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. 2025 Apr;38(2):e70034.
doi: 10.1111/jhn.70034.

Diet and Psoriasis-Related Information on Instagram: A Quality and Content Analysis of Posts Under Popular Psoriasis Hashtags

Sabrina Cowan  1 , Poppy Hawkins  1 , Ghislaine Marks  1 , Rosalind Fallaize  1
Affiliations

Diet and Psoriasis-Related Information on Instagram: A Quality and Content Analysis of Posts Under Popular Psoriasis Hashtags

Sabrina Cowan et al. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2025 Apr.

Abstract

Background: Psoriasis is a chronic immune-mediated skin condition. Evidence supporting dietary management of psoriasis is limited. However, People Living with Psoriasis (PLwP) trial dietary interventions as a management strategy, often taken from popular literature. Social media is a popular source of nutrition information. However, little is known about the dietary information suggested for psoriasis on these platforms. The aim of this study was to explore the dietary approaches suggested for psoriasis on Instagram and evaluate their quality.

Methodology: Cross-sectional content analysis of Instagram posts providing dietary information for plaque psoriasis management, posted under the 12 most popular psoriasis hashtags. Posts were evaluated for quality using the DISCERN instrument.

Results: Overall, 138 Instagram posts were analysed. The most common type of dietary recommendation was 'exclusion', most frequently of alcohol and dairy. Detox and 'clean eating' were also frequently mentioned, as well as the inclusion of protein, and adherence to a gluten-free diet. The most common content creators were those with those with lived experience of psoriasis (29.7%). None of the posts were created by qualified nutrition professionals and only 6.5% were by healthcare professionals (HCPs). The majority (99%) of posts identified were of 'poor' quality.

Conclusion: Most dietary information on Instagram for managing psoriasis is poor quality, restrictive, unsubstantiated and shared by non-HCPs. Therefore, PLwP may be subject to dietary misinformation when using Instagram. HCPs should be equipped to counter diet and psoriasis misinformation. Further research is needed to investigate appropriate ways to provide dietary support for PLwP.

Keywords: Instagram; dermatology; diet; nutrition; psoriasis; social media.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Study design flow chart. Twelve hashtags were searched on Instagram to collect public data on the management of plaque psoriasis regarding the type of dietary information and content creator.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Shows the percentage (%) of Instagram posts identified under popular psoriasis hashtags recommending each type of dietary approach for the management of plaque psoriasis (n = 197).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Bar chart of the percentage (%) of posts created or shared by each content creator category.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Stacked bar chart of the percentage of dietary approach type created or shared by each content creator.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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