The effect of short videos on obesity: Evidence from China

Obesity rates have surged in recent years, particularly in developing countries, yet key drivers remain inadequately understood. We identify short videos as a novel and significant determinant of obesity. We use China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) microdata in China to examine the causal relationship between short videos and obesity by the fixed effect panel regression model. Our findings show that short videos increase BMI by 0.12 and the probability of obesity by 2.2 %, resulting in an additional CNY of 7.52 billion one year in healthcare costs nationwide. It can explain about 27 % of the growth in China’s obese population from 2020 to 2022, suggesting that it has become a major new driver of obesity. Further analysis reveals that short videos are addictive, displacing time for physical exercise, and we find no evidence supporting their positive impact on exercise by information channel. Other potential mechanisms, including mental health, sleep quality, and health-related habits, are found to be insignificant. Heterogeneity analysis indicates that men, individuals with lower education levels, those aged over 35, and urban residents are more likely to experience negative effects from short video addiction. This study contributes to the literature by highlighting short video platforms as emerging digital determinants of obesity, providing new perspectives for health policy and digital media regulation.