About 4 in 10 U.S. adults get health information from social media or podcasts, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center. The figure rises to around half among U.S. adults under 50.

Researchers examined the social media profiles of 6,828 health and wellness influencers with at least 100,000 followers. About 4 in 10 listed a background as a health professional, roughly one-third called themselves coaches, about 3 in 10 described themselves as entrepreneurs, and about 1 in 10 cited their own life experience, such as being a parent.

Among people who get health and wellness information from influencers, about half said the influencers help them better understand their own health, about one-third said it has not made much difference, and about 1 in 10 said it made them more confused. The survey found 53% of uninsured people got health information from social media, compared with 38% of insured people. Two-thirds of users said they just happen to come across health content rather than seeking it out.

Courtney Babilya, a certified medical exercise specialist and personal trainer with more than 430,000 followers on Instagram, said the rise of self-styled experts warrants caution. "Someone has a baby and suddenly they're a pregnancy coach," Babilya said. "We have to be careful with people who have an experience in one thing and suddenly become a 'coach' on that."

Babilya said she prioritizes being upfront with her audience and making sure her ads are transparently labeled. "You do have an obligation to make sure that you are not giving someone a false idea or spreading a message that isn't going to be applicable to everyone," she said.

Dr. Fatima Daoud Yilmaz, an OB-GYN at Stony Brook Medicine in New York, said viewers should weigh the financial motivations behind health content. "It doesn't mean that all of the information that they put out is biased, but it should tell consumers of that information to take it with a grain of salt because they do have financial incentive to be pushing information like this," Yilmaz said.

Yilmaz drew a distinction between online creators and licensed clinicians. "Influencers can say anything while medical professionals are ethically and legally liable for your care, and may face professional and personal consequences for the advice that they give you," she said.

Nedra Glover Tawwab, a practicing therapist and author with 1.8 million followers on Instagram, uses terms like "maybe," "sometimes," and "perhaps" in her videos on boundaries and mental health, rather than diagnosing her followers. "If you feel like you've found a diagnosis online, that is your sign to seek out a professional," Tawwab said. Users can apply "Hidden Words" on Instagram or "Not Interested" on TikTok to filter out certain content.