#029 · 03 September 2024

Hello hello POPhealth readers!

It’s been a while since I last checked in with you all, hasn’t it!? Life. Just life - summer socialising, hectic workdays, and the delights of the school holidays. Finding peaceful moments to write has been tough. And when I did find them, my energy (and enthusiasm) wasn’t there. So, I have taken a little breather - full shutdown mode – to recharge, reflect and realign... and avoid burnout.

And I’ve had annual leave, so there’s no better time for it, is there? Oh, if it was that straightforward. Because, I don’t know about you, but I usually feel an immense amount of pressure to ‘do things’ and make the most of my time off. And, even more so when it’s with the family.

It’s a feeling that always brings me back to a book called Do Nothing by Celeste Headlee. A gift from my ex-colleague and pal (cheers Mossy), who recognised how I might benefit from its wisdom. It’s a great read that examines the human inclination toward work and efficiency, and in the broader context of life on Earth, this shift is relatively recent and possibly very wrong. The fact that one of the chapters is called ‘How to go from life hack to life back’ is very telling about the content.

Idleness was welcome in this break. Because it’s not necessarily about being lazy or inactivity (although I have enjoyed a few lay-ins and lazy days). It’s about balance. Balance between labour and leisure. Remember a reasonable amount of idleness is healthy, in the same vein that too much work isn’t. Adjusting my expectations for the summer and a guilt-free approach to doing nothing, allowing my shoulders to feel a little lighter this summer holiday.  

What’s it like in your corner of the world right now? Feeling like you’ve got things under control? Or, perhaps feeling relief from the summer holiday mania? Let me know, I’d love to hear from you!

Anyway, the tabs have mounted up over the past month, so let’s dive in to see where health affects culture, where pop culture affects health… and everything in between.

Consumer Healthcare is getting dizzy

Sanofi reveals new identity for consumer health spin-off: Opella

Following in the footsteps of GSK/Pfizer (Haleon), J&J (Kenvue) and Merck (selling off to Proctor and Gamble), Sanofi has divested its consumer health offering and revealed a new identity: Opella.

Opella is Latin for little effort, and this is exactly where the brand has landed with its positioning:

We're making self-care as simple as it should be.
No ifs. No buts. No bullsh*t.

Ooosh now that’s edgy isn’t it – you wouldn’t find a swear word in a pharma company’s branding would you? But that’s exactly the point. These moves (beyond the shareholder stuff) are often about the market opportunities that arise from focusing on one aspect of the business (i.e. pharmaceutical vs. OTC). And one of those opportunities is the ability to talk more freely to healthcare consumers, with fewer regulatory constraints in the marketing landscape.

And that’s super important. Let me tell you why…

It will come as no shock (hopefully) to my readers that real humans, the people buying health and personal care products, don’t give two sh*ts about who the parent company is. To the typical person, Buscopan is Buscopan. Not Buscopan from Sanofi or Buscopan from Opella. So when these products change hands, it has little impact because purchase decisions are habitual. Shoppers stick to familiar products, and don’t bother investigating the corporate structures behind them.

So we have an industry with habitual shopping behaviour and products that are heavily commoditised, that now has a little more freedom in the way it can operate, how it can innovate and how and where it can engage with consumers. Less restricted. Increased flexibility. And -we’d hope – a new level of creativity.

It’s a pretty exciting time to be in consumer health, don’t you think?

Sticking with Opella – I wonder how much Michael the plumber got paid for that domain name? 

A pap-ular gynaecology movement

The Barbie movie’s surprising effect on Women’s Health

 Now and then, a news story comes along that perfectly captures why I started this newsletter!

In the closing scene of the blockbuster Barbie movie last summer (2023), Barbie herself eagerly announces, “I’m here to see my gynaecologist!” New research from Harvard University’s Department of Healthcare Policy has found that this single line from the film had an unexpected impact on public interest in gynaecological health, as evidenced by a surge in online searches for gynaecologists.

According to a report in The Debrief on the research published in JAMA:

Here are the findings:

This is a powerful reminder for those of us in healthcare: pop culture can significantly impact health awareness. The bigger surprise to me is how indirect messaging can be so powerful and yet soooooo underutilised in disease and health awareness. In Barbie’s case, humour likely played a critical role in addressing the subject matter – another tool not to be overlooked in healthcare when dealing with uncomfortable health topics.

The final piece of the puzzle here is more research into how this increased awareness, translates into real-world health behaviours and outcomes. It doesn’t sound like that study is happening anytime soon… but perhaps a new Barbie brand collab (still not over them) with a women’s health brand should be!

There was a fascinating long read in the New York Times about the blurred boundaries between friendship, streaming, online psychiatry… and the tragic consequences that can arise. Grab a cuppa because it’s a heavy read that questions whether some clinical care settings are ready for pioneering new solutions like mental health support in gaming. 

 🤩 Celeb Spot 🤩

Ryan Reynolds opens up about his late father’s Parkinson's diagnosis.

Actor and entrepreneur Ryan Reynolds has partnered with Acadia Pharmaceuticals to front a new campaign - More to Parkinson’s – aimed at increasing awareness about non-motor symptoms of the disease, particularly hallucinations and delusions.

Reynold’s personal connection through his late father’s diagnosis is central to the campaign’s messaging that will run online, across his social media and television. 

Nuralink’s second implant patient hit the news cycle at the end of August, apparently, they’ve been using it to play the first-person shooter game – Counter Strike. 

Beauty Never Gets Old

Dove’s Soap Bar Renaissance

Here I am, once again, Dove’s biggest fan girly. But I am sure I am not the only one obsessed with the brand’s new campaign released a couple of weeks ago, right? 

Let’s break this one down…

Dove’s iconic soap bar is celebrating its 67^th birthday, and that’s significant because, in most western markets, that technically makes it a pensioner. Dove is leveraging this opportunity as the soap bar category is having a bit of a resurgence thanks to a mix of inflation and sustainability concerns shaping consumer preferences. And, of course, the ad features a cast of real women who are lifelong users of the classic Dove beauty bar.

Set to Meghan Trainor’s pop hit ‘Me Too’, the film is a super vibrant and energetic tribute to this iconic bar of soap - and the people that made it so successful, aligning with Dove’s ongoing mission to challenge conventional beauty standards.

Have you seen it? Did you like it? I get it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. So if you didn’t, tell me more and break me out of this Dovelove bias!

“A logo on a prosthesis is like a tattoo you didn’t ask for”  - When a prosthetic limb is both part of someone and a product of necessity, what is the impact of branding on a person’s sense of ownership? 

Granny knows best

Is it time for pharma to start tapping into “granfluencers”?

While the rise of “granfluencers” is hardly a new trend (you might even say pre-COVID), I was baited in by a headline from MM+M a few weeks ago - Is Eli Lilly using ‘Granfluencers’ to raise awareness of its Alzheimer’s med? – hinting at a potential reveal of Eli Lilly’s launch strategy for a new Alzheimer's drug, with granfluencers at the centre.

Alas, it turned out to be just clickbait. However, with both patient and HCP influencers becoming a big part of pharma marketing, I still found the article super relevant and thought-provoking. As it got me thinking about all the things that make Grans such good influencers. After all, my Nana had a big influence on my life. I miss her great advice, life lessons and deep conversations so much 🥲

So, what is it about those Grans? Here are my thoughts:

• They are great storytellers, offering up anecdotes with an adorable persistence that there is a life lesson and wisdom to pass on

• Everything is about family… and so inherently warm and all about connection

• Their nostalgia offers the perfect blend of a historical point of view and curiosity about the unknown in the way things were (for younger listeners)

Do you think granfluencers are the next thing in drug promotion? Is the pool big enough for this to be peer-to-peer, or is it more likely Grans on social media will be persuading younger caregivers with their content and experiences? I’d love to know your thoughts. 

I am gonna wrap things up here. It’s Tuesday evening, and bedtime for the little ones so I’ll need to hold off on proofing and publishing until a little later.

Tomorrow is a big - my smallest human is starting school. I’m feeling a bit emotional, a bit excited about the freedom this brings, I’m overwhelmed by the thought of my little one’s growing more independent day by day.

I’m also returning to work after a massive 12 days off, so an early night will be in order too.

I wonder if you missed POPhealth showing up in your inbox these past few weeks? I promise it won’t be so long until the next one. I’ve really enjoyed curating this issue for you all. And as always, I ask one thing… If you have found anything interesting or insightful in this latest issue, please forward it to a friend or colleague.

And, if you’re new here, please subscribe to get a regular dose of healthcare news with a pop culture lens straight to your inbox!

Thanks again for your continued support.

Until next time,

EML ✌️