Hi! I’m Dani Blum, a reporter on the Well desk, filling in for Jancee Dunn right now. I cowl breaking well being information and the wellness tendencies that typically take over the web.

Whenever a good friend has requested me about work this yr, I’ve used one phrase: “Chaos.” That’s not a foul factor: I like the jolt of adrenaline that comes from tackling a information story, whether or not it’s a couple of new warning on artificial sugar or tens of millions of individuals dropping insurance coverage protection as Medicaid unwinds. And I like serving to readers determine what’s occurring and why it issues. Wait, which seed is throughout TikTok now? Why did so many individuals begin consuming raw milk? Why can’t I find eggs wherever?

As we — someway — slide into 2024, I took a glance again on the tales that captivated readers in 2023, and what they’ll inform us about our well being within the yr forward.

The Ozempic period is simply getting began …

This yr, it felt like there was nonstop information about Ozempic and related medicine that may result in dramatic weight reduction. As more of these medications hit the market, extra sufferers began urgent for the medicine, and extra docs began embracing them. Two tendencies notably fascinated me this yr: Mental health professionals started providing the medicine to counteract weight acquire from psychiatric medicines, and a few folks in menopause who have been struggling to drop extra pounds turned to them.

The curiosity in these medicine additionally moved past treating diabetes and weight reduction — researchers reported that one of many medicine, Wegovy, might reduce the chance of coronary heart assaults and strokes for some folks. The expanding footprint of those medicines may simply be one of many largest story traces in 2024.

… and the Covid period hasn’t actually ended.

Officially, the Covid public well being emergency ended this year, a major milestone because the pandemic settles into a brand new section. That transition made it harder for many individuals to get Covid assessments and newly updated vaccines, even because the virus remained a serious presence in our lives. New variants hold rising, and many people have discovered ourselves in what appears like an countless cycle of an infection and restoration.

The well being toll of local weather change grew to become clearer …

The greatest a part of my job is chasing down solutions to what really feel like probably the most urgent questions of the day. As wildfire smoke drifted via New York this summer time and the sky turned orange, I rooted via my coat pockets for an N95 masks and puzzled, on my eerie commute to the workplace, simply how bad breathing the smoky air was for my lungs. The well being dangers of local weather change are quickly rising, and extra folks appear to have began desirous about how the shifting climate will have an effect on their well being.

Perhaps the one upside, in the event you can name it that, is that subsequent yr, we might at the very least be barely higher ready as we regulate to the brand new regular. The subsequent storm that floods New York, or subsequent heat wave that hits, I’ll know what precautions to take to remain as secure as potential.

… as did the harms of consuming.

You won’t need to hear it — I don’t both — however the proof has grow to be painfully clear that alcohol is bad for you. New analysis this yr discovered that deaths tied to consuming are rising among women sooner than they’re amongst males, with the hole between genders narrowing notably for folks 65 and older. And extra proof emerged that alcohol raises the chance of most cancers, notably breast most cancers and colon cancer.

For the “sober curious” amongst us, Dry January presents an opportunity to assume deliberately about consuming within the new yr — and a mind-set to think about retaining all year long.

And what’s previous grew to become new once more.

If there’s one dependable rule in regards to the in any other case unruly world of wellness tendencies, it’s that whereas fads may fizzle, they by no means actually die.

This yr, Zoomers introduced again cottage cheese, lengthy overshadowed by Greek yogurt, and raved about its well being advantages. People sought out ashwagandha, an historical herb, in an try to ease their anxiousness. And Starbucks splashed olive oil into espresso, getting in on the recognition of a Mediterranean diet mainstay that folks have additionally been swirling into yogurt, ice cream, really just about anything. Some folks on TikTok, hoping it might clear their pores and skin, drank olive oil straight from a shot glass.

What fads will take over in 2024? That’s anybody’s guess. My cash’s on all issues stress aid — it’s an election yr within the United States, in any case — so I’m watching out for dietary supplements and merchandise that declare they’ll calm our anxiousness. If solely it have been that easy.

Have you made any New Year’s resolutions which have modified your life? Please share them with us and we might embody them in an upcoming publication.

Lonely? There’s no disgrace in that.

My colleague Christina Caron has a stunning piece on the stigma that comes with loneliness, and techniques for enduring and even embracing being alone.

Read the article: There’s No Shame in Feeling Lonely

What to find out about late-night consuming

That before-bed snack could be more durable on your physique to deal with; my colleague Alice Callahan explains why.