Research from the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne (RCH) has shown 63% of teenagers get health advice and information from social media.
A survey of nearly 1,500 teenagers found more than three in four (77%) find it difficult to discern what is accurate information on social media.
Around a quarter said they would intentionally look at social media if they were seeking health information.
Here’s what to know.
Method
The RCH began by surveying nearly 1,500 parents, who then nominated one of their teenage children to take a separate poll.
The surveys were nationally representative, meaning their gender, demographics and socio-economic makeup reflected Australia’s population.
Findings
Almost all teenagers surveyed use social media (90%).
Of teenagers who used social media, 79% had seen fitness and exercise content in the month before taking the survey.
Most had also seen nutrition (71%), mental health (59%) and relationship advice content (51%).
Girls were 15% more likely than boys to have seen body image-related content.
Social media influenced teens’ health decisions, with more than 40% of those surveyed saying they had considered trying something after seeing it online.
While 63% of teens surveyed had ever seen health-related social media content, around half had seen it in the past month.
Two-thirds reported getting health information from parents in the previous month, and considered their parents their “number one source”, which researchers said was “reassuring”.
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Govt ban
The Federal Government is set to introduce a new social media age restriction in December this year.
This will prevent children under sixteen from creating accounts on social media platforms, including Instagram and Youtube.
The survey results showed 85% of teens and 86% of parents said under-16s would “still find ways to access social media,” despite the new regulations.
Recommendations
The report said “most parents and teens find it difficult” to distinguish the truth on social media.
RCH Poll Director Dr Anthea Rhodes says it is vital that teenagers “exercise health scepticism and learn how to identify evidence-based health information.”
Researchers called for more education to help “both parents and young people” to identify mis- and disinformation.
Other research
The findings follow a study by La Trobe University, which showed misleading birth control advice on TikTok is resulting in an “increased risk of unplanned pregnancies.”
The study analysed 100 TikTok videos on contraceptive health, which had collectively been viewed almost five billion times.
Of this sample, only 10 videos were made by health professionals.
The researchers found more than half of TikTok creators reviewed had “clearly rejected hormonal birth control,” while more than a third “expressed distrust in health professionals.”
Lead researcher Dr Carolina de Moel-Mandel said: “Many TikTok creators promoted natural contraceptive methods, [failing] to mention these methods are generally ineffective when used on their own.
“Misinformation, combined with growing distrust in health professionals can result in…. unplanned pregnancies.”
