Researchers at Aston University have discovered that young individuals who follow healthy eating social media accounts tend to increase their consumption of fruits and vegetables while reducing their intake of junk food. This change was observed after just two weeks of following such accounts.
Dr. Lily Hawkins led the study as part of her PhD research, under the guidance of Dr. Jason Thomas and Professor Claire Farrow at the School of Psychology. The team aimed to explore if the positive portrayals of healthy food on platforms like Instagram could influence eating habits, building on previous findings that positive social norms can boost fruit and vegetable consumption.
Methodology and Findings
The research involved 52 participants, all active social media users, with an average age of 22. These volunteers were divided into two groups: the intervention group and the control group. The intervention group was instructed to follow accounts featuring healthy eating content, while the control group was asked to follow interior design accounts. Over a two-week period, both groups tracked their dietary intake.
The results were significant: participants in the intervention group consumed an average of 1.4 more portions of fruits and vegetables per day and 0.8 fewer high-calorie, energy-dense snacks and beverages compared to before the study. This improvement marks a notable advancement over previous attempts that used educational and social media interventions to enhance dietary choices.
Healthy lifestyle content can have a beneficial impact on dietary habits.
This study highlights the potential of social media as a tool to positively influence young people’s eating behaviours, suggesting that even brief exposure to healthy lifestyle content can have a beneficial impact on dietary habits.
