Richmond County Technical Career Magnet School student Amyia Gary interviewed teens about the pressures of beauty culture, social media influence, and overconsumption. 

Teen girls are spending thousands to keep up with the world’s version of beauty. 
 
Social media influencers are a big part of the rise in overconsumption. They are told to make a product seem like it will fix all of your problems, and when teen girls are constantly told they have thousands, it makes for a dangerous and wasteful mix. 
 
But the highest cost isn’t money, it’s mental health. Every scroll makes teens feel like they’re not enough if they don’t have the newest or flashiest thing. All of this leads to anxiety, self-esteem issues, and traps girls in a cycle of comparing themselves and feeling worse. 
 
The problem often starts online. A teen scrolls for hours, watching their favorite influencer telling them to run and get this new “must-have” item. When everyone is talking about this product, they may believe they need it too. 
 
From $500 makeup hauls to new clothes for every season, the pressure to buy more and more never stops. 
 
And since influencers are told to sell a dream and not the truth, girls are being misled and disappointed more often than not. The consequences don’t just stop at the mental effect but spill over into all aspects of life. Closets filled with unused clothes, bad and impulsive spending habits being taught to teens, and a fast fashion industry that pollutes our air and water, to name a few. 
 
Some teens reported feeling anxious or “less than” if they don’t own the same brands as their classmates. What looks like just shopping messes with mental health, confidence, and even friendships. 
 
In interviews with two high school students, both admitted feeling pressure from social media and their peers. 
 
One said she caught herself checking her appearance right before the interview started, explaining that she often feels like she has to meet a certain standard she’s seen online. 
 
Another explained, “I can definitely feel that you get treated differently if you aren’t viewed as beautiful or if you don’t fit into how everyone else looks.” 
 
So, what do we do about it? Some say we should learn to question what we see on social media, shop more sustainably, and remind ourselves that our value isn’t based on clothes or looks. 
 
If we don’t, overconsumption will just keep getting worse every time a new trend pops up.