The Health Information Paradox: More Content, Yet More Discontent
Too much health information can be bad for us.
It starts with a simple question: "Are ice baths good for weight loss?"
You ask ChatGPT. You ask Siri. Then a quick scroll through Instagram leads you down a rabbit hole of biohacking and breathing influencers. Two hours later, you're researching a Norwegian working visa to fully immerse yourself in cold exposure therapy.
Two weeks pass. You haven't taken a single ice bath, but you're now deep into gut health protocols, trying to fix a "leaky gut" you're not even sure you have, or what it means.
Sound familiar? Welcome to the health information paradox.
The Information Overload Problem
Health habit information has never been more abundant and accessible. We're drowning in data, protocols, and "revolutionary" approaches that promise to optimise everything from sleep to cognitive performance. For people interested in optimising their health or losing a few kilograms, this creates a perfect storm of analysis paralysis.
The algorithms don't help. Social media platforms favour divisive hot takes over evidence-based advice. Why? Because "eat more fruit and vegetables" doesn't drive engagement like "this ONE weird ice bath trick melts belly fat in 7 days!" (that could be a DOAC podcast title).
Meanwhile, the fundamentals that work - regular physical activity, strength training, eating fruits and vegetables - get lost in the noise.
The Psychology Behind Poor Health Decisions
Here's where it gets interesting: most of us think we're healthier than we are.
I love illusory superiority, a psychological concept whereby people consistently overestimate their abilities relative to others. My favourite example is when researchers asked people to assess their driving ability, and 80% considered themselves above average.
Firstly, I don’t think that's how bell curves work. Secondly, as an incredible driver myself, I can advise that there is no way 80% of people on the roads drive at an above-average level.
This same bias affects our health perceptions. We often hold these two beliefs:
We should do more for our health (exercise more, eat better), and
Our health is already better than most people's
This mindset can be boiled down to: we probably should do more, but we don’t HAVE to.
The Data Reality Check
Let's look at what "better than average" actually means. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 56% of Australians rate their health as "excellent" or "very good"
Other AIHW data indicates that people might be off the mark, because:
66% are overweight or obese
61% live with at least one chronic condition
Only 25% meet basic physical activity guidelines
Just 5% meet fruit and vegetable intake recommendations
The mindset should be updated: we should do more and have to.
Why Traditional Approaches Keep Failing
Most people approach health improvements like a sprint, even though their poor habits have developed over a long time. For example, someone gains 10 kg over ten years and expects to lose it in 10 weeks.
This approach leads people to set themselves up to fail by:
Set ambitious outcome-based goals (lose 20 kilograms, run a marathon)
Adopt extreme protocols (keto + HIIT + intermittent fasting + cold therapy)
Expect rapid results (this is underrated, because duration is the variable for rate of change for a fixed target e.g. losing 10kg in ten weeks requires different changes to losing it in ten months).
Most people burn out in a couple of weeks, return to their baseline, or even slightly regress. They gain nothing from the endeavour, aside from a view that whatever they tried didn’t work for them, which can launch them deeper into the health information paradox.
Those who achieve short-term success often regain weight within 12-18 months. The same pattern appears with surgical weight loss interventions -if no foundational habits are built, there is regression back to the baseline.
It’s human nature to seek strategies that minimise pain and maximise pleasure - we all do it. However, when improving health typically requires less pleasurable activities such as sugar and fat intake, or increasing physical activity (which can be difficult), the next best option is to get it over with as quickly as possible.
The result? We're optimising for the wrong metrics.
The Real Problem: We're Solving for Outcomes, Not Habits
Consumer demands drive the health and wellbeing industry. We can argue that they take advantage of people’s self-consciousness or desire for perfection, which is true, but it’s also accurate that people would rather spend money on:
Quick fixes over sustainable systems
Outcome goals over process habits
Perfect execution over consistent progress
Complex protocols over simple fundamentals
This predisposes people to an endless cycle of:
Finding the next big thing
It requires a lot of change, but it will be worth it
It’s OK for a few days, but the extra cognitive + physical load is hard (especially if you’ve cut energy intake)
Miss a day or two, try to get back into it
Revert to baseline habits, with no progress
Write this one off; nothing ever works.
It’s an exhausting cycle that often leads to taking on more drastic changes next time. This is counterproductive because if the previous protocol was overwhelming, making things harder rarely improves the outcome.
Fortunately, there is another way. It requires you to flip the script on outcome-focused health protocols and instead focus on building high-impact health habits. Boring, I know, but if you want to try something different, keep an eye out for the next article.
Coming Up: High-Impact Health Habits - The Framework for Success
The solution isn't less information—it's better frameworks for filtering what matters. We'll explore the "high-impact health habits" concept and the methodology that creates lasting change.