JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Social media platforms, such as YouTube, are an integral means of disseminating information about health and wellness to the public. However, anecdotal reports have cited that the human gut microbiome has been a particular focus of dubious, misleading and, on occasion, harmful media content. Despite these claims, there have been no published studies investigating this phenomenon within popular social media platforms.

Objective:

This study aims to (1) evaluate the accuracy and reliability of content in YouTube videos related to the human gut microbiome and (2) investigate the correlation between content engagement metrics and video quality, as defined by validated criteria.

Methods:

In this cross-sectional study, videos about the human gut microbiome were searched on the UK version of YouTube on 20th September 2021. The 600 most viewed videos were extracted and screened for relevance. Video content and characteristics were extracted and independently rated using the DISCERN quality criteria by two researchers.

Results:

Overall, 319 videos accounting for 62,354,628 views were included. 73.4% of the videos were produced in North America, and over 78.6% were uploaded between 2019-2021. 41.0% of videos were produced by non-profit organizations. 16% of the videos had an advertisement for a product or promoted a health-related intervention for financial purposes. Videos by non-medical educational creators had the highest total and preferred viewership. Daily viewership was highest for videos by internet media sources. The average DISCERN and HONcode scores were 49.5 (0.68) out of 80 and 5.05 (2.52) out of 8, respectively. DISCERN scores for videos by medical professionals (53.2 (0.17)) were significantly higher than videos by independent content creators (39.1 (5.58)), (P<.01). Videos with promotional material scored significantly lower DISCERN scores than videos without any advertisements or product promotion (P<.01). There was no correlation between DISCERN scores and total viewership, daily viewership or preferred viewership (number of likes).

Conclusions:

The overall quality and reliability of information about human gut microbiome on YouTube is poor. Moreover, there was no correlation between the quality of the video and the level of public engagement. The significant disconnect between reliable sources of information and the public suggests that there is an immediate need for cross-sector initiatives in order safeguard vulnerable viewers from the potentially harmful effects of misinformation.