The use of social media platforms has over the years become a veritable tool for individuals, groups, institutions and corporate bodies for the promotion of health and wellness. In recent times, social media has become one of the most potent agents of the media through which health issues are addressed as well as generated and disseminated to different populations in society. The study was conducted to examine social media use and students' health lifestyle modification in the University of Calabar, Nigeria. It sought to determine the extent to which students' use of social media (Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp) influences the modification of their health-related lifestyles such as eating habits, sexual behaviour, cigarette and alcohol consumption, drug use and the engagement in fitness activities. The study adopted a randomized descriptive survey design and used a sample of 300 undergraduate students. The questionnaire was the main instrument used for collection of data while simple percentages and means were used to determine the difference between the expected mean of 2.50 and the observed means across various items in the questionnaire. The results showed that apart from Twitter, social media use by University of Calabar students has significantly influenced the modification of their health lifestyles. Since social media has become a veritable tool for the promotion of positive health lifestyle, effort should be made by government through the health sector to create more awareness among students and the entire population of social media users, on the health benefits accruing from use of social media.

<p>This study aimed to evaluate the extent to which health practitioners in Cross River state, Nigeria, use social media for patient care and to assess the barriers militating against its liberal use for patient care. The study adopted the cross-sectional survey design and used 550 respondents selected through the cluster, simple random and purposive sampling techniques, from selected secondary and tertiary health facilities. Furthermore, quantitative and qualitative methods involving the questionnaire and key informant interview respectively were used to elicit information from respondents. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics while content analysis was used to handle qualitative data. The result of data analysis revealed that health practitioners in Cross River state, Nigeria do social media use for patient care very minimally and this is attributed to a wide range of factors, including the absence of a clear-cut regulatory framework governing social media use in health care delivery, and lack of institutionally provided resources for social media use. The study thus recommends that healthcare administrators must, as a matter of necessity, mainstream social media use into health care practice by flexible guidelines, regulations, and materials that would make social media use for patient care desirable by health practitioners in Nigeria.</p>

The use of social media platforms has over the years become a veritable tool for individuals, groups, institutions and corporate bodies for the promotion of health and wellness. In recent times, social media has become one of the most potent agents of the media through which health issues are addressed as well as generated and disseminated to different populations in society. The study was conducted to examine social media use and students’ health lifestyle modification in the University of Calabar, Nigeria. It sought to determine the extent to which students’ use of social media (Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp) influences the modification of their health-related lifestyles such as eating habits, sexual behaviour, cigarette and alcohol consumption, drug use and the engagement in fitness activities. The study adopted a randomized descriptive survey design and used a sample of 300 undergraduate students. The questionnaire was the main instrument used for collection of data while simple percentages and means were used to determine the difference between the expected mean of 2.50 and the observed means across various items in the questionnaire. The results showed that apart from Twitter, social media use by University of Calabar students has significantly influenced the modification of their health lifestyles. Since social media has become a veritable tool for the promotion of positive health lifestyle, effort should be made by government through the health sector to create more awareness among students and the entire population of social media users, on the health benefits accruing from use of social media.