Influencers peddle ‘healthy’ diets behind closed doors as they snack on junk food.

Health and wellness influencers now wield unprecedented control over consumer behaviour. With millions of followers hanging onto every word uttered, these personalities tout what they believe constitutes healthy diets—to wit: kale smoothies, gluten-free snacks, and organic meals. Behind closed doors, however, the story tells a different story: influencers dig into burgers and fries while presenting their millions of followers with a clean-cut, healthy appearance.

There is little that is merely hypocritical, however. Far more is at stake in this drama than hypocrisy: it challenges the integrity and accountability of influencers. The temptation of the perfect life—a staged existence of fit bodies, wholesome meals, and a healthy glow—puts extraordinary pressure on ordinary people to fit into impossible-to-achieve standards. 

Anytime influencers proselytise about living healthy lifestyles but sneak in a little pizza or candy bar on the side; they undermine the very message they promote. This creates a culture of comparison and low self-esteem among their followers, who may feel they are failing, as it is nearly impossible to mimic the lifestyle portrayed.

For example, consider the successful fitness influencer who posts daily workouts and colourful meal prep. Her Instagram feed is an array of vibrant salads and a protein-packed smoothie surrounded by motivational quotes and hashtags. However, stories have already been leaked saying she would eat at a fast-food chain after shooting her material. Well, this just raises the issue at hand, the authenticity of a healthy lifestyle through her. 

Does she tell her followers that these healthy meals are most likely staged for social media when, in reality, behind the camera, she is indulging on fries and milkshakes? This duality is common among many of the influencers, curating this facade that attracts engagement and sponsorships but hardly ever shows the truth of their diets.

Moreover, endorsement by the Influencers of ‘healthy’ diets is often quite circumscribed due to the fact that it pays no heed to individual difference in human diets.  Many influencers note that intermittent fasting or keto are the way to go without factoring the possibility that people might not fit into these diets. 

A reduced set of rules would simplify nutrition too much, and most of the time, disordered eating patterns and maladjustment to food result from it. Influencers post feeds after coming forward to proclaim their commitment to health; they post junk food on their feeds, sending out mixed messages on achieving a balance and maintaining moderation.

Of course, the financial incentives within influencer marketing add another layer to this. Brands make large investments in influencing people and approach their efforts with a “first-look-is-best-view” strategy; more often than not, results-oriented looks can again be more important than honest health value.

 Now, the visual image of health can be sold and purchased, along with weak attributes of genuineness. These followers are trapped in a minefield filled with a dose of misinformation and unrealistic standards, often seeking a verification for those people who possibly don’t practice what they say.

The takeaway from this is that the influencer space needs to be full of transparency. Enjoying junk food isn’t really bad, but with how dietary habits are not transparently discussed, it can be irresponsible and hurt the followers who come to believe what influencers will say. 

Influencers need to bring a healthy perspective to the discussion of nutrition. They must seek authenticity in working to remind the public that some balance must be brought into dieting; it’s okay to have healthy meals and, again, indulgent treats.

The influencers thus play a very important role in how we think about health and wellness. So, doubling lifestyles—leading on to ‘healthy’ diets while sneaking in junk food—are a general requirement towards authenticity. And as the consumer becomes more acquainted with these differences, the call for more authentic representation in the health and wellness space is going to grow fast; influencers will be forced to lead with truth rather than aspiration.