Facebook users overeat and overspend, according to a new report.
While previous studies have said that the social network can boost self-esteem, researchers also say that all that time online can also mean less self-control in eating and spending, according to the New York Daily News.
"Because consumers care about the image they present to close friends, social network use enhances self-esteem in users who are focused on close friends while browsing their social network," authors Keith Wilcox of Columbia University and Andrew T. Stephen of the University of Pittsburgh,wrote in a study that will appear in the June 2013 Journal of Consumer Research.. "This momentary increase in self-esteem leads them to display less self-control after browsing a social network."
Wilcox and Stephen studied 100 Facebook users, using a combination of surveys, self-esteem tests, and observations. Their findings showed that more time spent on Facebook was linked with a higher body-mass index, increased binge eating, a lower credit score and higher levels of credit card debt.
So does increased self-esteem lead to weight gain and credit card debt? If so, some may choose to be mired in self-doubt.