{"id":91962,"date":"2024-04-29T11:14:03","date_gmt":"2024-04-29T15:14:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/?post_type=cu_story&p=91962"},"modified":"2025-10-10T11:58:41","modified_gmt":"2025-10-10T15:58:41","slug":"influencing-wellness-social-media-and-health-consumption","status":"publish","type":"cu_story","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/story\/influencing-wellness-social-media-and-health-consumption\/","title":{"rendered":"Influencing Wellness: Social Media and Health Consumption"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n Influencing Wellness: Social Media and Health Consumption\n <\/h1>\n \n <\/header>\n <\/div>\n\n \n <\/path>\n <\/path>\n <\/svg>\n <\/div>\n\n \n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n

Scrolling through your social media feed, you’re bombarded with celebrity endorsements, influencer routines and so-called experts promoting the latest health and wellness products. From vitamin blends and third-party protein powders to teas promising serenity, it can be hard to escape these hidden digital marketing techniques.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pervasive presence of product placements throughout our daily social media use highlights the profound impact that today’s influencer-driven culture has on shaping our health choices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As these platforms connect the world in new ways, how does digital marketing by influencers impact our consumption of health products \u2013 from supplements to fitness classes to professional advice?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carleton University marketing professor Dora Wang<\/a> seeks to understand this phenomenon, the role of influencers and consumer mindfulness.<\/p>\n\n\n

\"An<\/figure>\n\n\n

Wellness Influencer Marketing Driven by Gen Z and Alpha<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Today, a large segment of the consumer market has grown up with social media as a reality of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Prof.
Professor Dora Wang<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n
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\u201cThe younger population, segments like Generation Z and Alpha, are not paying attention to messaging from brands themselves \u2014  they are more likely to believe in social media influencers<\/a>,\u201d says Wang, citing feedback from her students.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cThese influencers might be celebrities they like and who they have some commonalities with, or are active in areas they are interested in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While influencers may appear to earn the trust of their followers more easily than corporations, collaborating with them through product placements and recommendations is not without reputational risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBrands need to be very careful when looking for social media influencers to act as their endorsers,\u201d says Wang. \u201cInfluencers can become involved in controversies, which can create public relations crises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTherefore, the fit between the brand and influencer is very important.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n

Distinguishing Expertise from Influence with Mindfulness<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Wang was first drawn to the dietary supplement market, a field stocked with a wide array of products, from traditional vitamins to sleep aids. These products are easily accessible \u2013 available in grocery stores, as well as specialty shops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While many health professionals have been vocal<\/a> about the lack of effectiveness of many dietary supplements, Wang wanted to explore how social media can influence consumers who choose these products.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cDespite doctors suggesting that people don’t need them, buyers are still committed to supplement consumption,\u201d says Wang. \u201cA large part of this motivation and influence can come from social media.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Social media influencers can have a high level of trust with their viewers. Some content creators leverage their aspirational lifestyle or expertise when highlighting dietary supplements in their posts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, there are concerns about social media\u2019s influence on consumers including the ethics of providing consumers product reviews.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wang noted that the review acts as an advertisement for the product. \u201cWe don’t always know if there is a collaboration or agreement between the influencer and the brand being reviewed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To help consumers resist the lure of social media marketing, Wang\u2019s research has found that consumers who practiced mindfulness were able to make better choices regarding supplement consumption by resisting external pressures and maintaining their agency when making health decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A mindful consumer maintains an awareness of both internal and external stimuli when making purchasing decisions. This allows the buyer to resist being overly swayed by external forces such as pressures from social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Individuals can build their mindfulness practice through immersive and attentive daily practices, like yoga, reading and dancing.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cThere is a positive relationship between a consumer\u2019s level of mindfulness and informed rational consumer decisions regarding dietary supplement consumption,\u201d says Wang.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Health at Home Through Fitness Streaming and Consulting<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Looking ahead, Wang plans to explore other avenues of health consumption through social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of those areas is the impact of livestreaming fitness classes through apps, opening new avenues of accessibility by removing the barrier of having to physically travel to a gym. The classes can provide the feeling of participating in a group activity through live commenting or leaderboards.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cThese fitness platforms can be beneficial to people who don’t have access to a fitness center, or who might have mobility concerns,\u201d says Wang. \u201cWe can increase fitness accessibility using these platforms, which is good for public health.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Wang seeks to investigate how this new sphere of health consumption can impact users\u2019 choices about physical activity and the role mindfulness can play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ll be looking at mindfulness as a mechanism to mediate influence from social media and the user\u2019s intention to be involved in fitness, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and sustainable consumption.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wang is also partnering with a local health consultant to determine how social media can be leveraged to connect with older Canadians and their caregivers to provide health care advisory services and social and emotional support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are determining the best way to connect with clients by improving practitioners’ social media engagement with these demographics,\u201d says Wang, noting that Facebook is especially popular with this group. \u201cBy connecting via social media, practitioners can find new ways to provide advisory and client support services.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Scrolling through your social media feed, you’re bombarded with celebrity endorsements, influencer routines and so-called experts promoting the latest health and wellness products. From vitamin blends and third-party protein powders to teas promising serenity, it can be hard to escape these hidden digital marketing techniques. The pervasive presence of product placements throughout our daily social […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":410,"featured_media":91970,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"cu_story_type":[13],"cu_story_tag":[1922],"class_list":["post-91962","cu_story","type-cu_story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","cu_story_type-research-discovery","cu_story_tag-sprott-school-of-business"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":"blueprint"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/91962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/cu_story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/410"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/91962\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97676,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/91962\/revisions\/97676"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/91970"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=91962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"cu_story_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story_type?post=91962"},{"taxonomy":"cu_story_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story_tag?post=91962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}