The perils and opportunities of social media in accessing information on obesity
However doctors and family members feel about it, all must accept that the majority of people seeking information on obesity and its various treatment strategies are doing so through social media rather than traditional television or radio media or their healthcare provider.
In a presentation at this year’s International Congress on Obesity (ICO 2024) in Sao Paulo, Brazil (26-29 June) Dr Bruno Halpern, President of Brazilian Association for the Study of Obesity (ABESO), looked at both the dangers and opportunities presented by the obesity information proliferating through social media.
"I am not a ‘social media expert, rather I'm an obesity researcher who loves to communicate. I have a social media profile which has grown in the last six years. I will present my view on communicating about obesity and what I´ve learned during this time." Dr. Bruno Halpern President of Brazilian Association for the Study of Obesity
Dr Halpern’s Instagram account (@drbrunohalpern) began in 2018 with 0 followers and now has 202,000.
Both globally and in Brazil, time spent on the internet and various social media platforms continue to increase, while viewing of television and listening to radio continue their gradual decline. Dr Halpern reviewed data from the ACTION TEENS study, showing that, among adolescents living with obesity, 34% listed YouTube as a primary source of obestiy information, and 28% listed social media platforms, with doctors at 24% and television programmes at 17%. A further paper in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology in 2023 showed that 20% of the most accessed information on TikTok contains incorrect information; 25% of YouTube videos about diabetes are inaccurate (up to 33% in Asian countries); and more than 250 million views of videos with the #ozempic tag, encouraging the use of medication without a prescription.
Dr Halpern discussed the phenomenon of the truth undergoing ‘crowdsourcing’, whereby if many people accept something, or like and share information, it is taken as true. He will also ask about the issue of medical professionals promoting things on social media, asking :“How can we hold doctors accountable who spread incorrect information? Could this be considered medical malpractice?”
The majority of videos created on platforms such as Instagram and YouTube are being created by members of the public telling their own stories, and thus Dr Halpern says experts in obesity must be more creative and produce more content of their own so that the public can access scientifically accurate information and not just anecdotal accounts of success/failure of obesity treatment.
He explained: “We must understand that personal experience or conviction cannot outweigh scientific evidence, and digital influencers must be scientifically correct and understand evidence.”
He concludes: “Social media platforms are increasingly a source of health information (and particularly about obesity), and the information is often of poor quality or intentionally false. Disseminating information about obesity should follow some precepts: among the most important is to avoid scaring and stigmatiSIng the patient, provide quality information, and bring the person closer to serious evidence-based treatments.”
Dr Bruno Halpern, President of Brazilian Association for the Study of Obesity (ABESO). Please contact via e-mail.
International Congress on Obesity
The International Congress on Obesity (ICO 2024) is hosted by the World Obesity Federation (WOF), in partnership with WOF member organisation the Associação Brasileira para o Estudo da Obesidade (ABESO), ICO 2024 took place at the Frei Caneca Conventions Center in São Paulo from June 26-29.
ICO2024