ACAAI

ACAAI 2025: Social media spreads allergy and asthma myths faster than facts

November 7, 2025

New research being presented at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) Annual Scientific Meeting suggests social media is a double-edged sword for allergy and asthma education.

Two studies analyzed social media content related to alpha-gal syndrome (AGS) and asthma. The AGS study reviewed the top 100 videos under #alphagal, while the asthma study examined the 40 most-liked English-language TikTok videos under #asthma from 2024. Researchers assessed source credibility, engagement metrics, and content accuracy.

Only 15% of AGS videos were physician-made, yet these received significantly more likes and comments than non-physician posts. In the asthma study, >25% of top videos contained misleading claims—such as asthma being curable with breathing exercises or caffeine being fatal when combined with inhalers. These inaccurate videos garnered over three times the engagement of accurate ones. The findings underscore the urgent need for allergists to actively participate in social media to counter misinformation and improve patient education.

Source:

(2025, November 6). American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Social media helps and hurts when it comes to allergy and asthma education. [News Release]. https://annualmeeting.acaai.org/2025/social-media-helps-hurts.cfm