Overwhelmed by Health Advice? A Quick Filter for the Noise
You open your phone and it's three workouts, two diets and a protein powder. Everyone is an expert, and plenty of them are selling something. Meanwhile you're tired. You want to do something for your health, but you don't know where to start, and you don't know who to trust.
Here's what I want you to hear first: nothing is wrong with you. Feeling overwhelmed by health advice isn't a flaw. It's a reasonable response to a huge amount of noise. And in my experience, a lot of it is more distraction than fact. The problem isn't you. It's the volume.
Here's what's in it for you to read on: permission to tune out the noise (your clinician and your regular screenings are the exception), and more energy for what actually matters. You're in the driver's seat. Nobody handed us the manual, so we get to start writing it ourselves.
Why the noise is so tiring
Feeds are designed to keep you scrolling, and ads pay when you do. Products, programs and personalities compete to be the next thing you "should" be doing. If you're a woman who was taught to be a good girl, to do it all and to look outside herself for the right answer, that's a lot of "shoulds" landing on someone who's already running on empty.
Health misinformation is common on social media. A 2021 review of 69 studies found misleading posts in every topic it checked, from vaccines to diets to cancer, though how many varied widely by topic and study. Most of those studies looked at Twitter, before 2019, so the review can't tell us what your own feed looks like. What I see, in my experience, is that a lot of it is built to grab attention more than to inform. That's my view, not a study finding.
Evidence strength: Good that health misinformation is common online (a 2021 systematic review, mostly Twitter, before 2019). The filter and "a lot of it is distraction" are my experience and rules of thumb, not study results.
So where do you look? Start with your clinician, and with sources that have no product to sell.
A quick filter for the next reel
Before you believe (or buy) the next health claim, count the flags:
Is someone selling it? đźš© A product, program or supplement doesn't make a claim wrong, but it's a reason to look harder.
Do I know it was tested on women like me? đźš© if the answer is no or "I don't know." If it wasn't, it may still apply. That's a reason to ask your clinician, not to dismiss it.
Does it ask for more energy than I have? đźš© If it needs a new schedule, a new shopping list and a new personality, it isn't a fit for a full life.
Two or more flags? Scroll on, or save it to ask your clinician. It doesn't mean the claim is wrong, just that it isn't worth your energy today. These are my own rules of thumb, not a research tool. They're just a way to keep your limited energy for what's worth it.
One more thing: check in with your body
Keep checking in with your body, just to see how you feel. Tight? Hungry? Wiped out? Most of us aren't used to doing that, because good girls push through. There's nothing to fix and nothing to track. Just notice.
Bottom line?
You don't have to keep up with the noise, and you don't have to figure out who to trust all at once. You can start by counting the flags, and by noticing how you feel. The book club, the garden and the grandkids are worth saving your energy for, and they'd rather have you than a perfect plan.
So you've checked in. Now what?
Next time you scroll: count the flags on the first thing that makes you feel behind.
Once today: pause and notice how your body feels. (do it more if you remember!
Next week we'll talk about why the smallest changes do matter.
When to talk to your clinician
Being tired is common in a full life, and it's also worth checking out if it lingers. Talk to a clinician if:
Chest pain, sudden shortness of breath or fainting: call 911 or go to the ER.
You're exhausted most days for more than a few weeks, or it's getting worse.
Your tiredness comes with heavy bleeding, shortness of breath with usual activity, unplanned weight change, night sweats, or loud snoring and waking unrefreshed.
Low mood or worry has lasted most days for more than two weeks.
If you ever have thoughts of harming yourself, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) right away.
🧡 Catie, PhD, RN · Front Porch Nurse
Reference
Suarez-Lledo V, Alvarez-Galvez J. Prevalence of health misinformation on social media: systematic review. J Med Internet Res. 2021;23(1):e17187.
This post is health education, not medical advice. It's here to help you have a better conversation with your own clinician.