A Deep Dive Into Looksmaxxing: When Teenage Boys Turn to Social Media Influencers to Reshape Their Faces and Bodies, The Science and the Risks
A Deep Dive Into Looksmaxxing: When Teenage Boys Turn to Social Media Influencers to Reshape Their Faces and Bodies, The Science and the Risks
CAVEAT: Here at The White Hatter, we want to begin by acknowledging that there is nothing inherently wrong with a teenager wanting to look good, improve their physical appearance, become physically fit, develop healthy grooming habits, or feel more confident about themselves. These are normal parts of adolescent development, particularly during puberty, when young people become increasingly aware of their bodies, their appearance, and how others perceive them. In fact, many of the practices promoted within the online community known as “looksmaxxing,” such as exercising regularly, maintaining good personal hygiene, developing a skincare routine, getting adequate sleep, and eating a balanced diet, can have legitimate physical and psychological benefits when approached in a healthy and age appropriate manner.
Our concern is not with teenage boys wanting to improve their appearance. Rather, it is with the growing number of online influencers, communities, and commercially motivated content creators who promote questionable or potentially dangerous techniques under the guise of scientific legitimacy. Some of these practices promise to reshape facial bones, sharpen jawlines, alter facial symmetry, increase perceived masculinity, or improve attractiveness through methods that have little or no credible medical evidence supporting them. Others involve deliberate physical injury, extreme dietary restrictions, or the use of substances that can place a young person’s health at risk. When these techniques are presented through persuasive videos, dramatic before and after photographs, and confident claims about human biology, it can become difficult for young people to distinguish legitimate science from misinformation.
It is also important to recognize that not every teenager who encounters looksmaxxing content will participate in dangerous practices or develop unhealthy beliefs about their appearance. The research does not support treating every boy interested in fitness, skincare, or facial aesthetics as someone experiencing a mental health crisis. However, parents and caregivers should understand the difference between healthy self improvement and an appearance focused online culture that can sometimes encourage young people to view their natural facial features and bodies as problems requiring correction.
We also want to emphasize that the medical evidence surrounding the various looksmaxxing techniques differs considerably. Some practices have demonstrated health benefits, others have limited preliminary evidence of modest cosmetic effects, and several have no credible scientific support for the transformations being advertised. Certain practices, particularly those involving deliberate physical trauma or unsupervised pharmaceutical substances, introduce well-established medical risks. Throughout this article, we will distinguish between what researchers have demonstrated, what remains uncertain, and what is being promoted online without adequate scientific support.
Our goal is not to frighten parents and caregivers about another online trend, but to provide them with the knowledge necessary to have informed conversations with their children. As we often say here at The White Hatter, our approach has always been “Facts Not Fear” and “Enlighten Not Frighten.”
This Is Not a New Concern: We Have Been Following the Evolution of Male Body Image and Looksmaxxing for Several Years
Here at The White Hatter, our concerns about the influence of online appearance culture on teenage boys did not begin with the recent attention looksmaxxing has received. In August 2022, we published an article titled, “Social Comparison and Body Image”, examining how online beauty standards, social comparison, and influencer culture were affecting young people’s perceptions of their physical appearance. Although much of the public conversation at that time focused on girls, we also identified growing concerns involving boys, muscularity, body dissatisfaction, and the marketing of muscle-building supplements to teenage males (1).
We returned to this subject in April 2025 with, “The Rise of Looksmaxxing and How Teen Boys See Themselves”, where we specifically examined the emerging looksmaxxing movement, its connections to certain online manosphere communities, and the distinction between relatively harmless self improvement practices and more extreme appearance altering techniques. In that article, we discussed how some online communities were encouraging young men to evaluate their personal worth through facial symmetry, jawline definition, muscularity, and other physical characteristics, while promoting questionable or potentially dangerous methods for changing those features (2).
We subsequently expanded on this discussion in March 2026 with, “Looksmaxxing: The Growing Pressure on Teen Boys to “Optimize” Their Appearance”. That article examined how ordinary adolescent insecurities can intersect with online appearance rating systems, unrealistic beauty standards, and the commercial promotion of physical transformation. We also discussed the potential relationship between these pressures and behaviours such as excessive exercise, restrictive dieting, supplement use, and muscle dysmorphia (3).
We mention these previous articles for an important reason, “Looksmaxxing” is not simply another isolated internet trend that suddenly appeared on TikTok, it’s part of a broader evolution in online appearance culture that we have been observing and writing about for several years. What concerns us today is the growing range of tools, techniques, substances, and supposedly scientific explanations being promoted to young people who may not yet possess the medical literacy or critical thinking skills necessary to distinguish legitimate health advice from unsupported or potentially dangerous claims.
In this article, we want to build upon our previous work by taking a closer look at the medical evidence behind several of the specific tools and techniques being promoted within looksmaxxing communities. We believe this is particularly important because some influencers are no longer simply encouraging teenage boys to improve their grooming, fitness, or personal style. They are suggesting that young people can physically manipulate, reshape, or even deliberately injure their facial structures to achieve a particular appearance.
The question parents and caregivers should be asking is not whether teenage boys should care about their appearance. It is whether the methods they are being encouraged to use are scientifically supported, medically appropriate, and consistent with healthy adolescent development.
What Is Looksmaxxing, and Why Are Teenage Boys Being Drawn Into It?
Looksmaxxing, sometimes spelled “looksmaxing,” is an internet term used to describe efforts to maximize physical attractiveness through grooming, fitness, skincare, facial exercises, cosmetic products, and, in more extreme circumstances, medical procedures or deliberate physical modification. Although appearance enhancement is certainly not new, what makes contemporary looksmaxxing different is the way these practices are being packaged, promoted, ranked, and monetized within online communities, particularly those targeting teenage boys and young men.
Historically, conversations about appearance related pressures on young people have often focused on girls and young women, especially concerning unrealistic beauty standards, body weight, and digitally altered images. However, boys are not immune to these pressures. Increasingly, they are being exposed to content suggesting that male attractiveness can be scientifically measured and improved through specific facial proportions, jawline angles, cheekbone prominence, eye shape, height, muscularity, and body-fat percentages.
Within some looksmaxxing communities, physical attractiveness is presented almost like a mathematical formula. Young men are encouraged to evaluate their facial symmetry, measure the projection of their jaw, examine the angle of their eyes, and compare their appearance against idealized male models or influencers. Some communities even use numerical attractiveness ratings, facial analysis software, and artificial intelligence applications to assess whether someone possesses what they consider desirable masculine characteristics.
A teenager might initially encounter a video about improving their hairstyle, reducing acne, or developing a skincare routine. After engaging with similar content, they may encounter increasingly specific discussions about facial proportions, jawline definition, attractiveness ratings, or methods intended to alter their natural appearance. This does not mean every teenager who watches grooming or fitness content will progress toward more extreme practices. However, recommendation systems can repeatedly expose users to similar material, potentially reinforcing an existing interest in appearance and making increasingly narrow beauty standards seem normal.
One of the challenges for parents is that looksmaxxing exists along a broad spectrum. At one end are relatively ordinary and potentially beneficial activities. At the other are practices that can cause physical injury, psychological distress, and potentially permanent medical complications, and understanding that distinction is essential.
Softmaxxing Versus Hardmaxxing: Not All Appearance Improvement Is Equal
Within looksmaxxing communities, participants often distinguish between two broad approaches known as “softmaxxing” and “hardmaxxing”.
Softmaxxing generally refers to non-invasive efforts to improve appearance through grooming, personal hygiene, exercise, clothing, hairstyles, skincare, and other lifestyle choices. For example, a teenage boy who begins washing his face regularly, exercising in an age appropriate manner, improving his sleep habits, and paying greater attention to personal grooming may experience genuine improvements in his appearance, physical health, and confidence. These activities can be consistent with established recommendations for adolescent health and well being.
However, not everything described as softmaxxing is necessarily supported by medical research. Some communities place practices such as mewing, facial massage, and jaw-training exercises within this category, even though the evidence supporting their advertised cosmetic benefits is limited or absent. Parents should therefore avoid assuming that a technique is effective or safe simply because an influencer categorizes it as non-invasive.
Hardmaxxing generally refers to more aggressive attempts to alter physical appearance, sometimes through cosmetic procedures, pharmaceutical substances, extreme dieting, or physical manipulation of facial structures. Certain online communities promote techniques that claim to permanently reshape bones, change facial proportions, or accelerate muscle development. In more extreme circumstances, these discussions can include deliberate facial trauma, anabolic steroids, experimental peptides, or other medically questionable interventions.
The distinction becomes particularly important when influencers suggest that a teenager can overcome supposedly undesirable genetic characteristics through increasingly extreme interventions. What may begin as an interest in looking healthier can become a pursuit of physical perfection, where every perceived imperfection is treated as something that needs to be corrected.
The problem is not necessarily the desire to improve one’s appearance. It is the belief, sometimes reinforced by online communities, that physical attractiveness determines personal worth, social status, romantic success, or future happiness.
Mewing: Can Tongue Position Really Sculpt a Stronger Jawline?
One of the most widely promoted looksmaxxing techniques is known as mewing. Mewing involves deliberately positioning the tongue against the roof of the mouth, often while keeping the lips closed and attempting to maintain a particular jaw position. Online advocates claim that consistently practising this technique can produce a sharper jawline, improve facial symmetry, increase cheekbone prominence, and even change the underlying structure of the face.
Some influencers suggest that mewing can gradually reshape facial bones through the application of pressure from the tongue, particularly during adolescence when the facial skeleton is still developing. Before and after photographs are frequently presented as evidence of dramatic transformations, sometimes accompanied by explanations involving bone remodelling, tongue posture, and facial growth.
However, the medical evidence does not support these cosmetic claims. In March 2025, the American Association of Orthodontists published guidance specifically addressing mewing and its alleged ability to reshape the jaw. The organization stated that there is no credible scientific evidence demonstrating that deliberately changing tongue posture produces the jawline transformations promoted online (4).
This does not mean that tongue posture has no relevance to oral health or facial development. Normal tongue function, breathing patterns, swallowing, and muscle activity are important aspects of oral development, particularly during childhood. However, there is a significant scientific difference between recognizing that oral function contributes to normal development and claiming that a teenager can deliberately reshape their facial skeleton through unsupervised tongue exercises.
There are also potential risks associated with forceful or improper mewing. Excessive pressure against the teeth or abnormal positioning of the tongue may contribute to dental alignment problems, bite disturbances, jaw discomfort, or temporomandibular joint symptoms. Although the frequency of these complications among people practising mewing has not been well established, orthodontic professionals have raised concerns about attempting to manipulate dental and facial structures without appropriate assessment.
Another important consideration involves natural adolescent development. Facial bones, muscles, and soft tissues continue to change throughout puberty and into early adulthood. A teenager who begins mewing at 13 and compares photographs of themselves at 17 may notice substantial changes in their facial appearance. However, those changes may reflect normal growth, changes in body composition, or other developmental factors rather than the effects of tongue positioning.
For parents and caregivers, the important takeaway is that there is currently no convincing clinical evidence that mewing can permanently sculpt a teenager’s jawline. If a young person has concerns about their bite, jaw development, breathing, or dental alignment, these should be assessed by a qualified dental or orthodontic professional rather than addressed through techniques promoted by social media influencers.
Jaw Trainers and Excessive Gum Chewing: Can Exercising the Jaw Create a More Masculine Face?
Another practice gaining attention within looksmaxxing communities involves the use of jaw-training devices, sometimes marketed as silicone resistance tools designed to strengthen the muscles responsible for chewing.
These products are often advertised with promises of developing a wider, more angular jawline by increasing the size of the masseter muscles, which are located along the sides of the jaw and play an important role in chewing. Some teenagers also attempt to achieve similar results by repeatedly chewing very firm gum for extended periods.
There is a degree of biological plausibility behind the idea that muscles can adapt to repeated use. However, strengthening a chewing muscle is not the same thing as changing the shape of the jawbone, and there is insufficient high-quality clinical evidence demonstrating that commercially marketed jaw trainers produce the dramatic cosmetic improvements being advertised.
Excessive jaw exercise can also create problems. Repeatedly placing substantial resistance on the jaw may contribute to muscle soreness, dental discomfort, headaches, or aggravation of existing temporomandibular joint disorders. For teenagers who already grind their teeth, experience jaw clicking, or have difficulty opening their mouths comfortably, excessive jaw training may be particularly problematic.
Parents should also recognize that a larger masseter muscle does not necessarily create the facial appearance a teenager is seeking. Depending on an individual’s natural facial structure, increased muscle bulk could make the lower face appear wider rather than more sharply defined.
The evidence does not justify claims that jaw-training products reliably transform facial attractiveness, and they should not be considered medically established tools for cosmetic jawline development.
Gua Sha Stones: Is There Any Actual Science Behind Facial Sculpting?
Unlike mewing and bone smashing, Gua Sha is a practice for which there is some preliminary scientific evidence suggesting that facial massage may produce small changes in external facial measurements.
Gua Sha traditionally involves using a smooth-edged tool to massage or scrape the skin. In contemporary skincare and looksmaxxing communities, facial Gua Sha stones are commonly promoted as tools that can reduce puffiness, improve circulation, define cheekbones, and create a sharper jawline. Some influencers go further, suggesting that repeated use can permanently sculpt facial features or alter the underlying facial structure.
In May 2025, researchers published a randomized controlled trial in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology comparing facial Gua Sha massage with facial roller massage. The study involved 34 adult women between the ages of 20 and 50 who were assigned to use one of the two techniques for approximately 10 minutes, five times per week, over eight weeks (5).
Researchers reported statistically significant reductions in certain facial surface measurements, averaging approximately 2.23 to 2.40 millimetres in the Gua Sha group. They also observed changes in measurements associated with facial muscle tone and stiffness. Interestingly, participants using facial rollers also experienced measurable changes in facial contour measurements.
These findings are worth considering because they suggest that facial massage may produce modest changes in external facial contours. However, several important limitations need to be understood before interpreting the results as evidence that Gua Sha can sculpt the face.
First, the study involved a relatively small group of adult women, not teenage boys. Second, it lasted only eight weeks, and the researchers did not establish whether the changes would persist after participants stopped using the technique. Third, there was no untreated control group, making it difficult to determine how much of the observed change was attributable specifically to the massage intervention rather than other factors.
Most importantly, the study did not demonstrate that Gua Sha altered facial bones, permanently changed facial anatomy, or produced the dramatic transformations commonly promoted in looksmaxxing videos.
Gentle facial massage may provide a relaxing skincare experience and potentially produce modest cosmetic effects. However, excessive pressure can cause bruising, irritation, or skin injury, particularly in individuals with sensitive or inflamed skin.
From an evidence-based perspective, Gua Sha should be viewed as a facial massage technique with limited preliminary evidence of modest soft-tissue effects, not as a scientifically established method for permanently restructuring the face.
This distinction is particularly important because social media influencers may take a legitimate scientific finding involving a small change in facial surface measurements and present it as proof that facial bones can be reshaped through massage. A measurable change of two millimetres in an external facial measurement is not the same thing as permanently changing the shape of a person’s jawbone.
Bone Smashing: When Looksmaxxing Becomes Deliberate Physical Injury
Of all the techniques associated with looksmaxxing, one of the most concerning is a practice known as bone smashing, sometimes referred to online as face hammering. Bone smashing involves deliberately striking parts of the face, including the jaw or cheekbones, in the belief that repeated trauma will stimulate bone growth and produce a more angular or masculine facial structure.
Some online advocates attempt to justify this practice by referring to a legitimate scientific concept known as Wolff’s law (11), which describes how bones can adapt to mechanical loading. However, this represents a serious misunderstanding of how bone biology works.
The fact that bone can adapt to appropriate mechanical forces does not mean that deliberately striking facial bones will cause them to grow into a more attractive shape. Bone remodelling is a complex biological process influenced by genetics, hormones, age, mechanical forces, and the body’s response to injury. Traumatic injury is not a predictable or medically appropriate method of cosmetic facial restructuring.
There is no convincing clinical evidence demonstrating that bone smashing produces beneficial or predictable changes in facial appearance. What medical research has established is that blunt-force facial trauma can cause significant injuries, including fractures, nerve damage, dental injuries, facial deformities, and damage to the structures surrounding the eyes. Research examining orbital fractures has documented how blunt-force impacts can damage the thin bones surrounding the eyes, potentially resulting in double vision, changes in eye position, nerve injuries, and the need for reconstructive surgery (6). Other medical research examining traumatic optic neuropathy has demonstrated that facial trauma can damage the optic nerve, potentially resulting in serious visual impairment (7).
It is important to be scientifically precise here. Although there is extensive medical evidence documenting the potential consequences of blunt-force facial trauma, published clinical research specifically measuring the frequency of serious injuries among teenagers participating in the looksmaxxing bone-smashing trend remains limited. That distinction does not make the practice safe, it simply means we should avoid exaggerating the available evidence by claiming that large numbers of teenagers have suffered documented injuries from this specific trend when reliable incidence data are not available.
The medical concern is that deliberately striking healthy facial structures exposes a young person to known mechanisms of injury without any established cosmetic benefit. For parents and caregivers, this is one area where we believe a clear safety boundary is appropriate. Deliberately injuring the face in an attempt to improve attractiveness is not a legitimate self-improvement technique, and it should not be normalized as another harmless internet beauty trend.
If a teenager has already engaged in this practice and experiences persistent swelling, facial pain, numbness, dental problems, or changes in their bite, they should receive medical or dental assessment. Any visual disturbance, double vision, confusion, repeated vomiting, or other concerning neurological symptoms following facial trauma warrant urgent medical attention.
Extreme Dieting and Facial Fat Reduction: When a Sharper Jawline Becomes the Goal
Another aspect of looksmaxxing involves attempts to reduce facial fat to make the jawline and cheekbones appear more prominent.
Some online influencers promote the idea that a highly defined jawline is primarily the result of maintaining an extremely low body fat percentage. As a result, teenagers may encounter advice encouraging restrictive eating, excessive exercise, dehydration, or other unhealthy weight-control behaviours.
There is a legitimate biological relationship between body composition and facial appearance. Changes in body fat can influence how visible certain facial features appear. However, this does not mean that reducing body fat is appropriate or beneficial for every teenager.
Adolescence is a period of significant physical development. Young people require adequate energy, nutrients, and hydration to support bone growth, hormonal development, brain function, and overall health. Attempting to achieve extremely low body-fat levels for cosmetic reasons can interfere with these developmental needs.
Parents should also recognize that facial fullness during adolescence is not necessarily a problem requiring correction. Facial proportions naturally change throughout puberty and into early adulthood. A teenager comparing their appearance with a 25 year old fitness influencer may be comparing two individuals at very different stages of physical development.
The concern becomes greater when appearance focused advice encourages young people to ignore hunger, eliminate entire food groups without medical justification, or judge their self-worth according to body-fat percentages. Healthy nutrition and regular physical activity can have genuine benefits, however, extreme dietary restriction in pursuit of a particular facial appearance does not.
Steroids, Hormones, Peptides, and Other Appearance-Enhancing Substances
Some of the more extreme looksmaxxing communities promote pharmaceutical or experimental substances intended to accelerate muscle growth, reduce body fat, change skin appearance, or influence physical development.
These discussions may involve anabolic-androgenic steroids, testosterone, selective androgen receptor modulators, commonly known as SARMs, growth-related substances, experimental peptides, weight-loss medications, or other products marketed as appearance-enhancing shortcuts. The risks associated with these substances vary considerably depending on the product, dosage, medical indication, and whether its use is supervised by a qualified healthcare professional.
However, non-medical use of anabolic steroids during adolescence can interfere with normal hormonal development and may contribute to cardiovascular, reproductive, psychological, and other health complications. In some circumstances, exposure to anabolic steroids during adolescence can also interfere with normal skeletal maturation.
Experimental peptides and products purchased from unregulated online sellers introduce additional concerns involving purity, contamination, inaccurate dosing, and uncertain long-term effects. This is an important reminder that online appearance culture is not always limited to harmless skincare products or facial exercises. In some circumstances, teenagers may be encouraged to experiment with substances that carry meaningful medical risks, often based on testimonials from influencers who have no relevant medical qualifications.
Parents should be particularly cautious when a teenager begins discussing hormone manipulation, injectable substances, or products marketed as shortcuts to a more masculine appearance. Any legitimate medical concern involving growth, hormones, weight, or physical development should be assessed by an appropriately qualified healthcare professional, and not an online influencer.
We also believe it is important to distinguish between medically supervised treatment for a diagnosed condition and the non-medical use of substances for cosmetic enhancement. These are not equivalent situations, and parents should avoid assuming that a substance is inherently inappropriate simply because it is also discussed within looksmaxxing communities. The issue is whether the treatment is medically indicated, supported by evidence, and appropriately supervised.
AI Facial Analysis and Attractiveness Ratings: When Technology Becomes the Judge
One of the more concerning developments within looksmaxxing is the use of artificial intelligence applications and online facial analysis tools that claim to objectively measure attractiveness. These applications may ask users to upload photographs of their faces and then generate numerical scores based on facial symmetry, jawline definition, cheekbone prominence, eye position, skin appearance, or other characteristics.
Some tools provide recommendations for supposedly improving facial attractiveness, while others compare users against idealized facial proportions. The problem is that attractiveness is not a universally measurable biological characteristic that can be reduced to a single objective score.
Although certain facial measurements can be calculated mathematically, the meaning assigned to those measurements is influenced by cultural expectations, individual preferences, training data, and assumptions built into the software. An AI application may generate a highly precise looking score, but numerical precision should not be confused with scientific validity.
In May 2026, we published an article titled, “Omoggle & Mogging: A Trending & Concerning Platform That Parents & Caregivers Should Be Aware Of”. In that article, we examined how an online video-chat platform was incorporating AI-driven attractiveness scoring into interactions between strangers, effectively turning physical appearance into a competitive activity (8). What concerned us about this type of platform was not simply the use of artificial intelligence. It was the combination of appearance-based rankings, social comparison, and public evaluation.
Adolescence is already a developmental period when identity, confidence, and self-esteem are still forming. When technology turns attractiveness into a public competition involving scores, rankings, and potentially humiliating interactions, it can intensify insecurities for some young people. For a teenager already experiencing uncertainty about their appearance, receiving a low attractiveness rating can reinforce the belief that their natural facial features are inadequate.
There is also a privacy consideration, uploading a facial photograph to an unfamiliar application may involve sharing sensitive biometric information or images that could be retained, analyzed, or used in ways the teenager does not fully understand.
Parents and caregivers should encourage young people to question what these applications are actually measuring, whether their claims have been independently validated, how uploaded images are handled, and whether the resulting scores have any meaningful relationship to health, attractiveness, or personal worth. An algorithm may be able to measure the distance between facial features. However, it cannot objectively determine the value of the person whose face it is analyzing.
When Beauty Is No Longer Human: The Influence of AI-Generated Appearance Standards
In December 2025, we published an article titled, “When Beauty Is No Longer Human: Social AI, Teens, and the New Comparison Trap”, examining how artificial intelligence is creating an entirely new dimension to the body image challenges young people already experience through social media (9).
Historically, teenagers compared themselves with classmates, celebrities, professional athletes, and social media influencers. Although many of those comparisons involved carefully selected photographs, professional lighting, digital filters, and image manipulation, the people being portrayed were generally real individuals.
Generative artificial intelligence has changed that dynamic by making it possible to create highly realistic faces and bodies that may not belong to any actual human being. AI generated models can possess facial symmetry, skin texture, jawline definition, muscularity, and other physical characteristics that have been digitally constructed to match a particular beauty ideal. These images can be further manipulated to create appearances that are highly unusual, anatomically exaggerated, or practically unattainable through ordinary human development.
For teenage boys participating in looksmaxxing communities, this creates an important concern. They may be comparing their naturally developing faces and bodies against images that have been digitally manufactured rather than photographs of actual people.
The problem becomes even more complicated when AI-generated or heavily altered images are presented as evidence that a particular looksmaxxing technique works. An influencer might display a before and after transformation supposedly demonstrating the effectiveness of mewing, jaw training, Gua Sha massage, or another appearance-enhancement method. However, without reliable documentation, there may be no way for viewers to determine whether the transformation resulted from the technique, natural development, changes in body composition, cosmetic procedures, photography, or digital manipulation.
This is why we believe AI literacy has become an essential part of the looksmaxxing conversation. Teenagers need to understand that an image appearing realistic does not establish that it represents a real person, an authentic transformation, or a medically achievable result.
They also need to recognize that AI generated attractiveness ratings are based on the assumptions and criteria programmed into those systems, not on any universally accepted scientific measurement of human worth or beauty. The concern is not simply that artificial intelligence can create unrealistic appearances. It is that some young people may begin treating those manufactured appearances as physical standards they are expected to achieve. When the standard of beauty is no longer constrained by human biology, we risk encouraging young people to pursue physical ideals that human biology was never designed to achieve.
The Language of Looksmaxxing: Terms Parents and Caregivers May Hear
Like many online youth communities, looksmaxxing has developed its own vocabulary. Understanding some of these terms can help parents recognize the conversations their children may be encountering.
“Mewing” refers to deliberately positioning the tongue against the roof of the mouth in an attempt to improve jawline appearance. Softmaxxing generally describes appearance improvement through grooming, skincare, fitness, and other relatively ordinary lifestyle practices, while hardmaxxing refers to more aggressive appearance modifications that may involve cosmetic procedures, pharmaceutical substances, or potentially dangerous physical techniques.
“Bone Smashing” refers to deliberately striking facial bones in an attempt to change facial structure. Mogging is a term used to describe appearing physically superior to another person, often in relation to attractiveness, height, muscularity, or facial features. Canthal tilt refers to the angle between the inner and outer corners of the eyes, which some looksmaxxing communities treat as an important measure of attractiveness.
“Hunter Eyes” is a non-medical appearance term commonly used to describe a particular eye shape that some communities associate with masculinity or attractiveness. PSL ratings refer to attractiveness scoring systems associated with certain online appearance-rating communities. Chad is an internet archetype representing an exceptionally attractive or socially successful man, sometimes used as an idealized standard against which other males are compared.
Another commonly used term is “Facial Harmony”, which describes the perceived balance or proportional relationship between facial features. Although facial proportions can be measured, the idea that there is one universally ideal arrangement of facial features is not supported by a single objective scientific standard of attractiveness.
Lastly, the term “Ascending” describes a young person’s attempt to move upward through a perceived hierarchy of physical attractiveness. While this may involve healthy activities such as fitness, grooming, and skincare, some online communities promote the troubling belief that a boy’s social value, romantic opportunities, and personal worth are determined primarily by his physical appearance. The concern is not that teenage boys want to improve how they look, but that some are being convinced they must fundamentally change who they are physically before they can be accepted socially.
It is important to understand that encountering or using these terms does not automatically mean a teenager is engaging in dangerous behaviour. Some terms are used jokingly or as part of ordinary online slang. Context, frequency, and the beliefs or behaviours accompanying the language matter considerably more than the vocabulary itself.
What Does Research Tell Us About Social Media and Male Body Image?
Although looksmaxxing is a relatively recent label, researchers have been examining the relationship between social media, appearance comparisons, and male body image for several years.
In our August 2022 article Social Comparison and Body Image, we examined how social media can influence the way teenagers perceive their appearance, identity, and social value. We also discussed the concept of reflective appraisal, which describes how individuals can develop beliefs about themselves based partly on how they think others perceive them (1).
This is particularly relevant to looksmaxxing because many of the communities associated with the movement encourage young men to evaluate themselves through the perceived judgments of others.
A teenager may begin by wondering whether they have an attractive jawline. After encountering looksmaxxing content, that question can become more specific and potentially more troubling. They may begin measuring their facial proportions, comparing their appearance with idealized male models, or asking strangers and AI applications to rate their attractiveness.
Over time, some young people may begin interpreting ordinary social experiences through these appearance based evaluations.
A teenager who experiences romantic rejection might conclude that the problem is the angle of their jaw rather than recognizing that attraction and relationships involve numerous interpersonal factors. Another might believe that their height or facial symmetry determines whether they will be respected by peers. Others may become increasingly preoccupied with perceived physical flaws that were previously of little concern to them.
It is important to recognize that social comparison is a normal part of adolescent development. Young people have always compared themselves with peers, athletes, celebrities, and other individuals they admire. What has changed is the scale, frequency, and accessibility of those comparisons.
Social media allows teenagers to encounter an almost unlimited number of carefully selected or digitally enhanced appearances. Looksmaxxing communities can intensify this process by assigning numerical ratings, creating attractiveness hierarchies, and promoting the belief that physical appearance can be systematically optimized.
In our July 2024 article. “Teenagers and Social Comparison: Coping Strategies for Parents & Caregivers in the Onlife World”, we discussed how social comparison can influence adolescent identity and why parents need to help young people develop healthier ways of interpreting what they see online (10). These concerns are particularly relevant to teenage boys because male body image difficulties may not always be expressed in the same ways commonly associated with girls. Some boys may focus less on body weight alone and more on muscularity, height, facial structure, leanness, or perceived masculinity.
For parents and caregivers, the important consideration is not simply whether their teenager wants to improve their appearance, but whether that desire is becoming increasingly connected to feelings of inadequacy, social rejection, or personal worth.
The Role of Algorithms: When Curiosity Becomes an Endless Search for Physical Perfection
One of the concerns surrounding looksmaxxing is the way recommendation algorithms can repeatedly expose teenagers to similar appearance focused content. A teenager might initially search for something relatively harmless, such as how to improve their hairstyle or reduce acne. After engaging with several videos, they may begin encountering content about jawline exercises, facial symmetry, attractiveness ratings, body-fat reduction, or more aggressive appearance-enhancement techniques.
This does not mean every teenager will be pushed toward extreme content, and it doesn’t mean that recommendation systems inevitably cause harmful behaviour. However, algorithmic recommendation systems can reinforce existing interests by repeatedly presenting content similar to what a user has previously watched, liked, shared, or searched for.
For a teenager who is already insecure about their appearance, repeated exposure to highly idealized faces and bodies may reinforce the belief that physical perfection is both necessary and achievable. The result can be an increasingly narrow understanding of attractiveness, where normal physical variation is treated as a flaw requiring correction.
This is another reason why we believe screen time alone is often an inadequate measure of the quality, purpose, or potential consequences of a young person’s online experiences. Two teenagers might spend the same amount of time watching videos, yet have very different experiences depending on what they are viewing, how they interpret the content, and whether it reinforces healthy or unhealthy beliefs. One teenager might use fitness content to learn about exercise technique and healthy nutrition. Another might encounter increasingly extreme videos suggesting that their facial structure, height, or body composition makes them inherently unattractive or socially inferior.
The number of minutes spent online does not capture that difference. This is why parents need to move beyond simply asking how much time their children are spending online and begin exploring what they are watching, why they are watching it, and how that content is influencing their beliefs about themselves.
The Commercial Exploitation of Teenage Appearance Insecurity
Another important consideration involves the commercial interests operating within looksmaxxing communities. Many of the individuals promoting facial manipulation techniques, skincare products, supplements, jaw trainers, and appearance enhancement programs present themselves as ordinary young men who have discovered methods for dramatically improving their physical attractiveness. Rather than appearing as traditional advertisers, these influencers often position themselves as mentors, older brothers, fitness enthusiasts, or individuals who have personally overcome appearance-related insecurities. Their message may appear straightforward. They once struggled with their appearance, discovered a particular technique or product, and achieved a dramatic physical transformation.
The next step is often an invitation to purchase the same product, subscribe to a paid community, access exclusive coaching, or follow a recommended appearance-improvement program. This creates a potential conflict of interest that teenagers may not immediately recognize.
An influencer who earns money from selling jaw training devices has a financial incentive to convince viewers that their jawlines need improvement. Someone promoting an expensive skincare routine benefits when teenagers believe ordinary adolescent skin changes require multiple specialized products. A creator selling attractiveness assessments or personalized looksmaxxing coaching may benefit from convincing young people that their facial features are inadequate and require correction.
As an example, the New York Times reported on February 13, 2026, that an online lookmaxxing influencer know as Clavicular, or Clav, was making more than US$100,000 monthly through Kick. Separately, reporting based on a dashboard he displayed during a livestream indicated earnings of approximately US$110,675 for most of January 2026 (13).
This does not mean every influencer is dishonest or that every appearance-related product is ineffective. However, it does mean parents should help teenagers recognize the difference between independent health information and commercially motivated persuasion.
Looksmaxxing represents another example of how ordinary adolescent concerns about appearance can become commercial opportunities. In some cases, the marketing strategy involves first identifying or amplifying a perceived physical deficiency and then offering a product or service as the solution.
A teenager who previously gave little thought to the angle of their jaw may suddenly begin viewing it as a problem after repeatedly encountering content suggesting that a sharply defined jawline is essential to attractiveness. Once that concern has been established, the teenager becomes a potential customer for jaw trainers, facial massage tools, supplements, paid coaching, or other appearance-enhancement products. This is why we believe persuasion literacy is just as important as medical literacy when discussing looksmaxxing. Parents should encourage their teenagers to ask several important questions.
Who is making this claim?
What qualifications do they possess?
What independent scientific evidence supports the product or technique?
Are they being paid to promote it?
Does the evidence demonstrate meaningful results in teenagers, or is it based primarily on testimonials and before-and-after photographs?
Perhaps most importantly, parents should encourage their children to consider whether they were genuinely concerned about a particular facial feature before encountering the content promoting a solution. Sometimes the most effective marketing strategy is not convincing someone to buy a product they need. It is convincing them they have a problem they never knew existed.
Is There Anything Positive About Looksmaxxing?
It depends, and we believe this is an important part of the conversation that should not be overlooked. Not every aspect of looksmaxxing is harmful, and treating the entire movement as inherently dangerous risks dismissing legitimate adolescent interests in health, appearance, and personal development. There are several potentially positive elements when appearance improvement is approached in a balanced and evidence-informed manner.
Learning to care for one’s skin, hair, teeth, and personal appearance can support hygiene, comfort, and confidence. Age appropriate exercise and strength training can improve cardiovascular health, muscular fitness, bone health, mood, and overall physical functioning when performed safely. Developing balanced eating habits can support normal adolescent growth, energy levels, and long-term health. Adequate sleep supports physical development, emotional regulation, cognitive functioning, and general well-being. Experimenting with clothing, hairstyles, and grooming can help teenagers develop a sense of identity and personal confidence. There is also an educational opportunity. Conversations about looksmaxxing can provide parents with an opportunity to teach their children how to distinguish credible medical research from testimonials, marketing claims, and pseudoscience.
The key distinction is whether these activities are supporting a teenager’s health and personal development or becoming part of an increasingly rigid belief that their physical appearance determines their worth. A teenager who begins exercising because they enjoy becoming stronger, healthier, and more physically capable is approaching fitness differently from one who believes they must achieve a particular body fat percentage or facial structure to deserve respect or acceptance. The behaviour may initially appear similar, but the underlying motivation can be very different.
We also believe it is important to recognize that confidence does not necessarily come from achieving a particular physical appearance. For many young people, confidence develops through competence, meaningful relationships, personal accomplishments, overcoming challenges, and discovering activities that provide a sense of purpose. Physical appearance can influence how someone feels about themselves, but it should not become the foundation upon which their entire sense of identity is built.
When Does Healthy Self Improvement Become an Unhealthy Obsession?
Parents and caregivers should be attentive to changes in behaviour that suggest a teenager’s interest in appearance may be becoming excessive or distressing. These might include spending increasing amounts of time examining perceived facial flaws, repeatedly seeking reassurance about attractiveness, becoming distressed by photographs, withdrawing from social activities because of appearance concerns, or expressing persistent beliefs that they are unattractive despite reassurance from others. Other concerns include restrictive eating, compulsive exercise, experimentation with unregulated substances, deliberate facial injury, or spending significant amounts of money on products promising dramatic physical transformations.
However, these behaviours should be considered in context. A teenager spending additional time on skincare or becoming interested in weight training is not, by itself, evidence of body dysmorphic disorder or another mental health condition. The more important questions involve whether the behaviour is causing distress, interfering with everyday functioning, placing physical health at risk, or becoming increasingly difficult for the teenager to control.
Parents should also be careful not to respond by criticizing their child’s appearance or dismissing their concerns as vanity. For a teenager who genuinely believes their jawline, skin, height, or facial symmetry is preventing them from being accepted by peers, the distress can feel very real, even when the underlying belief is inaccurate.
There is also an important distinction between ordinary adolescent insecurity and body dysmorphic disorder, which is a recognized mental health condition involving significant preoccupation with perceived appearance flaws and associated distress or impairment (12). Not every teenager who expresses dissatisfaction with their appearance has this disorder. However, persistent appearance related distress, compulsive checking or reassurance-seeking, avoidance of social situations, or harmful attempts to alter the body may warrant professional assessment. If appearance related concerns become persistent, significantly distressing, or interfere with daily life, seeking guidance from a qualified healthcare or mental health professional is appropriate.
The Manosphere Connection: When Appearance Becomes a Measure of Masculinity and Social Value
Another important dimension of looksmaxxing involves its historical connections to certain online communities commonly described as part of the manosphere.
As we discussed in our April 2025 article, “The Rise of Looksmaxxing and How Teen Boys See Themselves”, some looksmaxxing communities developed within online spaces where physical attractiveness, masculinity, dating success, and social status are frequently discussed through rigid hierarchies (2). Within some of these spaces, young men are encouraged to believe that their physical appearance largely determines whether they will experience romantic success, social acceptance, or respect from others.
This worldview can be particularly concerning because it reduces complex human relationships to physical characteristics and perceived attractiveness rankings. A teenager who struggles with dating, friendship, or social confidence may encounter content suggesting that these difficulties are primarily the result of insufficient height, an unattractive jawline, poor facial symmetry, or other physical characteristics.
Rather than encouraging the development of communication skills, emotional intelligence, kindness, confidence, and healthy relationships, some communities promote the belief that physical appearance is the primary factor determining a young man’s opportunities in life. In more extreme online spaces, these beliefs can overlap with resentment toward women, fatalistic ideas about dating, or the notion that social success is determined almost entirely by genetics. However, it would be inaccurate to suggest that every teenager interested in looksmaxxing is participating in misogynistic communities or adopting these beliefs. Many young people encounter looksmaxxing simply through mainstream grooming, fitness, and skincare content.
The concern is that some appearance focused communities can provide an entry point into broader discussions about masculinity, status, and relationships that may promote unhealthy or dehumanizing ideas. Parents should therefore pay attention not only to the products and techniques their teenager is discussing, but also to the messages they are receiving about masculinity, women, relationships, and personal worth.
How Parents and Caregivers Can Approach the Looksmaxxing Conversation
Here at The White Hatter, we believe the most effective response begins with curiosity rather than confrontation. If a parent discovers that their teenager is watching looksmaxxing videos or experimenting with facial massage tools, our recommendation would not be to immediately assume that something dangerous is occurring. Instead, use the discovery as an opportunity for conversation. Ask what attracted them to the content.
Are they interested in skincare?
Do they want to improve their fitness?
Are they concerned about their jawline?
Have they been comparing themselves with influencers or classmates?
Do they believe the techniques being promoted are supported by medical research?
These conversations can reveal whether a teenager is simply exploring ordinary appearance related interests or whether something more concerning may be developing.
We would also encourage parents to help their children investigate the evidence behind the claims they encounter. For example, if a teenager believes mewing can permanently reshape their jawline, explore what the American Association of Orthodontists says about the technique. If they believe Gua Sha stones can sculpt facial bones, examine the 2025 randomized controlled trial together and discuss the difference between a small change in a facial surface measurement and permanent skeletal restructuring. If they encounter bone-smashing content, explain the difference between normal bone remodelling and traumatic facial injury. These discussions provide opportunities to develop critical thinking, medical literacy, and an understanding of how scientific terminology can be misused to make unsupported claims appear credible.
Parents and caregivers should also discuss the role of commercial persuasion. Ask whether the influencer is selling a product, earning affiliate revenue, promoting a paid community, or benefiting financially from the teenager believing that something about their appearance needs to be fixed. Perhaps most importantly, parents should reinforce the understanding that physical appearance is only one aspect of personal identity and does not determine a person’s character, intelligence, kindness, competence, or value.
We also believe parents should model the behaviours they hope to encourage. Children and teenagers notice how adults speak about their own bodies, criticize their appearance, discuss weight, or evaluate the physical attractiveness of others. A family environment where appearance is constantly judged, criticized, or treated as a measure of personal worth can unintentionally reinforce the same messages parents are trying to challenge online. Conversely, a family environment that values health, character, capability, kindness, and personal growth can help young people develop a broader understanding of what makes someone attractive, respected, and valued.
Why Digital Literacy, Rather Than Fear, Should Guide Our Response
Here at The White Hatter, we have consistently advocated for an approach to online safety and digital literacy that emphasizes education, critical thinking, skill development, and healthy relationships rather than relying exclusively on fear, restrictions, or technological controls. We believe this approach is particularly relevant to looksmaxxing.
Simply telling a teenage boy that looksmaxxing is dangerous or that he should stop watching appearance related content may not address the reasons he became interested in the community in the first place. Perhaps he is struggling with acne, feels physically smaller than his peers, has been teased about his appearance, or is experiencing uncertainty about dating and relationships. Perhaps he simply wants to become healthier, more confident, or better groomed, and those motivations matter.
If parents and caregivers respond by dismissing the entire subject as foolish or dangerous, they may unintentionally discourage their teenager from discussing appearance-related concerns openly. Instead, we believe parents and caregivers should approach the conversation through a combination of connection, education, and reasonable guidance.
Help your teenager distinguish between practices supported by credible medical evidence and those promoted primarily through testimonials or commercial marketing. Encourage them to recognize how algorithms can repeatedly expose them to narrow appearance standards. Discuss how AI-generated images and digital manipulation can distort perceptions of what real human bodies look like. Most importantly, help them understand that physical appearance is only one component of personal identity and does not determine their value as a person.
There may also be opportunities to redirect appearance-related interests toward genuinely beneficial activities. A teenager interested in developing a stronger jawline may benefit from learning about normal facial development and the limitations of cosmetic claims. Someone concerned about their skin might benefit from appropriate skincare guidance or a consultation with a healthcare professional. A teenager interested in becoming more muscular can be encouraged to pursue age appropriate strength training, balanced nutrition, and healthy physical development. The goal should not be to eliminate every interest in appearance, but to ensure that those interests are guided by credible information, realistic expectations, and a healthy sense of self-worth.
Ultimately, we want our children to develop the ability to evaluate online claims independently, recognize when their insecurities are being commercially exploited, and make decisions that support their long-term physical and psychological well-being. The most effective protection against looksmaxxing misinformation is not simply preventing teenagers from encountering it. It is helping them develop the knowledge, confidence, and critical thinking skills to recognize when someone is trying to convince them that their natural appearance is a problem requiring correction.
We Need to Teach Boys That Their Bodies Are Not Problems to Be Solved
For years, conversations about social media and body image have understandably focused heavily on girls and young women. However, looksmaxxing reminds us that boys and young men can also experience significant appearance-related pressures, even if those pressures are expressed differently.
Rather than focusing exclusively on thinness or conventional beauty standards, some boys may experience pressure to become taller, leaner, more muscular, more angular, or more conventionally masculine. The language may be different, but the underlying message can be remarkably similar, “Your natural appearance is not good enough, and you need to change it to be accepted.”
Here at The White Hatter, we believe parents and caregivers should challenge that message without dismissing the normal desire teenagers have to look and feel their best. There is nothing wrong with wanting clearer skin, better fitness, a hairstyle that suits you, or clothing that makes you feel confident. There is, however, a significant difference between caring for your body and believing that your body must be physically reconstructed to meet an idealized standard promoted by strangers online.
We also believe this issue reinforces the importance of moving beyond simplistic conversations about screen time. The question is not simply how long our children are spending on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, or other online platforms. The more meaningful questions involve what they are watching, what they are learning, how that content is influencing their beliefs, and whether it is helping them develop confidence or encouraging them to become increasingly dissatisfied with themselves. This is where digital literacy, media literacy, AI literacy, and persuasion literacy intersect with the human element of parenting.
Young people need to recognize when an influencer is using scientific language without scientific evidence. They need to understand how artificial intelligence can produce misleading attractiveness ratings. They need to identify when marketing is disguised as health advice. They also need to appreciate that photographs, filters, lighting, and camera angles can create unrealistic expectations about what human faces and bodies should look like. Most importantly, they need trusted adults who can help them navigate these pressures without shame, ridicule, or unnecessary fear.
We believe this is also an opportunity to reinforce five important foundations of parenting in today’s onlife world: connection, character, capability, confidence, and independence.
Connection provides the relationship that allows our children to discuss their insecurities without fear of judgment. Character helps them recognize that how they treat others matters more than how they look. Capability provides the critical thinking and digital literacy skills necessary to evaluate questionable claims. Confidence helps them develop a sense of worth that is not entirely dependent on external approval. Independence allows them to make informed decisions about their bodies and health as they mature.
These foundations are not developed through parental controls or restrictions alone. They are developed through ongoing conversations, shared experiences, appropriate boundaries, and the gradual transfer of responsibility as our children grow.
Looksmaxxing is not a single behaviour, product, or online challenge. It is a broad appearance focused culture that includes everything from ordinary grooming and healthy fitness practices to scientifically unsupported facial manipulation techniques and potentially dangerous forms of physical modification.
The medical evidence surrounding these practices varies considerably. Mewing has no convincing clinical evidence demonstrating that it permanently reshapes the jawline. Jaw-training devices lack strong evidence supporting the dramatic cosmetic improvements often advertised. Gua Sha has some preliminary research suggesting modest changes in facial soft-tissue measurements, but no convincing evidence of permanent skeletal restructuring. Bone smashing has no established cosmetic benefit and introduces genuine risks associated with blunt-force facial trauma. Extreme dieting, unsupervised hormone use, and experimental appearance-enhancing substances can introduce additional medical concerns. At the same time, healthy exercise, balanced nutrition, adequate sleep, good hygiene, and appropriate skincare can provide meaningful benefits when pursued for the right reasons.
For parents and caregivers, the challenge is not to discourage every effort a teenager makes to improve their appearance. Rather, it is to help them distinguish between healthy self-care and practices driven by misinformation, commercial persuasion, unrealistic beauty standards, or an increasingly unhealthy relationship with their own bodies.
We believe one of the most important messages we can communicate to our sons is that there is nothing wrong with wanting to look your best, but there is something deeply concerning about an online culture that convinces young people they must physically injure, medically alter, or constantly criticize themselves to become worthy of acceptance. Our children should be learning how to care for their bodies, not how to wage war against them.
The goal should not be to raise boys who never think about their appearance. It should be to raise boys who understand that their appearance is only one part of who they are, that credible science matters more than viral testimonials, and that genuine confidence comes from developing character, capability, relationships, and a healthy sense of self-worth.
In today’s onlife world, where online experiences increasingly influence offline beliefs and behaviours, this is another reason why our approach to digital parenting must extend beyond parental controls, restrictions, and monitoring applications.
We need to equip our children with the knowledge, skills, and critical thinking necessary to evaluate what they encounter online, while maintaining the kind of relationship that encourages them to come to us when something they see or experience raises questions because, the most important thing we can help our sons develop is not a perfectly sculpted jawline, but the confidence to understand that their worth was never determined by one in the first place.
Here's a great investigative YouTube video from 60 minutes Australia on many of the topics that we shared in this article
Digital Food For Thought
The White Hatter
Facts Not Fear, Facts Not Emotions, Enlighten Not Frighten, Know Tech Not No Tech
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