How much do you think about your health? Are you considering nutrition when you decide what to eat? Do you worry about getting enough exercise or sleep in a given day? Are you conscious of the ingredients in lotion, makeup or other products you’re putting on your body? Or do you not think about these things much at all?
Have you noticed that more people your age are thinking or talking about health-related topics like these?
In “The Rise of the ‘Crunchy Teen’ Wellness Influencer,” Rina Raphael writes about high schoolers who are dispensing health advice for other teens online, and how that information can veer into potentially harmful territory. She writes:
Ava Noe, a teenager based in the Boston area, has amassed more than 25,000 Instagram followers while criticizing ultra-processed foods and promoting colostrum supplements, mouth tape and beef tallow. Her posts have suggested that iodized salt is “toxic” and described fluoride as “poison.” And her popularity on the platform — where she goes by @cleanlivingwithava — has earned her a paid partnership with a fluoride-free toothpaste company and affiliate work with other brands, including one that sells “non-toxic” skin care products.
Ms. Noe, a self-described “crunchy teen,” is just one of a number of young influencers who appeal to other health-conscious kids their age. At times, their anti-establishment viewpoints fall in line with those of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the “Make America Healthy Again” movement, which has expressed skepticism of the scientific community and large food corporations.
The teens’ videos, while at times factually questionable, highlight a desire among some to avoid the chronic illnesses and other conditions that have plagued their elders.
“There are more teenagers than you think who are worried about their health,” Ms. Noe said.
But the fixation on health has unnerved some medical experts, nutritionists and educators, who have noticed concerning degrees of health anxiety among some teenagers.
At high schools, teachers have noticed that “cleanses” and “detoxes” are popular with their students, as is wellness more generally, said Bertha Vazquez, a former middle school teacher who now runs Generation Skeptics, an organization that works with educators to combat misinformation in the classroom.
Teenagers have long struggled with body image issues and eating disorders, but Dr. Jasmine Reese, the director of the Adolescent and Young Adult Specialty Clinic at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, said she has witnessed an uptick in the number of teenage patients obsessing over what they eat.
Some started to restrict portions or emphasize certain nutrients, like protein, while avoiding others, Dr. Reese added. “That leads to a lot of medical complications and consequences — not just weight loss, but vitamin deficiencies.”
Dozens of teachers have told Ms. Vazquez that teens are getting health advice from wellness influencers, leading to misinformed or oversimplified views, she said.
Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public and may appear in print.
