The harmful impact of social media influencers on our daily diet

01/4Side effects of social media influencers

Thanks to social media, the whole concept of where to dine next has been sorted. Every now and then the feed is filled with recommendations by social media influencers. But, did you know that many of them might be promoting unhealthy foods and drinks? Yes, you read it right! As per a recent study, it has been found that many social media influencers are promoting unhealthy foods and drinks. Read below to know more about the study and its findings. (Image: istock)

02/4​The study

The study conducted by researchers at the Medical University of Vienna and presented at this year's European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Maastricht, Netherlands, reveals that most of the food content posted by the food influencers fails to meet the World Health Organisation (WHO) advertising standards for children. (Image: istock)

03/4​The study findings

It was found that 75 percent of the foods in their content had high salt, fat and sugar content, which otherwise are highly advised to be avoided. The study states, "Chocolate and sweets were the most commonly featured products influencers posted about, underscoring the urgent need for policies and effective regulation of influencer marketing to children." In this study, the researchers analysed and kept a close tap on the content (posts and videos) uploaded by six of the most popular German influencers on Instagram, YouTube and other platforms. These influencers majorly had teenage followers between 13 to 17 years of age. The combined total followers these influencers have are more than 35 million. (Image: istock)

04/4​What’s the solution?

While raising the genuine concern regarding kids’ health, the researchers further urged for a policy reformation and a comprehensive approach towards the role of an influencer in junk food marketing. As per the study, this step might help kids avoid junk and indulge in healthy lifestyle choices. (Image: istock)