Fitness bloggers on Instagram: the body and the product placement of dietary supplements

• Main Authors: Graciele Stolarski, Tiago Franklin Rodrigues Lucena, Rute Grossi Milani, Leonardo Pestillo de Oliveira
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Instituto de Comunicação e Informação Científica e Tecnológica em Saúde (Icict) da Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (Fiocruz) 2018-12-01
• Series: RECIIS
• Subjects: Redes sociais; Instagram; Fitness; Fotografia; Promoção da saúde.
• Online Access: https://www.reciis.icict.fiocruz.br/index.php/reciis/article/view/1468

Instagram is an Online Social Network-OSN that allows the creation, edition and sharing of photos or videos. With the aim to classify and analyze the content posted by popular fitness profiles in Brazil, ten public accounts were selected to follow them over a period of 15 days in 2016. Two thematic categories were highlighted: a) the product placement of dietary supplements; b) shared information about the services of aesthetics or health professionals. The posts reinforce the ideal of beauty present in mass media, there is high frequency of posting, especially with highly professional photos of the body or parts of it, and few selfies. Thus they allow the use of social networks as spaces for future actions and health promotion interventions, by health agencies and professional councils.