Over half of social media posts on mental health and neurodivergence contain misinformation, especially on TikTok, a new study has found.
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Up to 56 percent of 5,000 social media posts about autism, ADHD, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, eating disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), anxiety, and phobias were found to be often inaccurate or unsubstantiated.
Posts about neurodivergence, such as autism and ADHD, contained higher levels of misinformation than any other mental health topics, researchers found.
“Our work uncovered misinformation rates on social media as high as 56 per cent. This highlights how easily engaging videos can spread widely online, even when the information isn’t always accurate”, Eleanor Chatburn, co-author of the study at the University of East Anglia in England.
The researchers analysed 27 studies investigating the accuracy of mental health and neurodivergence information across social media platforms, including YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Misinformation was reported in 17 of 27 studies and varied widely across social media platforms and topics – ranging from 0 percent for videos on anxiety and depression on YouTube Kids, to 56.92 percent for videos on MRI claustrophobia on YouTube.
The research found misinformation was consistently higher on TikTok than on other platforms, including a prevalence of 52 percent for ADHD-related TikTok videos and 41 percent for autism-related TikTok videos.
In comparison, YouTube averaged 22 percent misinformation, while Facebook averaged just under 15 percent.
Chatburn noted that social media has become an important place where many young people turn to learn about mental health, and misleading content can circulate quickly, especially if there aren’t accessible and reliable sources available.
Who is consuming this content?
One in seven 10-19-year-olds experiences a mental disorder, accounting for 15 percent of the global burden of disease in this age group, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Depression, anxiety and behavioural disorders are among the leading causes of illness and disability among adolescents.
According to the authors, many young people now turn to these platforms to understand their symptoms and possible diagnoses.
“TikTok content has been linked to young people increasingly believing they may have mental health or neurodevelopmental conditions,” said Chatburn.
While this questioning can be a helpful starting point, the authors warned that it must lead to a proper clinical assessment with a professional. Misinformation, they cautioned, risks pathologising ordinary behaviours and deepening misunderstandings of serious conditions.
The consequences can extend beyond misdiagnosis. “When false ideas spread, they can feed stigma and make people less likely to reach out for support when they really need it,” Chatburn added.
When people come across misleading advice about treatments, especially those not backed by evidence, it can delay them from getting proper care.