US EditionTikTok fuels ADHD self-diagnosis with misleading content, study shows
- A new study published in PLOS ONE on Mar 25 2025, reveals that many of the 100 most viewed TikTok videos about ADHD contain details that do not align with clinical guidelines, raising concerns that young people may falsely diagnose themselves based on this information.
- ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder impacting focus, organization, and self-control, with symptoms potentially affecting academic, occupational, emotional, and physical health, as well as relationships.
- With social media becoming increasingly popular, especially among Gen Z and Millennials , and two out of five Americans preferring TikTok over traditional search engines, the lack of quality control on these platforms increases the risk of misinformation about ADHD and other conditions.
- According to Charles Sweet, a board-certified psychiatrist and medical advisor for Linear Health, viral videos often promote relatable symptoms but these are not clinical indicators of ADHD on their own, while Daniel Huy, a child psychologist with Hackensack University Medical Center, notes that ADHD symptoms overlap with normal stress and other mental health issues, making psychiatric diagnoses nuanced.
- Experts, including Jessica McCarthy , emphasize that self-tests and social media content cannot replace professional evaluations, as clinicians consider a person's whole life and can differentiate ADHD from other conditions like anxiety, depression, or learning disabilities, which require different treatment approaches, and also consider family history.
26 Articles
26 Articles
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Teens Could Be Falsely Diagnosing Themselves From ADHD Misinformation on TikTok, New Analysis Shows
Here's what parents need to know.Fact checked by Sarah ScottParents/Getty ImagesFewer than half of the 100 most viewed TikTok videos about attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) contain details that actually align with clinical guidelines for the disorder, according to a new TikTok analysis. These results present a worry that young people might end up falsely diagnosing themselves from this information or, worse, that they won’t relate …
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