The impact of nutrition misinformation on public health and practice: a review

Abstract

The widespread use of digital platforms, particularly social media, has transformed public access to nutrition information, presenting both opportunities and problems for public health. Although these platforms can enhance health education, they also facilitate the rapid spread of misinformation, often propagated by individuals without professional credentials. Nutrition misinformation shapes public perceptions and behaviours, with detrimental effects on dietary practices and increasing the burden of non-communicable diseases. Online content lacking peer review, scientific grounding or transparency can mislead individuals and erode trust in evidence-based nutrition science. Strategies to counter these effects include strengthening digital and health literacy, implementing policy reforms and ensuring that public health bodies provide accurate, engaging online information to build public resilience against misleading dietary claims.