Not on popularity. In the two studies that tested it, likes did not reliably track quality. Across 225 semaglutide videos, the median scored 2 out of 4 for saying who made it and where its claims came from. Who uploaded a video predicted its quality.
The four studies measured different things. Two scored semaglutide videos on Chinese short-video apps. One scored TikTok and Instagram. One read posts across five platforms and compared them with the trial data. The trial data itself is summarized in the side effect comparison.
Useful, but unsourced
One study scored 225 semaglutide videos from Bilibili and the Chinese TikTok [1]. Two reviewers applied three tools. Median usefulness was 4 out of 5. Median reliability was 4 out of 5. Median transparency was 2 out of 4.
Transparency is a separate question from accuracy. It asks four things: who wrote it, what sources it used, what the author’s interests are, and when it was updated. A video can be accurate and still fail all four. When it does, a wrong video looks the same as a right one.
Of the 225 videos, 82.2% were about weight loss against 2.7% about blood sugar, the condition the drug was developed for. The eligibility rules are set out in the BMI cut-off guide.
Popular is not the same as good
In the same study, more likes went with lower usefulness and reliability scores. On TikTok, more comments went with lower quality too. On Bilibili, more shares went with higher scores.
A second study scored the top 100 semaglutide videos on each of the same two apps [2]. Likes correlated only weakly with quality, r = 0.151. Longer videos scored higher on reliability but drew no more engagement. Both author groups reach the same conclusion. Engagement is a poor guide to quality.
Who made it matters most
In the first study, videos from medical professionals scored higher on all three tools. Commercial videos scored lower on usefulness and reliability. In the second, medical professionals and institutions produced the more reliable content. Medical information scored higher than personal experience videos.
A third study looked at who was making the videos [3]. It covered 200 TikTok and Instagram videos on GLP-1 drugs and sleeve gastrectomy. 31.5% came from medical professionals. The average DISCERN quality score was 28.0 out of 80. Instagram GLP-1 videos scored highest of the four groups.
What gets left out
A German analysis read semaglutide posts on Instagram, TikTok, X, Facebook and YouTube [4]. It compared them with the adverse reactions reported in the STEP trials. Misstatements about mechanism, indication, side effects and drug interactions were very common. Cost and supply shortages were barely covered.
Those stomach effects, and how long they usually last, are covered in the nausea timeline. The analysis rated YouTube the most reputable platform. Instagram carried the least medical knowledge.
How to check a GLP-1 video
- Find who made it. A named clinician or institution scored higher in both short-video studies.
- Look for a source. A trial name or a label beats a personal result.
- Check that side effects are mentioned. Their absence was a common failure.
- Treat a product link under a brand hashtag as unverified. Some contained no semaglutide.
- Ignore the like count. It did not track quality in either study that measured it.
A provider should cover the same ground a good video does. The standard is in what a GLP-1 provider should do.