AIBU to think "Wellness gurus" are mostly spouting bollocks?

[WellnessWally]

I was referred to Nuffield Health for their joint pain programme and had my "Health MOT" with the lady I had assumed was a physio (she runs the twice-weekly exercise class). Retrospectively, I think she was more a salesperson, as I had to hear all about their ongoing fees, children's membership etc. but that's perhaps another issue.

During the health MOT, I'd had to disclose other medical conditions - for me, mainly migraines. She asked me how much liquid I drank a day, and I said about 5 cups of tea. She acted as though I said I regularly shot heroin into my eyeballs. She told me that tea was no good and caffeine was dehydrating, and I wasn't getting ANY water at all. I know a little bit about this, so I said that actually yes, if you have pure caffeine it's dehydrating, but the amount of water in tea more than makes up for that. (Many studies have shown this.) She was insistent that I needed water or would become very ill. I said that I'd managed to survive so far - and it had probably been about two weeks since I had an actual glass of water.

Then she really pissed me off by telling me that's why I get migraines. I said to her that they were hormonal, I can pin the day of the month I'm going to get them and they are (hard-won) well-managed with medication. My daughter and my dad also get them, so there's a strong genetic link and it has nothing to do with caffeine. She disagreed.

I'm just so sick of people with no GCSEs in science spouting quasi-medical bollocks in what was basically a medical setting (I was referred by my GP). I'm not looking forward to seeing this woman twice a week for the next twelve weeks - though open to her being a better exercise leader - perhaps that's her strength.

But Wellness people - please, please stop spouting bollocks about clean eating and protein and caffeine and ultra-processed foods, unless you have the science to back it up (and I don't mean "watched a video on TikTok").

Rant over.

So please stop telling people that migraine is somewhat self inflicted and can be cured miraculously.

That’s one of the modern-day quacks’ weapons: telling you that it’s your fault.

If you don’t follow the ludicrous advice to drink water unnecessarily, eat ‘cleanly’ or purge your toxins and you become ill or lose your looks it’s your fault.

Of course the major reason for this blaming and shaming is to attract paying clients and shift books and products. It’s a huge fraudulent industry. Or ‘Big Harmer’ as it’s properly known.

The newspapers don’t help. They love dubious health crap. And they like to write about people “fighting” disease, often cancer, as if it’s someone’s fault if they don’t ’fight’ hard enough and then die.

Apologies if crossed wires. I'm a sports therapist and have heard all sorts of claims over the years. I think it's important for professionals to provide their clients with accurate, evidence based facts where possible, be honest if there are gaps in knowledge or evidence, and to recognise their scopes of practise and refer on where necessary.

You can absolutely give feedback about the service and her approach - there should be a way to do that anonymously so you can still take part.

If you haven't already it might be worth finding out more about what the service entails - these types of programmes often include general health and wellbeing elements (e.g smoking cessation services will often cover diet, mindfulness and sleep hygiene) as well as the targeted health concern.

I appreciate you taking the time to explain. I think often practitioners will use layman's terms or popular language because it's a faster way to connect or sell, and because not all clients are interested in detail. But, yes, absolutely agree re. evidence-based approaches, knowledge or practice gaps and how imprecise use of language can create false expectations.

Yes I do think these so called gurus talk a load of bollocks. They enraged me.

Why would the OP not attend her classes?

There is really nothing rational about what you are posting. You are accusing the OP of being emotionally triggered about one aspect but you are suggesting that an adult wouldn’t put aside her feelings about someone who is under qualified in one area who has over stepped their competence limits, to get the benefit from their actual area of expertise.

That would be a very self sabotaging action for the OP to take. Maybe you are projecting yourself into this situation.

Did you have to lie down and relax in order for the magnet to "work"? Because that may have played a part, too.

Human bodies are so complex, and there's still a lot we don't know. But we're always looking for the quick, simple fix. And there are plenty of people out there trying to monetise that desire.

Look we all live by our own ethics right

I feel very uncomfortable that the OP will go take these treatments from a person she clearly doesn't respect. Who she has said many unkind things about. It feels dishonest. Dark. Weird. And i feel for the practioner.
Why not walk away and find another practioner. Because she wants something for free.

We all choose our own moral and ethical code - how we treat others how we speak to and about others how we show up in life.

Shall we try that with punctuation?

I can't believe you genuinely can't see that "finding another practitioner" isn't an option whilst using the NHS (which I already pay for with taxes). I am not in a position to fund private treatment - and nor should I have to.

I am happy to hear about the practitioner's actual expertise (although thus far this expertise seems limited to upselling children's gym memberships). But I am not happy to hear her ill-informed opinions on unrelated medical conditions that are being treated by an actual - you know - expert.

So dark. So weird.

I don't see why you wouldn't up your intake of clear fluids. My cardiologist has told me to drink at least 2.5L of water with electrolytes a day to deal with a condition which was causing faintness. And it's worked, the faintness stopped.
It's a free, easy intervention that must surely be worth a try?

I find this so mad. One of the first recommendation for joint pain is... drink more water. It's not pseudoscience. Juts google "drinking water and joint pain".

Ah - a misunderstanding. I am drinking plenty. I am adequately hydrated. I just prefer to drink tea. (Which, luckily, is mostly water.)

She asked me how much liquid I drank a day, and I said about 5 cups of tea.

I'm sorry, that is not enough.

Seeing as you've never met the OP, know very little about her or her condition, and (I'm assuming) are not a specialist in her particular area of medical concern, I have to ask ... how do you know?!

Water: How much should you drink every day? - Mayo Clinic

How much water should I drink a day? - Harvard Health

Hydration tips to live well with arthritis - The Arthritis Movement

I mean ... the first lines of the first article you linked are:

"How much water should you drink each day? It's a simple question with no easy answer.

Studies have produced varying recommendations over the years. But your individual water needs depend on many factors, including your health, how active you are and where you live.

No single formula fits everyone. "

They are literally saying that if you know next to nothing about someone, you can't simply decide they're not drinking enough water!

It goes on to say:

"So how much fluid does the average, healthy adult living in a temperate climate need? The U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine determined that an adequate daily fluid intake is:

• About 15.5 cups (3.7 liters) of fluids a day for men
• About 11.5 cups (2.7 liters) of fluids a day for women

These recommendations cover fluids from water, other beverages and food. About 20% of daily fluid intake usually comes from food and the rest from drinks."

As per, also, this other link from Harvard:

How Much Water Do You Need? • The Nutrition Source

It's very easy to tell if you are dehydrated - your pee is darker than it should be and... miraculously you tend to feel thirsty.

Tea, plus food (e.g. soups, pastas, vegetables, fruits) all contribute to your fluid intake.

Unless you have a qualification in neurology (NB not an online course that cost £12.99), I'm not particularly interested in your opinion on how to manage my (already well-managed) condition.

And yet you have joint pain. Waiting until you are seriously dehydrated to drink water is a bad choice, as if relying on cues of thirst. I have no degrees, and do not have a high horse to get up upon, unlike you, but my rheumatologist, who is head of rheumatology at two major hospitals, and hardly a woo-meister, would heartily disagree with you. Your (dessicated) funeral.

"I have no experience and no qualifications and you have no symptoms at all related to dehydration, and indeed your tests showed good hydration, but here is my unasked-for opinion."

Ooh - I've heard that somewhere else this week.

That's an AVERAGE. You can't generalise from an average and assume it applies to everyone, or it should be a goal to aim for. That's not how averages work.

It's like saying that the average trouser leg inseam is 35", so I should hem all my trousers to 35" - even though you have never looked at me to see how short or tall I am.

Honestly, it's a two-edged sword, living in the "age of information". There's so much interesting stuff to be found out, and yet just as much that's ripe for misinterpretation. And the blind confidence in one's expertise in a subject, having spent a few hours on Google, is a real liability.

Fluids...tea is a fluid. 5 cups is probably mugs. The article also states that 20% of fluid intake comes from food. So, 5 large mugs of tea a day, plus OP's food intake, bearing in mind some food has a higher water content than others, is probably sufficient, depending on her activity levels and her diet.

If you need fluid you feel thirsty. Then you take in fluid.

Medicalising this simple fact of everyday life is a sure sign of charlatanism.

The human body has been so finely-tuned through literal millennia of evolution. Our biofeedback is exceptional. We know when we're too hot, too cold; we have even developed a sense of when someone is watching us. How can someone genuinely believe that it's "harmful" to feel thirsty?

(And yes, 5 large mugs of tea a day, plus vegetables, fruit, pasta, soup - lots of things that help make up my total fluid intake. My urine is the right colour, generally, thanks for your interest. My migraines persist on certain days of the month, regardless. Luckily a triptan usually sorts them out.)

This makes no sense. If a car mechanic started giving me parenting advice, I wouldn’t stop using them simply because I disagree with their views. That comparison doesn’t hold up. You’re claiming your argument has some moral perspective but it really doesn’t.