Diabetes treatment drug Mounjaro (photo provided by a woman using it for weight loss).
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The expanding use of diabetes medications such as Mounjaro (tirzepatide) for weight loss, along with illegal peer-to-peer sales on social media, has raised growing concerns.
According to Dr. Tomohiro Yasuda, a health sciences professor at Seirei Christopher University, one factor behind this trend is a social value system that positively associates thinness with attractiveness. He adds that young people are frequently exposed on social media to influencer posts and word-of-mouth content promoting beauty ideals and quick, convenient ways to lose weight.
Social Media and Thinness Ideals
Terms such as “Cinderella weight” are widely circulated online as benchmarks for an ideal female body shape, and exposure to such concepts is increasingly common among younger people.
Yasuda notes that even when individuals intellectually understand that these standards are not medically valid, their ideal body image still tends to favor thinness.
According to a 2024 survey by Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, about one in six women in their 20s and 30s has a BMI below 18.5, which is classified as underweight.
Data from the World Health Organization also show that Japan has the highest proportion of underweight adult women among OECD countries—a trend that some observers find notable in a relatively wealthy nation.
Underweight Health Risks
Dr. Yasuda also points out that being underweight can increase health risks, including menstrual disorders, complications during pregnancy and childbirth, and later-life conditions such as osteoporosis and sarcopenia (age-related muscle loss), which may ultimately require long-term care.
He further warns that even if one trend favoring extreme thinness fades, it may simply be replaced by another similar ideal. He stresses the importance of education in health and information literacy, as well as ensuring that medical decisions are made with proper guidance rather than being left entirely to individuals without sufficient information.
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Author: Ai Hashimoto, The Sankei Shimbun
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