A new study claims TikTok Mpox videos are inaccurate, have poor quality, and are incomplete.
(Photo : Photo by LOIC VENANCE/AFP via Getty Images)
A picture taken on January 21, 2021 in Nantes, western France shows a smartphone with the logo of Chinese social network Tik Tok. (Photo by LOIC VENANCE / AFP)
After TikTok became known across the globe, the social media app started to receive content about health and other serious topics.
Many government officials already warned the public about the false information provided by TikTok videos about vaccines and other sensitive health topics. Now, it seems like TikTok videos about the recently-discovered Monkeypox disease are spreading.
However, this new study explained why you need to avoid believing most TikTok Mpox videos.
New Study Claims TikTok Mpox Videos are Inaccurate
According to News Medical's latest report, the new study evaluated over 2400 Mpox-related TikTok videos between January 1, 2022, and August 11, 2022.
(Photo : Photo Courtesy of the CDC/Getty Images)
In this 1971 Center For Disease Control handout photo, monkeypox-like lesions are shown on the arm and leg of a female child in Bondua, Liberia. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said June 7 the viral disease monkeypox, thought to be spread by prairie dogs, has been detected in the Americas for the first time with about 20 cases reported.
Also Read: TikTok Faces Another Ban in Government Devices in Belgium, Cites Privacy Concerns
Most of these videos are 78 seconds. Each video has an average of 11,015 likes, 211 comments, and 693 comments.
The new study relied on three tools, which are validated for health information evaluations; two of these are DISCERN and JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) criteria.
Using these tools, involved health experts discovered that most of the Mpox content on TikTok has poor quality when it comes to providing correct health information:
- DISCERN: 39.56 out of 80.
- JAMA: 1.93 out of 4.
Despite the low scores, researchers clarified that they only evaluated TikTok Mpox videos posted in a short period.
What It Means to TikTok Users
In the new study titled "Mpox (monkeypox) information on TikTok: analysis of quality and audience engagement," health experts said that TikTok has become an important source of health information.
However, some content creators still post content with inaccurate health infos, especially about Mpox.
"Health information about mpox on TikTok is of poor quality and lacks the necessary content to provide accurate and comprehensive clinical knowledge of the disease," they explained.
Involved medical researchers added that their findings highlights the risk of social media platforms when it comes to accessing reliable health content.
If you want to learn more about this new TikTok study, you can click this link.
In other news, new TikTok EU data security measures were recently introduced. We also reported about the reduced TikTok screen time, which targets users below 18 years old.
For more news updates about TikTok and its health content, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.
Related Article: TikTok Overtakes Facebook as Canada's Least Trusted App | Top Reasons Why Its Trust Levels Decline
