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Article created by: Kotryna Br

We’re social beings, so it only makes sense that many of us want to be respected, accepted, and adored. We crave being part of the group, so we copy certain behaviors to fit in and appear hip and cool. However, blindly following trends can do a lot of harm, especially when they change so quickly these days.

Inspired by u/Tater-Tot-Casserole, the r/AskReddit online community opened up about what they personally think are the most damaging new trends that we see these days. They hoped to raise some awareness among other internet users and urge them to be more careful. Scroll down to read their opinions, and remember to upvote the ones you agree with, Pandas.

#1

Group of men in suits and military uniforms watching an important event, illustrating new trends causing damage unnoticed by many. Extremely elderly politicians.

No-Economy-3961 , History in HD / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

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    #2

    Man taking a photo of young girl with cupcake, illustrating new trends that are doing a lot of damage and overlooked effects. Posting children and all their personal, emotional and vulnerable moments. People are LITERALLY pimping children for karma and followers. Crying children. Dying children. Naughty children. Confused children. Humiliated children. .

    carseatsareheavy , Ketut Subiyanto / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

    #3

    Hand holding smartphone recording a crowd scene outdoors highlighting new trends impacting society. Pranking unsuspecting people for clout.

    Snickerdoodlepop , lifesimply.rocks / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

    #4

    Smart TV displaying popular streaming apps highlighting new trends causing damage many people don't realize. Subscription models for every service. gone are the days of curated collections, now you own nothing.

    Javaddict , Oscar Nord / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

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    #5

    Person receiving cosmetic injection in forehead, highlighting new trends causing damage many people don't realize. Normalizing plastic surgery, fillers and botox for teens.

    pursuitoffruit , cottonbro studio / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

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    #6

    Group of diverse people taking photos outdoors illustrating new trends impacting daily life and causing damage unnoticed. Instagram tourism. We’re trashing beautiful places because we gotta have THAT photo!

    DangerousMusic14 , Tim Gouw / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

    #7

    Red and blue capsules on a white surface representing new trends causing damage many people don't realize. The "Alpha male" and red pill ideology popular in groups of men and teenagers.

    TYPICALASIAN21 , ANIRUDH / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

    #8

    Hands typing on a laptop showing a map and listings, illustrating new trends that are causing unnoticed damage. House rentals (corporations, AirBnB) taken too far — when a community ends up with scant actual residents….

    Terrible-Opinion-888 , cottonbro studio Report

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    #9

    Artificial grass installation in a backyard showing one of the new trends causing damage unnoticed by many people. Plastic lawns: bio diversity loss, micro plastic fibres, turning reality into Minecraft.

    johnmacbromley , Perfect Grass / flickr (not the actual photo) Report

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    #10

    Person covering face in distress while looking at smartphone screen, illustrating new trends causing damage unnoticed. One trend that's gaining momentum and potentially causing harm is "doomscrolling." This is to the habit of endlessly scrolling through negative news or social media feeds, often leading to feelings of anxiety, depression, and helplessness.

    Chemical-Funny-7598 , Adrian Swancar / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

    #11

    Hand holding smartphone displaying social media apps, representing new trends causing damage unnoticed by many. Posting everything on social media. I used to post a lot on stories on Instagram, Whatsapp, at some point I started to think that no one actually cares what I post and it's pointless for me, so I stopped. I was checking who saw those posts, got annoyed when someone I didn't like watched my stories. Now I don't post on social media anymore and I'm happier.

    Paulvasile48 , Magnus Mueller / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

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    #12

    Three children sitting at a checkered table with toy cars, illustrating new trends causing damage and concern. Kids rarely spending significant time outdoors. On a minor note they're more likely to become nearsighted. On a significant note, they're less likely to be emotionally stable for times of adversity as an adult.

    Whirlwindofjunk , Keren Fedida / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

    #13

    Teen girl focused on smartphone screen, highlighting new trends causing damage many people don't realize today. Short videos ruining attention spans .

    MetalKeirSolid , Karolina Grabowska / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

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    #14

    Crowd at a concert capturing moments on phones, illustrating new trends that are causing damage unnoticed by many. Parasocial relationships with celebrities. Swifties, Beyhive, Barbz etc.

    Myfourcats1 , Vinícius Caricatte / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

    #15

    Woman wearing a pink hijab holding a cosmetic product, showcasing new trends that are causing damage without many realizing it. “Hauls” of just about anything. It’s incredibly wasteful and I imagine most influencers who do so can’t use all of that product before they’re pressured to make more content. Plus it encourages normal people to do the same, leading to lots of plastic waste and demand for cheap, unethical labor.

    _artbabe95 , RDNE Stock project / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

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    #16

    Sephora brightening eye cream jar with hyaluronic acid, illustrating new trends causing damage unknowingly. Sephora kids using skincare with acids and retinol.

    RedRosValkyrie , Saher Suthriwala / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

    #17

    Young woman with earbuds enjoying music outdoors, representing new trends that are doing a lot of damage unnoticed. Airpods in constantly. I have a feeling in 20 years we're going to see a lot of hearing damage in people too young to have it.

    AlanStanwick1986 , Jackson Simmer / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

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    #18

    Man flexing arm muscles in gym mirror, illustrating impact of new trends causing damage many don't realize. Steroid use is becoming increasingly popular among teenage boys and young men. Social media is feeding them metric tons of fitfluencers that lie about their steroid use, feeding into the "why can't I be like them" pipeline that ends up with them hopping on. Hell, a few months into weightlifting myself and I was literally getting ads for steroids right on Reddit. Some years from now, I guarantee we'll start seeing these boys grow with serious health issues from using steroids at a very vulnerable age.

    Tracker007 , Dollar Gill / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

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    #19

    Person holding smartphone with rings on fingers, illustrating new trends causing damage unnoticed by many. Trading most of our privacy in exchange for convenience.

    JadedBrit , Priscilla Du Preez 🇨🇦 / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

    #20

    Smartphone screen showing AI folder with Gemini and ChatGPT apps, illustrating new trends impacting technology use. ChatGPT, I feel like I'm unable to produce a long coherent piece of text anymore and I spot this chatgpt kinda language on linkedin, resumes, product descriptions, everywhere.

    GullibleRain1069 , Solen Feyissa / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

    #21

    Person holding and counting US dollar bills, illustrating new trends causing financial damage unnoticed by many. The rise of sports gambling. A lot of people are going to lose a lot of money and in A few years it won’t be pretty when we know someone who has had their life destroyed by another addiction in their pocket.

    MrMeesesPieces , Karolina Grabowska / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

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    #23

    Rows of plastic water bottles highlighting new trends causing environmental damage many people don't realize. Water in plastic bottles.

    blueskies1800 , Jonathan Chng / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

    #24

    Field of agave plants with mountain backdrop, illustrating new trends causing damage that many people don't realize. Celebrity tequila. More specifically the process of hydrolysis that use young agave plants instead of mature agave plants, creating a neutral alcohol that is then flavored with additives. This brings the price of agave up and customers are given an artificial tequila rather than traditionally made tequila that uses agave plants matured for 7 years.

    encab91 , Scott Tobin / unsplash (not the actual photo) Report

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    #25

    Close-up of a woman’s lips and lower face showing natural skin texture, illustrating new trends causing damage unnoticed by many. Buccal fat removal.

    YayMehNay , cottonbro studio / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

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    #26

    Child hugging a tablet showing new trends that are doing a lot of damage without many people realizing it IPads for toddlers. Let’s destroy our kid’s dopamine receptors before they can even talk properly. Sounds great.

    Nikkerdoodle71 , Ketut Subiyanto / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

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