The self-reported influence of social media on food choices of young adults at a tertiary institution in South Africa

Abstract

Objective: The accuracy of user-generated content on social media (SM) is unclear, raising concerns about misinformation and the influence of marketing on food choices. This study aimed to determine the self-reported influence of SM use on food choices through investigating different types on nutrition information, sources of influence and platform usage.
Design: A cross-sectional descriptive study with an analytical component was conducted by a self-administered electronic survey (n = 1 434).
Setting: Tertiary institution in Western Cape, South Africa.
Participants: 1 434 registered undergraduate and postgraduate students aged 18–35 years, who were SM users.
Results: The majority (64%) used SM for health and nutrition-related content, with 89% of participants reporting it influenced their food choices. Females (70%, n = 693) were more likely than males (52%, n = 228) to use social media for nutrition information (p <0.0001). Daily engagement was highest on Instagram (64%). Participants rated their level of influence of SM on their food choices for diets, supplements, food products and recipes; using a four-point Likert scale (no influence, slight influence, moderate influence, high influence). Participants mostly reported ‘no influence’ of diets (41%) and supplements (49%) on food choices, while a ‘slight’ level of influence was reported for food products (46%) and recipes (44%). The majority (61%) reported trying to convince others to try food products, supplements, recipes or diet trends seen on SM.
Conclusion: SM was used to access nutrition-related content and had a self-reported impact on food choices. Food products, recipes, and friends and family were most influential.

Keywords: food choices, misinformation, nutrition, public health, social media