Is that really me? The ugly truth about beauty filters

Smoother skin, slimmer faces, plumper lips ... how unattainable ideals are harming young users

Popping a beautifying filter on the TikTok video she was filming seemed harmless to Mia. It made it look as though she had done her makeup, took away the hint of a double chin that always bothered her, and gently altered her bone structure to make her just that bit closer to perfect.

After a while, using filters on videos became second nature - until she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror one day and realised, to her horror, she no longer recognised her own face.