Mental health misinformation on social media
For many of us, social media has become a big part of our lives. It can connect us, inspire us, and give us space to express ourselves. It can also be overwhelming and confusing at times. Learn how to spot mental health misinformation, find trusted information, and set healthy boundaries with social media.
This information is from Episode 2 of Mindful Media: A student take on mental health.
How social media affects mental health
Research tells us that social media can have a big impact on our mental health, both in positive and negative ways.1,2,3 It can have a positive impact our mental health by:
- helping us connect with others
- offer space for self-expression
- make communication easier, especially if in-person conversations feel tough
There are also possible negative impacts on our mental health, like:
- experiencing cyberbullying and receiving hurtful comments
- comparing ourselves to others and feeling like we don’t measure up
- spending less time with our real-life connections which can lead us to feeling alone
These effects aren’t the same for everyone. Think about your own experience. How has social media affected your mental health?
What is misinformation?
Misinformation is an umbrella term used to refer to information that is false or broadly misleading. Misinformation can show up in different ways, such as:
- Disinformation – when someone shares false information on purpose to trick or confuse others.
- Misleading information – when something true is shared without enough background to understand it properly; for example, when someone shares their personal experiences without the full context, as if it applies to everyone.4
Note: misinformation is defined in different ways by different researchers and organizations. This post uses a general definition to help start the conversation.
How much misinformation do you see?
On social media, misinformation spreads fast, and it’s hard to know how much content is false or misleading. A few different studies have explored how many videos on social media contain misinformation, but the exact amount is still unclear. For example, in 2022, a study found that about 1 in 3 (31%) TikTok videos offering mental health advice were inaccurate. They also found that about 4 in 5 (83.7%) videos sharing mental health advice on TikTok were misleading.5 More recently, a study from the UK in 2025 found that about 1 in 2 (52%) of the top 100 videos on TikTok offering advice on dealing with trauma, neurodivergence, anxiety, depression, and severe mental illness contained some misinformation.6
Think about how many videos you scroll through in a day. How many of those videos do you think were sharing misinformation?
What are the risks of misinformation?
Even if we don’t believe something the first time we see it, research shows that the more we’re exposed to it, the more likely we are to start believing it.7 This is why it’s so important to pause and think critically about what we’re watching and to make sure that we’re getting our information and advice from credible and reliable sources.
In one study, about 2 out of 5 (37%) people said they used information they found in Facebook or Reddit groups to make decisions about managing their mental illness without checking with a healthcare professional.8 This shows that some people trust advice from other social media users so much that they don’t check it with a healthcare professional. That can be harmful. It can lead to misunderstandings about what mental health really is and delay getting the right kind of support.9 Have you ever followed advice from social media without checking with a healthcare professional? What made it feel convincing at the time? What strategies could you use to make sure it’s accurate?
Tips for navigating social media
The good news is that we can take steps to protect ourselves from misinformation and make social media a more positive space. In addition to using credible online resources and supports, you can take your search offline and connect with people, resources, and services in your school and community to get credible information that is tailored to your unique needs. Here are some online tools that can help you learn more and set boundaries: Break the Fake: How to tell what’s true online: MediaSmarts shares four steps that you can use to find the credible information Is It For Me? Student Decision Tool for Evaluating Online Mental Health Information – this tool is designed to help you find online sources of information that you can rely on to support your mental health and manage mental health problems, should you need to. Managing social media fatigue – spending too much time on social media can lead to a phenomenon known as “social media fatigue.” In this blog post, we explore what social media fatigue is, why it happens, and how to manage it. Mindful Media: A student take on mental health – in this video podcast series, students discuss mental illness and the complexities of navigating social media.
Final thoughts
When it comes to mental health, it’s important to remember that you don’t need to know everything. Find a circle of supportive people, trusted resources, and services who can help you along the way. Not all strategies to care for your mental health may work for you, so it’s important to find what fits.
Your mental health journey is unique to you, and you’re not alone in this.For more on finding support, check out our Support Your Mental Health page.
References
1. Coe, E., Doy, A., Enomoto, K., & Healy, C. (2023, April 28). Gen Z mental health: The impact of tech and Social Media. McKinsey & Company. https://www.mckinsey.com/mhi/our-insights/gen-z-mental-health-the-impact-of-tech-and-social-media
2. Naslund, J.A., Bondre, A., Torous, J. et al. Social Media and Mental Health: Benefits, Risks, and Opportunities for Research and Practice. J. technol. behav. sci. 5, 245–257 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41347-020-00134-x
3. O’Reilly, M. (2020). Social media and adolescent mental health: the good, the bad and the ugly. Journal of Mental Health, 29(2), 200–206. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638237.2020.1714007
4. Li, Y.-J., Marga, J. J., Cheung, C. M. K., Shen, X.-L., & Lee, M. (2022). Health misinformation on social media: A systematic literature review and future research directions. AIS Transactions on Human-Computer Interaction, 14(2), 116–149. https://doi.org/10.17705/1thci.00164
5. PlushCare. (2022, November 18). How accurate is mental health advice on TikTok?. How Accurate is Mental Health Advice on TikTok? https://plushcare.com/blog/tiktok-mental-health/
6. Hall, R., & Keenan, R. (2025, May 31). More than half of top 100 mental health TikToks contain misinformation, study finds. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/may/31/more-than-half-of-top-100-mental-health-tiktoks-contain-misinformation-study-finds
7. Starvaggi, I., Dierckman, C., & Lorenzo-Luaces, L. (2024). Mental health misinformation on social media: Review and Future Directions. Current Opinion in Psychology, 56, 101738. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2023.101738
8. Tan, Y. T., Rehm, I. C., Stevenson, J. L., & De Foe, A. (2021). Social media peer support groups for obsessive-compulsive and related disorders: Understanding the predictors of negative experiences. Journal of Affective Disorders, 281, 661–672. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2020.11.094 9. McVay, E. (2023, August 31). Social Media and Self-diagnosis. Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/articles/2023/08/social-media-and-self-diagnosis