The way people learn about food is changing; it’s shifting from lecture halls and health facilities to the everyday spaces of our phones. A quick scroll, a swipe, or a short video can significantly influence our thoughts and actions regarding nutrition. While access to nutrition information has never been easier, this ease does not always ensure the information’s reliability. As nutrition and dietetic professionals, we recognise this reality, making it important to occasionally reflect on what people are actually seeing, believing, and doing about their diets.
Last academic year, I supervised an undergraduate research project that delved into this issue, and the findings are important for both academic circles and anyone looking to make informed decisions about their diet and health. In Ghana, as in many other parts of the world, social media has become a prominent source of health and nutrition information, particularly among young adults. Unfortunately, much of this information is often unverified, oversimplified, or completely inaccurate. Despite these limitations, people continue to act on this information, which makes the situation particularly concerning.
What we did
My student Gerald and I set out to answer a simple but important question: What is the quality of nutrition information university students are receiving on social media? To explore this, we conducted a cross-sectional online survey among 200 undergraduate students at the University of Ghana, asking them to share a nutrition message they had received, indicate its source, and state whether they acted or intended to act on it; central to this study is how we assessed the quality of that information.
The tool we used
To evaluate the messages, we used the Online Quality Assessment Tool (OQAT), developed and validated by Ellis et al., which is particularly useful because one of the biggest challenges with misinformation is that people often do not know how to judge what they are seeing; the OQAT helps to bridge that gap by prompting users to consider a few key questions:
- Who is the source? Is this coming from a professional with expertise in the field or just “someone online”?
- Is there evidence? Are the claims backed by research or based on opinions and personal stories only?
- Is it balanced? Does it present a fair view, or does it rely on extreme, one-sided claims such as “avoid this completely” or “this cures some disease” or in some instances “this cures every disease”?
- Is it clear and responsible? Or is it misleading, exaggerated, or fear-based?
Each message was then scored and classified as poor, moderate, or high quality. What makes this tool particularly valuable is that it is not limited to research use only. It also reflects the kind of critical thinking skills we need the general public to develop when engaging with nutrition information online.
What we found
Some of the findings were not surprising, but they were still important to sit with carefully.
- Social media is a major source of nutrition information: nearly 1 in 2 students (49%) reported receiving nutrition messages online, with TikTok emerging as the leading platform (35%), highlighting the dominance of short-form, fast-paced, and engaging content that is often unfiltered.
- People are not just watching, reading and listening, they are acting: this is where it becomes more concerning, as 57% of students reported that they acted on or intended to act on the information they received. This indicates that beyond passive exposure nutrition information on social media is something that is actively shaping food choices and health behaviours.
- A large proportion of online nutrition information is low quality: using the OQAT, 37% of messages were rated as poor quality, while only 31% were classified as high quality, suggesting that a significant portion of what students are exposed to (and may act on) is not reliable.
- Personal relevance drives action, not information quality: interestingly, factors such as age and gender did not influence whether students acted on the information, but BMI showed a significant association. This points to a deeper issue where individuals may be more inclined to act on nutrition messages that relate to personal concerns, particularly weight, which in turn increases their vulnerability to misinformation.
What this means
The findings of this study highlight a significant shift in how nutrition knowledge is being developed among Ghanaian youth and potentially among older population groups as well. Information is increasingly moving away from trained professionals and towards influencers, peers, and algorithms on various platforms, often lacking effective quality control. Over time, when misinformation becomes normalized, it starts to influence everyday choices, including diet, body image perception, health approaches, and ultimately, risk of disease. This trend is concerning and cannot be overlooked.
So What Do We Need to Do?
First, educators, public health institutions, and media outlets must take the lead in encouraging people to critically assess what they see, hear, and read, since not all information that appears “credible” is backed by evidence. This can be achieved by consistently promoting simple checks—such as identifying who is speaking, their qualifications, and the source of the evidence. Second, nutrition and dietetics professionals, along with other health practitioners, need to be more visible and deliberate in public spaces, particularly on social media. When credible voices are absent, misinformation quickly fills the void.
Third, those of us who produce and share evidence-based nutrition information—academics, clinicians, and health communicators—must prioritise clarity and accessibility. Misinformation often spreads because it is simple, visually appealing, and confidently delivered; we must match that clarity without sacrificing accuracy. Finally, policymakers, educational systems, and public health programs should treat digital nutrition literacy as essential. It must be integrated into curricula and community education, because the ability to evaluate online information has become a basic life skill, just as important as reading and interpreting a food label.
I would like to take a moment to acknowledge my student, Gerald Quartey, for the thoughtfulness and effort that went into bringing this work to completion. Research like this requires patience, curiosity, and discipline, and he carried it through commendably. Well done! And on a lighter note, I will be patiently (but expectantly) awaiting the manuscript draft for publication.
Written by Dr. Laurene Boateng (PhD, RD)
Dr. Laurene Boateng is a Registered Dietitian and Senior Lecturer in the Department of Dietetics, University of Ghana. She is the founder and editor-in-chief of Full Proof Nutrition, a Nutrition Consultancy committed to providing reliable, evidence-based, and practical healthy eating advice through its website www.fullproofnutrition.com. Click here to join Full Proof Nutrition WhatsApp channel to receive more educative content. Send us a mail on fullproofnutrition@gmail.com. Grab a copy of my book on healthy eating – available now on Selar (Buy HEALTHY EATING MADE SIMPLE by Laurene Boateng on Selar) and Amazon (https://amzn.eu/d/6i9OeVb).
References
Ellis, C. H., Moore, J. B., Ho, P., & Evans, C. E. (2023). Development and validation of a quality assessment tool to assess online nutrition information. Digital Health, 9, 20552076231187249.
Quartey, G.N.K. (2025). Assessing the quality of nutrition and health information disseminated via social media among University of Ghana undergraduate students. Undergraduate dissertation, University of Ghana.
Source: Dr. Laurene Boateng (PhD, RD)
