What if you could turn them off?
The Australian government is introducing legislation to force social media platforms to allow users to disable algorithmic content recommendations. This move aims to protect vulnerable users, particularly those struggling with eating disorders, by limiting exposure to harmful content.
Why it matters
This represents a significant global shift in how governments are attempting to regulate big tech algorithms to improve public mental health.
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Warning: This article contains an account of living with an eating disorder
Varsha Yajman was already self-conscious about the way she looked when she joined social media as a 13-year-old.
Endless workout videos making impossible promises filled her feeds. Through the screen, girls she'd never met urged her to sign up to dangerous calorie challenges. Others proudly promoted their height and weight - even the number of times they had been sent to hospital - on their profiles in a form of twisted competition.
Every night as she fell asleep, Varsha would watch a stranger on the internet diarising what they'd consumed that day.
"I was like, 'I don't need to eat. I can just watch other people eat'," Varsha tells the BBC.
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