JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION – Systematic review of evidence suggests medical misinformation is prevalent across social media platforms and that influencers can impact the health behaviors of their followers.
Social media is known to promulgate misleading information about unhealthy products, such as alcohol and junk food, as well as misinformation about medical products.
In 2023, celebrity influencer Kim Kardashian urged her more than 360 million followers to undergo “lifesaving” full-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), despite no evidence of benefit for people at average risk of disease and the clear danger of overdiagnosis and overuse.
As part of broader concerns about the effects of social media, there are increasing calls for more research to better understand medical misinformation on social media in order to more effectively address it.
At the same time, regulatory agencies, such as the US Food and Drug Administration, identify inappropriate testing as one cause of unnecessary treatments, which can adversely impact public health, and are moving to better regulate medical tests.
To our knowledge, there is limited research aimed at understanding promotion on social media of medical screening and diagnostic tests, such as full-body MRIs, which carry the potential for unnecessary diagnoses and treatments.
Overdiagnosis and overuse are now recognized as major threats to human health, causing harm and waste and diverting resources from tackling underdiagnosis and undertreatment.
Overdiagnosis happens when generally healthy people are diagnosed or labeled with a condition or disease that would never cause them harm.
Evidence is increasingly revealing that early detection tests are double-edged swords that can save lives for some but bring unnecessary diagnoses for others.
Along with cultural beliefs and commercial interests, media reporting has been regarded as one of the many drivers of overdiagnosis.
A previous study investigating media coverage of early detection tests in stories across newspapers, magazines, and broadcast outlets found that most stories mentioned the benefits of these tests, whereas only one-third reported on their potential harms …
