THURSDAY, Jan. 13, 2022 (HealthDay Information) — Photos of individuals consuming and consuming are a staple of social media, however new analysis finds such posts from celebrities typically places the highlight squarely on junk meals.
Revenue is not all the time the explanation why, investigators discovered: Celebrities typically spotlight unhealthy meals favorites with out getting paid for it.
“Ninety-five p.c of pictures that comprise meals and drinks on celebrities’ Instagram profiles had been truly not sponsored by meals or beverage corporations,” famous research lead writer Bradley Turnwald. “They had been pure depictions of celebrities consuming and consuming of their on a regular basis lives.”
Celebrities, he mentioned, “exist in societies that worth and normalize unhealthy consuming and alcohol consumption, similar to you or me.” They usually have the precise to put up no matter they need on-line, added Turnwald, a behavioral scientist on the College of Chicago Sales space Faculty of Enterprise.
Nonetheless, they’re typically idolized, he mentioned, and “merely following celebrities on social media exposes followers to an unhealthy profile of meals and drinks.”
Within the midst of an obesity epidemic, that is a recipe for catastrophe, Turnwald added — “a catastrophe that may’t simply be solved by merely banning social media meals promoting or sponsorship, given that almost all such posts contain neither.”
For the research, investigators tracked all meals and drink-related posts made by 181 athletes, actors, TV personalities and musicians on Instagram between Could 2019 and March 2020. Ages ranged from 17 to 73, with half youthful than 32.
Greater than 3,000 food-related superstar posts had been cited, containing practically 5,200 completely different meals and drinks. Simply over half contained solely drinks, with greater than half of these that includes alcohol. Slightly greater than a 3rd featured snacks or sweets.
Vitamin profiles had been composed for all meals and drinks discovered, with particular consideration paid to sugar, salt, energy saturated fats, fiber, protein and fruit and/or vegetable content material
The outcome: Nearly 90% of superstar foods and drinks posts had been unhealthy sufficient to be primarily unlawful below present British youth-related promoting laws, the researchers identified. Lower than 5% of all of the meals/drink-related posts linked again to a paid sponsorship by a meals or beverage producer.
The researchers additionally noticed that superstar posts that featured comparatively wholesome meals selections had been considerably much less prone to obtain “likes” or feedback from followers.
“So to the extent that celebrities wish to promote follower engagement, much less wholesome meals generated higher follower engagement, posing a further incentive for celebrities to put up much less wholesome meals,” Turnwald famous.
The findings had been revealed Jan. 12 in JAMA Network Open.
The findings do not shock Dr. Ellen Selkie, writer of an accompanying editorial and an assistant professor of adolescent drugs on the College of Wisconsin Faculty of Medication and Public Well being.
“This displays a tradition that elevates meals excessive in sugars and fat by making them visually interesting,” Selkie famous. “Since Instagram is a visible platform, it is smart that celebrities would put up pictures of visually interesting meals.”
But “actual” superstar meals posts may be much less actual than they appear, she mentioned, provided that “in actuality, most celebrities are doubtless consuming extra wholesome meals — [including] vegatables and fruits — than they put up about.”
There’s one potential resolution, mentioned Selkie. That will be to encourage social media platforms to embrace algorithms that favor extra nutritious meals posts by giving them a better profile than poor diet posts. “This may incentivize celebrities to put up extra of such a content material,” she defined.
However one other meals and diet knowledgeable had a less complicated suggestion.
“Do not get your nutrition advice from celebrities or athletes,” suggested Lona Sandon, assistant professor of medical diet on the College of Texas Southwestern Medical Heart at Dallas.
Sandon, who wasn’t a part of the research, famous what individuals see within the media influences their choices and beliefs round sure meals or weight-reduction plan habits. “Celebrities and athletes could be very highly effective function fashions, particularly for younger teenagers,” she mentioned.
Pointing to the favored “Bought Milk?” marketing campaign, Sandon mentioned it featured a robust media message geared toward getting youngsters and teenagers to drink extra milk. “It will be good to see extra of this kind of factor. A ‘Bought Fruit’ marketing campaign maybe,” she mentioned.
And whereas it could assist to see extra celebrities posting about more healthy methods of consuming, that isn’t their experience or job, Sandon acknowledged.
Her suggestion: “If you’d like sound diet recommendation, observe certainly one of many registered dietitian nutritionists — the specialists in diet — on social media as an alternative.”
Extra info
There’s extra on wholesome residing on the U.S. Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
SOURCES: Bradley P. Turnwald, PhD, principal researcher, Heart for Choice Analysis, Sales space Faculty of Enterprise, College of Chicago ; Ellen Selkie, MD, MPH, assistant professor, adolescent drugs, Division of Pediatrics, College of Wisconsin Faculty of Medication and Public Well being, Madison; Lona Sandon, PhD, MEd, RDN, LD, program director and assistant professor, Division of Medical Vitamin, College of Texas Southwestern Medical Heart at Dallas; JAMA Community Open, Jan. 12, 2022
