Over the past few weeks a viral recipe known as “Japanese Yogurt Cheesecake” has taken over social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and X. The original recipe that went viral in Japan featured only two ingredients: greek yogurt and low calorie coconut biscuits. By sticking a few biscuits into a greek yogurt cup and letting it soak in the fridge overnight, a lower calorie dessert that is similar to cheesecake can be created. However, the recipe would soon find its way onto the English speaking side of the internet.
The recipe morphed into creating a dessert out of greek yogurt and biscoff cookies, which is still a lower calorie high protein alternative to cheesecake. However, very quickly Americans created an entirely new recipe. The greek yogurt got replaced with tubs of cheesecake filling, topped with oreos, syrups, cookies, cookie butter and many other unhealthy toppings. While the original recipe was intended to be a low calorie dessert, the version being spread online now has around 2370 calories and 156g of sugar. Of course, it is completely fine to have a treat and eat “junk food” in moderation, but I think the way this recipe became a fast track to diabetes within a matter of days shows the poor relationship many Americans have with food and health.
GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy have exploded in popularity, with around 12% of the country using them right now. While most Americans are very familiar with these drugs, a new quick fix for weight loss has emerged. Chinese peptides first became a trend in the tech scene, and were then popularized via social media. These peptides are injected for a variety of purposes, from improving eye contact to weight loss.
Despite their popularity, they are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and most users have to purchase them from a third party who sources them straight from Chinese factories. I myself have seen people advertising this service on platforms like X and TikTok. However while these drugs help with weight loss, they don’t necessarily lead to a healthy and balanced lifestyle. On top of a myriad of side effects, these drugs work by suppressing hunger. Utilizing medications to eat less is not the same as achieving moderation and balance in your eating and exercising habits.
These trends point to deeper problems about excess, consumerism, and health in the United States of America, where food is often treated less as nourishment and more as profit and a form of entertainment. In a culture driven by constant consumption, moderation is rarely marketed as desirable, leaving Americans caught between indulgence and restriction. Viral food trends encourage overeating for the sake of novelty and engagement, while the rapid normalization of appetite-suppressing drugs reflects a desire to undo excess rather than prevent it through balanced habits.
These drugs have also become a very profitable industry, expected to reach $150 billion by 2035. Instead of learning how to enjoy food in reasonable portions, Americans are caught up in a cycle of going all out and then using drastic measures to counteract it .This cycle not only undermines physical health but also distorts how individuals relate to their bodies, turning eating into something that requires correction or control rather than awareness and balance. This focus on weight loss drugs also ignores the other effects of an unhealthy lifestyle. Being on weight loss drugs reduces your muscle mass, whereas eating whole foods and exercising would increase it. Health has become very aestheticized and appearance focused. Until moderation is valued culturally, the United States will continue to treat health as something to hack or fix, rather than something built slowly through consistent, sustainable choices.
