TikTok has banned influencer Liv Schmidt after she came under fire for promoting controversial weight loss advice that critics have labelled “dangerous” and “harmful.”
Schmidt, who had nearly 700,000 followers, regularly posted content emphasizing the importance of being thin. However, experts in diet and nutrition argued that her videos were encouraging disordered eating and unhealthy behaviours.
Schmidt’s account was deleted after TikTok determined that her content violated its community guidelines, particularly concerning posts that appeared to glamourize disordered eating. In a statement, the platform said Schmidt’s videos crossed the line by promoting harmful messages about body image and weight.
Schmidt responds: “There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be skinny”
Following the ban, Schmidt, who resides in New York, spoke out in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, defending her stance.
“For me and my personal aesthetic, I like to be skinny, and there’s nothing wrong with that,” Schmidt said. She acknowledged that weight can be a sensitive topic but argued that it resonates with her audience.
“Weight is a touchy topic, but that’s what the viewers want,” she explained. Schmidt also justified her content by linking it to her personal experiences, stating that her goal was to “save America from obesity one person at a time,” citing her own struggles with body confidence. Despite her explanations, Schmidt expressed confusion and disappointment over TikTok’s decision to remove her account, telling the Wall Street Journal that she felt “confused, upset,” and “misunderstood.”
Critics condemn Schmidt for promoting harmful notions of thinness
However, many have condemned Schmidt’s content as harmful, particularly for young girls. Experts have pointed out that her “what I eat in a day” videos featured restrictive diets and questionable supplements, some of which were linked to an Amazon storefront selling dietary products like protein powders and ankle weights.
Schmidt also advertised a “Skinny Group Community Chat,” which charged subscribers $9.99 per month, further raising concerns about the monetization of unhealthy advice.
Health professionals argue that promoting such products and regimens to an impressionable audience glamorizes dangerous eating habits. One social media user criticized Schmidt’s influence on young viewers, stating, “There’s something so deeply sinister about a ‘regular’ influencer posting food like this and pretending like it’s normal, ESPECIALLY because there’s a massive population of girls on TikTok who are too young to realize that eating like this isn’t okay.”
TikTok’s battle against harmful content
The removal of Schmidt’s account underscores TikTok’s ongoing efforts to combat content that could encourage unhealthy behaviours or negatively impact mental health. The platform has increasingly faced scrutiny over the influence of its creators on young and vulnerable audiences, and this latest ban reflects a broader push to enforce guidelines around body image and health. As Schmidt’s case gains attention, the debate continues about the responsibility of influencers in promoting positive health messages and the role of social media platforms in regulating potentially harmful content.