Beyond the hashtag: a content analysis of #womenshealth posts on Instagram

Women increasingly rely on social media for health information, yet concerns persist about the accuracy, transparency, and commercial influence shaping this content. This content analysis of the Instagram posts using #womenshealth aimed to map women's health topics and interventions discussed and assess the presence of health claims, financial conflicts of interest, and reference to scientific evidence. Of 472 included posts, 297 (63%) were created by individual influencers including 162 from other or alternative health professionals and 105 from medical doctors. 264 (56%) posts focused on general health information related to a disease, condition, issue or symptom, followed by 75 (16%) posts which promoted drugs, supplements, or devices. Hormonal and reproductive health-related posts were the most common topic with 226 (48%) posts, including 58 posts specifically about menopause and/or perimenopause. 324 (69%) posts had explicit health claims, with only 34 (7%) posts referring to scientific evidence. Financial interests were common; 241 (51%) of account holders had a clear financial interest and 186 (39%) posts directly sold an intervention. Women's health-related Instagram content reveals an environment dominated by non-expert voices and commercially oriented messaging, blurring the line between women's health education and advertising. These findings highlight the risk of misleading and commercialized women's health information and underscore the need for stronger regulatory oversight and greater engagement from qualified health professionals in online spaces. More broadly, improving the quality of women's health discourse requires addressing the structural drivers of online health narratives and strengthening trust across women's information environments.