Kaur's original Instagram reel, which she captioned “The Original Brown Girl Anthem for Summer 2024,” has been viewed nearly 3.5 million times, and the same audio has spawned 4,000 Instagram reels since she uploaded the video last month.
First, let's unpack what “iron deficiency” means in this context. It's meant to be a joke, an inside joke about what men find attractive. But iron deficiency? It's not a quality we want to romanticize or joke about.
Iron deficiency, or anemia, is a serious health issue, especially for women, making you feel constantly tired and carrying long-term health risks, so casually remixing “iron deficiency” as if it were a quaint trait sends the wrong message: is this a sanitized version of 1990s heroin chic, with its pale skin, dark circles and gaunt look?
This reminds me of the “girls' dinner” fad, which started as a way for women to showcase their carefree, fuss-free meals. An affront to the domestic goddess archetype. But it quickly turned into something much more sinister. It became a weird symbol of not eating enough, of skimping on food because, apparently, it's cool now. Really? Not eating seems to be in style again. Remember the infamous quote popularized by Kate Moss in 2009? “Nothing tastes as good as when you're skinny.”
Last I checked, dinner is about enjoying good food and good company, not competing to see who can eat the least.
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It's not just a joke
What really baffles me is that trends like “girl dinners” and Kaur's “find a girl” started out as jokes with a seemingly feminist twist, but ended up glamorizing unhealthy habits.
We seem to be stuck in a loop where unhealthy behaviors are disguised as fun and desirable. So who is buying into all of this? Mostly us, girls and women. We clearly don't have the impossible standards of beauty and beauty that we're not good enough to keep up with.
Of course, Elim Kaur and other influencers may not have malicious intent. They're just doing their job, creating content that people talk about. The more shares, the better. Virality is the holy grail.
But, in the words of our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, “With great influence comes great responsibility. When you have thousands, even millions, of followers online, what you say and do matters. It shapes how people see themselves and each other. So instead of promoting 'low iron' like it's the latest must-have accessory, maybe influencers could use their platform to promote things that actually matter, like authenticity and self-worth.”
Social media is focused on trends and living in the moment, but it shouldn't come at the expense of our health and self-esteem. It's time to start calling out this nonsense for how harmful it is. Dancing to catchy beats is fun, but let's stop pretending that being “iron deficient” is our goal, and let's definitely stop pretending that skipping meals is cool. It's okay to be yourself, flaws and all. In fact, not only is it okay, it's what makes you you.
Let's shake off these stupid and bad trends and embrace what really matters: health, happiness and authenticity. How about Erim Kaur and her remix? Next time, maybe you should think twice about the message you're sending out. Because in a world where influencers hold a lot of power, a little mindfulness goes a long way.
Opinions are personal
(Edited by Asavari Singh)
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