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Influencers may be giving teens misleading sexual health advice

By Mallika Marshall, MD

January 16, 2023 / 5:46 PM EST / CBS Boston

HealthWatch: ADHD and anxiety; misleading sexual health advice; linking sugary drinks to hair loss

BOSTON -- There is a new warning for young people who may be turning to social media for misleading sexual health advice.

Previous studies have found that social media influencers have powerful persuasive effects on the attitudes and behavior of teens and young adults, including sexual health.

In a study, researchers at the University of Delaware analyzed 50 YouTube posts by social media influencers with as many as 2 million followers discussing their experience with hormonal and non-hormonal birth control.

They found inaccurate birth control advice could be putting young people at risk for unplanned pregnancies.

Mallika Marshall, MD

Mallika Marshall, MD is an Emmy-award-winning journalist and physician who has served as the HealthWatch Reporter for CBS Boston/WBZ-TV for over 20 years. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School.

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