SOCIAL MEDIA USE AND PHYSICAL HEALTH

Are there physical effects resulting from social media use?  If so, what are they?  Why is it important to understand any possible effects?

Given the widespread and ubiquitous nature of social media in our lives, it is important to understand the potential implications for our psychological and physical health.  The impact on our mental wellbeing has received considerable attention, however less frequently discussed is the effect on physical health.  If we are to better manage the effects of social media on our health, we first must better understand the relationship.

Recently, Lee et al reported a cross-sectional study of social media use and its impact on various indicators of physical health.  The rationale for the study was based on potential mechanisms through which usage of social media could negatively affect physical health.  These include direct alterations to health-related behaviors, the impact on quality and duration of sleep, and increased stress related to interactions on social media and/or its continuous usage.  As an example, increased susceptibility to viral upper respiratory illnesses following both sleep deprivation and periods of increased stress have been well established.

In their study, Lee et al included 251 undergraduate college students and measured C-reactive protein (CRP), which is a systemic measure of inflammation, and had the participants complete questionnaires exploring both physical symptoms and healthcare utilization.  In the analysis, outcomes were controlled for socioeconomic variables, body mass index, smoking status, alcohol consumption, exercise frequency, use of birth control pills, and symptoms of depression.  Social media usage was stratified into groups on the basis of daily usage less than 10 minutes; 11-30 minutes; 31-60 minutes; 1-2 hours; and over 2 hours across Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Regression models demonstrated that social media was associated with an increase in CRP, indicating systemic inflammation, more frequent physical symptoms over the prior 1 month, and increased healthcare utilization for evaluation of illnesses over the previous 3 months.  While this analysis does not provide evidence of a causal pathway, the existence of an association between social media use and these indicators of physical health definitely requires further investigation.  The authors did note limitations of the study, including the cross-sectional design and relatively small effect sizes.  In addition, an increasingly population platform, TikTok, was not included in the study.

While developing healthcare-related social media platforms can provide numerous advantages both to consumers and healthcare professionals (for further discussion please see prior articles), it is also important to understand potential negative effects on our physical and psychological health.  By better understanding these issues, we are then able to develop strategies to manage and decrease the risks to our health.

House Call Media provides clinician led social media management and evidence-driven content development to develop the social media platforms of healthcare professionals within both clinical and non-clinical areas of practice.  Strategies to promote health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance are also provided. 

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REFERENCE

Lee DS, Jiang T, Crocker J, Way BM.  Social Media Use and Its Link to Physical Health Indicators.  Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Networking, 2022; 25(2): 87-93.