Associations of Use of Social Media and Psychopathology and Body Image in Pre- and Post-surgical Bariatric Samples: a Cross-sectional Analysis

PURPOSE: Interest has grown regarding the impact of social media platforms on mental health including body image and internalized weight bias (IWB) in those who have struggled with weight issues. However, few studies have addressed social media usage in bariatric patient samples. The objective of this study was to understand how the amount of time spent on social media could serve as a predictor for IWB in both pre- and post-operative bariatric patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pre- and post-operative patients at one academic medical center completed self-report measures assessing patients’ IWB, depression, anxiety, body dissatisfaction, sociodemographic variables, and social media usage. Data were collected from March 2019 to April 2020. Statistical methods that included correlations, logistical regression models, and ANOVA analysis were used to determine the relationship between time spent on social media and other covariates. RESULTS: A total of 148 responses were collected from the pre-surgical population, with 81 responses from the post-surgical sample. At baseline, the majority of respondents used social media for approximately 1 h per day (n = 37; 27.82%). Time spent on social media was negatively associated with age (r = − 0.24 [− 0.40, − 0.08]), and positively associated with IWB (r = 0.20 [0.02, 0.36]) and anxiety (r = 0.21 [0.01, 0.39]). In the post-operative group, only the 6-month BMI (r = 0.29 [0.05, 0.49]) was positively associated with time spent on social media. CONCLUSION: Given this study’s findings, providers are encouraged to become aware of patients’ use of social media, and to understand the impact social media usage can have on the mental well-being of patients. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT: [Image: see text] SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11695-022-06206-6.