If you’re someone who goes to the gym, eats healthy, and spends way too much time on X, odds are you’ve stumbled across the fascinating world of Health Twitter™ — a community, thousands strong, of everyday poasters (some with medical expertise, some most definitely without) touting the benefits of everything from parasite cleanses and Red Light therapy to sunning one’s testicles before a cold plunge. Over the years, I myself have become a frequenter of this community, and have been memed into turning myself into a science experiment on more than one occasion, putting some of these unconventional health practices to the test. Some have had little noticeable effect; others completely changed my life, helping me perform at my cognitive and physical best; still others sound so ridiculous I’ll probably never try them in my life (sorry, Peaters — I won’t be chugging Coke every day, no matter what “thermodynamic effect” it has on my metabolism).

But within the strange, beautiful confines of Health Twitter, consensus is far from a guarantee. In fact, stark divides have recently emerged in the community, turning a group that was once united in their shared desire to do weird things to their bodies and post about it online into distinct tribes that are increasingly hostile towards one another.

A common dividing line? Whether the path to human health is best found through a Lindy, “RETVRN” sort of approach, utilizing ancient, esoteric practices like spending plentiful time in the sun and rejecting the unhealthy characteristics of the modern world; or whether this path should instead be forward-thinking, scientific, and lean into modernity rather than reject it, utilizing 21st century innovations like pharmacological enhancements and biometric data wherever possible.