Does Viewing Exercise-Related Social Media Influence Your Health?

By Austin Westfall
Published: Saturday, February 24, 2018 - 5:05am
Updated: Sunday, February 25, 2018 - 8:16pm
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A study by researchers at the University of Arizona and Texas State University says exercise-related social media posts may be influencing the health of viewers.

The study found that the more exercise-related posts a person sees on social media, the more concerned they feel about their own weight.

So is this a good or a bad thing? Tricia Burke of Texas State University co-authored the study, and she said it's mixed.

"It might have a positive impact upon your behavior, but at the same time it’s kind of a paradox because there are other people where it seemed to have a more negative impact upon their image of themself," she said.

Burke said the positive is that exercise-related social media can make some people more interested in exercising and feel better about exercising.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been modified to correct Tricia Burke's university affiliation.

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