What Bieber Fever Can Teach Us About Food Allergies
“Hey everyone. Justin here. I wanted to update you guys on what’s been going on. Obviously, as you can probably see from my face, I have this syndrome…”
This is an excerpt from the video that changed it all, opening society’s eyes to rare health conditions that tend to be overlooked. Acclaimed singer Justin Bieber recently opened up to his fans on Instagram reels about his Ramsay Hunt syndrome, causing media interest to spike. In fact, according to GoogleTrends, which reports on search patterns through the platform, curiosity regarding the condition is at an all time high, earning it a score of 100, meaning “peak popularity for the term.”
This is not the first time a celebrity has notified the public about their health struggles, nor is it novel that concerns surge because of this communication. If you really ponder on it, this notion is fairly logical, as these famous figures seem to be constantly updating their followers about their everyday endeavors. Research has even supported this concept, with investigators from the School of Communications at Ohio University finding that “celebrity health narratives have shaped and will continue to shape and reconstitute public dialogues about health, illness, and well-being.” These researchers examined 157 celebrity chronicles, discovering that these well known personalities serve “to educate, to inspire, and to impact public policy and funding through activist efforts.” Now that it is clear that famous figures dictate attentiveness to particular health conditions, it is about time we bring our focus to food allergies.
Food allergies, unlike Ramsay Hunt syndrome, have a varying, oscillating media interest.
Because of this fluctuation, I believe that celebrity conversations are necessary in order to bring this topic to life. There are numerous celebrities that the general public barely knows struggle with food allergies. In fact, Bieber himself even noted he was “officially allergic to gluten” via a post on his Instagram story.
Bieber is not the sole figure living with these allergy struggles. Another popular singer, Kelly Clarkson, admitted in a 2013 tweet that she is “allergic to a lot of stuff.”
At this point, it would be reasonable to think that this issue is irrelevant, as celebrities are communicating about these allergy challenges. While this conception is not completely incorrect, these celebrities are constructing a narrative that is not necessarily false, but instead negative. These popular personalities have every right to complain to their following and express their conflicts; however, by doing so, they are creating a perception that allergies are something to hate and to fear. Uncovering that someone has a food allergy does not have to be the “worst news ever,” nor do those with food allergies have to “live in a bubble.” It is time that celebrities step out of this bubble that they have generated in order to produce a new, more positive interpretation, educating their fans about food allergy safety and acceptance.
So, how can this information be disseminated? Well, the first way to answer this query would be by recognizing celebrities who have food allergies. Stormi Webster is allergic to nuts, something that her mother, Kylie Jenner, recently spoke about in a Harper’s BAZAAR video.
“We are a peanut-free household because Stormi is allergic. All nuts, actually, not just peanuts,” Jenner explained.
The distinguished influencer and businesswoman also shared her allergy discovery in 2019, and how this was challenging to her as a mother, writing, “Nothing else matters when these things happen. God bless all the moms with sick babies.”
By posting and distributing appreciation and methods for ensuring the security of those with food allergies, Jenner is already beginning to reconstruct the way the media perceives allergies. According to Insider, a media news site, Ariana Grande, Mason Disick (Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick’s son), Serena Williams, Sabrina Carpenter, Zooey Deschanel, Malia Obama, Miley Cyrus, and more are among the influential personalities with food allergies that can and should be sharing their experiences in order to normalize and popularize the food allergy discussion.
References
Beck, C. S., Aubuchon, S. M., McKenna, T. P., Ruhl, S., & Simmons, N. (2013). Blurring personal health and public priorities: An analysis of celebrity health narratives in the Public Sphere. Health Communication, 29(3), 244–256. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2012.741668
Bieber, J. [@justinbieber]. (2022, June 10). IMPORTANT PLEASE WATCH. I love you guys and keep me in your prayers [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.instagram.com/tv/CeorE9OjqX9/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
Clarkson, K. [kellyclarkson]. (2013, March 11). News flash : I’m allergic to a lot of stuff. I am now officially going to live in a bubble. Look out Flaming Lips, I’m stealing your idea! [Tweet]. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/kellyclarkson/status/311190379439476736
Everything Kylie Jenner Eats in a Day | Food Diaries: Bite Size | Harper’s BAZAAR. (2020, February 4). [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFbwKRvlhjc
Gluten Free Living. (2019, October 17). Justin Bieber ‘officially allergic’ to gluten — gluten-free living. Gluten Free Living. Retrieved June 27, 2022, from https://www.glutenfreeliving.com/blog/justin-bieber-officially-allergic-to-gluten/
Google Trends. (n.d.). Food allergy Interest over time. Google Trends. Retrieved June 27, 2022, from https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?geo=US&q=%2Fm%2F03282z
Google Trends. (n.d.). Ramsay Hunt syndrome Interest over time. Google Trends. Retrieved June 27, 2022, from https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?q=%2Fg%2F11csrqq35l&geo=US
Saunders, N. (2021, November 2). Kylie Jenner spent the day in the hospital with Baby Stormi Webster. Harper’s BAZAAR. Retrieved June 27, 2022, from https://www.harpersbazaar.com/celebrity/latest/a27697936/kylie-jenner-hospital-stormi-webster-allergic-reaction/
