, it’s important to consistently assess flexibility and anxiety levels when plans change, as disordered patterns are often rigid and distressing,” she said.

“Disordered eating also typically interferes with relationships, work, and life enjoyment, whereas balanced approaches enhance overall well-being.”

Despite recent strides made by the body positivity movement, mainstream culture continues to conflate thinness with health.

According to Van Eck, part of the issue may be tied to misconceptions about healthy body weight.

“Healthy weight is a term I often find problematic. The metrics we use, like BMI, are deeply flawed and don’t account for natural, individual variation,” Van Eck said.

“If we define it more functionally, a healthy weight is the range your body naturally lands when you’re eating enough, moving in ways that feel good, and not caught in the restrict-obsess-repeat cycle.”

There are many sustainable, evidence-based ways to get into this healthy zone. “If someone wants to support their health long term, the most sustainable approach is to focus on behavior, not the weight.

“That includes eating regular, balanced meals with enough energy, fiber, protein, and fat to support fullness and satisfaction,” she said.

It also means honoring hunger cues, finding enjoyable movement, and addressing sleep, stress, and emotional health.

Another way to support yourself is to ditch the idea that foods are inherently good or bad.

“Virtually everyone in our culture has been influenced to some extent by toxic diet culture. Healing involves rejecting food morality by challenging the idea that certain foods are good or bad,” said Meek.

Diet trends like Skinny Tok can reinforce dangerous ideas around weight loss and health, but true wellness is multi-dimensional.

“Equating thinness with health ignores human complexity and reinforces weight stigma,” Van Eck said.

“It’s normal to care about how you look, but health is better reflected in behaviors, like how you nourish yourself, manage stress, sleep, and connect with others, than it is in a size.”