2025 Year in Review: Finding Joy Across 15 Countries

Kassaundra Ferm

30 December 2025

Luang Prabang, Laos

As I write these words from the tranquil banks of the Mekong River in Luang Prabang, Laos, I am struck by the profound beauty of a year well-lived. Watching the sunset paint the sky over this ancient town, where the air is scented with mountain-sourced espresso and the artistry of local textile shops, I find myself reflecting on a journey that spanned 15 countries and three continents.
This year was defined by a singular pursuit: cultivating discipline in both my mind and my body. While I navigated the complexities of international travel, I successfully completed forty-eight credits of my undergraduate degree, maintaining a 4.0 GPA. From a capstone project surveying the food environments of rural and urban Sri Lanka to starting my Master of Science in Nutrition with Liberty University this coming spring, my travels have been a classroom without walls.

The Magic of Southeast Asia

My journey through Southeast Asia was a study in contrasts and cultural warmth. In Vietnam, I found a misty sanctuary in Da Lat. This mountain town offered a refreshing, cool climate and a serene lake, but its true beauty lay in its people; they were the kindest souls I encountered throughout Vietnam.

Penang, Malaysia

In Thailand, my heart returned to Chiang Mai. I have long been enamored by the juxtaposition of the rugged western mountains against the historic Old City, where a tranquil moat encloses a thriving culture of artisanal coffee and endless exploration. Similarly, Canggu, Bali, offered a vibrant, albeit touristy, energy. Beyond the trendy cafes, I found solace in the local warungs, where fresh, nutrient-dense vegetables were abundant, and the locals greeted every day with a smile that made me feel profoundly at home.

In Malaysia, the island of Penang captivated me with its multicultural tapestry. The blend of Malay, Chinese, and Indian influences creates an atmosphere of immense warmth. Staying in a verdant and plant-filled homestay near Little India with my father, we spent our days walking the ocean promenade and enjoying the incredible culinary diversity.

Sri Lanka

South Asia

India challenged and inspired me in equal measure. Kochi stood out as an intellectual and artistic hub; its "Jew Town" offered a window into the history of the Indian Jewish community and its ancient synagogues. The culinary landscape here was distinct; the Keralans cooked a variety of meats that contrasted with the more vegetarian-centric north. Meanwhile, Bangalore impressed me with its modernity—a clean and green city that felt remarkably safe and sophisticated.

In Sri Lanka, the historic fort of Galle felt like a step back in time. My experience was anchored by a beautiful homestay where I was cared for like family, treated with genuine kindness that transcended the typical tourist experience. The rhythmic beauty of the waves and the world-class tea culture made it a place of deep peace and rejuvenation.

European Surprises

Georgian Food! 

My time in Europe was a revelation of hidden gems. Tbilisi, Georgia, remains my favorite European capital. Despite the gray, rainy weather, the city radiated joy. I found a "hipster" sanctuary at the Fabrika hostel. I spent my days navigating the city’s hilly, vintage-laden streets, where I savored a culinary tradition that is criminally underrated (yes, Georgian food is incredible).

I was just as surprised by Yerevan, Armenia. Despite its size, the city was alive with energy and had a sophisticated cultural scene. Attending the ballet was a real highlight, stirring feelings of nostalgia and reminding me of Siberia’s stoic beauty. In Moldova, I discovered a fascinating, new landscape marked by Soviet-style architecture and an unexpectedly vibrant cafe culture. It was a place of great value, where I could enjoy a professional ballet performance for just ten euros. 

Traveling with my father in Romania, I was captivated by the local "breakfast culture"—mornings filled with homemade cheeses and roasted vegetables. Brasov stood out for its historical significance and lively town squares. Lastly, Gdansk, Poland, offered a stunning port-city vibe. Exploring its university and historic streets in the colorful month of May was truly a highlight of my European trip.

Michigan with Mother and Aunt

The Americas: Family and Peace

The summer brought me back to the United States to reunite with family across Florida, New York, Buffalo, and Michigan. While returning to one’s roots can be a complex experience for mental health, it was a season of cherished memories. I found tranquility at the lake house in Michigan and felt the nostalgia of my childhood while perusing the farmers' markets of New York City. There is a timeless pleasure in the coffee shops of the Lower East Side, Chinatown, and Brooklyn during a New York summer.

In August, a spontaneous trip to Guatemala with my father became one of the year's most spiritually nourishing experiences. From the historic streets of Antigua to the shores of Lake Atitlan, we immersed ourselves in a culture rich in fiber-dense traditional foods and world-class coffee. We stayed at a remote farm, reachable only by boat, a homestay run by an American widower, where the lake's silence and the rhythm of the kayak provided a necessary moment of reflection.

The Discipline Behind the Journey

Throughout this year, I have adhered to a holistic health philosophy. Traveling 6 to 12 miles a day on foot allowed me to discover the "nooks and crannies" of the world while maintaining my physical health. I prioritized whole foods and honored my body as a temple while pursuing my studies with discipline.

Yet, beyond the credits earned and the miles walked, the most enduring lesson of 2025 is the universality of human kindness. Whether in the rural villages of Sri Lanka or the hilly streets of Georgia, I witnessed a shared joy that transcends borders. I thank Jesus Christ for this inherent light found in people across the world.

As a solo female traveler, I encountered moments of difficulty, particularly in the complexities of the South Asian subcontinent. However, the incredible individuals I met along the way were my North Star. I have learned that the actual value of travel is not found in the number of countries visited or the variety of cuisines sampled; it is found in the people who make the journey worthwhile.

I look forward to 2026 with a heart full of gratitude, one course remaining in my undergraduate journey, and the excitement of beginning my Master’s degree. The world is a masterpiece of beauty and kindness, and I am honored to be its student.

2025 Travel Itinerary: 

Total Countries Visited: 15

Total Continents Visited: 3 (Asia, Europe, North America)

Vietnam

Thailand

Indonesia

India

Georgia

Armenia

Romania

Moldova

Poland

London

Dallas

Florida

New York

Buffalo

Michigan

Guatemala

Sri Lanka

India

Malaysia

Thailand

Laos

The Geography of Disgust: Why People Eat What They Eat in Laos

Kassaundra Ferm

26 December 2025 

I spent Christmas Eve in Vang Vieng, where the mountains turn purple at sunset and hot air balloons drift lazily overhead. The atmosphere is surreal, with Frank Sinatra’s "White Christmas" playing amidst the humid, tropical heat of Southeast Asia. My festive mood was dampened when I looked into a convenience store and saw a woman on the floor with a large animal—likely a dog—being prepared for roasting. That instinctive wave of nausea hit me hard; it’s a common reaction—an almost visceral "yuck"—to see a dog treated like a carcass. In the West, we consider dogs as "honorary humans," which can make the idea of eating them feel almost cannibalistic (Parekh, 2014). I experienced a clash between my Western upbringing and the stark reality of local survival in Laos. The villagers follow a subsistence lifestyle, where nothing is wasted, and their menu is shaped by the environment. Laos has historically been a net food importer and faces ongoing food shortages. In this context, the luxury of food prejudice—a sense of moral delicacy—becomes a calorie-consuming burden that local people simply cannot afford if they want to stay nourished (Niedringhaus, 1968).

Vang Vieng Sunset 

This question has haunted me ever since I saw that poor dog, and as I traveled around the world, why? Why is it that rats or frogs are common foods here in Laos, while my friends back in the United States see them as culinary atrocities? My journey to this question began in the forests of Madagascar, where I worked as an environmental conservation intern protecting lemurs. In the village of Saint Luce, I was tasked with teaching locals not to eat fruit bats and lemurs—species vital to the health of the mahampy wetlands. I explained that, according to Western conservation standards, these animals should be off-limits, but for the Malagasy villagers, they are traditional and accessible sources of protein. Later, in Japan, I found myself on the other side of the spectrum—sitting in a restaurant, hesitantly trying raw horse meat. I was scared of the stigma, my father watching me with wide eyes, refusing to even taste it. But once I pushed past my mental barrier, I realized the meat was lean, clean, and deeply culturally revered.

So, how does geography shape what ends up on a Laotian’s plate? What is it about evolutionary psychology that makes us recoil at insects but crave a burger?

To understand this, we need to look beyond the plate and explore the complex relationship between ecology and the hidden logic of the human gut. I want to investigate why a villager in Vang Vieng considers a frog a primary protein source, while someone in Malaysia might see beef liver as a delicacy, but view a pork sausage as unclean.

Disgust and the "Wormed" Mind

Disgust is rarely a response to the actual taste of food; instead, it is a reaction to how we perceive it. Psychologists distinguish between "distaste," a sensory rejection of bitter or foul flavors, and "core disgust," an ideological rejection based on what an animal is or where it comes from (Parekh, 2014). This is driven by the "Contamination Principle," a strong psychological idea that says once two things come into contact, they remain connected. As Rozin (1996) famously observed, if a cockroach—an animal we consider "profane"—touches a bowl of mashed potatoes, the idea of the cockroach becomes part of the food. For a Westerner, those potatoes are now permanently "wormed" and inedible, even if the insect is sterilized (Parekh, 2014).

Laotian Food Market

In Laos, this principle operates on a very different level. Because the Laotian diet shows remarkably few food prejudices, the threshold for "contamination" is much higher. While a Westerner might see a rat as a source of filth, a Laotian farmer views a grain-fed field rat as a clean and accessible resource. This cultural mindset is deeply ingrained, often linked to "normative moralization"—the process by which a culture turns a practical behavior, such as avoiding certain animals, into a moral rule to promote social cooperation (Parekh, 2014). In the United States, our taboo against eating dogs or horses is rooted in "socio-moral" disgust; we consider such acts an ethical failure because we attribute “mindful” qualities to these animals, believing they can suffer in ways chickens cannot (Zaraska, 2016).

Purity, Toxins, and Vital Life Forces

The rigidity of our dietary boundaries becomes most apparent when viewed through a religious lens. During my time in Udaipur, India, I spoke with Hindus who considered their strict vegetarianism a necessary safeguard to maintain the purity of the soul. From their perspective, killing an animal is not merely an ethical decision; it is a spiritual impurity. They believe that at the moment of slaughter, an animal’s fear and pain release toxins of aggression into the meat. Eating that flesh, therefore, means absorbing these passions, which can cloud the mind and harm one's karma (Parekh, 2014). The desire for spiritual calm is so strong that some Orthodox Brahmins even avoid pungent foods like garlic and onions to prevent any metabolic agitation.

However, visiting Laos completely changes this perspective. Here, what a Hindu might consider a "toxin" is often seen by Laotians as a vital life force. There is a deep-rooted symbolic belief in Southeast Asia that consuming the "strong" parts of an animal—the blood, organs, and heart—can transfer its specific strengths to a person. In this context, eating liver is seen as literally absorbing vitality from the creature (Parekh, 2014). Laotians have developed this cultural logic to adapt to a land that offers very little else. Historically, about 95% of Laotians lived in small, mountain-bound villages with almost no contact with external markets. The Mekong River served as the only major route, so most people relied on their immediate surroundings to meet their needs (Niedringhaus, 1968).

Geography as Destiny: The Death of Prejudice

Map of Laos

Niedringhaus (1968) presents a compelling argument that the geography of Laos effectively eliminated the concept of food prejudice. Due to the country's rugged and isolated terrain, Laotians had to become experts in their local ecology. Unlike their neighbors in Thailand or Vietnam, they couldn't depend on large rice surpluses or easy trade with cities like Saigon. Interestingly, Niedringhaus suggests that this made the Laotian food economy highly resilient. While other countries faced instability when war or disrupted trade routes occurred, Laos remained stable because its people knew how to live entirely off the land.

In this harsh landscape, being selective about food was sometimes a luxury that could lead to starvation. The Mekong River, which flows through the country, is unpredictable. It can easily flood rice fields or leave them to dry out during a drought. As a result, the Laotians developed what I might call a "zero-prejudice" survival strategy. In the north, they plant maize as a safeguard against dry spells, while the forest remains the main source of food. When rice crops fail, Laotians don’t hesitate to eat insects or frogs; they consume whatever is available to keep their families alive (Niedringhaus, 1968).

Over the centuries, this "emergency" eating became so ingrained that the line between "survival food" and regular food disappeared. While some groups, such as Hindus or Jews, are often willing to face starvation rather than break their religious taboos, cultures like those in the US or Laos—where survival needs often take precedence over strict spiritual rules—are quicker to set aside feelings of disgust in order to survive. In Laos, the persistent threat of environmental changes made consuming certain animals essential, eventually transforming it into a celebrated aspect of the local cuisine.

The Nutritional Logic of the "Gross"

My obsession with nutrition started years ago after a transformative trip to Costa Rica, when I switched to a strictly vegan lifestyle. Witnessing the environmental impact of overfishing and industrial farming deeply moved me, igniting a passion for learning about plant-based health. I followed the guidance of the book Vegan for Life by Jack Norris and Virginia Messina, tracking my diet carefully and learning how to supplement with B12 and Omega-3s, which can be hard to find without animal products. Aspiring to become a nutritionist, I hope to help address the global shift away from traditional, whole-food diets toward Western fast food and processed calories — a phenomenon known as the "nutrition transition." Now, standing here in Laos, I realize that for many, the supplements I once purchased in bottles are actually crawling across the forest floor.

Beef liver in Romania

In the West, we've been conditioned to favor "clean" cuts of meat—like skinless chicken breasts or lean beef tenderloin—while overlooking the most nutrient-dense parts of the animal, often dismissing them as "trash" or "offal." However, as I stroll past the golden eaves of a beautiful Laotian temple, I observe stalls where locals are threading pork livers and intestines onto bamboo skewers for grilling. From a scientific standpoint, this "nose-to-tail" approach is a remarkable example of nutritional efficiency. Research by Fayemi et al. (2018) highlights that organ meats are the true "bioavailable gold" of the animal kingdom. While muscle meat primarily provides protein, organs such as the liver, heart, and kidneys are rich sources of fat-soluble vitamins—A, D, E, and K—and essential minerals, which the body absorbs much more readily than plant-based foods.

When discussing "nutrient density," we consider the ratio of essential nutrients to the total calorie content. For instance, liver is often regarded as nature’s most potent multivitamin. It is an excellent source of heme iron, the form of iron that the human body absorbs most efficiently to prevent anemia and sustain energy (Fayemi et al., 2018). In Western diets, mineral deficiencies are common because we tend to eat only the thighs and breasts. However, by consuming the entire animal, Laotians obtain a wider variety of micronutrients that is nearly impossible to achieve through processed foods.

This nutritional strategy is essential in Laos, where glutinous "sticky" rice is the main component of most meals, often making up a staggering 80% of daily caloric intake (Niedringhaus, 1968). While sticky rice provides energy, it lacks certain nutrients on its own. To support physical growth and sustain high work capacity in the fields, Laotians rely on "nutrient synergy"—the biological process that occurs when high-carb grains are combined with small amounts of animal products (Chungchunlam & Moughan, 2024; Niedringhaus, 1968). A single fried frog or a small serving of padaek (the pungent, fermented fish paste found in nearly every dish) supplies essential amino acids and lipids, enabling the body to effectively utilize the energy from the rice. Without protein sources, the Laotian diet would be nutritionally incomplete, leading to stunted growth and reduced life expectancy (Niedringhaus, 1968).

Observing these interactions, I’m reminded of my father’s wide-eyed horror when I tried horse meat in Japan. He was experiencing what psychologists call the "Meat Paradox"—a form of cognitive dissonance where we claim to love and respect animals, yet continue to eat them (Zaraska, 2016). To resolve this mental tension, we create arbitrary categories: some animals are "friends" (dogs, horses, cats), while others are "food" (cows, pigs, chickens). We convince ourselves that animals in the "food" category are less intelligent or less capable of suffering, allowing us to eat them without guilt (Zaraska, 2016).

This paradox is precisely why many people, myself included at 18, choose to go vegan. Vegans often recognize the hypocrisy in "picking and choosing" which lives have value; they decide that if they cannot bear to kill a dog or a horse, then they should not be killing a cow or a chicken either. In a country like the United States, where food is plentiful and fortified cereals are on every shelf, we have the privilege to make that choice. But here in the mountains of Laos, the meat paradox presents a very different picture. When your environment dictates that survival depends on a frog or a rat, the distinction between "friend" and "food' fades, replaced by a deeper respect for the animal that is literally sustaining your life.

The Gut Microbiome

Resilience and the Traveler’s Gut

Perhaps the most surprising benefit of indulging in "unusual" meats in Laos isn't visible on a dinner plate, but can be observed under a microscope. As a follower of the Zoe nutrition podcast and an avid student of personalized gut health science, I've learned that our gut microbiome—the trillions of bacteria, fungi, and viruses inhabiting our digestive system—is essentially the control center of our metabolic health. These microbes do much more than digest food; they regulate inflammatory markers, calibrate immune responses, and even influence our moods. We often fear that eating "exotic" foods will upset our stomachs, worry about travelers' diarrhea or food poisoning, or consider unfamiliar foods unclean. However, recent travel medicine studies suggest that, for the adventurous eater, the opposite may actually be true.

Traveling internationally to non-industrialized regions and experiencing unfamiliar foods actually enhances the richness and diversity of our gut microbiota (Henares et al., 2024). While industrialization in the West has gradually reduced microbial diversity—mainly because of diets rich in ultra-processed foods lacking the fiber and variety needed to nourish our beneficial microbes—travel acts as a biological reset. In the West, our overly sanitized environments prioritize shelf stability and sterility, often at the expense of the living bacteria that our bodies have evolved to interact with. By consuming a diet filled with hyper-processed, synthetic ingredients, we are essentially starving our gut garden, which is linked to a rise in chronic inflammatory diseases.

Research by Henares et al. (2024) indicates that long-term travel to regions such as Southeast Asia can increase the abundance of beneficial microbial genera, including Faecalibacterium, known for its anti-inflammatory effects and its role in maintaining gut barrier health. This occurs through "social transmission"—simply being in contact with new people, traditional food preparation methods, and environments with fewer resources. As I move from Thailand to Laos, with Vietnam next, I realize that every local meal I enjoy offers a chance to recruit new microbial allies. Choosing dishes like frog curry or pork liver skewers over a familiar Western burger helps build a more resilient microbiome—better equipped to defend against pathogens and environmental stresses (Henares et al., 2024). Travel, therefore, offers more than just sights and sounds; it diversifies our internal ecosystems in ways no probiotic pill can match.

Rethinking the "Nauseous" Feeling

My journey from experimenting with pescatarianism as a teenager to becoming a dedicated vegan in Costa Rica, and now navigating the challenging wet markets of Vang Vieng, has shown me that nutrition isn’t just a fixed set of rules. It’s a dynamic conversation between our bodies and the environment around us. This realization encourages us to be mindful of how we move through space and time. When we travel, we shouldn’t just be tourists of the sights, but also of the local food systems. By understanding the geography of the foods available and choosing to eat locally, we not only support the community but also promote our own long-term health.

Wonders of Laos

In the West, our systems are overly sanitized, aiming to protect us with ultra-processing and chemical preservatives. While this lowers the risk of immediate food poisoning, it also creates a mixture of synthetic effects that we are only beginning to understand. We've traded the "dirty" reality of local markets for the sterile, plastic-wrapped convenience of processed foods. However, in doing so, we've sacrificed the nutritional completeness that comes from eating whole, unprocessed foods. When traveling to countries with different food cultures, don't be afraid to try new things. What may initially cause nausea is often more about cultural differences than a sign that your body is in danger. 

Certainly. We must approach certain food risks with intellectual honesty. Shepon et al. (2023) highlight the zoonotic risks—the potential for diseases to transfer from animals to humans—associated with consuming wild species such as bats or lemurs. After COVID-19, fearing a global pandemic is understandable. These emerging infectious diseases often originate from ecosystem disruption and wildlife consumption. Nonetheless, we should differentiate between genuine ecological and health dangers associated with eating endangered wildlife and the cultural disgust we feel toward domesticated or local foods such as frogs, rats, or dogs.

Our sense of "disgust" is shaped by culture. Whether it's the "dominion" over animals described in Judeo-Christian tradition or the concept of "karma" in Hinduism, we all use stories to justify what we put on our plates (Parekh, 2014). In Laos, the story revolves around survival, geographic necessity, and an ancestral understanding that when it comes to the forest, nothing should go to waste. 

From my research and time in Laos, I've learned that there's no "perfect" diet—only the one that best connects us to our environment. Even if you never visit a small, landlocked village in Laos, you can take this lesson home: eat seasonally, support local producers, and remember that your gut thrives on variety, not sterility. 

My experience in Vang Vieng started with nausea but ended with deep respect for the resilience of both the human spirit and the human stomach. 

References

Chungchunlam, S. M., & Moughan, P. J. (2024). Comparative bioavailability of vitamins in human foods sourced from animals and plants. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 64(31), 11590-11625.

Fayemi, P. O., Muchenje, V., Yetim, H., & Ahhmed, A. (2018). Targeting the pains of food insecurity and malnutrition among internally displaced persons with nutrient synergy and analgesics in organ meat. Food Research International, 104, 48-58.

Henares, D., Monsálvez, V., Brotons, P., Machado, M. L., Capilla, S., Gomila-Grange, A., ... & Gasch, O. (2024). Human gut microbiota composition associated with international travels. Travel medicine and infectious disease, 61, 102747.

Jendresen, M. N., & Rasmussen, L. V. (2022). The importance of forest foods for diet quality: A case study from Sangthong District, Laos. Trees, Forests and People, 7, 100166.

Meyer-Rochow, V. B. (2009). Food taboos: their origins and purposes. Journal of ethnobiology and ethnomedicine, 5(1), 18.

Niedringhaus, T. E. (1968). The Food Geography of Mainland Southeast Asia (No. ES38).

Parekh, S. R. (2014). Morality And Disgust In Food Preferences. Thesis Paper.

Raubenheimer, D., & Rothman, J. M. (2013). Nutritional ecology of entomophagy in humans and other primates. Annual review of entomology, 58(1), 141-160.

Shepon, A., Wu, T., Kremen, C., Dayan, T., Perfecto, I., Fanzo, J., ... & Golden, C. D. (2023). Exploring scenarios for the food system–zoonotic risk interface. The Lancet Planetary Health, 7(4), e329-e335.

Zaraska, M. (2016). MIND OVER MEAT. Scientific American Mind, 27(4), 50-55. https://doi.org/24945458

The GLP-1 Trap: Why the 'Magic Shot' Cannot Cure the Shame of Anorexia

Kassaundra Ferm 

6 December 2025 

I cannot scroll through social media without being confronted by the relentless normalization of thinness, a trend aggressively amplified by celebrities and influencers who showcase extremely slender bodies. This cultural shift, primarily driven by the rise of new GLP-1 medications like Ozempic, has blurred the lines between wellness and disorder.

Constant Comparison

As someone passionate about nutrition, I have been on a personal journey since my time in Thailand two years ago, when I first began exploring the importance of nourishing foods. I’ve sought to understand holistic approaches to healing from the inside out, emphasizing high-fiber, whole foods, and the vibrant colors of a rainbow diet.

However, my history with anorexia nervosa complicates this journey. Three years ago, I was hospitalized for an eating disorder and faced a traumatic experience at a clinic where I regained weight but did not fully address the underlying mental challenges. My desire to be smaller, coupled with a pursuit of perfection and an ideal level of thinness, has persisted for years. During that time, I was told I was extremely skinny, which initially made me happy. Since then, my weight has fluctuated as I’ve battled between nourishing my body and the urge to maintain a very slim figure through calorie deficits.

This ongoing struggle with body image affects me deeply. I avoid taking pictures because I worry about how I might be perceived, and I steer clear of mirrors to prevent nitpicking my body. Last summer was particularly difficult, as constant thoughts about my family members’ opinions—about my body, weight, and eating habits—kept circling in my mind. This internal conflict between wanting to eat healthily and a desire to stay as thin as possible continues to influence my life. 

Scrolling through social media, I often find myself down a rabbit hole filled with influencers and celebrities who are extremely thin. I recently came across a critique by a nutritionist working within the eating disorder field, warning against the normalization of skinny bodies by celebrities. This normalization can harm those of us who wish to achieve a super thin physique, making it harder for us to improve because we are constantly exposed to images of bodies achieved through GLP-1 drugs and strict diets—bodies we are striving for and have worked hard to heal and improve. Comparing ourselves to these celebrities can be deeply damaging.

This prompts me to explore the psychological impact of GLP-1 usage among celebrities, family members, and social media users, particularly how it influences eating disorders. I also want to assess whether these drugs are truly beneficial or if they are being misused by people who don’t need them, due to the widespread acceptance of being extremely thin. 

What steps can we take to promote healthier body standards rather than celebrating extreme thinness? Are too many individuals using these drugs without medical necessity? Could this trend be creating a negative societal cycle, where the focus is on treating symptoms of overweight rather than addressing the root causes—metabolic health and mental well-being holistically?

Harm From Body Checking

Let's investigate these questions. 

The widespread popularity of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy didn’t happen by chance. It reflects a deep, long-standing shame around body size that has grown over decades. Society has long promoted a narrow ideal—slim for women and muscular for men—that most bodies cannot naturally match. Although the body positivity movement aimed to challenge this, it swung too far, and encouraging healthier choices for metabolic health was sometimes labeled as "fatphobic." As a result, society still has not fully embraced normal body acceptance. For many of us who struggle with body image, there is a constant, tiring voice suggesting our issues stem from mere lack of willpower. We tend to blame weight on personal choices like diet and exercise, but these are only part of a bigger picture that includes genetics, stress, sleep, and our environment. Our bodies also seem to follow a set point—an idea that our brain is hardwired to maintain a certain weight range and will resist weight changes fiercely. That makes dieting and weight loss feel like an ongoing battle between our brain and body. 

Research shows that the appeal of the "magic shot" is primarily psychological, rooted in deep-seated insecurities. One study revealed that people most attracted to GLP-1 medications tend to have lower self-esteem and higher body image anxiety, clearly illustrating the link between psychological distress and the desire for quick weight loss solutions (Markey et al., 2025). When individuals see their bodies as "broken" because of their size, their desire to be thin isn’t just about appearance; it’s about feeling accepted and gaining a sense of control. The immense pressure to conform to a certain body ideal can come from family, friends, or the pervasive influence of online media. No public figure exemplifies this scrutiny more than Oprah Winfrey, who has openly shared her lifelong struggles with weight and body image. In her special, she expressed deep internalized judgment, viewing her body as a "moral failing" and a sign of a lack of willpower (Williams & Monier, 2024). Many of us share this struggle, highlighting how deeply our culture associates body size with personal character, success, and respect. The promise of GLP-1s is therefore a false hope—an idea that we can finally shed lifelong shame without the "fight" involved. By "fight," I mean both mental battles—such as obsessing over food and negative self-talk—and physical challenges —such as relentless hunger signals and metabolic resistance from set-point theory. It also involves social struggles, such as constant scrutiny of weight and stigma.

This cultural moment is particularly fraught because, for those prone to disordered eating, any quick and easily accessible method for altering body shape—such as laxatives, purging, excessive exercise, or now, GLP-1 drugs—can quickly become a tool of harm. When a potent drug designed to suppress appetite enters a culture already obsessed with thinness, the risk of misuse is immediate and serious. Clinical case reports have begun to highlight this danger. One study described a concerning case of a patient diagnosed with Atypical Anorexia Nervosa (AN) who started using semaglutide for cosmetic weight loss (Guerdjikova et al., 2024). This case is significant because the drug’s powerful appetite-suppressing mechanism subdued the patient's "food noise," which had made dieting and starvation both mentally and physically challenging. For someone with a restrictive eating disorder, the drug acts as an addictive aid, making it easier to sustain harmful behaviors and easing the psychological burden of starvation (Guerdjikova et al., 2024).

The drug's ability to suppress hunger and diminish food noise in individuals with body image issues suggests that it merely accommodates underlying psychological pain rather than addressing it. As a result, the medication has become a psychological "crutch," echoing a cycle often seen in online "pro-ana" communities. These support networks, which thrive on social media platforms, have historically facilitated the maintenance of eating disorders by sharing tips and protocols for misusing pills, laxatives, and appetite suppressants to sustain restrictive behaviors (Fox, Ward, & O’Rourke, 2005). GLP-1s now present a medical and high-tech alternative to extreme restriction, yet they are increasingly being used for self-destructive purposes. Currently, there appears to be no widespread requirement to pair GLP-1 prescriptions with mandatory psychological screening and support. The absence of such measures creates a risk, where the desire to simply "be thin," often rooted in deep psychological pain, is prioritized over the patient’s overall well-being. Vulnerable individuals prone to eating disorders are thus exposed to a powerful new tool that can exacerbate their illness.

Ozempic TikTok and the Glamorization of Restriction

If psychological appeal serves as the internal motivation for body change, social media provides the cultural script and harmful instructions that accelerate this process. The "Ozempic TikTok" phenomenon describes a vast, unfiltered, and highly engaging world of videos—many of which I frequently see on Instagram Reels—focused on GLP-1 drugs. Often uploaded by non-professionals, this content has ignited a new wave of Thinspiration disguised as "progress," with users boasting about dramatic weight loss and showcasing the restrictive eating habits needed to achieve it. This steady stream of curated content can easily slip into the feeds of young people and others like me, who are already vulnerable to destructive eating patterns, normalizing the obsession with extreme thinness.

A critical review of the existing global literature on youth, body image, and social media reveals that this environment leads to body image concerns and eating disorder pathology via three key pathways identified by researchers: social comparison, thin/fit ideal internalisation, and self-objectification (Dane & Bhatia, 2023). Social comparison is a major concern because we instinctively compare ourselves to the highly edited and performative images of thinness and success we encounter online. This often leads to dissatisfaction with ourselves. Subsequently, internalizing the thin and fit ideals means adopting these unrealistic standards as personal goals, fostering the belief that our worth depends on meeting them. Additionally, self-objectification occurs when individuals internalize an outsider's perspective, constantly monitoring and judging their own bodies based on appearance. These three processes create a vicious cycle of risk, where each scroll reinforces damaging reference points that ultimately normalize illness by framing dangerous restriction as a coveted body ideal.

The current online narrative has become a harmful echo chamber, often glamorizing the restrictive side effects of the medication. Many users frequently discuss how the drug causes extreme appetite suppression, nausea, and early satiety, often framing the resulting tiny meals or days without hunger as benefits and effortless dieting strategies. For those seeking to be thin, this can seem like exactly what they want to buy and use. However, a qualitative study analyzing TikTok content about Ozempic revealed a disturbing reality: 52% of videos and 8% of all comments showed eating behaviors that matched the criteria for Anorexia Nervosa (AN) (Omar, 2025). The comments were especially revealing, with users sharing direct restrictive advice and linking the drug to AN behaviors, such as one stating, "if starving is how it works, then I don't need to give myself a shot" (Omar, 2025).

The actual danger lies in what researchers call "hermeneutic discrepancy," which occurs when the content's intended meaning is completely lost. For instance, a creator might post a satirical video mocking the drug's tiny meal portions; however, the audience often interprets this as an inspirational endorsement of restrictive eating rather than a joke about side effects (Omar, 2025). This phenomenon is actively reviving the dangerous ideals of the "pro-ana" movement that I described earlier, where the drug has been transformed into an object of fascination that accelerates, rather than mitigates, eating disorder behaviors. The immense popularity and normalization of these thin ideals in Ozempic content create a destructive cultural atmosphere that makes the drug a potent tool for maintaining disordered habits (Omar, 2025).

Furthermore, this cultural moment is actively creating a form of "symbolic annihilation"—the erasure of those who challenge the thin ideal, particularly people who are content with their larger bodies (Williams & Monier, 2024). This is destructive because when the overwhelming media focus is on the "before and after," it sends a harmful message that happiness and success are only available on the "after" side, once the weight is lost. For someone with a history of an eating disorder, this reinforces the dangerous internal voice that argues, "I was happier when I was as thin as I was years ago," even when returning to that low weight would be detrimental to my long-term health. The pressure to conform is so intense that an estimated 97% of individuals with clinical or subclinical eating disorders who use social media report that it hampers recovery by motivating them to maintain dangerous behaviors (Dane & Bhatia, 2023). I often see girls encouraging others to "eat less and walk more" on social media, and it is a battle not to follow their advice instead of focusing on my own healing. By symbolically annihilating the perspective of "fat and happy" people, the cultural narrative powerfully reinforces the initial shame that GLP-1s promise to relieve, which solidifies a cycle where body shame drives drug-seeking, and that drug-seeking is reinforced by a media that only celebrates thinness.

Misuse, Abuse, and Physical Consequences

GLP-1 Mechanisms

Beyond the psychological and social dangers, the off-label misuse of GLP-1s for cosmetic weight loss carries severe and life-altering physical risks. These potent pharmaceuticals fundamentally alter the body's natural processes, beginning with their primary mechanism of slowing gastric emptying. This is the process by which food moves from the stomach into the small intestine. Under normal body conditions, the body releases the hormone GLP-1 to regulate this movement, which ensures smooth digestion and signaling satiety. However, taking a potent GLP-1 receptor agonist dramatically slows this process, which can violently disrupt the body's natural state of homeostasis (Reardon, 2025). The disruption forces the body into a state of deprivation, which could lead to long-term metabolic issues and damage to vital organs as it desperately prioritizes essential functions to maintain proper balance (Reardon, 2025). The short-term goal of weight loss, for many, is dangerously overshadowing the long-term cost to the body's entire system.

The evidence of this disruption is stark and sobering. Studies analyzing insurance claims have confirmed that using GLP-1 medications for weight loss significantly increases the risk of debilitating gastrointestinal issues. Researchers observed a range of severe complications, including biliary disease, pancreatitis, and bowel obstructions, as well as the most alarming—gastroparesis, or stomach paralysis (Reardon, 2025). These are not the manageable "tummy upsets" often dismissed on social media, but conditions that frequently require emergency hospitalization or surgery. The sheer scope of this issue is a cause for significant concern: research has shown gastroparesis occurring at a rate of 10 cases per 1,000 semaglutide users, which means that if just one million people are prescribed the drug, hundreds of thousands could experience dangerous gastrointestinal disturbances (Reardon, 2025). The drive for weight loss is promoting an extreme misuse of the drug, one that carries potentially fatal clinical consequences.

When used without medical necessity, GLP-1s can quickly transition from medication to a form of substance abuse, with research suggesting they are being misused as Image- and Performance-Enhancing Drugs (IPEDs) (Reardon, 2025). The comparison to IPEDs is chilling: just as athletes might misuse steroids to enhance muscle mass, the general public is misusing GLP-1s to improve their appearance by rapidly shedding weight. The analysis of adverse event reports revealed that semaglutide showed higher levels of misuse, abuse, intentional product use issues, and use without a proper prescription compared to other weight loss medications, which underscores its potential for non-approved usage fueled by its significant weight loss effects (Reardon, 2025).

As an aspiring nutritionist, I find the inevitable nutritional risks associated with this trend to be the most terrifying long-term consequence. Dietitians working in the clinical trenches are raising urgent alarms because patients, focused only on the number on the scale, are neglecting the proper nutrients their bodies need. Key among their concerns is the risk of malnutrition and the subsequent loss of lean body mass due to severely suppressed appetite and inadequate protein intake (Despain & Hoffman, 2024). When rapid weight loss is achieved through drug-induced restriction, coupled with insufficient nutrition, the body does not just strip away fat; it strips away muscle mass at a dangerous rate.

Muscle plays a crucial role in metabolism and overall strength. Its loss not only weakens the body but also makes it easier to regain weight once the drug is discontinued. To counteract this, dietitians stress the importance of adequate protein intake, recommending that patients include protein with every meal (Despain & Hoffman, 2024). Unfortunately, many patients become so focused on losing weight that they neglect necessary dietary adjustments, which can lead to deficiencies in dietary fiber and dehydration risks (Despain & Hoffman, 2024). This narrow focus on specific nutrients weakens our overall ability to function optimally and often prioritizes a fleeting aesthetic over true long-term health and vitality.

Counterfeit Weight Loss Drugs

The cycle of danger is intensified by the high demand and cost of the drug. Reardon (2025) reports that 70% of Americans surveyed say they cannot afford Ozempic for weight loss, yet nearly a quarter have still asked their doctors for a prescription. The overwhelming demand and financial barriers drive some patients to seek unmonitored prescriptions or compounded, non-FDA-approved versions, which increases the risks. These compounded medications are created by pharmacies that mix or alter ingredients, but unlike FDA-approved drugs, their safety, effectiveness, and dosage consistency are not assured. Using these unapproved drugs can expose individuals to unknown, potentially toxic ingredients, raising the likelihood of severe side effects and adverse reactions.

The most insidious and final danger is the development of a chronic drug dependency. This is a major concern for healthcare professionals: the drug's mechanism for suppressing appetite can actively hinder the development of sustainable lifestyle skills (Carscadden, 2025). Similar to how antidepressants, when not combined with therapy and guidance, can become the sole focus of treatment, GLP-1s, when used alone, create a physiological crutch. When patients are eventually taken off the medication, the overwhelming fear of weight regain—a phenomenon known as the "rebound effect"—often occurs because they never learned the coping skills, nutritional knowledge, and behavioral patterns needed for long-term success. This cycle of losing weight, stopping the medication, and then returning to the original weight—often called "yo-yoing"—can be especially heartbreaking for someone like me with body image issues. It reinforces the damaging belief that my body is fundamentally flawed and requires permanent chemical intervention. Initially, GLP-1 was sought to give a sense of "freedom" from food, but ironically, many end up feeling trapped by a need for ongoing medication. This underscores the danger of seeking an easy fix that bypasses the hard but essential work of developing a healthy relationship with food and one's body.

Embracing Body Neutrality and Holistic Health

The true revolution in health won't come from another drug; it will originate from a mindset shift towards sustainable, holistic health, rather than fixating on a number on the scale. To break free from cycles of shame, restriction, and dependency, we need to embrace Body Neutrality. This philosophy, supported by scholars and increasingly adopted by practitioners, encourages us to move beyond aesthetics and appreciate our bodies for their functionality—what they enable us to do, rather than how they look (Williams & Monier, 2024). 

For me, adopting this perspective means recognizing that, even if I do not feel positive about my body every day, I can choose to accept it as it is. Body acceptance frees up energy to focus on truly nourishing my well-being by eating whole foods that support my heart and brain, enjoying movement that feels good, prioritizing quality sleep, and strengthening social bonds through healthy habits like walking with family or sharing nutritious meals with new friends. A more holistic approach offers an inspiring path for anyone aiming to lose weight or improve their health, shifting the focus from external appearance to internal well-being.

The most effective and sustainable path to metabolic health involves tapping into our body's innate ability to regulate itself through the production of its own hormones. When given the right inputs, our bodies can self-regulate effectively.

Research shows that we can naturally boost our endogenous GLP-1 production through lifestyle changes—non-pharmacological approaches that empower the body to feel full and manage blood sugar without medication. A nursing-led approach highlights simple, safer, and more robust strategies, such as incorporating adequate protein and fiber into meals. These nutrients stimulate natural GLP-1 release, enhancing satiety and supporting metabolic balance. Evidence suggests that focusing on sustainable methods helps avoid the risks associated with drug dependency and severe gastrointestinal side effects, leading to better long-term health.

Even for patients who genuinely require GLP-1 medication, experts—especially Registered Dietitians and nutritionists—advocate using the drug as part of a comprehensive, multidisciplinary care plan, rather than as a standalone solution. We should aim for a future where obesity and overweight are seen as symptoms of complex and interconnected issues—genetic, environmental, and psychological—that cannot be addressed by medication alone.

Personalized Care Matters 

As a future nutritionist, I aim to collaborate with individuals, their doctors, and therapists to promote a care approach that encourages eating wholly—focusing on unprocessed foods that support heart and brain health—and emphasizes long-term well-being by shifting the focus from merely being "thin" to achieving mental and physical health, fostering resilience for our families and society.

Dietitians highlight that GLP-1s should be considered like "training wheels on a bicycle"—a temporary aid to help patients develop new, healthier habits before discontinuing the medication (Despain & Hoffman, 2024). This metaphor offers a compassionate perspective: if the drug is needed temporarily to quiet the overwhelming "food noise," it can be a positive step toward stability. However, the medication merely supports the transition; it does not replace the effort required.

This comprehensive approach relies on three key elements for cultivating lifelong skills:

1. Personalized Nutritional Plans: Moving beyond one-size-fits-all advice to craft sustainable diets tailored to each individual's lifestyle and tolerances, with an ongoing emphasis on sufficient protein and fiber to preserve lean muscle mass (Despain & Hoffman, 2024).
2. Psychological Support: Providing counseling to address mental health, body image, and the stigma linked to weight struggles, which ensures that underlying issues are effectively treated.
3. Lifelong Skills Development: Encouraging habits such as managing stress, optimizing sleep quality, and practicing intuitive eating—skills that can support lasting health beyond the use of medication.

The process is different for everyone, and we must be wary of how the social media craze, which can be difficult for people like me with a complex weight history, prescribes quick and unhealthy fixes. Instead, we can find contentment in making better choices for ourselves, recognizing that improving our lifestyle can make a more profound, more lasting impact. The real victory is a wellness shift—a movement of individuals, including those in recovery, who are working hard to be their best selves and finding encouragement to appreciate character outside of our bodies. The true path to liberation is not the fastest shot or the smallest size, but the gradual and dedicated work of building a sustainable relationship with your body that values its function, resilience, and inherent worth.

References 

Carscadden, T. A. (2025). Optimizing Endogenous GLP-1 Holistically: A nursing led approach to sustainable weight loss without GLP-1 agonist use. https://doi.org/10.33015/dominican.edu/2025.NURS.ST.39. 

Dane, A., & Bhatia, K. (2023). The social media diet: A scoping review to investigate the association between social media, body image and eating disorders amongst young people. PLOS Global Public Health, 3(3), e0001091. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pgph.0001091&type=printable. 

Despain, D., & Hoffman, B. L. (2024). Optimizing nutrition, diet, and lifestyle communication in GLP-1 medication therapy for weight management: A qualitative research study with registered dietitians. Obesity Pillars, 12, 100143. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667368124000457. 

Fox, N., Ward, K., & O'rourke, A. (2005). Pro‐anorexia, weight‐loss drugs and the internet: an ‘anti‐recovery’explanatory model of anorexia. Sociology of health & illness, 27(7), 944-971. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1467-9566.2005.00465.x. 

Guerdjikova, A. I., Ward, A., Ontiveros, M., & McElroy, S. L. (2024). Semaglutide misuse in atypical anorexia nervosa—a case report. Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, 44(2), 179-180. https://journals.lww.com/psychopharmacology/citation/2024/03000/semaglutide_misuse_in_atypical_anorexia_nervosa_a.15.aspx. 

Markey, C. H., August, K. J., Malik, D., & Richeson, A. (2025). Body image and interest in GLP-1 weight loss medications. Body Image, 53, 101890. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1740144525000415. 

Omar, S. (2025). “Oh, oh, oh, Ozempic!” 1: The Glamorization of Ozempic and Restrictive Eating Disorders. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Delivery.cfm?abstractid=5243583. 

Reardon, R. E. (2025). Implications of Ozempic: A Semaglutide with Peptide (GLP)-1 Receptor Agonists Misused for Cosmetic Weight Loss. Undergraduate Research Journal for the Human Sciences, 18(2025), 5. https://newprairiepress.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1152&context=urjhs. 

Williams, A., & Monier, M. (2024). Oprah and Ozempic: a commentary on Oprah Winfrey’s “shame, blame and the weight loss revolution”. Critical Studies in Media Communication, 41(3), 263-268. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/15295036.2024.2393755. 

Fact or Feeling? Why the Phototherapy Patch Deserves a Critical But Open-Minded Look

Kassaundra Ferm 

5 December 2025 

Mother with X39 

It can feel like the world of wellness is constantly introducing revolutionary and non-invasive technologies, and the LifeWave X39 patch—which my own mother now sells to her friends through social media—sits squarely at the center of this conversation, promising a fresh approach to health. As a skeptical scientist, I instinctively look at these ventures with a critical eye, especially given my long-standing apprehension toward Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) structures. My mother, however, defends LifeWave by arguing that it's different, suggesting one can actually out-earn those above them. Still, to me, the ultimate assessment must rest on the integrity of the product itself. My mother now claims that this non-transdermal wellness device, which is said to harness the body's own energy, can produce profound health benefits, primarily by elevating the natural human peptide GHK-Cu (Schmidt & Haltiwanger, 2025; Connor et al., 2021). The astounding claims by founder David Schmidt and his company range from enhanced wound healing to improved endurance, and I am driven by an honest desire to find out: what does the unbiased scientific record truly show? Here, I want to determine if this technology is a genuine paradigm shift supported by hidden science or simply a sophisticated placebo. 

My skeptical journey began a couple of months ago when my mother, having met a woman online who shared incredible testimonials about healing inflammation and regaining energy with the x39 patches, joined this new venture. Her initial motivation was personal: she was sleeping constantly, suffering from severe energy depletion, and experiencing hair loss and arthritic pain that no doctor could solve. As she told me, she thought, "What can hurt—this technology is all-natural, made with no chemicals, and seems too good to be true, and I was willing to try anything to feel better." She was immediately skeptical of the testimonials, calling them "unbelievable" herself. Still, her personal shift was dramatic: after two weeks of feeling worse with the patches, she woke up one morning excited, mentally clear, and energetic, and found herself sleeping through the night for the first time in years. Her arthritis pain vanished, and even her severe menopause symptoms were gone. This level of anecdotal healing compelled me, as a scientist who prefers to base efficacy on peer-reviewed research rather than on feelings or testimonials, to investigate the science behind the patch.

The founder of LifeWave, David Schmidt, claims the X39 patch is capable of nothing less than stem cell regeneration (Schmidt & Haltiwanger, 2025), claiming the small disc can relieve pain, heal wounds, and provide dramatically greater energy levels just from being placed on the skin (Schmidt & Haltiwanger, 2025). The company supports these astounding claims using its own documentation. For example, the paper by Connor et al. (2021)—authors most likely affiliated with the company and whose work requires critical scrutiny—aims to introduce the "science" behind the patch. This double-blind study explicitly claims to show that using the X39 patch results in a significant increase in the blood circulation of the vital peptide GHK-Cu after just one week (Connor et al., 2021). By providing this "evidence," the company attempts to validate its central hypothesis: that the device works by stimulating the body's own regeneration pathways. Given that my mother has even started putting the patches on my dog (for reasons I still can’t reasonably ascertain), I must decide whether to believe the claims of a businessman whose intention is to make a profit off of people who are sick, or if the patches represent an effective treatment for people with chronic pain and inflammation.

David Schmidt of LifeWave

The entire promise of the X39 patch hinges on its purported ability to elevate the human peptide Glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine (GHK-Cu). There is certainly no debate in the scientific community that this is a potent and regenerative molecule. Independent research affirms GHK-Cu's remarkable qualities, including regenerative and protective actions, the capacity to activate stem cells, support tissue healing, increase nerve and blood vessel growth, and function as a potent anti-inflammatory agent (Pickart & Margolina, 2018; Kneller, 2024). The established science provides the fertile ground for the LifeWave claim: that the patch can increase serum concentrations of GHK-Cu, the age-declining peptide, by over 60 percent, thereby unlocking its youthful potential for recovery and regeneration (Connor et al., 2021; Kneller, 2024). 

The fundamental scientific challenge lies in the patch’s proposed mechanism of action, which is passive phototherapy. For readers unfamiliar with this concept, it essentially means therapy using light without any active, electrical energy source. It is the difference between using a solar panel and a mirror. The scientific field the patch aims to associate with is Photobiomodulation (PBM), a legitimate and actively researched therapeutic modality (Zupin et al., 2019). PBM is a cornerstone of regenerative medicine because it uses specific wavelengths of light to stimulate cellular metabolism, reduce inflammation, and accelerate tissue repair. For example, research has demonstrated the analgesic efficacy of PBM by showing that it modulates pain signaling pathways in vitro and in vivo (Zupin et al., 2019).

Despite these positive outcomes, PBM operates under vastly different principles than the X39 patch. An established PBM requires an active, powered light source, such as low-level lasers or LEDs, to deliver a controlled, measured dose of light energy to the targeted tissues (Zupin et al., 2019). This requirement for active power is consistent even in high-tech, wearable health applications. For instance, sophisticated ultrastretchable thermotherapy patches, which deliver therapeutic heat, are themselves significant engineering feats, relying on electrically heated copper interconnects (Hussain et al., 2015). The purpose of the copper in the thermotherapy patch is to conduct electricity and dissipate up to 1.5 W of power to create a measurable physiological change, such as elevating skin temperature by several degrees (Hussain et al., 2015). In this context, the X39 patch is similar to the thermotherapy device because both are flexible and highly stretchable. Still, they are fundamentally different because the copper patch is electronic and powered to create a specific, targeted therapeutic effect, whereas the X39 patch uses no external power at all.

Furthermore, the importance of quantifiable, sufficient light intensity is underscored by studies that have explored using a simple reflective patch to augment the intensity of existing, powerful phototherapy devices used in neonatal care (Amneenah, 2022). Their study showed that while reflection can enhance light, it must be combined with an already powerful, active light source to be effective.

X39 Patch Impacts 

In sharp contrast to these powered and quantified approaches, the LifeWave X39 patch is an entirely different, non-transdermal product—meaning absolutely no drugs, chemicals, or other substances are absorbed into the body (Kneller, 2024; Schmidt & Haltiwanger, 2025). The adhesive patch works passively: it contains proprietary compounds and organic materials (Schmidt & Haltiwanger, 2025) that are activated by body heat. David Schmidt describes this process in terms of "nanoscale semiconducting biomolecular antennas" that filter and reflect specific wavelengths of the body’s own naturally emitted infrared light back into the tissue (Jarry, 2025; Schmidt & Haltiwanger, 2025). Essentially, your body's heat and light emissions hit the patch's crystals, which then supposedly resonate and signal specific biological responses, thereby stimulating the body to increase GHK-Cu production (Kneller, 2024; Schmidt & Haltiwanger, 2025).

This reliance on passive reflection, however, is the central point of contention for external reviewers. The idea that a tiny patch can passively gather and reflect enough energy from the body’s extremely weak natural light emissions to trigger a significant, system-wide biological change, such as peptide synthesis, is considered scientifically implausible and nonsensical by independent critics, pushing the technology into the realm of speculation (Jarry, 2025). Jonathan Jarry of McGill University, who comes from a strong scientific background, states that this explanation is an "indistinguishable from the nonsensical smorgasbord" often seen in the wellness industry, where magical notions are mixed with scientific concepts (Jarry, 2025). He asks the logical question: If the body is already emitting this energy, and a tiny patch merely reflects it back, how can the patch possibly reflect enough energy to cause such profound, body-wide effects? The failure of the proposed passive mechanism to align with established laws of physics and energy transfer is why the technology remains highly scrutinized.

When assessing the patch’s efficacy, it is vital to separate the internal data used by the company from any independent, controlled studies. The limited positive evidence supporting the claims comes primarily from internal sources and anecdotal case reports. For instance, a double-blind study reported a significant increase in GHK-Cu levels following patch use (Connor et al., 2021). This is bolstered by a single case report involving an elderly patient with a pacemaker pocket infection where the adjunctive use of the X39 patch was observed to accelerate wound closure by an estimated 40%–50% relative to comparable cases, with the patient also reporting secondary benefits like improved appetite and alertness (Kneller, 2024).

However, the author of this very case report, Dr. Kneller (2024), provides critical context that a skeptical scientist must heed. While noting the rapid healing, he explicitly warns that, because it is a single, uncontrolled observation—meaning there was no identical patient who received the same treatment without the patch—no definitive conclusions can be drawn about the patch’s role in the healing process (Kneller, 2024). This highlights a significant issue of observational bias in medical reporting: when a patient is doing well, it is easy to attribute the positive outcome to a new and promising intervention, even though the body's natural healing process or other treatments may have been the primary cause. Dr. Kneller concludes that the most positive takeaway is simply that the patch "may represent a promising tool" (Kneller, 2024). Still, this cautious language falls far short of confirming a scientific mechanism.

Dr. Kneller Wearing X39 

Furthermore, external reviewers have definitively dismissed the quality of the positive, company-affiliated research, labeling it as "shockingly bad quality" and suggesting it lacks the academic rigor necessary for strong scientific acceptance (Jarry, 2025). Jarry, coming from the McGill University Office for Science and Society, criticizes these reports not out of malice but out of a need for scientific congruence, pointing out that when the studies are inconsistent. The mechanism is unbelievable, the evidence must be extraordinarily robust, but these studies are not (Jarry, 2025). 

Conversely, independent researchers who investigated the patch’s performance claims in a controlled setting have yielded negative results that directly refute the company's marketing claims. LifeWave claims that the patch shifts metabolism to favor fat burning, thereby sparing glycogen and improving endurance. To test this, a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study was conducted on trained collegiate cross-country runners (Fiddler et al., 2011). The results were a categorical failure for the product: the study found no significant differences between the patch group and the placebo group for key performance indicators, including maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max), time to exhaustion (TTE), or maximum heart rate (HR_max) (Fiddler et al., 2011). In a direct refutation of Schmidt's metabolic claim, the experimental group recorded a significantly higher Respiratory Exchange Ratio (RER) during the initial exercise stage, which indicates a shift away from the claimed fat-burning toward carbohydrate utilization (Fiddler et al., 2011). The controlled data from Fiddler et al. provides a non-biased counterpoint to the compelling but scientifically weak anecdotal reports from the LifeWave company. 

The journey into the science of the LifeWave X39 patch reveals a fascinating dichotomy: a product that attempts to merge the established biological benefits of the proven GHK-Cu peptide with the therapeutic potential of Photobiomodulation (Schmidt & Haltiwanger, 2025; Zupin et al., 2019). While the independent scientific literature, particularly the controlled study on endurance (Fiddler et al., 2011), raises skepticism about the efficacy of X39, personal testimonials tell a compelling story.

For many, including my own mother, the patches have been nothing short of a transformational experience, lifting debilitating fatigue, relieving chronic arthritic pain, and promoting clear and restorative sleep. The flood of positive anecdotal reports found online and within the community suggests a tangible benefit for countless customers. From this perspective, the lack of rigorous, concrete, unbiased scientific data is less a condemnation of the therapy itself and more a reflection of the challenges non-pharmaceutical wellness modalities face in obtaining large-scale research funding.

While the scientific establishment points to a significant gap in the evidence, particularly concerning the proposed mechanism—passive light reflection—the company defends its approach. Critics argue that the lack of an active, measurable energy source makes the proposition scientifically implausible (Jarry, 2025), questioning how a tiny patch could reflect enough energy to trigger a system-wide biological change. However, David Schmidt has secured patents for this technology (Jarry, 2025), driven by his observations of benefits for his clients and customers, which validate the development effort from an innovator's perspective. It is entirely possible that there is a subtle biophotonic or bioresonant mechanism at play that current large-scale studies are not yet designed to detect.

The skepticism within the scientific consensus is indeed compounded by the product's distribution model, which is a Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) structure that favors the enthusiastic sharing of personal stories over validation through randomized trials (Jarry, 2025). This structure, while challenging to the scientific method, is precisely what makes the experiences—like my mother's complete turnaround—so widely known. Even the attribution of these powerful positive experiences to the well-documented placebo effect (Jarry, 2025) is not necessarily a negative outcome. If a non-invasive and non-chemical intervention—such as the X39 patch—can trigger the body's own innate healing mechanisms to such a profound degree, resulting in relief from chronic conditions, then it holds immense value for those individuals seeking help.

Resource From LifeWave

The X39 patch offers an intriguing, non-invasive, and chemical-free alternative that has genuinely benefited many individuals. My recommendation is not to fear this lack of concrete, unbiased science, but to view the patch through a critical lens. For anyone experiencing chronic inflammation, low energy, or pain, the X39 patch can be considered a holistic and complementary therapy. It is, however, crucial that the patch is used alongside foundational lifestyle changes, such as implementing a healthy diet, incorporating regular exercise, and ensuring optimal sleep and a low-stress environment. Just as the product is meant to amplify the body's natural energy, it should also be seen as a tool to amplify the benefits of a commitment to overall wellness. Based on what I've seen it do for my mother, it is a low-risk option that people seeking alternatives should certainly research for themselves.

References 

Amneenah, A. (2022). Comparison of diagnostic accuracy of transcutaneous bilirubinometry during phototherapy by using skin patch. International Journal of Health Sciences, 6, 7276-7288. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Delivery.cfm?abstractid=4119045. 

Connor, C., Connor, M., Yue, D., Eickhoff, J., & Wagner, S. (2021). Double-blind testing of the Lifewave X39 patch to determine GHK-Cu production levels. Internal Med Res Open J, 6(1), 1-3. https://lifewave.dorleta.es/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/double-blind.pdf. 

Fiddler, R. E., Smith, D. B., Jacobson, B. H., Klein, C. D., Warren, A. J., O'Brien, M. S., Thompson, B. J., & Everett, K. L. (2011). The Effect of Energy Patches on Substrate Utilization in Collegiate Cross-Country Runners. International journal of exercise science, 4(2), 113–121. https://doi.org/10.70252/OZWD7744.  

Hussain, A. M., Lizardo, E. B., Torres Sevilla, G. A., Nassar, J. M., & Hussain, M. M. (2015). Ultrastretchable and flexible copper interconnect‐based smart patch for adaptive thermotherapy. Advanced healthcare materials, 4(5), 665-673. https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/90287544/adhm.20140064720220826-1-163wwmt-libre.pdf. 

Jarry, J. (2025). Patchy Science on LifeWave’s Mysterious Patches. Office for Science and Society, McGill University. https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/pseudoscience-technology/patchy-science-lifewaves-mysterious-patches.  

Kneller, J. (2024). Phototherapy to Facilitate Wound Healing Following Pacemaker Infection: A Promising Tool to Improve Outcomes. The Journal of Innovations in Cardiac Rhythm Management, 15(12), 6122. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11717157/. 

Pickart, L., & Margolina, A. (2018). Regenerative and protective actions of the GHK-Cu peptide in the light of the new gene data. International journal of molecular sciences, 19(7), 1987. https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/19/7/1987. 

Schmidt, D., & Haltiwanger, S. (2025). LifeWave: The Story of the X39. LifeWave. https://static.showit.co/file/ilaH5F0ITp2C4M10M6okQQ/117381/lifewave-the-story-of-the-x39.pdf

Zupin, L., Ottaviani, G., Rupel, K., Biasotto, M., Zacchigna, S., Crovella, S., & Celsi, F. (2019). Analgesic effect of Photobiomodulation Therapy: An in vitro and in vivo study. Journal of biophotonics, 12(10), e201900043. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/jbio.201900043.