YouTube (part of Google) will stop recommending videos to teenagers that idealise certain fitness levels, body weights or physical features. The company’s experts believe that repeatedly watching such videos can lead to mental problems, The Guardian reports.
“The platform will continue to allow teens between the ages of 13 and 17 to watch videos, but its algorithms will not subsequently send young users down rabbit holes of similar content.” — the publication clarifies.
YouTube stresses that such content does not violate the rules, but can cause problems if viewed repeatedly.
Experts from YouTube’s Youth and Family Advisory Committee believe that certain categories that may be “harmless” as a standalone video can become “problematic” when viewed again.
The rules went into effect in the United States and the United Kingdom. Specifically, the vague rules apply to content that: idealizes some physical features over others, such as nose-slimming beauty treatments; idealizes physical fitness or body weight, such as exercise programs that encourage aspirations of a certain appearance; or encourages social aggression, such as physical harassment.
There is one caveat: teenagers must truthfully state their age when registering on the platform.
