Social media and low body esteem fuel cosmetic procedure addiction

As cosmetic procedures become increasingly normalized worldwide, new research suggests that for some women, repeated treatments may become addiction-like rather than purely cosmetic. The study found that one in five women who had undergone cosmetic procedures met the threshold for moderate-to-severe risk of addictive cosmetic procedure use, with low body esteem and problematic social media use emerging as the strongest risk factors.

As cosmetic procedures surge worldwide and beauty content increasingly dominates social media platforms, a new study from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, suggests that for some women, cosmetic treatments may begin to resemble compulsive or addiction-like behavior. The study, led by Dr. Vera Skvirsky alongside Dr. Uri Lifshin, Dr. Dvora Shmulewitz, and Prof. Mario Mikulincer from the Department of Psychology at Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Israel Center for Addiction and Mental Health (ICAMH), examined what the researchers describe as "addictive cosmetic procedures use," or ACPU, among Jewish Israeli women.

Published in the Journal of Health Psychology, the study surveyed 1,614 women between the ages of 25 and 71, making it one of the larger investigations to date into the psychological patterns associated with repeated cosmetic treatments. The findings point to a phenomenon that researchers say deserves greater attention from both clinicians and the public. Among women who had undergone cosmetic procedures, 20% met the threshold for moderate to severe risk of addictive cosmetic procedure use during their lifetime. More than 15% reported symptoms that were active within the past year.

Across the full sample, nearly 9% of women showed moderate to severe signs of problematic cosmetic procedure use. The researchers adapted an assessment tool originally based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders criteria for substance-related disorders. Participants were asked questions typically associated with addiction, including whether they had unsuccessfully tried to stop undergoing cosmetic procedures, felt compelled to continue despite negative consequences, or experienced cravings related to treatments.

While previous research has linked cosmetic procedures to body-image concerns and body dysmorphic disorder, this study goes further by examining whether repeated cosmetic treatments can, in some cases, resemble a behavioral addiction. Unlike earlier studies, which often focused on patients at cosmetic clinics, this research surveyed more than 1,600 women from the general population and found that addiction-like patterns were most strongly associated with the combination of low body esteem and problematic social media use.

While cosmetic procedures are often associated with confidence and self-expression, the researchers found that repeated engagement may also intersect with vulnerabilities tied to body-image and digital behavior. Women with lower body esteem were significantly more likely to report addictive patterns of cosmetic procedure use, particularly when paired with high levels of problematic social media use. Participants who reported problematic or excessive social media behavior were especially vulnerable if they also struggled with dissatisfaction about their appearance.

The researchers also observed smaller associations between addictive cosmetic procedure use and lower feminist attitudes, lower attachment security, and more negative attitudes toward aging, though those relationships were less consistent once multiple factors were analyzed together.

The findings arrive amid a sharp global increase in cosmetic procedures. According to international estimates cited in the paper, cosmetic interventions worldwide rose by roughly 40% between 2019 and 2023.

The researchers stressed that the study does not argue cosmetic procedures are inherently harmful. Rather, they say the results suggest that in some cases, repeated engagement may take on characteristics similar to behavioral addictions already recognized in mental health research.

"Cosmetic procedures have become deeply normalized in many societies, and for many people they may be a positive experience," said the researchers. "But our findings suggest that for a meaningful minority, the behavior may begin to resemble other compulsive patterns we see in addiction research, especially when low body esteem and problematic social media use are involved."

The researchers cautioned that the study was cross-sectional, meaning it cannot determine cause and effect. It remains unclear whether problematic social media use contributes to addictive cosmetic behavior, whether cosmetic procedures themselves influence body image and online engagement, or whether other psychological factors drive both.