Social media normalizes unhealthy food choices, shaping youth habits and brand loyalty

With fast food and sugary drinks leading the charge on social media, this study reveals the overwhelming reach of food marketing targeting youth, underscoring the need for digital policies to counteract unhealthy dietary influences.

Study: Normalizing junk food: The frequency and reach of posts related to food and beverage brands on social media. Image Credit: Shutterstock AI / Shutterstock.com

In a recent study published in the journal PLOS Digital Health, researchers investigated the frequency and reach of food brands’ social media posts targeting children and adolescents in Canada.

How do advertisements and social media affect food choices?

Food environments are recognized as determinants of obesity and other health-related problems. Food and beverage marketing negatively contributes to the food environment, as most advertisements promote foods high in fat, sugar, and sodium.

Adolescents and children are vulnerable to food marketing; therefore, increased exposure to unhealthy advertisements can negatively affect their diets, weight, and food preferences. Moreover, social media platforms promote engagement and interactivity with branded content, thereby allowing food and beverage companies to target individuals in a way that traditional media does not permit.

For example, food and beverage products shared by family or friends on social media can influence youth more than company-branded posts. These posts can shape the food choices and behavior of children and adolescents, thus emphasizing the need to examine their impact on young people.

About the study

In the current study, researchers determine the reach and frequency of social media posts for food brands targeted at Canadian youth. The top food brands by sales in Canada were identified across four categories: sugar-sweetened drinks, fast food restaurants, candy and chocolate, and snacks. Data on brand shares between 2015 and 2020 were examined, with the top 10 brands selected for each category.

Brands were numbered and not reported by name. Sugar-sweetened drinks had five subcategories, including carbonated soft drinks, fruit juices, energy drinks, ready-to-drink (RTD) teas, and sports drinks, with two brands selected from each subcategory.

Digital medial engagement data were licensed from Brandwatch for Reddit, YouTube, Twitter, and Tumblr. Data on posts about the top 40 brands in 2020 were acquired.

Outcome measures included the frequency, net sentiment, and aggregate reach of posts. Post frequency reflected the number of times a brand was mentioned on social media, whereas net sentiment referred to feelings regarding a brand.

Aggregate reach was defined as the number of individuals who viewed each mention or post; however, it did not reflect the number of unique users. Total impressions and followers on Twitter were also determined.

Study findings

The top 40 food and beverage brands were mentioned over 16.85 million times on Reddit, Tumblr, YouTube, and Twitter, reaching an estimated 42.2 billion users in 2020. Fast-food restaurants had the highest posts, reaching 60.5% and 58.1%, respectively. Sugar-sweetened beverages represented 29.3% of total posts and 37.9% of the total reach.

Brands reached and were mentioned more by males than females for all categories except for candy and chocolate. Regarding brands, fast food restaurants two and three and soft drink two were brands with the highest posts at 26.5%, 10.1%, and 10.4%, respectively. Fast food restaurants two and six and soft drink one had the highest reach, accounting for 63.4% of the aggregate reach.

Males mentioned energy drinks twice more often than females, whereas females mentioned candy and chocolate eight more than males. Soft drink one reached more females, whereas sports drink one reached more males. Most categories were rated positively, with the highest net sentiment for the candy and chocolate category.

The fast-food restaurant category had a negative net sentiment. The highest differences in net sentiment were for the candy and chocolate category, which was rated more positively by females than males. Candy and chocolate seven and nine, as well as RTD tea two, were brands with the most positive posts.

Fast food restaurants eight and ten and snack 10 were brands with the most negative posts. Fruit juice three and candy and chocolate five scored more positively, whereas snack 10 scored more negatively among females than males.

Overall, the cumulative number of Twitter followers discussing the 40 brands was 383.8 billion, with these Tweets viewed 491.2 billion times. Sugar-sweetened beverages and fast food restaurants accounted for over 98% of total followers and impressions on Twitter. Males had more impressions and followers than females.

The most popular brand was fast food restaurant two, with 71.8% and 76.5% of total impressions and followers, respectively. This brand was also more popular among females, whereas fast food restaurant one was more popular among males.

Conclusions

The study findings illustrate the ubiquity of social media posts about unhealthy food and beverage brands, especially fast-food restaurants and sugar-sweetened beverage brands. Thus, social media is part of the food environment and should be monitored by governments. Policies aiming to protect children’s health should consider the digital food environment that normalizes unhealthy foods and beverages.