How has our obsession with weight loss reshaped the world of wellness?
The last few years have seen a radical shift in beauty standards. In 2025, we’ve moved from celebrating Kim K's curves and the body positivity movement to a culture where ‘#SkinnyTok’ and ‘Ozempic face’ are trending.
Six months ago, over half a million adults in the UK were on GLP-1 medication. With weight-loss jabs now available for prescription from NHS GPs, that number is set to rise.
Given that 29% of the UK population is obese, this is a positive step toward health equity. But it raises a deeper question: how has this ‘miracle drug’ changed our cultural relationship with wellness?
FRom community to convenience
GLP-1s are transforming weight loss from a communal journey to a solitary pursuit. Weight Watchers is a prime example. Once built on weekly check-ins and shared stories, Weight Watchers filed for bankruptcy in May, only to announce one month later that it’s teaming up with NovoNordisk to offer Wegovy to customers.
If you could reach your goals from the comfort of your own home, in half the time, would you? That’s the tension brands now face: convenience over connection, results over the journey.
GLP-1s may have displaced the calorie-counting culture of old, but they’ve introduced their own quiet shame: a generation of silent jabbers, hesitant to speak openly. The void left behind? Community.
Wellness isn’t a one-size-fits-all
While some thrive on solo transformation, others still need support: spaces to talk, share, and relate. Not everyone will find lasting change via an app or influencer. Brands must remember that true wellness is holistic.
Ozempic isn’t a miracle cure — it’s a powerful medication for managing blood sugar and insulin resistance. But its long-term effects remain unclear: just this week, health officials launched a new study into potential side effects, following hundreds of reports from people linking weight-loss and diabetes jabs to pancreatic issues.
Historically, GLP-1s have been priced out of reach of the average Brit at £150–300 per month. But with NHS prescriptions potentially bringing costs down to £9.90, the affordability factor is being tackled.
This is vital. Nearly 80% of obese adults in the UK live in the most deprived areas. 75% of the obese population is Black, and 70% are living with a disability. Until now, GLP-1s have shone a light on health inequalities. But broader access is just the beginning.
The real opportunity for brands
Once hailed as a society’s saviour, GLP-1s risk becoming a surface-level solution: a shortcut without the scaffolding for sustainable change. Medication alone won’t address emotional eating, disordered habits, or the deeper structural inequalities driving poor health outcomes.
From fashion to food, brands are seizing the health-conscious moment. Nike and Adidas are launching run clubs and linking up with platforms like Strava. The Gym Kitchen and M&S offer high-protein, low-calorie meals. Nestlé’s new “Ozempic-friendly” frozen range, Vital Pursuit, is explicitly targeting the GLP-1 consumer.
But this is about more than product-market fit. Brands can step up: not as passive enablers, but as active forces for change. At Coldr, we champion community-centred marketing because when you understand how people live wellness - not just how they buy it - you create impact that lasts.
thinking big picture
GLP-1s are reshaping consumer behaviour, but access alone won’t solve health inequality. The next evolution of wellness must go beyond trends and tap into what people really need: empathy, belonging, and support that sticks.
In a world hooked on instant results, isn’t connection part of the cure?