ADHD Content on TikTok Is Full of Misinformation, Study Finds

• A new analysis found that medical misinformation about ADHD is prevalent on TikTok, with the content significantly shaping how young people view the condition.
• The issue could highlight a demographic reaching for answers that may be facing barriers to care, researchers say.
• For those wondering whether they have ADHD, there are some strategies for identifying medically accurate information and seeking out the support they need.

Social media has only enhanced the debate. As many young adults turn to platforms like TikTok and Instagram to gather information about ADHD, medical professionals often remain critical of any form of self-diagnosis.

A new analysis, published March 19 in PLOS One, found that most of the popular content about ADHD on TikTok is medically inaccurate and that insights provided by some content creators do not mirror those of mental health professionals.

Vasileia Karasavva, a co-author of the research and a PhD student at the University of British Columbia, told Healthline the study highlights an issue for many young people: they just don’t have the resources to get answers.

“I don’t think there’s anything more human than trying to understand your own experiences and your own self and how you feel. And I think what we’re tapping into is people struggling, but then not having access to places that they can get good support and help. And so they have to rely on themselves. They have to rely on whatever is easily available to them, and that’s social media,” Karasavva said.

The new analysis includes two studies. During the first stage, the researchers recorded the first 100 videos listed in order of view count under the hashtag #ADHD. Those videos were then assessed by two authors, both longtime clinical psychologists who sought to determine the accuracy of the claims made in the videos, who then rated them.

The other two authors, PhD students, noted the number and nature of claims made in the videos and the video metrics for each video and also identified when content creators mentioned selling services or asking for money.

At this stage, the psychologists found that fewer than half (48.7%) of the claims being made about ADHD were accurate and that the majority of the inaccurate claims (68.5%) better described a “normal human experience.”

During the second study, 843 participants — some with a formal ADHD diagnosis, some who were self-diagnosed, and some who did not have ADHD — were asked to watch and rate the top five and bottom five rated videos from the first study.

They were then asked a number of questions, including how they experienced this sort of content on TikTok. They were also asked to rate how much they would recommend these videos to others.

The results show that the participants, all young adults, rated the accurate videos significantly lower and the less accurate videos higher significantly than the psychology professionals involved in the study.

The study also showed that, of the 100 videos, none of the creators listed shared a credential at the doctoral level, and only 1.6% of creators shared a Master’s level of education. The vast majority of creators (83.6%) cited lived experience as the foundation of their content.

Karasavva said the research team was surprised that half of the content creators making these videos incorporated some form of sales tactic via links to sites like Venmo and Amazon.

“While some of these product requests may be legitimate, I think it also raises some important questions about how ADHD has been commercialized online, on social media, and we also have to question if viewers are getting reliable and science-backed information, or [if] they are just being seen as potential customers, encouraged to buy things that might not actually help them,” she noted.

He told Healthline the article provides a key question for those in public health to ask themselves as they work to provide the best information about conditions like ADHD.

“How can we help empower our consumers to know what is good content [and] what is reliable content? This study helps show there is a disconnect between good information versus more popular information,” Galbadage noted.

Ashwini Nadkarni, MD, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and the faculty’s interim vice chair of faculty development, said those who rely on ADHD-related content online could have other symptoms that are missed or not attended to by a physician.

“I think what the study tells us is that what people see on TikTok probably should not be experienced as gospel,” Nadkarni told Healthline.

“You know, it’s ultimately anecdotal content, and it can lead to people misattributing normal behaviors or behaviors that can be explained by other conditions to be signs of ADHD.”

Jess Rauchberg, PhD, a digital media scholar and former social media content creator who is now an assistant professor at Seton Hall University, noted the study’s findings reflect a social media algorithm shaping what users continue to see.

“TikTok’s algorithmic recommendation system is saying, this person wants to hear about ADHD or diagnosis and self-diagnosis,” Rauchberg told Healthline.

“I think it [the study] shows that self-diagnosis is really, really complicated. It’s an important moment to think about media literacy. Media isn’t reality but can shape our understanding of what’s real.