Background/Objectives: The multifaceted concept of body image (BI) refers to an individual’s attitudes and impressions of their body. Negative BI is associated with a number of harmful health consequences, including obesity, eating disorders, and symptoms of sadness. The contemporary digital era, marked by the dominance of platforms, has brought about a considerable transformation in the landscape of BI issues. This study’s goal is to compile and assess the connections between social media (SM) use, body weight, and BI in adult populations. Methods: This is a narrative review that comprehensively searches across multiple academic databases, such as PubMed, Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. Studies that used SM (online blogs, microblogs, content communities, or social networking sites) for engagement (e.g., sharing, commenting, liking) or image-related activities (e.g., viewing, posting, or engaging with images) with healthy adults (aged 18–70 years) of any body mass index (BMI kg/m²) met the inclusion criteria. Included were observational and experimental studies that examined habitual SM use. Only peer-reviewed works published in English between 2015 and 2025 met the search criteria. Results: The currently available findings suggest that obese people are more dissatisfied with their bodies than people of normal weight, and obese women are more dissatisfied with their bodies than their peers of normal weight. Furthermore, experimental studies have demonstrated that immediate BI is adversely affected by acute exposure to idealized social media photographs. Conclusions: Policies should support specialized training that emphasizes a holistic approach to health and puts functionality and health above attractiveness. This training is crucial for dispelling weight-related stigmas and enabling healthcare providers to offer compassionate treatment that supports mental and physical health. Future research must concentrate on internalization and social pressure or reinforcement because these subjects have not gotten as much emphasis in prior studies. Such mechanism research could help better contextualize the role of recently introduced SM items.

Background/Objective: Childhood obesity and mental health disorders in preschool-aged children represent critical public health challenges with a rising global prevalence, closely linked to lifestyle behaviors and the family environment. This cross-sectional study aims to investigate the combined influence of maternal sociodemographic, socioeconomic, anthropometric characteristics, and lifestyle factors on the physical and mental health status of preschool-aged children. Methods: Validated questionnaires were administered to assess dietary habits, psychosocial parameters (depression, anxiety, stress), and sociodemographic, socioeconomic, and anthropometric variables among 200 preschool-aged children and their mothers, who served as the primary informants. Results: Maternal obesity was associated with a higher prevalence of childhood overweight/obesity (36.7% vs. 18.5% in children of non-obese mothers, p = 0.009). Maternal psychological factors, specifically depressive symptoms (B = 0.998, OR = 2.712, 95% CI: 1.222–6.020, p = 0.014) and anxiety (B = 1.676, OR = 5.346, 95% CI: 2.471–11.565, p < 0.001), were independently associated with an increased likelihood of child anxiety. Anthropometric measures, including waist circumference (p = 0.032) and hip circumference (p = 0.031), primarily influenced children’s physical health, whereas maternal psychological factors predominantly affected their emotional well-being. Conclusions: The findings underscore the necessity for targeted interventions focusing on enhancing maternal nutrition and mental health literacy, aiming to promote healthy dietary patterns, physical activity, and lifestyle behaviors. Such interventions are pivotal for preventing childhood obesity and fostering overall well-being at the population level.

Background and Objectives: Rates of obesity have been consistently increasing in recent years across all age groups, with a notable rise among young people. Obesity represents a persistent inflammatory condition and a key contributor to various chronic health problems, such as cardiovascular disorders, metabolic abnormalities, cancer, and psychological conditions. The move from high school to university is a transitional phase accompanied by specific pressures that can affect both body weight control and mental health in students. This cross-sectional investigation aimed to investigate potential associations between excess weight and the presence of depressive and anxiety symptoms in university populations. Methods: This cross-sectional analysis included 5298 students enrolled at universities across ten geographic areas of Greece. Participants filled out questionnaires concerning demographic information and lifestyle behaviors. Levels of depression and anxiety were measured using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) and the short form of the State Anxiety Inventory (STAI-6), respectively. Measurements of height and body weight were obtained to compute Body Mass Index (BMI). Results: The presence of overweight or obesity among students was significantly and independently related to female sex, urban residence, living independently, tobacco use, and lower academic performance (p = 0.0103, p = 0.0102, p = 0.0203, p = 0.0075, and p = 0.0168, respectively). Individuals reporting insufficient physical activity had 85% higher odds of being overweight or obese (p = 0.0068). Similarly, participants experiencing depressive or anxious symptomatology had more than double odds of excess body weight compared with those without such symptoms (p = 0.0015 and p = 0.0012, respectively). Furthermore, poor Mediterranean diet adherence was linked to more than a twofold increase in the odds of overweight or obesity (p = 0.0005). Conclusions: These findings offer considerable evidence that symptoms of depression and anxiety may serve as significant contributors to the development of overweight and obesity among university students. Additional longitudinal studies are strongly encouraged to substantiate these observations.