HOW HEALTHY IS TOO HEALTHY?

In our social media-driven quest for perfect health, every scroll is a reminder that something or the other is wrong with us. Are we truly so unwell, or is the algorithm failing us?

- KONIKA DATTA

With modern living making busy-ness and burning out the new cultural norms, our pursuit of optimal health has become more complex and nuanced than ever before. Unlike a decade ago, leading a life without any chronic illness doesn't qualify as ideal health anymore, thanks to social media. It has not just educated us about health and wellness but normalised conversations around female hormonal imbalance, nutrient deficiencies and gut health. How many of us have made health choices based on our social media feeds? While for some, it was to take magnesium supplements, for others, it was following a cortisol-lowering diet or practices that would reset our nervous system.

Though social media has always played a crucial role in building the $2 trillion global wellness industry it is today, it seems that lately it’s taken things to new extremes. Every other post is about addressing our protein deficiency, high cortisol levels, nervous system dysfunction, amongst many others, implying that we're just not doing enough for our bodies.

This begs the question: How attainable is this chase towards ‘perfect health’? Are we actually as unhealthy as social media claims? Where do we draw the line between being self-aware and overloading information to the point of feeling anxious?

An Oversimplified Approach

Social media has changed the face of wellness in many ways, but propelling the culture of supplementation has to be one of the most impactful ways. There's a supplement for everything, and everyone, nicely packaged for your Instagram feed.