Looksmaxxing is a term that got its start on incel messaging boards; it prioritises appearance above all else. Those who participate in looksmaxxing will sometimes put their own health at risk to achieve a certain standard of appearance.
Learn more about looksmaxxing, the risks and how you can keep your child safe.
Summary
- Looksmaxxing is the act of improving one’s looks, sometimes by extreme means.
- This trend has grown in popularity due to algorithms, social comparison and active looksmaxxing communities.
- Young people are at risk if they engage in looksmaxxing.
- Signs of looksmaxxing include obsession with appearance and a social media feed filled with related content.
- Supporting your child’s wellbeing, self-esteem and body image can help them avoid falling into the looksmaxxing trap.
- Explore more resources to support your child.
What is looksmaxxing?
Looksmaxxing is a term used to describe the pursuit of improving and ‘maximising’ your looks. Looksmaxxers aim to appear as attractive as possible through a wide range of methods. These methods are generally divided into:
- ‘Softmaxxing’: everyday habits such as skincare, grooming and exercise.
- ‘Hardmaxxing’: more extreme actions such as steroid use and cosmetic surgery.
Looksmaxxing originated on incel messaging boards. While it has moved to a more mainstream audience, it still uses many misogynistic incel terms. For example, women are referred to as ‘foids’, which is short for ‘female humanoids’.
Engaging with looksmaxxing content can lead to the algorithm suggesting more manosphere-related content. This could potentially send young people down a rabbit hole that leads to extreme views.
The focus on physical appearance can also impact self-image, harm confidence and lead to issues like body dysmorphia.
Why is it popular?
There are a variety of factors responsible for looksmaxxing’s growing popularity.
Content algorithms
Social media platforms use algorithms that recommend content based on what users engage with, including what they view, like and comment on.
Looksmaxxing content often garners high amounts of engagement due to the radical and dangerous methods used, such as smoking meth to reduce appetite and stay lean. Some users will respond in outrage, warning against the methods used, while others find it funny and share with their friends.
Some users will genuinely find the content interesting and view it as informative, encouraging them to like the post and follow the creator. This engagement leads to the content being shown to more people. Young people who see this content might want to replicate the looksmaxxing transformations, or ‘glow-ups’, that creators share.
The promise of ‘beauty’
Many social media users only post highlights from their life, rather than pictures of everyday life or photos where they don’t look their best. Some influencers will edit their images to look perfect, creating unrealistic beauty standards.
Being exposed to this content can negatively impact a young person’s self-image if they begin comparing themselves. As such, they might view looksmaxxing as a way to reach these beauty standards and begin interacting more with looksmaxxing content.
Community connection
Looksmaxxing forums exist on dedicated sites as well as on websites like 4chan, Discord and Reddit where people share insecurities about their looks. They then receive advice from other users on how to improve their appearance.
This could appeal to a young person who feels self-conscious about their looks. Finding others who share similar insecurities or who can share advice might help a teen feel supported. This is especially true if the community leans more towards softmaxxing and away from harmful acts.
Risks of looksmaxxing
Impact on self-esteem
Looksmaxxing encourages people to continuously analyse and try to optimise their appearance. This can lead to a young person feeling like they are never enough and focus on their perceived imperfections, negatively impacting their self-esteem.
Health risks
Some looksmaxxing advice can be dangerous and unhealthy. While habits like exercising and personal grooming can be positive, engaging in looksmaxxing advice can lead to a young person following more extreme practises. Examples include steroid use and crash dieting (sometimes referred to as ‘starvemaxxing’). This can put a young person at risk both physically and mentally.
Ties to the manosphere
Looksmaxxing originated on incel messaging boards, and it still has ties to this culture. Some creators have been criticised for using misogynistic and ableist language. The most prominent looksmaxxing creator, Clavicular, has been associated with Andrew Tate and created content alongside him and other controversial figures.
While a young person might begin watching looksmaxxing content out of curiosity or to find tips on improving their appearance, the algorithms can lead them to more incel-adjacent content. Over time, they could become radicalised and begin adopting harmful views promoted by manosphere influencers.
Signs to look out for
Children are unlikely to directly tell you about the looksmaxxing content they consume. They might feel embarrassed about being self-conscious about their appearance, or they might worry that you’ll take away their devices.
The following are some signs that your child might be engaging with looksmaxxing content.
Vocabulary
Looksmaxxing has its own vocabulary. Users often add the suffix ‘-maxxing’ to normal words to make them relate to looksmaxxing. Examples of words used by the looksmaxxing community include:
Extreme dieting and fasting to lose weight quickly.
Looking more physically attractive than someone else. Mog can be used as a suffix, for example if you are taller than someone you are ‘Heightmogging’ them.
An attractive and confident male.
An unproven facial exercise designed to improve jawline definition by pressing the tongue against the roof of the mouth.
A derogatory term for someone using humour to get attention, rather than relying on their looks.
A misogynistic term for a woman, short for ‘female humanoid’.
If you hear your child using these terms, it could be a sign that they are engaging with looksmaxxing content.
Increased focus on appearance
Spending more time looking in the mirror, changes in eating or exercising habits and talking about their physical features more could all be signs that your child is consuming looksmaxxing content.
Keep an eye on the accounts your child follows on social media. Check whether they are interacting with looksmaxxing creators, beauty influencers and health or fitness content. This is especially a concern if it becomes the primary form of content they watch.
Shifts in digital habits
If your child becomes more secretive around their device use, it could mean they are engaging with content they think you would disapprove of. Hiding their screen and not talking about what they are watching online are both signs that they’re interacting with inappropriate content.
Changes in mood
If a young person engages with a lot of looksmaxxing content, it can affect how they feel about themselves. They may be more self-conscious about their appearance, making them more reserved or anxious. They might be particularly stressed or disappointed after spending long periods of time online.
Advice for parents
If you are worried about your child becoming involved with looksmaxxing, there are things you can do to support them.
Set up social media supervision tools
You can supervise your teen’s account on popular social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok. Depending on the platform, these supervision tools let you view the type of content your teen watches. You can also filter out certain keywords.
Doing this can help you stay on top of whether your teen is watching looksmaxxing content. You’ll also be able to limit their exposure to it.
See our parental control guides for social media.
Limit screen time
The longer your child spends on their device, the more likely they are to come across harmful content. Setting controls on your child’s device can help you limit how long they use the device and social media each day. This reduces the likelihood of them getting drawn into lookmaxxing communities.
Have regular conversations
Talk with your child about what they do and see online. Bringing this up casually at dinner or in the car can help it feel less like an interrogation and more like curiosity. Doing this regularly can encourage your child to open up.
Open communication means they’re more likely to share when they see something harmful. It also gives you spaces to talk about looksmaxxing and why it’s harmful while finding positive ways to support body image.
Learn how to start conversations about their online life.
Encourage critical thinking
Some of the advice given within the looksmaxxing community is based on pseudoscience and unproven methods. For example, some looksmaxxers encourage ‘bonesmashing’, where people hit their face with a hammer to achieve a desired facial structure.
Empower your child to think critically about the information they see online so that they question any potentially dangerous advice. Discussing the content they see and asking questions such as ‘why do you think this content was made and posted?’ can help your child analyse what they see online.
Promote positive body image
Help your child develop a positive body image. Talk to your child about the content they see online and explain to them that people aren’t perfect, and photos online are often edited. There are a variety of ways to instil positive body image in your child:
Using positive language when talking about your own body image can encourage children to be positive about their own.
Together, go through your teen’s feed and choose an influencer to discuss with them. Talk about their profile and the content they post and discuss whether it is realistic or edited (and why).
When praising your child and others, focus on qualities such as creativity, intelligence and kindness rather than physical attributes. This will show your child that appearance is not the first thing that should come to mind.
Curate their feed
Teach your child how to curate their social media feed. Encourage them to follow accounts that post content that promotes positive activities, such as cooking advice or art. Show them how to mark posts as ‘Not interested’ if they contain harmful looksmaxxing advice. This will result in less similar content being shown to them in future.
Curating the feed by platform
To mark a post as ‘Not interested’ on Facebook:
Step 1 – Click on the 3 horizontal dots in the top right corner of a post.
Step 2 – Select ‘Not interested’ from the drop-down menu.
Fewer posts like this will be shown in the feed in future.
To mark a post as ‘Not interested’ on Instagram:
Step 1 – Click on the 3 horizontal dots in the top right corner of a post.
Step 2 – Select ‘Not interested’ from the menu.
Step 3 – If you want, select the reason why you marked it as ‘Not interested’.
Fewer posts like this will be shown in the feed in future.
To mark a post as ‘Not interested’ on TikTok:
Step 1 – Hold down the screen on the video you are not interested in.
Step 2 – When the pop-up menu appears, select ‘Not interested’.
Fewer posts like this will be shown in the feed in future.
To mark a video as ‘Not interested’ on YouTube:
Step 1 – Click on the 3 vertical dots to the right of a video in your feed.
Step 2 – Select ‘Not interested’ or ‘Don’t recommend channel’ from the menu.
Step 3 – If you want, you can select the reason why you marked it as ‘Not interested’, with a choice of ‘I’ve already seen the video’ or ‘I don’t like the video.
Fewer videos like this will be recommended in future.