Weight-Loss Injections, Food Noise and the Return of Diet Culture
For a while, I genuinely thought we were getting somewhere. We were finally seeing women of different shapes, sizes, faces and ages in films, theatre, on television, singing and dancing on stage and walking the catwalks, representing the rest of us rather than some impossible version of what a woman was supposed to look like.
It felt like we'd finally said goodbye to the super-skinny aerobics culture of the 80s, the onion soup, Jane Fonda leotards and pursuit of the perfect body. Goodbye to the 90s and the deeply unhealthy “heroin chic” era, epitomised by the waif-like Kate Moss aesthetic. Goodbye, hopefully, to SlimFast, zero-calorie noodles and meal-replacement bars.
And hello to women with hips, tummies, boobs, muscles, curves, wrinkles and stretch marks.
Body positivity was becoming more than a plus-size hashtag. It felt as though we might finally be allowed to enjoy food without attaching guilt to every mouthful and accept the bodies that have carried us through pregnancies, menopause, illness, heartbreak and simply life.
Then, almost overnight, thin seemed to be back.
Only this time, the language had changed.
Suddenly we were hearing about “food noise”. Thinking about food, wanting food, wondering what's for dinner, fancying something sweet... all that chatter in our heads had a name.
For some people, relentless thoughts about food can be genuinely distressing, and if medication gives them freedom from that, I would never dismiss it. But I do wonder where distressing “food noise” ends and simply being a human being who enjoys food begins.
Because food isn't just fuel. Having enough of it is a privilege in itself. Food is birthday cake, Sunday lunch, chips on the beach, cooking for someone you love and wondering what's for dinner while you're still eating lunch.
And “food noise” made me think about another phrase I've spent years questioning: anti-ageing.
Once ageing became something we were supposed to be “anti”, we started looking for evidence of it. A wrinkle wasn't simply a wrinkle anymore. A laughter line wasn't just evidence of laughing. Skin wasn't simply changing, it was “losing collagen”. A face wasn't ageing, it was “sagging”.
Remember “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me”? I'm not sure I've ever believed it.
Words are powerful. Once we give something a name, we notice it. Once we notice it, we can worry about it.
And once we're worried about it, somebody can sell us something to fix it.
Which brings me to weight-loss jabs.
Mounjaro, Wegovy, Ozempic. Celebrity transformations fill our screens and adverts for weight-loss treatments seem to follow us around social media.
I'll use myself as an example. I'm a size 12 now, but during my adult life I've been everything from a size 6 to a size 16. A few months ago I found myself clicking on adverts for weight-loss tablets. Not because I'd been considering them. I genuinely hadn't.
I clicked because those bloody adverts seemed to appear on my social media every blinking day.
Somewhere between the first advert and the fiftieth, I'd started questioning a body I hadn't actually been questioning before.
Should I be thinner? Would I look better? Everyone else seems to be doing it, should I?
That frightened me because I recognised exactly what had happened. I've watched the skincare industry do it for years.
See the problem. Feel the insecurity. Buy the solution.
I hadn't decided my size 12 body needed fixing. In fact, I've always quite enjoyed being a little more juicy. Yet somehow the advertising had made me question whether my body-positive attitude was wrong and perhaps I needed fixing after all.
The Jab Isn't Really the Problem
Weight-loss medicines can be incredibly valuable for people living with obesity and weight-related health conditions. For some they can transform health and quality of life, and there should be absolutely no shame attached to using them.
My concern isn't really the jab. It's the enormous industry growing around our fear of not being thin enough.
Because significant weight loss can mean losing facial volume and some lean mass, hair shedding can occur, and when we're eating considerably less, getting enough nutrition becomes even more important.
Suddenly we're hearing another collection of words everywhere: protein, muscle mass, collagen, supplements.
Eat less, but prioritise protein. Lose weight, but preserve your muscle. Then comes collagen for our skin, supplements for our hair and vitamins for our nails.
Eat less. Prioritise protein. Preserve your muscle. Take care of your hair. Boost your collagen.
Much of that advice is completely sensible. Adequate nutrition, protein and strength-building exercise really are important during significant weight loss.
But isn't the circle fascinating?
We're sold one solution, then potentially sold another collection of solutions to help our bodies cope with the first.
Sometimes I wonder whether wellness has stopped being about being well and become an endless list of things we're supposed to optimise, and another enormous opportunity to sell us stuff. Just look at skincare. Somehow washing and moisturising our faces became a 10-step routine.
What If We Stopped Fixing and Started Nourishing?
Perhaps instead of asking “What do I need to fix?”, we could ask “What does my body need from me?”
Feed it properly. Protein doesn't have to arrive in an expensive powder. Beans, lentils, tofu, tempeh, nuts and seeds all contribute. Eat greens and colourful fruits and vegetables, including foods rich in vitamin C, which our bodies need for normal collagen formation.
Move your body because it feels good to use it. Walk, swim, dance, stretch and build strength. Nourish your skin and scalp. Protect your skin from too much sun. Sleep. Drink enough. Eat enough.
Brush your body or face if you love how it feels and enjoy that temporary boost in circulation, but don't do it because somebody has convinced you that your body is full of toxins or cellulite needs brushing away.
And perhaps we need to nourish our minds in the same way.
Unfollow. Mute. Scroll past.
If an advert or account repeatedly leaves you feeling that your face, body or age isn't good enough, perhaps it doesn't deserve daily access to your head.
Choose medication if it's right for your health. Choose to lose weight if that's what you want. Choose collagen if you've researched it and want it. Choose a face cream because you love how it makes your skin feel.
But before buying any of it, perhaps ask yourself:
Am I doing this because it makes me healthier and happier, or because somebody made me frightened of what happens if I don't?
I built Olive & Joyce around the belief that you should never have to hate yourself before you're allowed to care for yourself.
Maybe that's the difference between fixing ourselves and caring for ourselves.
One begins with believing something is wrong with us.
The other begins with believing we're worth looking after.
With love,
Emily x
Founder of Olive & Joyce