The Way We Live Now

Why Some Teenage Girls Are Trading Medicine for MAHA

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By Coralie Kraft Photographs by Elinor Carucci

March 27, 2026

The newest evangelists of the Make America Healthy Again lifestyle aren’t muscled bros crushing reps or wellness moms posting about vaccine schedules — they’re high-school- and college-aged young women. In another, not-too-distant era, they might have channeled their energy into writing “Twilight” fan fiction or playing beer pong. In this era, they’re making “pizza crust” from ground meat, perfecting their supplement regimens and posting Instagram reels about the supposed dangers of Tylenol and seed oils.

For many of them, the path to MAHA followed a similar trajectory: chronic health problems, disappointing encounters with the medical establishment and a search for more satisfying answers. They emerged with some often unproven scientific advice and a message of empowerment: Our chemical-soaked, overmedicated modern lifestyle is making us sick, but we can heal ourselves and reclaim our health by taking charge of what we put into our bodies.