 Read this on Dango.coRead time: 3.8 minutesHey, friend,Have a seat. We’re going to have a heart-to-heart with each other.When you go on the internet, you are going to see a ton of information, especially around ways in which we can “hack” the body.Honestly, when you see some of these health trends, they may look sexy, but the reality is different.There are some things that are out there that are downright messing with our bodies.So in today’s newsletter, I wanna talk about the 7 health trends that might be quietly destroying your body.You ready? Let’s go 🔥7 “Health Trends” That Are Quietly Destroying Your Body  1. Over-Relying On Wearable TechnologyWhoop, Oura, Apple Watch… We handed over the keys to our health to these little computers on our wrists.Something we’re starting to find is that these devices can be wrong. Like really wrong.Sleep scores can be misclassified by up to 28%. Those calorie estimates you get off of your Apple Watch? They can be off anywhere between 18% to 40%.What’s worse is that these inaccurate numbers can have a psychosomatic effect on our performance. It’s a big reason I stopped wearing my Oura Ring.We’ve started to trust our wearables more than our own bodies, which is causing us to lose touch with how we feel, which is way more important than whatever number is flashing on the screen.What To Do Instead:Use Wearables as a rough guide, but don’t be dogmatic about it.Ask yourself how you’re feeling first, and please don’t trust it for things like calorie burn, V02 max, or even HRV. These numbers have been shown to be wildly inaccurate.2. Megadosing On Random SupplementsLook, I get it. I’ve been there before. You see someone talking about how some supplement changed their life, so you order it.So you add magnesium because it was mentioned that it helps with sleep. Or black seed oil. Before you know it, you’re taking 15 different supplements, having no idea which ones are helping.Supplements are meant to fill the gaps, but not be the foundation. They’re perhaps 5% of the health equation, but most people treat them as if they’re 50%.The truth is that supplements can have varying effects on individuals. Everyone has a different bio-individuality in how they respond to everything from supplements to exercise to even nutrition.What To Do Instead:The best way to determine which supplements are suitable for you is to undergo a blood test first. You’ll be able to see what you’re missing.Then treat yourself as an N = 1 experiment and test things one at a time for at least one month or longer.*Dan Note: I’m aware of the meta of this particular aspect of the newsletter where I regularly recommend supplements. That said, I only share the studies, and I try to avoid being absolute about anything, especially when it comes to things you put into your body.3. Cold Plunges There was a time on Instagram where every other post you’d see would be someone jumping into their cold plunge, giving you some motivational speech.“To be comfortable, you must be uncomfortable blah blah blah”, said by someone in their million-dollar home.But here’s what no one talks about: the fact that they might be working against your goals.An example of this is weight loss: A recent study found that cold plunges can increase hunger. By jumping into a cold plunge, you may increase your appetite to the point where you need to eat 2x as much afterwards.Another example would be building muscle. Jumping into an ice bath right after your workout can slow down your gains by fighting the one thing you need to repair muscles, which is inflammation.Last, if you’re already stressed, and let’s be honest, who isn’t? Morning cold plunges can spike your stress hormone even more, increasing it rather than alleviating it.What To Do Instead:Use cold plunges for the mental benefits, not the physical ones, and chill out on the motivational dialogues.If you love doing them, do them in the afternoon for an energy boost and a reset, not first thing in the morning. And avoid cold plunging after strength training.4. Excessive Zone 2 Cardio Steve Magness @stevemagnessEvery fitness person online is screaming… One camp shouts: Zone 2. The other: Go hard or go home. HIIT! But if you look at what the best in the world actually do? It’s simpler. More thoughtful. Less dogmatic. More varied A new study surveyed elite endurance coaches and the 8:7 AM • Jun 12, 202580Retweets635LikesRead 27 repliesZone 2 cardio is the new obsession for longevity. Everyone’s talking about staying in this magical zone where you can barely hold a conversation, and some people are spending hours every week trying to nail this perfect heart rate zone.But the problem is, you can overdo it. Spending too much time in zone 2 can lead to overuse injuries, burnout, and honestly, it’s just boring as hell.Trying to balance Zone 2 cardio with your lifting schedule, taking care of kids, the stress that comes with business, and taking care of kids is a good way to overdose on cortisol.Plus, trying to rigidly follow your zones ignores how you’re actually feeling on a given day (notice a theme?).What To Do Instead:Instead of abiding by a zone, train by feel. Some days you’ll feel great and can push harder, other days you’ll need to take it easy.Also, use things like biofeedback to test how you feel on any given training day.One of the best ways to do this is to track the first few reps or sets that you’re doing within an exercise, and that will give you the greatest indication of how you’ll be performing.Also, read the thread by Steve Magness (above) about the over-indexing on Zone 2 cardio (IG link for those not on X)5. Wearing Bluelight Blockers in the DaytimeWhenever I see someone doing a Reel on Instagram and they’re wearing blue light glasses during the day, I know I’m about to get some questionable health advice.Your body needs blue light during the day. It’s how your internal clock knows it’s time to be awake and alert.Blue light tells your brain to stop making melatonin (your sleepy hormone) and start producing cortisol (your wake-up hormone).When you block blue light during the day, you are basically confusing your body about what time it is. This can make you groggy and also mess up your sleep at night.What To Do Instead:Keep the blue light blockers on tonight, around 2-3 hours before bed. During the day, you want to get that blue light exposure, especially from natural sunlight.6. Eliminating Entire Food Groups (Keto, Carnivore, Vegan, etc.) To Lose Weight Most fad diets you see on the internet have one thing in common: They eliminate entire food groups.And while they may work in the short term, they can cause problems in the long term.If you cut out all carbs, you might struggle with your workouts and brain fog.If you go full carnivore, you’re missing out on fiber that your gut needs.If you go vegan, you might end up being deficient in B12, iron, or omega-3s.The real issue? People can not stick to these extreme approaches forever. What you see on the internet with all of these success stories is essentially a form of survivorship bias.When people fail on these diets (and a lot of people do), they will blame themselves and feel like failures.This is not to say that these diets don’t work. I am a believer that you must restrict entire food groups if you are dealing with specific health issues like IBS or Crohn’s disease.But when used for weight loss, we must always stick with the fundamentals.What To Do Instead:Ask yourself: Can I see myself eating this way for the next 5 years? If the answer is no, it’s probably not sustainable.The boring advice that actually works is to eat a variety of whole foods and not to demonize entire food groups.7. Thinking Seed Oils Are “Bad” For You. This is a big one in the health and fitness industry.Seed oils have become the new gluten. Everyone is avoiding them like they are poison, but the science doesn’t back up the fear.Yes, seed oils are in a lot of processed foods. But correlation isn’t causation. The problem isn’t the seed oil itself. It’s the overall quality (and quantity) of the processed food.An example of this would be countries like Japan, Singapore, and Hong Kong, which consume plenty of seed oils while having the longest lifespans in the entire world.The worst part? Fear-mongering around seed oils can actually be more harmful than the oils themselves, creating unnecessary stress and anxiety around food choices.What To Do Instead:Now, don’t go out of your way to start taking shots of canola, but don’t stress if you eat something that’s cooked in it either.The poison is always in the dose. Focus on how foods make you feel rather than avoiding ingredients based on internet fear campaigns.A Big Part of Good Health is About Knowing What Not To DoI’m all for optimization as the next guy, but health isn’t about perfection or following the latest trend. It’s about consistency, balance, and listening to your body.Most of these trends start with good intentions but get twisted into extreme versions that can do more harm than good.Your best bet is to master the basics first: Eat mostly whole foods. Move your body regularly. Get decent sleep. Manage your stress. The fancy stuff can wait. Here’s to you being healthy and sane. Onward and upward. 🚀– ReferencesShcherbina, A.; Mattsson, C.M.; Waggott, D.; Salisbury, H.; Christle, J.W.; Hastie, T.; Wheeler, M.T.; Ashley, E.A. Accuracy in Wrist-Worn, Sensor-Based Measurements of Heart Rate and Energy Expenditure in a Diverse Cohort. J. Pers. Med. 2017, 7, 3. https://doi.org/10.3390/jpm7020003Kainec KA, Caccavaro J, Barnes M, Hoff C, Berlin A, Spencer RMC. Evaluating Accuracy in Five Commercial Sleep-Tracking Devices Compared to Research-Grade Actigraphy and Polysomnography. Sensors (Basel). 2024 Jan 19;24(2):635. doi: 10.3390/s24020635. PMID: 38276327; PMCID: PMC10820351.Grigg MJ, Thake CD, Allgrove JE, Broom DR. Effects of cold-water immersion on energy expenditure, ad-libitum energy intake and appetite in healthy adults. Physiol Behav. 2025 Jul 1;296:114914. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2025.114914. Epub 2025 Apr 10. PMID: 40221072.Schwingshackl L, Bogensberger B, Benčič A, Knüppel S, Boeing H, Hoffmann G. Effects of oils and solid fats on blood lipids: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. J Lipid Res. 2018 Sep;59(9):1771-1782. doi: 10.1194/jlr.P085522. Epub 2018 Jul 13. PMID: 30006369; PMCID: PMC6121943.Disclaimer: This email is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute providing medical advice or professional services. The information provided should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, and those seeking personal medical advice should consult with a licensed physician. |
