Read the following passage and answer questions
No matter how hard you try, ads on social media are almost impossible to avoid. Especially when they’re built into the posts made by people you follow. And who you follow may determine whether you’re seeing posts promoting healthy or unhealthy foods. Influencers are internet celebrities with lots of social media followers. New data from a teen researcher now shows that these influencers endorse more unhealthy foods and drinks than other celebs.
Nyasha is an athlete who likes cooking. Nutrition is important to her. “I thought it would be interesting to look at social media,” Nyasha says, “because it’s a newer technology and is continuing to grow so quickly.” On social-media platforms such as Instagram, celebrities are often paid to promote foods and drinks. Nyasha wondered how healthy those products were.
First, she needed a list of famous Instagram accounts. She looked for posts endorsing foods and drinks in 2019 and 2020. Then, she calculated a nutrition score for each product. Together, 100 influencers promoted more than 500 foods and drinks over the two-year period. About 100 musicians endorsed about 160 of those products. The athletes promoted about 280. Influencers promoted more snack products than other groups. These were the most unhealthy foods in the analysis.
Nyasha was surprised by that. It didn’t match up with her experience or other studies. She’d expected influencers to promote more diet-related products. Snacks were the most endorsed type of product by all three groups. Fruits, vegetables and water were least promoted. Musicians mainly advertised alcohol. Influencers and athletes focused more on energy drinks.
These findings could encourage new-social media regulations to protect young users from unhealthy ads, Nyasha says. About four in every 10 Instagram users are 13 to 24 years old. Influencers’ ads may be especially alluring, she says. Why? Influencers may be seen as more relatable than mainstream celebrities. As a result, users may be less skeptical of the products they promote.
This study has changed the way Nyasha sees her own social media. “I’ve had a little bit of a cleanse,” she says. She has unfollowed some people who were pushing unhealthy habits. “I honestly think everyone should do that.” Users get to construct their own social-media feeds. Why not make that online space as healthy and positive as possible?
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