Online advice: how did I only just find out about the luteal phase?

The benefits and risks of using TikTok as a source of health and wellness information.

I was aimlessly scrolling TikTok a couple of months ago, cocooned in my duvet cave, when I stumbled across a post talking about the struggles of the luteal phase. This was a term I had never heard of. After some quick googling I found myself down a rabbit hole, learning more about my hormonal cycle than I ever had at school. Things clicked into place as I started to understand the two weeks before my period; the luteal phase had been terrorising me for nine years and I had no idea.

But was this medical epiphany a needle in a haystack, or is TikTok genuinely having a positive impact on the health of its users, despite the risk of misinformation?

For years, TikTok has been used for people to open up about their chronic illnesses, diets, and general health experiences. Recently, the carnivore diet has gained popularity on the app. Creators make videos showcasing what they eat each day following this diet, usually a mix of red meat, eggs, and milk. One user, @steakandbuttergal, regularly posts videos sharing the side effects of her extreme diet, claiming “mental clarity, good mood, and great skin” as benefits. Terrifyingly, science cannot even categorically disagree. There is little to no research evidence on the consequences of the carnivore diet, simply personal anecdotes. That being said, science has proven the necessity of fibre from plants in our diets. Nutritional scientist, Dr Wendy Hall, voices concerns over the cardiovascular impacts of the carnivore diet, the increased risks of cancer and type 2 diabetes.

If I wrap my torso in a castor oil filled “pack” each night, will I get skinny? Probably not. But TikTok will tell you it’s the best proven hack to fix bloating. This is the kind of misinformation that is widely spread on the app, and believed, despite the fact that oil being absorbed into the first few layers of skin will never fix your “gut health”.

However, fad diets and extremes aside, TikTok undeniably provides a forum for personal testimony. People on specific medications, or with specific conditions, are being connected and finally able to share their experiences, side effects, and relate to one another. My FYP is dominated by girls and women sharing their experiences of birth control; the good and the bad, but mainly the bad.

By the time I reached eighteen, I had been on birth control for four years. Told by my GP that it would fix my teenage acne, I was handed a prescription and never inquired about again. I chose to come off this medication myself, but maybe if I had been on TikTok at this time I would have made this decision far sooner.

This is all a direct consequence of people feeling ignored and dismissed by healthcare professionals.

All medications can have side effects, but is this positive consideration or a form of fear mongering? A midwife from Forth Valley Royal Hospital, that I spoke with recently, believes that the decrease in the number of women using birth control is directly linked to TikTok. This is a sensation she identifies as the “anti hormone contraception trend on TikTok (sic)”, to which she would be absolutely correct. Furthermore, she believes that this is also linked to the steady rise in abortions received in the UK in the past few years.  

Despite the concrete plausibility of there being a direct link between TikTok and dropping rates of birth control, the statistics regarding abortion actually suggest that this is not linked to rising termination rates. A figure shows the rate of abortion over the years based on age, proving that the rate of abortion is rising in an equal manner for 20-24 year-olds and 24–29 year-olds.  The figure also shows that abortion rates have been rising across the board, for all age groups. People who frequently use TikTok are aged 15-24, making up 76% of the user base, thus if abortion is on the rise for all age groups, not just those actively engaging in TikTok content, then it would be unfair to predominantly attribute it to this.

TikTok has also become a place for self-diagnosis, both of mental and physical illnesses. Once again, we see the risks posed by fear mongering. Users may find themselves down a rabbit hole of videos about chronic illnesses, examining the symptoms. For those with health anxiety, this can be extremely distressing. There have been many nights that I’ve found myself questioning whether I have Fibromyalgia or Crohn’s Disease, simply based on the vague symptoms I have heard discussed on TikTok. This is a message that your headaches and dry skin do not mean you might be dying, or that you need to immediately and drastically alter your lifestyle.

This is all a direct consequence of people feeling ignored and dismissed by healthcare professionals. The extortionate price of seeking help privately is forcing people to look elsewhere for advice. Unfortunately, the healthcare system in the UK is deeply tarnished by a myriad of issues, from long waitlists to medical sex and race discrimination. I also blame a lack of sufficient education in schools. 

I wish someone had told me more about my own period when I was younger. Despite my understanding and sympathy for why TikTok has become the way it is, I still believe we must be aware that we are creating a generation of hypochondriacs.

Next time, at least google your symptoms, instead of relying on a fellow nineteen-year-old in a 9 second clip on TikTok.

Published 26 March 2025