The "wellness" industry and chronic illness

[Leavesofautumn]

I just need to have a rant about this. It seems that the wellness industry is really for people who are already well in the first place. I have a chronic illness and I don't see how spending £50 on your bespoke, artisan vitamin supplements is going to make me feel any better.

Also, yoga doesn't cure serious diseases. HTH.

YANBU.

A lot of people don't realise good health is a privilege.

What does HTH mean? I agree, there is a lot to be critical about the wellness industry. There is research that large amounts of many vitamins do nothing, just get flushed out to expensive wee.

Honestly the best things are the simple things, sensible diet, exercise, sleep. Just ignore, skim over the adverts, and change personalised advert settings.

Yoga does not cure serious illnesses. It is good though generally.

HTH - hope that helps

Bespoke vitamins are a scam anyway, just buy a cheap multivitamin with iron and get on with it.

I take an extremely high dose of Vit B2 (riboflavin) for migraine prevention, plus Feverfew, magnesium and a bunch of other stuff - all evidence-based and recommended by neurology. My neurologist wrote the available guidance on the subject! That's a VERY different beast from some shill company (or god forbid, MLM) trying to sell me ££££ versions of the same thing I buy in Holland and Barratt.

I don’t think the industry was ever intended to be be able to cure chronic illness, but there are lots of very different things that people can try and if it helps, whether or not they are technically ill, then what’s the problem?

Was anyone ever stupid enough to believe that yoga cures serious diseases? I doubt it. But again, if it can help well people be as healthy as they can be, or if it can help people with chronic conditions maintain their flexibility or mental health, which it often does, then why the need to make digs about it?

I've been recommended loads of things by doctors that they wouldn't prescribe, but suggested I buy. The purveyors of these items, e.g. glucosamine, charcoal tablets, are I suppose 'the wellness industry'.

The recommended products were an absolute waste of money and glossed over the fact I needed actual treatment for chronic autoimmune conditions (a) psoriatic arthritis, and (b) abdominal pain.

So yeah, the 'wellness industry' can be a bit of a fob-off and rip-off.

But yoga and gentle stretches are a good thing for minor aches and pains.

Whenever I think of the wellness industry or clean living I can't help but think of that Mitchell and Webb sketch.

There is much money to be made touting snake oil and false hope. Much of the wellness injury is designed to prey upon the vulnerable or those desperate for help.

Wellness definitely has its place in the 'holistic' side of things.

Its never going to cure cancer or other major illnesses but it can help all the other issues that the GP can't help with.

And yes I agree some people sell snake oil but they do in all industries.

The NHS feel that Yoga has its place in health as they have a page dedicated to it.

Vitamins from good quality foods are far superior but in some circumstances supplementation can be very beneficial.

@DillonPanthersTexas

Whenever I think of the wellness industry or clean living I can't help but think of that Mitchell and Webb sketch.

I don't suppose you could post a link? I could do with a laugh today

Thank you, @DillonPanthersTexas

@Cazzovuoi

Vitamins from good quality foods are far superior but in some circumstances supplementation can be very beneficial.

Agree with this. I’m on 400mg vitamin B2 supplement for migraine, at the instruction of my neurologist. The best food source of B2 is steak, I’d need to eat over 40 kilos per day to get the same amount.

@Cazzovuoi

Vitamins from good quality foods are far superior but in some circumstances supplementation can be very beneficial.

Right, but the point is that decent vitamin supplements don't have to cost £70 just because of marketing. Plenty of people with chronic illness take supplements, myself included, many of which can be bought from an average pharmacy. You don't need to buy into the "wellness" thing to take vitamin D.

There is a lot of taking advantage of vulnerable, desperate people. :(

@DillonPanthersTexas That sketch is making fun of homeopathy. Not the same thing as the wellness industry.

I sort of agree with you, but I don't think its fair to stereotype everyone using wellness/woo methods as the over-privileged healthy. I mean yes I'm sure they exist (cough Gwyneth cough) but a lot of the time they are filling in gaps in provision from healthcare providers. Women's health issues in particular are often overlooked/played down which I think is part of the reason why women are more likely to be into wellness. And it is easy to downplay that as being "spoiled" but actually, I don't think it is spoiled or precious to not want to live with double incontinence post child birth, or permanent pain during intercourse, or post-traumatic stress etc etc, just because "you survived and the baby was healthy and that's the main thing". Being "listened to" by wellness providers can make a welcome change from being dismissed by doctors. Before actually giving birth, floaty one with your body, magic of creation woo can be much more appealing if the only alternative is a medicalised conveyor belt,
Likewise, part of the reason homeopathy became so popular in the US is because it is cheaper overall than conventional medicine (of course it is, sugar pills and water are cheap). So, if you don't have a good health plan/lots of money then it can seem more attractive.

The only problem is homeopathy and a lot of "wellness" guff at best doesn't work, and at worst can be actively harmful (e.g. people being encouraged to avoid chemotherapy in favour of homeopathy, or to freebirth). But it isn't just snake oil salesmen taking advantage, it also in many cases a symptom of health systems failing people, particularly those suffering chronic conditions (because actually quality of life does matter)

I used to work as a Healthy Living Worker, withing the group of charities I still vounteer in. I set up all sorts of classes, from yoga, to healthy eating, to diabetic care, smoking cessation, parenting etc etc etc. Properly holistic, in tandem with GPs, HVs, DNs etc, based on the needs of the often functionally illiterate client base.

Overtime I was approached by very many snake oil salesmen. High priced tablets for this that and the other. We got the local chemist, who all of our clients knew and trusted, and he showed them how the very cheap bottles he carried were the same as the Snake Oil stuff, just about 2% of the cost. We set up a referral line specifically for supplements, bypassed Snake Oil man and his colleagues completely! We even collected their leaflets and used them to advertise the referral line.

So I know exactly what you mean @Leavesofautumn

I rely on cheap and cheerful B12 tablets, 1000mcg, for my aneamia. A year's worth should cost about £10. But the posh packets, ones you see advertised in magazines on telly etc, are about £15 for just 60.

You're not wrong. I've had it a few times from the likes of forever living that they can cure my thyroid issues

No... No you really can't

One of the worst examples being Somali communities in both the US and Wales noticing surprisingly high incidences of autism in their children - when the condition was largely unheard of in Somalia. They were fobbed of for a long time, until guess which group came along to listen to them and provide a likely culprit...

I do think yoga has a place though. It depends what you mean by "serious disease" - if you mean cancer of the spine then no, it cant help. if you mean chronic back pain due to poor posture/work environment then yes it can really help (and I know back pain isn't serious in the sense of life-threatening), but it can be horrendous long term.
And it has a place alongside other treatments for lots of issues. e.g. it can help with depression/anxiety - but no doctor should (or be in a position where they have to) be telling a severely depressed patient "sorry there's a 9 month waiting list for NHS counselling. Try yoga and breathing through your nose instead"

Yoga has helped me hugely with stress, which in turn has improved my general well-being & health, so YABU.

Just do what you want to do, no need for digs at things that others find helpful.

@apalledandshocked Yes, yoga helps with various aches and pains, but for me this is more about the higher claims that are made. I've met numerous yoga people who make all sorts of claims including that it can stop cancer, or who recommend treatments that are utter nonsense for people with very serious conditions.

I still haven't managed to explain my long of view properly. When I talk about wellness, I'm thinking more of people who get into it as a lifestyle, who keep saying how amazing they feel from juicing etc. It doesn't have to be Gwynneth Paltrow-level stuff, it's more about the attitude.

I just feel like a lot of the people who are into this stuff are "playing shop" and doing it for fun. Apart from money, there's a certain health privilege of being well enough to be able to use this stuff in the first place. For example, people with Crohn's flareups are not going to do juicing. People who are housebound are not going to go to a spa. Maybe I'm wrong, but my perception of wellness enthusiasts is that they were more or less well in the first place and have no idea what it's like to have serious chronic medical conditions. I find myself resenting them all because they're mainly doing this stuff for fun. And yes I do do yoga, but it still doesn't cure any of my serious medical problems, just helps me stretch.