Social Media as a Tool for Health Promotion and Disease Management in Saudi Arabia: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Introduction

Social media (SM) has drastically improved communication and information dissemination among various demographics.

Purpose

This systematic review study aims to evaluate the use of social media as a health promotion tool in Saudi Arabia.

Methods

Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed in carrying out this research. Different databases were used to search for relevant articles from 2015 to 2024.

Results

Eighteen studies met the inclusion criteria. Multiple social media platforms were utilized in these efforts, including YouTube, WhatsApp, Snapchat, and the X platform. The articles related to diabetic patients showed that the majority used SM to gather information about disease management. Advantages of using SM include improving patient education and awareness of diabetes, as well as facilitating patient-doctor communication. Barriers included breaching patient privacy, unreliable data, and a lack of easy access for the elderly and those with lower educational levels. YouTube, the X platform, and WhatsApp were especially popular. Moreover, 47% of participants in diabetic study and 96% of participants with celiac disease were using social media as a source of information for disease management.

Conclusion

SM has been found to have a drastic impact on the knowledge of public health and specific diseases. Decision-makers need to support more studies on SM as a health promotion tool. Moreover, multiple media platforms could complement each other to provide audio-visual learning experiences, such as the X platform and YouTube, for easier access.

Introduction

Social media is a variety of mobile and internet-based services that let users join online communities, take part in online exchanges, and upload their own content. In recent years, social media usage has increased and transformed the way communication and information are disseminated among various demographics. Social media has become an integral part of our day-to-day lives and is quickly replacing traditional news, information, and communication channels for many people. ¹ This is probably because information is available quickly, easily, and in real time, but it’s not always accurate. ² Over 51% of the population in Saudi Arabia uses social media for health-related purposes. ³ In response, Saudi healthcare officials have been actively researching innovative strategies to improve public health, with a growing emphasis on preventive healthcare. ⁴ In addition, health authorities can precisely target specific demographics or geographic areas with their messaging, owing to social media platforms. ⁵ During the COVID-19 pandemic, Saudi Arabia’s public and private sectors developed and released over 20 applications and platforms supporting medical services and public health initiatives. ⁶

The Kingdom’s efforts to promote health through social media have yielded encouraging results. X platform, YouTube, Snapchat, along with other social platforms, are being used to address a variety of health-related issues, including diabetes awareness, women’s health, breastfeeding practices, dental health, physical activity, proper use of antibiotics, awareness of road safety, smoking cessation, and breast cancer awareness. ⁷ A study conducted on the Saudi population regarding their social media use showed that 85% of participants used social media to seek health information, 72% searched for information themselves, and 52% searched for information on behalf of a family member. ⁸ This illustrates the wide range of ways that social media can reach different populations and address their unique health needs. Saudi health authorities should utilize social media more frequently for health promotion, as it can help remove conventional barriers in health communication. It offers an engaging way to promote healthy lifestyle choices, raise community knowledge of health issues, and engage the public in health-related initiatives. In addition, social media’s real-time feedback mechanism enables the monitoring of public health campaign effectiveness, as well as helps in making timely adjustments.

Saudi Arabia’s high social network usage also presents a significant opportunity to improve healthcare delivery and develop the expertise of healthcare professionals through these platforms. Given that 93% of Saudi internet users have accounts on X platform, Facebook, YouTube, and WhatsApp, all of which are heavily utilized in daily life, there is a huge potential audience for health promotion ads. ⁹ In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, conducting systematic reviews is particularly crucial for health promotion and education. Understanding how effectively social media disseminates health-related information and promotes healthy habits is essential, as the country faces numerous health-related issues, including the rising incidence of non-communicable diseases, obesity, and mental health problems.

Many factors make Saudi Arabia distinctive, including strong social networks, evolving health communication norms, government oversight, and widespread use of social media. Together, these features make Saudi Arabia an informative setting for advancing knowledge in this domain. Even though social media is widely used in Saudi Arabia to promote health, there is still limited research on the social media role in health promotion. A comprehensive review is necessary to integrate current information, identify effective practices, and highlight research gaps in order to support evidence-based digital communication and guide national health-promotion policies. The study focuses on diabetic patients because there is a high epidemiological burden in Saudi Arabia, their need for sustained behavioral management, and their central role in national health priorities. Digital platforms play a role in shaping health behaviors within cultural contexts, in the interaction between technology adoption and health system priorities, and in variations across high-prevalence, high-digital-engagement settings. Accordingly, the study is positioned not only as a synthesis of evidence but also as a contribution to understanding how context influences the effectiveness and design of social media–based health promotion strategies.

The purpose of this research is to present a comprehensive and evidence-based review of social media’s role in health promotion and education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia due to its rapid digital transformation, high burden of noncommunicable diseases, particularly diabetes, and ongoing health reforms under Vision 2030, it is especially informative for studying social media-based health promotion. Therefore, this systematic review aims to evaluate the use of social media as a health promotion tool in Saudi Arabia.

Materials and Methods

This systematic review complied with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) 2020 guidelines. ¹⁰ The study protocol was registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO), ¹¹ (https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/, Registration number: CRD420261353247).

Search Strategy

The search strategy was developed using key concepts related to social media, health promotion, and Saudi Arabia. The main search terms included: “social media,” “health promotion,” “health education,” “health,” and “Saudi Arabia.” Synonyms and related terms were combined using Boolean operators. An example search string for PubMed was: (“social media” OR WhatsApp OR Twitter OR ″X platform” OR YouTube OR Snapchat) AND (“health promotion” OR “health education” OR “health communication” OR health) AND (“Saudi Arabia”). Similar search strategies were adapted for The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and Scopus. Searches were conducted for studies published from 2015 to 2024. Meanwhile, the time frame of this study was from October 2024 to May, 2025.

Study Quality Assessment

The Newcastle quality assessment scores were used to assess the strength and quality of the included studies across three domains, which are selection, comparability, and outcome/exposure. Each study was awarded up to 9 stars, where higher scores indicate better quality. Studies scoring 7–9 were considered high quality, 4–6 moderate quality, and ≤3 low quality. Two independent reviewers evaluated all included studies. The two independent reviewers resolved their disagreements by discussing the content of the selected articles in relation to the review’s objective. Discussions and consensus were invoked to resolve the disagreements between the two independent reviewers.

Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria

The inclusion criteria were published peer reviewed articles related to the use of social media in health promotion conducted in Saudi Arabia, Articles in English languages, and full access articles. The social media includes WhatsApp, X platform, YouTube, and Snapchat that utilized for health promotion.

The exclusion criteria were non-peer-reviewed studies, newspaper reports; studies with unavailable full-text access; publications outside of study scope; studies conducted outside Saudi Arabia; duplicate studies; publications published using non-English- language manuscripts; and withdrawn studies.

Study Selection and Data Extraction Procedures

The initial search showed 894 articles, 65 of which were related to social media use in health. After reviewing the titles, abstracts, and full articles, 18 articles met inclusion and exclusion criteria. The PRISMA flow diagram was used to demonstrate the study selection process (Figure 1). Data extraction from relevant articles was manually done. The following information was extracted: authors’ names, date of publication, sample size, method of data collection, platform used, Newcastle-Ottawa scale score, and main findings, which include study results, study aim, and population characteristics.

Figure 1.

Flow chart summarizing the identification and selection of pertinent papers

Results

All 18 articles included in this review were conducted in Saudi Arabia and examined the use of various social media (SM) platforms. Sixteen of these articles focused on specific diseases, primarily diabetes mellitus and Celiac Disease, while the remaining two addressed the oral health of pregnant women and their breastfeeding practices. A summary of the articles is shown in Table 1. Overall, these studies indicate strong public interest in using SM for health-related purposes, with reported interest levels starting at 51%. ¹² For example, people with diabetes reportedly use SM for at least an hour daily for health-related activities, with patients managing Celiac disease demonstrating similar usage patterns. ⁹ The most utilized platforms across these studies were WhatsApp, X platform, YouTube, and Snapchat.^9,13-16

Table 1.

Characteristics of Included Studies Using NEWCASTLE - OTTAWA Quality Assessment Scale

Author	Date of publication	Study design	Sample number	Method of data collection	Summary	New-Castle score	Quality assessment	Risk of bias
Alanzi and AlZahrani. 9	June, 2019	Cross-Sectional	158 Participants with all types of diabetes	The Diabetic Knowledge Test (DKT)	- WhatsApp was the most used SM platform by diabetic patients in Saudi Arabia to communicate and gather information regarding Diabetes Mellitus (DM). - Majority of respondents were Females with Type I Diabetes. - 47% of the sample uses social media Platforms to obtain information about diabetes. - Advantages of using SM were improving patient education and awareness of diabetes, and facilitating patient-doctor contact. - Main barriers to use were breaching patient privacy, lack of easy accessibility, and unreliable information.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Al Sarkhy et al. 13	February, 2020	Cross-Sectional	221 participants	Questionnaire	- Pattern of SM among Celiac Disease patients and to look for possible variables that could affect how often they use it. - The majority of participants (96%) used social media to research disease management. - 66% of participants said that nothing prevented them from using social media, while 21% said that the biggest obstacle to using social media platforms was the accuracy of the material shared.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Aboalshamat et al. 14	February, 2023	Single-Blinded Parallel RCT	63 participants	Questionnaire	- Used Snapchat for intervention on pregnant Saudi Arabian women’s understanding of oral health during pregnancy. - In this study, participants in the study group (SG) were given information regarding oral health during pregnancy using the Snapchat mobile application. - Participants’ knowledge in both the study and control groups greatly improved, and after a month, their retention of the material had increased significantly compared to their baseline knowledge. - No significant difference was found among the study group and the control group participants.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Bahkali et al. 15	2015	Cross-Sectional	484 Participants	Questionnaire	- Used X platform to support breastfeeding in Saudi Arabia. - 83% of respondents were mothers of newborns. - The findings indicated that among X platform followers, there has been a rise in knowledge and awareness of breastfeeding habits and adherence.	7	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Nozha & Elshatarat. 16	August 2022	Cross-Sectional	406 Participants	Questionnaire	- 72.7% of participants used YouTube, and 55.2% used X platform when seeking self-care practices and preventing complications. - This research showed that elders and those with lower educational levels faced a barrier in seeking educational information related to DM and suggested posting more audio-video content to overcome this barrier.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Alhodaib et al. 17	August 2021	Quantitative experimental	200 participants	Diabetes Knowledge Test (DKT)	- The study evaluated whether X platform could effectively increase diabetes awareness and knowledge among Saudi adults who had relatives with diabetes. The intervention group received a month-long education program via X platform featuring tweets, images, interviews, videos, and hashtag interaction (#sanad). Results showed a statistically significant increase in diabetes knowledge score in the intervention group after the program, while no considerable change was found in the control group. X platform was found to have a positive influence on diabetes awareness and knowledge, regardless of age, gender, or educational level.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Alanzi et al. 18	February 2018	Quasi-experimental	200 participants	Questionnaire	- Significant improvement in breast cancer awareness in the intervention group. - No significant change in the control group was observed, however the effect size (Cohen’s d) indicated a large practical impact - Study highlights Snapchat as a feasible and effective platform for breast cancer awareness among Saudi female students - Limitations include non-random allocation, highly motivated sample, short intervention duration, and unclear long-term retention or behavior change.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Elgendy et al. 19	April 2021	Cross-sectional	625 participants	Questionnaire	- The study investigated how social media affects obesity awareness and health decisions. WhatsApp was the most influential platform, used by 93.9% of participants. A significant proportion of users started or stopped medications based on information from social media without consulting doctors, highlighting both the reach and the risks of unverified health content.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Ateq et al. 20	March 2024	Cross-sectional	1483 participants	Questionnaire	- The study found a 24.4% prevalence of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) among participants. BDD was significantly more prevalent among females and individuals with high Snapchat/Instagram usage, particularly those using photo filters and posting selfies frequently. Increased use of these platforms correlated with higher acceptance of cosmetic surgery, especially in younger, single, and economically disadvantaged individuals. The findings emphasize that heavy and appearance-focused social media use might be a risk factor for BDD and may shape cosmetic surgery attitudes, raising public health concerns in the Saudi context.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Alanzi et al. 21	October 2023	Cross-sectional	463 participants	Questionnaire	- The study assessed the impact of social media applications on donor engagement and retention within the blood donation system in Saudi Arabia. Most participants engaged with social media multiple times a day for charitable causes, such as blood donation, with WhatsApp and Ministry of Health apps being the most frequently used platforms. Around 74% were likely to participate in blood donation through these platforms. Key motivators for engagement included personal recommendations, emotional appeals, and trust in organizations. Younger and more educated individuals showed significantly higher engagement. Major barriers were concerns about privacy, organizational trustworthiness, and lack of personalized content. The study concluded that social media is an effective tool for donor retention and recommended leveraging these platforms to enhance blood donation campaigns in Saudi Arabia.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Onezi et al. 22	March 2018	Cross-sectional	473 participants	Questionnaire	- The study compared smokers using social media support groups (X platform, WhatsApp) with those not using any platform. Participants in social media groups were more likely to report smoking reduction and recommend social media for relapse prevention. WhatsApp users were particularly likely to advocate for its use. The findings emphasize the potential of extra-treatment online peer support via social platforms in reducing smoking relapse.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Alanzi. 23	February 2021	Cross-sectional	9581	Questionnaire	- The study demonstrated X platform’s effectiveness in raising COVID-19 awareness in Saudi Arabia. Analysis of Arabic tweets revealed that messages about government measures and health guidance received high engagement, showing X platform’s role as both an information source and a platform for public discussion during the pandemic.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Al-Khalifa et al. 24	September 2022	Cross-sectional	1882	Tweets were manually extracted from X platform	- This study examined how dental schools in Saudi Arabia used X platform to engage with the public and fulfill academic objectives. The most frequent use of X platform was for news and announcements (55%), followed by dental professional communication (26%) and community service (42%) as an academic role. Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University had the highest X platform activity. Arabic was the dominant language, and multimedia posts were more common than text-only tweets. The study concludes that X platform serves as an essential platform for branding, student engagement, and oral health education among Saudi dental institutions.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Alnasser et al. 25	2020	Cross-sectional	3,204 participants	Questionnaire	- This national survey assessed the social media role in raising awareness about COVID-19 among the Saudi population. Of the 3,204 respondents, 75.4% demonstrated a high level of awareness regarding the pandemic. X platform emerged as the most commonly used platform (44.1%), followed by WhatsApp (29.5%). Additionally, 83.6% of participants cited official government social media as their main source of COVID-19 information. A significant portion (68.7%) reported being fully committed to following the Ministry of Health’s online instructions. - The study concluded that social media had a positive impact on disseminating COVID-19 information in Saudi Arabia and was instrumental in enhancing public awareness, trust, and compliance during the pandemic.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Aleid et al. 26	April 2024	Cross-sectional	471	Questionnaire	- This study evaluated the effects of physical activity and food advertisements on eating habits among Saudi adults. About 80% had unhealthy eating habits. Participants who frequently viewed food ads or experienced an increased appetite after viewing them were significantly more likely to eat unhealthily. A lack of physical activity was also a major predictor of poor eating patterns. The authors advocated for policy reforms in digital advertising and public health campaigns that promote healthy diets and physical activity.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Alzaben et al. 27	December 2022	Cross-sectional	420	Questionnaire	- 89.2% used SM for weight loss info. Younger and lower-income individuals were more likely to apply it. 36% identified risks of inaccuracy; 61% believed the information was often used for marketing purposes. Highlights the dual benefit-risk nature of SM in dietary behavior.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Mohammed et al. 28	March 2021	Cross-sectional	201	Questionnaire	- This study examined social media use for health awareness purposes among health educators and students in Saudi Arabia. It found that a high percentage of participants actively used social media platforms, such as WhatsApp, X platform, and Snapchat, for health-related information. The study highlighted that social media serves as a valuable tool for disseminating health knowledge and promoting health awareness, particularly among health professionals and students. However, concerns about information reliability and privacy were noted.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations
Alanzi & Alsaeed. 29	October 2019	Cross-sectional	297	Questionnaire	- This study aimed to evaluate the role of social media in the blood donation campaigns in Saudi Arabia, focusing on its effectiveness, motivations, and barriers. Results showed that 82% of participants received blood donation messages via social media, with WhatsApp being the most common platform (61%). Almost half had previously donated blood, with human solidarity (25%) as the main motivator and health conditions (36%) as the primary inhibitor. The findings support the potential of platforms like WhatsApp to enhance public engagement and communication around blood donation.	8	high quality	low risk of bias overall, with minor limitations

Conceptual Domains

The findings are grouped into four main conceptual domains.

Chronic Disease and Preventive Health Awareness

The breast cancer awareness intervention demonstrates that platforms such as Snapchat can effectively improve knowledge, particularly in targeted populations. However, evidence remains limited regarding sustained behavioral change beyond short-term awareness gains.

Behavioral Risk Factors and Lifestyle Modification

Studies on diabetes mellitus, obesity, smoking cessation, and body image show that social media plays a dual role. While platforms such as WhatsApp and X (formerly Twitter) facilitate peer support and behavior change (e.g., smoking reduction), they may also propagate unverified information and reinforce harmful norms (e.g., medication misuse, body dysmorphic disorder). In a study, 72.7% of participants used YouTube, and 55.2% used the X platform when seeking self-care practices and preventing complications or seeking educational information related to diabetes mellitus.

Public Health Campaigns and Community Engagement

Blood donation studies highlight the effectiveness of social media particularly WhatsApp in mobilizing community participation and donor retention. These studies emphasize the importance of trust, emotional appeal, and social influence, while also identifying barriers such as privacy concerns and perceived credibility.

Pandemic Communication and Health Information Dissemination

COVID-19-related studies consistently show that X platform and WhatsApp were central in disseminating timely information, enhancing public awareness, and promoting adherence to government guidelines. High reliance on official sources underscores the importance of institutional credibility in digital health communication.

Study Designs

We have also incorporated a clearer distinction between.

Cross-Sectional Studies

Which dominate the literature and provide valuable insights into usage patterns, perceptions, and associations, but do not establish causality or sustained impact.

Intervention Studies

Which demonstrate measurable improvements in knowledge or self-reported behavior but are often limited by short duration and lack of long-term follow-up.

Short-Term and Sustained Outcomes

The results also showed that.

Short-Term Outcomes

Most studies report short-term knowledge gains or self-reported behavioral intentions.

Sustained Outcomes

There is limited evidence on sustained behavior change, adherence, or clinical outcomes, representing a key gap in the literature.

Platform-specific Strengths

WhatsApp

Highly effective for peer support, community engagement, and campaign dissemination, but associated with risks related to misinformation.

X Platform

Particularly effective for real-time communication, public discourse, and official messaging, especially during health emergencies.

Snapchat/Instagram

More influential among younger populations, with both positive effects (awareness) and potential risks (body image concerns).

YouTube

Effective when people seeking self-care practices and preventing complications or seeking educational information.

Discussion

Social media plays a crucial role in everyday life by providing a platform for community development, communication, and information exchange. It has a substantial influence on illness management and health communication, particularly when considering chronic diseases like diabetes and other health problems in Saudi Arabia. Articles included in this systematic review offer insights into the various ways social media platforms are utilized for health-related purposes, as well as the benefits and risks associated with this approach. It also demonstrates the effectiveness of social media interventions in promoting health-related behaviors and knowledge. In this context it is worth mentioning the stages of health behavior change. The first stage is awareness, which refers to the most basic level, being conscious that a health issue or message exists. The second stage is knowledge acquisition, which refers to a deeper level involving understanding facts, information, and recommendations about a health topic. Then the behavioral intention stage which involves the individual’s stated willingness or plan to take a health-related action in the future. Finally, the actual behavioral change which refers to the real, observable adoption of a health behavior, ideally sustained over time and sometimes objectively measured. These stages represent a progression, but movement between stages is not guaranteed, which is why distinguishing them is critical in interpreting research findings. ³⁰

The most popular social media tool used by Saudi diabetic patients to communicate and receive information about their condition was WhatsApp. Clinical trials have demonstrated that WhatsApp-based diabetes self-management education interventions lead to significant improvements in self-efficacy and diabetes knowledge. Notably, one randomized controlled trial reported improvements in HbA1c levels at both 6- and 12-week follow-up periods. ³¹ X platform and WhatsApp were used to distribute the diabetic knowledge test survey, and the majority of respondents were women with Type I Diabetes. It was utilized by 47% of the sample to research diabetes and related care. The participants listed enhanced patient education (78%), increased awareness of diabetes (78%), and easier patient-doctor communication (44%) as benefits of utilizing social media. ⁹ In another study conducted to examine the information-seeking behavior of diabetic patients in Saudi Arabia on social media, it was found that 72.7% used YouTube and 55.2% used X platform for self-care activities related to managing diabetes. ⁸ The study also found that older age groups and those with lower levels of education posed obstacles in finding DM-related educational information, and it recommended publishing more audio-video content to help overcome these barriers. ¹⁶

YouTube offers an accessible video platform with its large collection of material. Videos are a valuable tool for efficiently simplifying complex medical information and demonstrating self-care practices. ³² Research has shown that video-based educational interventions can substantially enhance health knowledge, with quality-controlled YouTube content demonstrating measurable improvements in health literacy and behavioral intention among the viewers. ³³

X platform’s high accessibility and novelty enhance the learning and communication experience by offering brief advice and connections to more in-depth materials. ³⁴ This platform has emerged as a particularly effective tool for health communication, with studies indicating that it is utilized significantly for health communication research and exhibits effectiveness in facilitating health promotion discussions. ³⁵ However, access to this and other platforms has been a challenge for elderly people and those with limited qualifications. To overcome these challenges, prioritizing customized content that is easily understandable and accessible is essential. ³⁶

Digital health literacy barriers among older adults include technological challenges, limited internet access, and age-related physical limitations like vision and hearing impairments. ³⁷ Higher perceived usefulness and self-efficacy are important predictors of technology adoption among older adults; however, targeted interventions such as family support, simplified interfaces, and educational training programs can significantly improve digital health literacy outcomes. ³⁸

Snapchat was utilized in a health-promoting intervention for pregnant women and their oral health during pregnancy through a single-blinded parallel group study, comprising a study group (SG) and a control group (CG). After intervention, it was found that their knowledge increased significantly compared to their baseline knowledge; however, after a month, no significant difference was observed between ST and CG in enhanced knowledge. ¹⁴ This finding aligns with broader research on social media health interventions, showing short-term effectiveness but emphasizing the need for sustained engagement strategies. A study examining the patterns of social media use among celiac patients found that 96% of participants used social media for disease management purposes, with 53% reporting that the information posted was useful, 34.5% finding it acceptable, and the remaining 12.5% deeming the information poor. Participants cited the accuracy of the information posted as one of the main challenges. ¹³ Healthcare professionals often employ structured approaches to verify and correct misinformation on platforms such as Facebook and X platform, which involve internal and external authentication of the content, followed by private corrections or public rebuttals, thereby significantly reducing the spread of false health claims. ³⁹

A study conducted on X platform to support breastfeeding habits among mothers revealed a rise in knowledge and awareness of breastfeeding adherence and habits, with the majority of respondents being mothers of newborns. ¹⁶ A case study involving real-time social network analysis during World Breastfeeding Week (WBW) revealed that campaign participants formed densely interconnected communities, and the engagement metrics (tweets and retweets) were nearly three times higher during the campaign period compared to the baseline, thus highlighting X platform’s role in amplifying health promotion messages and promote community support among new mothers. ⁴⁰

Across the included studies, a common pattern is that social media platforms were consistently associated with increased awareness, knowledge, and health information seeking across different topics and patient groups in Saudi Arabia.^9,13-16 These findings suggest that social media may be more effective at promoting awareness, knowledge, and self-efficacy than at producing sustained behavior change. At the same time, platforms may serve different functions, with WhatsApp and X appearing more relevant for communication, support, and self-management, while YouTube and Snapchat may be particularly useful for delivering visually oriented educational content. However, the same platforms that expand access to health information also raise concerns related to the trustworthiness of information obtained, uneven digital literacy, and lower accessibility for older adults and individuals with lower educational attainment. Collectively, these findings indicate a need for more longitudinal and theory-informed research to determine whether early gains translate into sustained behavior change over time and to clarify how social media can be most effectively reinforced by credible professional input and integration with routine care.

For participants mentioned in diabetic studies and celiac patients, it was shown that they sought social media for health-related information and disease management. This finding coincides with other reviews conducted by Marar et al., which suggests that the majority of participants used social media to search for medically-relevant material, rating awareness-raising and patient education as the chief advantages of these platforms. ⁸ As for barriers in the use of social media, it was mentioned by participants: lack of trustworthy information and being an elder or with a lower educational level affect their utilization.^13,16 A recent systematic review explained barriers to effectively implementing social media in health-care management, including a lack of funding and privacy concerns. ¹⁸ These system-level issues have also been echoed in several hospital-based studies revealing insufficient staffing, time, and organisational budget as key hurdles to integrating social channels into quality-improvement efforts. ⁴¹

Overall, the included articles in this review demonstrated significant involvement of social media in the pattern of increased awareness on different health-related topics such as breastfeeding, oral health for pregnant women, and specific disease management such as diabetes and celiac disease. This effect is proven by the percentage of participants in each study who utilize social media for health-related purposes. For instance, 47% of participants in the diabetic study and 96% with celiac disease reported using social media as a source of information for disease management, which is a key benefit of considering social media as a tool for health promotion.^9,13-16

Limitations

The limitations of the study include its reliance on studies conducted exclusively in Saudi Arabia, which may limit the broader generalizability of the findings to other settings, and keeping articles published in English language only, which may result in completeness of the evidence base as well as language bias. Furthermore, the predominance of observational designs, short intervention durations, reliance on self-report measures, and absence of quantitative synthesis limited the strength of the evidence and reduced the ability to draw firm conclusions about the long-term effectiveness of social media interventions.

Strengths

This systematic review has a limited number of articles due to the previously mentioned limitation. However, its strength remains in the quality assessment of articles. Each article was reviewed and scored according to the Newcastle-Ottawa quality assessment scoring system, which evaluates multiple components of research, and the results were displayed in the table. This gives the reader an insight into the quality of this article.

Conclusion and Recommendation

Findings of this research demonstrate the importance of utilizing social media platforms in disease control and health promotion. Some strategies to optimize the advantages and minimize issues discussed in this research include quality control of existing materials and content development. Moreover, health organizations must collaborate with researchers and healthcare specialists to select evidence-based content for social media, thereby improving the quality of content and ensuring the applicability of the information posted. Concerns regarding patient privacy breaches can be addressed by creating a privacy policy and educating patients on how we share information safely, as well as by providing platforms that facilitate private communication for medical data. One of the shortcomings of existing published articles is a lack of long-term campaigns for providing educational materials. Another shortcoming of the literature is the lack of evidence that social media is an effective tool for reaching diverse demographics and promoting health through various means, such as audio-visual presentations of material. We recommend that decision-makers support and organize more social media campaigns to enhance public health awareness, disease management, and patient education. Decision-makers need to align all campaigns with national public health priorities, such as obesity, tobacco control, and maternal health, in addition to establishing central coordination between the MOH, the Public Health Authority, hospitals, universities, NGOs, and influencers. Studies included in this research provided valuable insight into the use of platforms such as WhatsApp, YouTube, Snapchat, and X platform for health-related purposes in Saudi Arabia. The strength of this review lies in assessing the quality of published articles to enhance data reliability.

ORCID iD

Ashraf A’aqoulah https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9280-0958

Data Availability Statement

All data for this study are presented in the manuscript and supplementary information.*