Over-use of social media can lead to people believing their health has deteriorated – compared with others, according to a new analysis.
A team from the University of Surrey, UK, looked at the impact of Facebook use on perceived physical health, as well as self-esteem and life satisfaction. They surveyed 165 Facebook users who reported their level of comparison with others.
Findings were published yesterday (8 January) in the inter-disciplinary journal Heliyon. Dr Bridget Dibb and colleagues found that those who tended to compare themselves with others on Facebook "had greater awareness of physical ailments, such as sleep problems, weight change and muscle tension".
The authors point out that the results can be interpreted in two ways, either those who compare themselves may perceive more physical symptoms but equally, perceiving symptoms may lead to greater comparison.
They believe that social comparison may be more likely when a person feels uncertain about their situation. Further weight for this theory comes from the finding that people with anxiety or depression also perceived more symptoms. On the other hand, those who reported more satisfaction with their lives and had high self-esteem perceived fewer physical symptoms.
"Comparing ourselves to others is not a new concept; however, with the rise of social media it is becoming a part of our everyday lives," said Dr Dibb.
"An entity like Facebook, with 2.27 billion active monthly users, has never existed before. The long term effect it has on individuals is unknown, but it is clear that comparison with others is associated with perceptions of ill-health.
"Users need to be aware of how they feel when they use sites like Facebook and recognise the dangers of comparisons in this context."
Dibb, B. et al. Heliyon 9 January 2019
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