Water recipes, 'big talk,' and a radical approach to aging — decoding the top health and wellness trends of 2024

Here's what will be big in health and wellness in 2024, according to TikTok, Pinterest, Google and more — plus our verdict on each trend.

1. Trend: "Big" talk

Pinterest Predicts says its users are searching for “deep conversation starters” and other prompts that will spark “big talk,” which, unlike small talk, is thought to foster more meaningful connections. There are hundreds of sites that offer suggested questions that will spark big talk (or "deep talk," another buzzy term), such as: “What are people most surprised to learn about you?” or “Which TV show character would you want to be?”

Verdict: It will take more than provocative questions to fix our current loneliness and isolation problems. The University of Waterloo’s Canadian Index of Well-being found that time spent with friends has been on the decline for 20 years, despite the fact these researchers also discovered that many subjects rated time spent with friends as “the most enjoyable activity of their day.” 

2. Trend: Water, water everywhere

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TikTokkers are obsessed with water — Gen Zers are rarely spotted without their enormous Stanley cups — and in 2024, #WaterTok will gush even more freely. Expect a rise in influential water sommeliers, flavoured waters and water recipes.

One of the most notable — and enduring — water sommeliers is Martin Riese, who made the news a decade ago when he created a 20-item water menu at Ray’s and Stark Bar in Los Angeles. Now on TikTok, Riese concentrates on flavour profiles of mineral water and sings the praises of constant rehydration.

What’s a water recipe? (Fair question.) It's mostly the art of mixing zero-calorie, sugar-free “syrups” with water, many of which are marketed as “skinny” mixes, to enliven your water experience and encourage you to drink more.

Verdict: Drinking water is great, of course, but it's worth pointing out there’s still no evidence to suggest we need eight glasses of water a day or that it has any influence on our skin’s “glow.” Potable water is a life-sustaining resource in short supply and the "trend" we desperately need is equal access for everybody in Canada.

3. Trend: Pro-aging is the new anti-aging

It’s a wonder that the pro-aging trend has taken so long to take off, given that the only real alternative to aging is, well, death. The beauty industry's move toward replacing the term “anti-aging” with this more positive term reflects a long-overdue movement to battle ageism.

Verdict: More of this, please — on the surface, it can seem like simple marketing speak, but words matter and can help shape culture. Bonus points to companies like Jackson’s Body Essentials that put the words “pro-aging” right on the label.

4. Trend: Complex heat

Whole Foods reports that simple heat (heat for the sake of it) is out and "complex heat" is in. Complex heat prioritizes flavour along with spice — for example, preparations that make it possible to taste a pepper's fruity, floral and sweet notes. 

Verdict: As a fan of bold flavours — and a member of the "lonely mouth" club — I say bring it. 

5. Trend: Niche wellness travel

Got a problem? There’s a retreat for that. Once upon a time, vacations were a space to relax, enjoy life and bond with family and friends. Now, wellness retreats are offering superspecific regimens for things like insomnia, relief from menopause, building up a better microbiome or “biohacking” our bodies — on a cellular level — to achieve peak performance or to increase our lifespans.

Verdict: The term “biohacking” is both popular and essentially meaningless, because it’s been applied to everything from supplements to gizmos and exercise regimens to protein shakes. While there are certainly things we can do that have been shown to help our body and brains perform better, most of them are simple things, such as exercising more, eating a better diet, getting a good night’s sleep and taking nice vacations that provide a break and fresh stimulation for our brains. 

6. Trend: Curative cocktails 

Gracie Norton, a TikTok influencer, hit it big when she added magnesium powder to create a “Sleepy Girl mocktail” — a mix of tart cranberry and probiotic soda — which went viral for its purported benefits of encouraging a good night's sleep.

Verdict: Given its success, we can expect more vitamin and mineral-enriched cocktails coming down the pipes. That’s an unfortunate trend, since most people don’t need supplements (ask your doctor if you think you might) and taking too much of some, including magnesium, can cause serious harm.