Pfender and co-investigator Marie Devlin wanted to know what
influencers were saying about sexual health and birth control. They
analyzed the content of 50 YouTube videos of lifestyle and fitness
influencers with at least 20,000 followers posted between December 2019
and 2021.
Their findings, published in the journal Health Communication,
showed nearly three-quarters of the influencers mentioned they had
discontinued hormonal birth control such as oral contraceptive pills and
injectable contraception, as part of a larger wellness trend and a
desire to live a healthy lifestyle.
“They want to be as natural as possible, more in touch with their body, and feel empowered by being natural,” Pfender said.
The researchers also found the videos contained inaccurate or
incomplete information about birth control, which could mislead
followers who perceived them as credible. Vulnerable audiences could
misinterpret the advice and increase their risk of unplanned
pregnancies.
For example, 40% of the influencers mentioned switching to
non-hormonal birth control. Of those who did, 30% used digital fertility
tracking technology such as the Daysy app. As a natural family planning
method, the app helps women monitor and record their daily basal body
temperatures to track their ovulation.
However, Daysy may not be a reliable form of birth control. While a study published in the journal Reproductive Health
showed the Daysy tracker to be 99.4 percent effective, the journal
later retracted the article, saying the methodology used to determine
that number was flawed.
“None of [the influencers] talked about that,” Pfender said of the
retraction. “They still kept saying, ‘Yeah, it's 99% effective’ when we
know it's not because the study was retracted.”
Few influencers discussed taking precautions when using non-hormonal birth control.
“Only two people mentioned using condoms,” Pfender said. “If you're
tracking your cycle, they just said, ‘I don't have sex around that
time.’ But we know that tracking cycles isn't 100% effective.”
Pfender continues to monitor social media for other potential sources
of misinformation. She will also continue her research for her
dissertation.
“This study was a content analysis, so it only describes influencer
messaging,” Pfender said. “My dissertation is going to be a study that
tells us how the messages affect people and their behavior. And
basically, we'll be able to determine if these messages do affect the
intention to use different types of birth control or talk to a doctor
about birth control or look for more information on social media about
it.”