#033 · 12 January 2025

Happy New Year POPhealth readers.

I can still say that because this is the first issue of the year. Now tell me, how many times have you written the date wrong already this year?

I’ve only worked three days in the new year so far and the festive break already feels like ages ago… So, a busy start to 2025 it is. 2025. A quarter of a century since the turn of the millennium. What!? That’s a scary number.

Are New Year resolutions your thing? I’m more of a reflector myself, so this article in Forbes at the back end of the year really spoke to me and my approach to setting intentions for the year ahead. Perhaps this will be useful for you too.

Now, I’m not about to do a 24 for 24 or anything, the thought makes me cringe a little (and, if that’s your thing, no judgment here), but if I take the themes from the article, my reflections might look like this…

1. Celebrating my wins

Does publishing 16 issues of this newsletter count? Growing my subscribers? Reflecting on what I wanted this platform to be and renaming it to something that felt more like me (RIP CULTURx). Win, win, win!

 And professionally, this year I’ve had so much more clarity about where my strengths lie and where I add the most value, and (hopefully) do that more effectively. And paying it back through mentorship and Uni talks. Win.

 At home, I saw my littlest off to school, celebrated 10 years with my best friend and partner, travelled, gave more time for friends… and made more time for me, by embracing doing nothing when I needed to stop. More wins!

2. Finding out what didn’t work

Eeek the tricky bit. 

Some stuff didn’t work – relationships, boundaries, time management, stress management, emotional dysregulation – stuff that I’m ok with, stuff that I’m less ok with.

And yet in navigating all this stuff, something that I recognise is that when I’m busy being busy, I keep my head down, even when it’s rocky. That’s not good for me, my family or co-workers, and it doesn’t create space for growth or curiosity.

So, if we are close in any capacity, maybe expect some questions in your inbox/WhatsApp as I’m 100% utilising Jeff Wetzler’s Ask Approach from the article to help me reflect a little more regularly, and a means of keeping my head up, remaining engaged and staying curious.

3. Expressing gratitude

This for me, is perhaps one of the easier things to reflect on, as I’m lucky to have some pretty awesome, talented and generous people in my corner. This could take the whole word count of the newsletter if I got into it, so in no particular order and without reems of gushing – Camilla Yates, Anna Pitt, Amy Slesinger, Beverley Newbury, Lynsey Monroe, James Whatley and my amazing husband Tall Paul  – whether it was just your continued and unwavering support, or providing a new perspective or advice or helping me understand my value better, you all played an instrumental part in 2024.

Right, those are just some of my reflections. And hopefully this will help with yours. I’ll leave you with this great TedX from Jeff Wetzler on learning from others and sparks for your curiosity in 2025:

And now…. Let’s jump to the health x culture bit. That’s why you are here right?

A latte a day keeps the doctor away

Your morning coffee may lead to lower cardiovascular risk

Have you been feeling guilty about your morning caffeine hit? Well, in 2025 maybe feel it a little less as you sip and jitter your way through the start of the day.

Research from Tulane University Obesity Research Center found that people who drank coffee in the morning had a lower risk of dying from heart disease and a lower mortality risk than people who drank coffee all day. However, it’s worth noting that the study couldn’t prove that coffee was the sole cause, and further studies are needed.

From the article:

The full study has been published in the European Heart Journal, if this piques your curiosity.

I love this research from a patient support lens. Think about it: omitting caffeine from one’s diet is often at the top of the list of lifestyle changes requested of people living with chronic conditions, especially those with heart health risk factors. However, perhaps we can go a little easier on them in terms of what the model patient actually looks like.

 [Also, the irony of me drinking my Saturday morning coffee whilst writing this section is not lost on me] 

Did you see Ozempic Santa? Whilst I don’t want to give this man any more airtime, you can’t ignore the cultural relevance of this post. It was covered in so many news outlets and tabloids, just Google for the story, or check out the piece in People. 

From People:

“In a follow-up post on X, he joked, “Like Cocaine Bear, but Santa and Ozempic!,” before admitting in another post that it was “technically Mounjaro” that he was using. He added that it “doesn’t have the same ring to it.” 

 Phonetic Chaos

Semaglutide amongst top mispronounced words in 2024

 Sticking with Ozempic now…

Each year, Babbel (the language learning platform) creates a list of words that news anchors, politicians and other people in the media have the most trouble pronouncing.

And in true form (I mean who can pronounce the name of any molecule found in medicine off the bat) semaglutide – the molecule found in Ozempic and Wegovy – has made its way onto the list, and another great example of this drug breaking through culture.

If you want to master exactly how to say it, Babbel offers a handy pronunciation guide:

Semaglutide is pronounced [sem-ah-GLOO-tide], not [SEE-mah-gloo-tide].

And not how I’ve been doing it either… [sem-AHG-luh-tide]!

What health-related words did you struggle with in 2024?

And thanks to Joe Deeks from the VCCP Health team for getting this on my radar. 

Goop – Gwyneth Paltrow’s infamous wellness brand - was back in the news just before Christmas following more layoffs at the company and questions over its future. This piece from Grazia signals a return to GOOPs roots – its ‘kooky’ newsletter, with Gwyneth back to do much more of the writing and recommendations herself.

 Get your fact-checking fingers ready, ladies and gentlemen… because in other news…

 Meta pulls back on content moderation

A health misinformation crisis in the making?

I’m sure you've all heard by now, but if not, Mark Zuckerberg announced this week that Meta will get rid of its third-party factchecking program and “dramatically reduce the amount of censorship” while encouraging more political content on its platforms; Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.

Here’s the announcement:

So why did it happen? Whilst Zuck suggests in the announcement that “factcheckers have just been too politically biased and have destroyed more trust than they’ve created”, critics have jumped in to suggest it’s an opportunistic move, and a chance to cozy up to Maga and win favour with the incoming president. 

But putting the political aspect of this story aside, the bigger question on my mind right now is: what is this going to mean for misinformation and health outcomes?

I wanted to write something like… content moderation is the cornerstone of combatting health misinformation… But I’m questioning whether that’s true. The sheer volume of misinformation, the seemingly infinite channels across which it diffuses, and the complex nature of health make it difficult to categorise content as fact or fiction. Was this always the impossible job? But the alternative - less content moderation – leaves the state of health misinformation even worse.

It's all well and good for Zuck to say he wants to see more ‘debate’ on his platforms, but such a flippant comment doesn’t serve users who are vulnerable to health misinformation. People with limited health literacy or without access to resources to verify what they read are at risk of harmful behaviours.

Over time, trust will in Meta’s platforms as reliable sources of information will erode, and healthcare providers and drug companies will need to give serious consideration to the role these channels play in their communications plans.

This is certainly one to keep an eye on in 2025, but for now, it’s critical we keep showing up in these places, join the debate and help to verify information. Because, whether we like it or not, people feel let down by healthcare systems and will continue to use online platforms as their go-to for health support and advice.

Things to keep you busy for the weeks ahead: 

🎧 Listen: 4 Major Healthcare highlights from CES, MM+M Podcast

📺 Watch: His Three Daughters, Netflix

📖 Read: Health Benefits of the Weekend Warrior, Science Based Medicine

I’m going to wrap today's issue up here. It’s Sunday evening, and I’m due some sofa snuggles with the boys. The perfect remedy for the anxiety of a busy week ahead.

In light of Meta’s news, I think it’s about time I set up that BlueSky account. If you’re already there, let me know, and I’ll connect with you once I am up and running.  2025 is the year I’m going to try and get a bit more serious about promoting this lovely newsletter and keep that subscriber base growing. BlueSky might be a great place to start.

And with that, if you are new here, please don’t forget to subscribe, and I promise to keep sharing my take on the biggest trends and news that sit at the heart of health, culture and creativity. And if you’re an old face, please continue to share POPhealth with friends and colleagues who might like it too! Your support is always appreciated.

 Until next time,

Stay safe, stay warm, and stay sharp!

EML ✌

_{Cover photo by Nathan Dumlao via Unsplash}