As the NHS continues to buckle under pressure, around one in 10 Brits are looking to the internet for health advice which is proving to be inaccurate, according to a new survey.
Yep, that’s right – while half of us have followed health tips based on what we see online, one in 10 have ended up following misinformation online (including misleading diagnoses). This advice has then had serious impacts on the rest of their lives.
This isn’t exactly surprising. After all, the NHS is facing even more delays right now, as striking workers continue their pay dispute with the government, while the shadow of the Covid backlog continues to hang over the workforce.
But, getting health advice from anyone who isn’t a health professional really isn’t a good idea.
Still, that doesn’t stop Brits from acting on online health advice around four times a year by sharing it, researching symptoms or buying products.
Superdrug Online Doctor surveyed 2,000 people around the country and found a huge 80% of the population consume health and sexual advice on social media, with 59% seeing untrue or misleading information shared on TikTok.
And plenty of respondents then said social media misinformation has negatively impacted their personal lives.
Just consuming such content damaged 65% of respondents’ mental health, while 63% said it hurt their general confidence, 53% said it affected their personal relationships and 50% said it took a toll on their social life.
So which platforms are people trusting with their health?
Apparently, Instagram was considered the most trustworthy with 15% of respondents voting for it, while Twitter is considered least popular with just 7% of the general public thinking it’s reliable.
But, it seems to be a particular problem for young people on TikTok. The survey found 58% of TikTok users aged between 16 and 24 thought the social media advice they were looking at was accurate.
So, how can you avoid inaccurate health advice?
Psychologist Smriti Joshi told Superdrug that there are a few key ways for you to avoid it:
- Be conscious of social media algorithms
- Have a critical eye and ear – ask yourself, is this advice right for you?
- Check where you’re getting this information from
- Question whether some advice is too good to be true
- Remember, not all advice is right for everyone – we have unique bodies
What can you do while the NHS strikes continue?
As the Royal College of Nursing is now considering strikes up until Christmas and junior doctors are still persisting with their own industrial action, worries about how Brits are meant to cope with depleted health resources are obviously ramping up.
Polling platform YouGov has revealed that one in eight Brits now pay for private health services, and another 27% have considered it but decided against it (often due to cost).
But, as NHS England has said, it is doing its best to continue offering services to the general public.
It said: “The NHS is asking patients to choose services appropriately during industrial action and take simple steps to help ensure care is available to patients who need it most.
“This includes using 111 online as the first port of call for health needs, and only using 999 if it is a life-threatening emergency.”
And, for those with urgent health conditions, NHS England said: “Regardless of any strike action taking place, it is really important that patients who need urgent medical care continue to come forward as normal, especially in emergency and life-threatening cases – when someone is seriously ill or injured, or their life is at risk.”