April 23, 2024 – It’s becoming more of a ‘when’ than an ‘if’ TikTok will be banned in the United States, which could force the 170 million Americans who use the social media app to find another option. Also gone would be the growing community of healthcare professionals who use the platform to share legitimate health information and advice with their followers.
The US Senate is expected to vote this week on legislation that would give ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese owners, up to 1 year to sell the company or be outlawed. US President Joe Biden has indicated he would sign the bill into law.
If TikTok disappears, the work of those who made the site a go-to for expert and user-generated videos on topics spanning the consumer health spectrum could become unavailable.
TikTok “has had positive effects on public awareness and enabled creative approaches to getting this information to a less-reachable audience – which is a triumph,” says Adam Friedman, MD, professor and chairman of dermatology at the George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences. .
And in the absence of good, accurate information, many healthcare providers of disinformation could fill the gaps.
Switch to other social media?
“Young people will likely find new platforms to fill the void if TikTok can no longer operate in the US. But it’s not clear how they will do that,” said Laura Schwab Reese, PhD, associate professor of public health at Purdue University West. Lafayette, IN, who has studied TikTok’s effect on… reproductive health information, guidance in sexual violence, and more.
“In my work, we showed that the TikTok videos with the most views in hashtags related to sexual/reproductive health and sexual violence tended to contain high-quality, credible, and engaging information,” said Schwab Reese.
Most of the content currently on TikTok will likely move to Instagram Reels, predicted Claire Wardle, PhD, founder and co-director of the Information Futures Lab at Brown University School of Public Health in Providence, RI. YouTube is also often mentioned as a possible new home for TikTok users.
“I wish there were other places young people went to for accurate information, but right now that’s not the case.” She added: “Young people much prefer sites that support user-generated content.”
One benefit that could be lost with TikTok’s demise is that users are “normalizing” medical and health issues for others. “TikTok is a place where people share first-hand experiences, which helps destigmatize medical and health issues,” Wardle said. “So that would be a loss.”
Support positive mental health
TikTok “does a good job of bringing out people’s lived experiences and different perspectives. We have seen important conversations about mental health take place on the site,” said Wardle.
And it’s not just users. For example, Cleveland Clinic partnered with the National Institute of Mental Health in October 2023 to share credible mental health information on TikTok. Contain messages problematic signs of depressionhow people with high-functioning anxiety often show no outward signs, and the difference between them migraine and other headaches.
“Mental health is a growing problem, and we know there is an increase in online searches in this area, especially among young people,” Leo Pozuelo, MD, chairman of psychology and psychiatry at Cleveland Clinic, said in a TikTok statement in which he announced the scheme “That’s why it’s important that people have access to credible health information on various platforms, including TikTok.”
“We encourage anyone who is struggling to seek information from a trusted source and not be afraid to get help from a healthcare provider,” Pozuelo said.
Large numbers could be left out
As most TikTok users start looking for a new platform, it can be challenging for content creators of legitimate health and medical information to predict which platform will become the most popular, Schwab Reese said. As a result, “there may be a lag between user adoption and access to quality health information.”
If TikTok goes offline, it could lead to a mass migration elsewhere online.
The number of Americans who get their medical and health information from TikTok now numbers in the millions. For example, 2.2 million people follow general practitioner Mikhail Varshavski, DO, also known as “Dr. Mike” and 8.4 million follow plastic surgeon Anthony Youn, MD.
Disinformation will not be missed
One thing that wouldn’t be mourned with TikTok’s demise, even though it will likely resurface elsewhere, is health and medical misinformation.
There are some “excellent doctors and nurses doing great work on the platform, making videos and commenting on other videos,” Wardle said. “But we must recognize that there is also a lot of content there that has not been fact-checked by medical professionals.”
“We have seen dangerous misinformation on topics such as oral contraception, skin care and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV),” Wardle added.
Because of the way TikTok’s algorithm works, “users see more of it once they interact with content that contains misinformation,” Schwab Reese said.
Friedman agreed that misinformation continues to plague TikTok. While many of his colleagues in dermatology use TikTok to share valuable information, “I feel the harm from misinformation outweighs the good that many of my colleagues have achieved.”
He suggested that consumers turn to other sources of reliable information, such as the Association of the American Academy of Dermatology website for a wide range of guidance on skin conditions and skin health. He also recommended sites of organizations dealing with specific conditions – such as the National Eczema Associationthe National Psoriasis Foundationor HSConnect for people who want to know more about hidradenitis suppurativa, for example.