[Edaily Reporter Nam Soyeon ] Tension is mounting in the industry as YouTube tightens its guidelines on content related to eating disorders, such as binge eating. While some Korean “mukbang” and diet YouTubers have had their monetization suspended, there have even been cases where creators voluntarily deleted hundreds of videos they had uploaded over the years.

According to industry sources on the 21st, YouTuber “Salbaejo,” who has 447,000 subscribers, recently posted on their channel’s community section, stating, “Monetization on my channel has currently been suspended,” and added, “YouTube has recently tightened its guidelines regarding binge eating and eating disorders and is imposing strict regulations on channels that have uploaded related videos.”
Salbaejo explained, “I’m working with the company to find a solution, and since I don’t know which videos might be penalized, I’ve also stopped uploading new content.”
YouTuber “Miso,” who has 104,000 subscribers, also revealed that she recently received a notice from YouTube regarding a guideline violation and that her monetization has been temporarily suspended.
In a video released on the 15th, Miso said, “I first received an email from YouTube regarding a guideline violation in mid-March, and around the end of March, I was notified that monetization would be temporarily suspended along with a notice of additional violations.”
She continued, “I was so flustered and shocked that, together with my agency manager, I submitted an official inquiry to YouTube, filed an appeal, and communicated extensively throughout April. We also conducted a thorough review of every single video on the channel.” She explained, “To cut to the chase, we decided to permanently delete as many as 339 videos from our total library.”
Regarding the reason, Miso explained, “Recently, the guidelines on disabilities and content safety have become incredibly meticulous and strict—to a degree that’s incomparable to the past.” She continued, “In the past, I created videos with the intention of sharing weight-loss tips for transitioning from severely obese to a healthy weight, or reflecting on my own dieting experiences. However, the core of the revised guidelines isn’t the creator’s intent, but rather how teenagers and viewers perceive the content.”
She continued, “My older videos contained quite a few specific numbers related to weight and diets, as well as expressions describing weight-loss routines. It was determined that my depictions of specific eating habits and weight-loss methods—which were simply descriptions of my own experiences—could pose a risk by encouraging some people to attempt to follow them in an unsafe manner.” “We’ve decided to view this situation as a very important learning process that will help our channel become healthier, safer for everyone, and more resilient,” she explained.
As YouTubers who primarily create mukbang and diet content face sanctions one after another, concerns are emerging that this could also affect major mukbang YouTubers like Tsuyang and Hibap, who have long enjoyed widespread popularity through their mukbang videos.
However, so far, “mukbang”—the act of simply eating large quantities of food—has not been uniformly targeted for sanctions. It appears that whether sanctions are actually imposed is determined by a comprehensive assessment of the content and manner of expression in the video, as well as the potential to induce or encourage the imitation of eating disorders.
YouTube explicitly lists “controversial topics” as one of the types of content that are ineligible for monetization. Specifically, it cites as examples of content subject to monetization restrictions videos that “dramatize or artistically depict content that may include signals that could induce or encourage the imitation of eating disorders” or videos containing “stories about recovery from eating disorders, such as an individual’s journey to overcome anorexia.”
As “signs that could induce or encourage the imitation of eating disorders,” YouTube has provided specific criteria, including: ▲ minimum BMI or body weight; ▲ displaying an excessively thin or emaciated physique; ▲ hiding food, hoarding large quantities of food, or mentioning binge eating; and ▲ monitoring weight loss progress.
Consequently, there is speculation that content which discloses specific weight, calorie, or meal plan figures during the dieting process, or repeatedly shows binge-eating and weight-loss cycles, may be more likely to face sanctions.
In fact, “Sallbaejo” and “Miso,” the channels that were recently penalized, are classified as YouTubers who have primarily produced content focused on their dieting experiences and eating habits, rather than simply “mukbang” (eating shows).