Impact of food-related posts in social media on eating habits and dietary choices among the undergraduates of Sri Lankan Universities

Abstract

Compared to past decades, there is a notable rise in social media influencers and content creators who focus on food-related content. Simultaneously, the number of viewers who interact with food-related content also increases. Along with the rise of food-related content in social media, the prevalence of eating disorders and poor dietary choices also increased in young adults. Literature exhibits the gap in assessing the impact of FRPs (food-related posts) based on the Sri Lankan context. This study intends to analyze the frequency of exposure to FRPs and their effects on eating habits, food choices, and food cravings among university undergraduates in Sri Lanka. In this regard, an online survey based on the Google Forms platform was conducted to collect the relevant data. Correlation analysis and the 𝜒2(5% significance level) were chosen to evaluate the association between variables. Some 396 university undergraduates (female=68.9% & male=31.1%) between the age of 18-42 participated in the study. As per the results, the frequency of exposure to FRPs is notably high where the exposure to FRPs is associated with the number of social media accounts. Results indicate the popular site for watching FRPs is YouTube (63.13%) and the highly preferred contents were reviews on street food places, snacks and desserts, and food preparation videos. The study reports a significant effect due to FRPs on eating habits and food choices than food cravings from the analysis (p value<0.05). The impacts of FRPs might be positive and negative an equal ratio (73.7%) of participants' views.