How Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Medications Are Depicted in Instagram Posts Regarding Women's Health, Nontraditional...

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) medications, recently introduced in the United States for treating type 2 diabetes and obesity, have sparked interest and discussion on social media. Social media has emerged as a prominent platform for the distribution of health information; its vast user base and accessibility make it a popular resource for individuals seeking medical advice. This study characterized GLP-1 medication-related content on Instagram about 3 critical areas of public health: women's health, access from nontraditional settings, and barriers to access.

This study aimed to perform passive content analysis in which information patterns would be observed from Instagram posts.

We examined 40 GLP-1 medication-related Instagram posts to develop a list of the most frequently used hashtags. In total, 10 "top posts" were collected for 7 days (July 11-17, 2023) for 11 study hashtags (eg, #Ozempic). Duplicates, deleted posts or accounts, non-English content, and unrelated posts were removed. Each post was reviewed by at least 2 coders. Coding discrepancies were resolved through discussion.

The final sample included 239 posts. More than half of the posts (130/239, 54%) were from GLP-1 medication users. Raters perceived most users to be female (90/97, 92.8%); inferred that most used medications for weight loss (69/130, 53.1%); determined the most frequently noted health condition was polycystic ovarian syndrome (25/130, 19.2%); and judged posts to have positive sentiments about well-being (64/130, 49.2%) and toward the medications (100/130, 76.9%). About a quarter of the posts (55/239, 23%) offered services for obtaining GLP-1 medications; GLP-1 medications were perceived to be accessible via nontraditional health care settings (eg, medical spas) versus traditional settings (39/239,16.3% vs 12/239, 5%). Most users (78/97, 80.4%) were perceived to be White; barriers to access (ie, shortages, insurance, and cost) were infrequently mentioned (6/239, 2.5%; 3/239, 1.3%; and 1/239, 0.4%, respectively).

Our findings highlight the perceived benefits of GLP-1 medications for women's health, the need to increase health literacy about where to safely access medications, and how additional attention is needed for equitable access to GLP-1 medications. The onus is on social media companies to promote content that is safe and for the health care system and its payers to address health care inequities for historically marginalized communities.