Social media without fact-checking: another minefield for midlife women
When I heard that Meta decided to remove fact-checking on Facebook and Instagram, I felt a genuine wave of concern. These platforms are often lifelines for women navigating midlife and menopause, offering community and information at their fingertips. But without any mechanisms to verify what’s true and what’s not, the risks of misinformation spreading unchecked are huge—and as someone who works closely with women in this life stage, I find this deeply troubling.
Let’s be honest: midlife can be overwhelming. Your body is changing, your hormones are fluctuating, and it can feel like you’re drowning in advice about what to do, eat, or avoid.
Social media often becomes the first place we turn for answers, but now that fact-checking is gone, it’s more likely than ever that women will encounter unverified health claims or pseudoscientific nonsense. Whether it’s miracle supplements or fad diets promising quick fixes, these misleading messages can waste your time, money, and energy—and they’re not just frustrating; they can also be harmful.
One area that really worries me is diet culture. It’s always lurking on these platforms, waiting to prey on women who feel vulnerable about their changing bodies. Without fact-checking, the floodgates are open for even more ads and posts pushing “hormone-reset” diets or “get-your-body-back” schemes. These messages feed into the toxic narrative that you have to fight against your body, rather than work with it. This is the last thing women need when they’re already feeling confused or self-conscious.
Another issue is the rise of fear-based posts that thrive on misinformation. Whether it’s about aging, hormone replacement therapy (HRT), or exaggerated health risks tied to menopause, these posts can spread like wildfire. And the worst part? They make women second-guess evidence-based treatments and sometimes even their own doctors. This erosion of trust in credible information leaves women feeling even more isolated and unsure about how to make the right choices for their health.
Here’s the thing: misinformation isn’t going anywhere, but that’s why I’m so passionate about providing reliable, evidence-based guidance to the women I work with. I believe we need to push back against the noise by educating ourselves and others on how to spot myths and evaluate health claims critically. It’s about fostering conversations based on facts and offering support that’s compassionate, realistic, and effective.
Midlife and menopause deserve honest, empowering discussions—not fear-mongering or quick fixes. My mission is to help women feel confident and informed so they can take control of their health, even in a digital landscape that’s becoming more chaotic. Let’s build spaces where truth and support rise above the confusion. Because at the end of the day, you deserve better than misinformation—you deserve to thrive.