TikTok has opened the door to a new age of medical misinformation – and I’m seeing the results in A&E | Ammad Butt

As a doctor, I am now seeing patients who have chosen not to take medication on the advice of online wellness influencers

In the age of the internet, Googling symptoms and treatments has been common practice for patients, and sometimes even doctors. The recent explosion in popularity of podcasts and short-form video content such as TikTok, however, has increased the amount of misinformation in search results to levels we have not seen previously – and this is now having tangible effects in the concerns patients present with in clinics and A&E.

This month’s BBC report around Steven Bartlett’s podcast, The Diary of a CEO, showed it was spreading harmful health misinformation, capturing a wider image of a moment we are currently seeing – people have less trust in health professionals and are increasingly relying on videos and other engaging content they see online.

Ammad Butt is a freelance writer and foundation doctor at University Hospitals Birmingham

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