A social media intervention to improve nutrition knowledge of population

Abstract

Background: Social media is a potentially engaging way to support adolescents and adults in maintaining healthy diets and learning about nutrition. Use of social media for conducting large scale interventions at low cost are becoming a reality while also offering increased flexibility in terms of time and location at which they can be undertaken. Aim: To evaluate effectiveness of social media-based interventions for the promotion of nutrition knowledge. Materials and Methods: After reviewing the literature on nutritional knowledge questionnaires, the psychometric valid and reliable survey from Parmenter & Wardle selected. A sample of 133 participants aged 19 years or older was recruited using “Hoolzuich” (meaning dietitian in Mongolian) facebook page. We examined the feasibility and acceptability of a brief video intervention and change in nutrition-related knowledge in a sample of social media users (n=133). A 34-item knowledge test was administered prior to and after the video and analyzed using a paired t-tests. Analyses were performed using IBM SPSS statistics version 25 (SPSS Inc.,Chicago, IL, USA). Results: Knowledge scores were calculated for each section and for the overall questionnaire; a score of one was given for each correct response and scores summed. Nutrition knowledge scores significantly improved after receiving the video intervention for all sections. Participants achieved higher scores after watching the video (pre-to post-scores: M=20.46, SE=0.4 vs M=23.31, SE=0.3). Conclusion: Social media plays an integral role in the lives of adolescents and adults and this research suggests that social media tools have the potential to be effective in delivering nutrition interventions and increasing nutrition literacy for internet users in Mongolia.