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INTRODUCTION Facebook is the world’s leading social network with 2,449 million users. Around 22 million of those users are registered in Spain, and 30% of them are aged between 16 and 31. Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia pages have found a space to promote Eating Disorders (ED) as a ‘lifestyle’ using their own code.
Objectives
OBJECTIVE To study the characteristics of Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia Facebook profiles in Spanish.
Methods
METHODS A non-computerized research of Facebook pages related to ED advocacy was conducted. The opened time, publications, photos, type of profiles (public/private) and link to a WhatsApp group of 58 Facebook pages were analyzed. A qualitative and descriptive analysis was carried out.
Results
RESULTS From Facebook profiles: 62.07% contained ‘Ana’ in their profile name; 18.97% had been opened for more than 3 years; 79.31% had been shared; 48.28% mentioned Whatsapp groups; 91.38% were public profiles; 50% named other social networks; 75.86% added text to their publications; 25.86% had shared more than 20 photos on their profiles.
Conclusions
CONCLUSIONS On platforms like Facebook, people with ED can: advocate for their disease, set up networks, share tips/tricks and encourage other users to become part of their community. Technological developments have made it easier to access to this type of resources. Despite the platform’s policy, there are still these kind of profiles that make a case for ED.
Eating Disorders are a frequent pathology, particularly among teenagers, a group characterized by its vulnerability and body dissatisfaction. Social networks (SN) can be a gateway to ED, mainly with Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia resources. Despite the aforementioned, SN can also be helpful for professionals, either as a tool of approach to vulnerable groups or as a way of interaction in patients already diagnosed.
Objectives
To study the relationship between ED and SN, using the open access evidence available in Pubmed over the last 5 years.
Methods
A single-phase computerised search was carried out in Pubmed. The search terms were: (“Anorexia Nervosa”[Mesh] OR “Bulimia Nervosa”[Mesh] OR “Feeding and Eating Disorders”[Mesh] OR “Eating Disorders”[Tiab] OR “Eating Disorder”[Tiab] OR “Disorder, Eating”[Tiab] OR “Disorders, Eating”[Tiab] OR “Anorexia”[Tiab] OR “Bulimia”[Tiab]) AND (“blogging”[Mesh] OR “social media”[Mesh]). The filters applied were: “free Full Text” and publications for the last 5 years.
Results
36.84% studied SN as a positive tool for ED. 47.37% revealed negative influence, only 44.44% focused on Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia. 15.79% provided both positive and negative arguments. The most studied SN were Twitter and Facebook.
Conclusions
Despite the known negative effect that SN can have on ED, they can also be used as a supportive recovery framework. They can be used to identify dangerous behaviours and intervene or as a prevention tool.
Eating Disorders (ED) have increased both in number of cases and diagnoses in recent years, partly due to the ease of searching on the Internet. This “community” as they call themselves has a proper language, which makes them easier to connect.
Objectives
To know the search frequency of Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia terms in Spanish in the Google search engine.
Methods
A manual screening was carried out based on the word analysis of Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia blogs to obtain their search frequency in Spanish. Using the Google Trends tool, a total of 19 word combinations related to ED and their advocacy were reviewed in the time period from 01/01/2019 to 01/12/20. Some of them such as: “carrera de kilos” (kilos race), “princesa de cristal” (glass princess), “princesa de porcelana” (porcelain princess) and “dieta ABC” (ABC diet) among other terms.
Results
From 2019 to 2020 there has been an increase in the searches related to Eating Disorders (41.63%), ABC diet (9.72%), porcelain princess (25.52%) and kilos race (38.53%). There has also been a decrease in the search for thinspo ana (30.9%), tips ana (4.15%), blog mia (13.09%) or blog ana (0.79%).
Conclusions
Search trends change over time as they meet the evolving needs. In several media we can find a clear increase in ED during this 2020 due to the confinement related to COVID-19. This is something that we can also relate to this increase in searches for some terms.
Nowadays Social Networks (SN) are used not only in a playful way but also as a ‘health’ means of communication. The Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia accounts or profiles -whereby Eating Disorders are advocated as a ‘lifestyle’- increased by 300% over the last decade.
Objectives
To analyze Instagram Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia accounts and compare them with Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia Blogs.
Methods
A non-computerized research of Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia Blogs and Instagram profiles was performed. Accepting a risk of Alpha=0.05 and Beta=0.15 in a two-tailed test, 29 subjects were required in each group to detect a difference equal to or greater than 0.2 units. The common standard deviation is assumed to be 0.25. Publication averages, photos, opening years, WhatsApp links and number of followers were analysed and compared. Transversal descriptive study.
Results
Blogs: 100% had no groups in other SN, 33.33% had been opened for more than 3 years, 30% included personal pictures, 16.67% contained Ana in their title, 53.3% named other Blogs. Instagram: 56.67% included personal pictures, 13.33% mentioned WhatsApp groups, 73.33% had a public profile, 43.33% contained ‘Ana’ in their user name and 53.33% had more than one hundred followers.
Conclusions
These tools are constantly adapting to the times in which they coexist. There has also been a current increase in Instagram profiles. This study shows a greater linkage to WhatsApp groups on Instagram than on Blogs, together with a higher number of followers, ease of ownership and difficulty of control.
INTRODUCTION TikTok is a social network (SN) that allows users to share short videos about different issues. Since the COVID-19 lockdown, there has been an increase in Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia videos in this specific SN.
Objectives
OBJECTIVES To know the main characteristics about Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia contents among TikTok users.
Methods
METHODS A search was carried out using uncontrolled language with the term “TCA” (ED in English). The study included only Pro-Ana and Pro-Mia resources in Spanish. Resources under the category “recovery” were excluded. A random sample of 16 TikTok was used, since it is enough to estimate, with a confidence of 95% and an accuracy of +/- 20 percentage units, a population percentage that is expected to be around 20%. The studied variables were images, type of resources, “challenges” and misspelled words.
Results
RESULTS In the sample, 68.75% of the profiles were created upon confinement, 56.25% had more than 500 followers and 68.75% had more than 3000 “likes”. 43.75% included more than 30% of ED advocacy content, 18.75% promoted challenges and 37.5% used misspelled words to avoid SN censorship.
Conclusions
CONCLUSIONS There has been a remarkable increase in ED-related content as a result of lockdown. In turn, the increasing number of users who are part of TikTok reveals that this is a SN that can be associated with ED advocacy.
Disclosure
No significant relationships.
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