People Are Turning to Twitter/X for Info on Contraception, New Study Finds

Looking for information on birth control?

A new study finds Twitter or X is a go to source for many people.

But researchers warn only a small fraction of the info on the social media network is authored by health professionals.

The researchers reviewed thousands of tweets about reversible contraceptive methods published between 2014 and 2019.

The found about 50% of the posts were by consumers while just 6% were from an official news or healthcare source.

About 27% of the posts were about choosing a contraceptive method, 21% covered potential side effects.

6% asked for more information and 4% asked for advice.

One author says, "We see that individuals are making decisions about contraception based on anecdotal experience and advice from friends, family, and social media users.”

She says these findings show health professionals must engage with social media to prevent the spread of misinformation.

The researchers did not evaluate the posts used in this study for accuracy but hope to do so in the future.