Information Seeking Pattern of Public on Topics Related to Obesity: Google Trends Analysis.

Pawar, Aditya S; Nagpal, Sajan; Pawar, Neha; Lerman, Lilach O; Eirin, Alfonso

BACKGROUND Obesity is a major public health challenge and recent literature sheds light on the concept of "normalization" of obesity. OBJECTIVE We aimed to study the worldwide pattern of web based information seeking by public on obesity and related terms and topics using Google Trends. METHODS We compared the relative frequency of search terms and topics related to Obesity between 2004 and 2019 on Google Trends. The mean relative interest score (RIS) was compared between a 4-year period quartiles. RESULTS The mean RIS of the search term "Obesity" consistently decreased with time in all four quartiles (2004-2019), whereas the RIS of the search topics "Weight loss" and "Abdominal Obesity" increased. The topic "Weight loss" was popular during the month of January and its median RIS for January as compared to other months was higher for the entire study period (p<0.001). The RIS for the search term "Obese" decreased over time, whereas "Body positivity" and "Self-Love" increased after 2013. CONCLUSIONS Despite increase in prevalence of obesity worldwide, its popularity on internet diminishes. The reason for peaks in months should be explored and may be applied to awareness campaigns for better effectiveness. These patterns suggest normalization of obesity in the society with rise of public curiosity towards image-related obesity rather than its medical implications and harm. CLINICALTRIAL