Holistic Wellness: The New Way Forward

Before the 2020 global pandemic hit, most of the American population seemed fine with the health and wellness status quo, which consisted of adding as many whole foods as possible into your diet, getting a bit of exercise every week, and making sure you used at least an SPF-30 sunscreen.

But today, the wellness trend has skyrocketed! It is likely you can ask a stranger on a New York subway if they use any wellness products or natural health practices on a regular basis - and the answer can be anything from loving the Impossible Burger to using only natural beauty products to boosting the immune system with the newest combination of elderberry, echinacea, and probiotics

This new wave of wellness is also responsible for booming economic markets in which consumers don't mind spending more on products that improve their health, fitness, nutrition, appearance, sleep, and mental state. Health and wellness is not a new concept, but it has certainly been broadened with a crush of scientists, naturalists, and entrepreneurs in naturopathy and other health and wellness industries. According to the NCBI,

"Naturopathy is a distinct type of primary care medicine that blends age-old healing traditions with scientific advances and current research. It is guided by a unique set of principles that recognize the body's innate healing capacity, emphasize disease prevention, and encourage individual responsibility to obtain optimal health."

Here, we will examine the economics of the health and wellness industry and how these products or services are impacting people who desire a lifestyle change that doesn't include more toys, but increased wellness (the state of being in good health)!

Pillars of Wellness To Improve Quality of Life

Better Nutrition

A healthy outside starts from the **inside**

The COVID pandemic created an interest in the immune system unlike no other virus, infection, or disease has ever done. The immune system is responsible for recognizing germs that can cause infection and defeating microbes that enter and weaken the body's cells, predisposing humans to even more disease. But the immune system can be dramatically improved by eating the right foods.

And, when the right foods don't supply the megadoses of nutritional goodness we are looking for now, there exists a slew of supplemental vitamins, minerals, botanicals or herbs, amino acids (such as tryptophan and glutamine), and live microbials or probiotics that we can easily find in any grocery store aisle, big-box store, or online.

"The Health and Wellness Foods market in the U.S. is estimated at US $262.4 Billion in the year 2022." Lesser know industry leaders include Aleia's Gluten Free Foods, Amy's Kitchen, and Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods.

A Healthier Appearance

While the beauty industry has rarely seen a negative or slow growth period, the type and formulation of beauty and wellness products have changed. Top leaders like Maybelline, Revlon, and L'Oreal are taking a back seat to beauty influencers who market their products as healthier for the skin in addition to adding a beauty that is either more natural or more original.

It is a long list of celebrities and social media influencers that are now dominating the beauty industry and raking in huge amounts of money in an extremely short period of time. Rihanna, Kylie Jenner, Selena Gomez, and Gwyneth Paltrow are just a few. Social media beauty influencers are now highly sought after by corporate America because they are not only trend-setters, but they are the driving force in promoting moral and ethical beauty product research, advertising, and sales.

In addition to a booming cosmetics industry, there have also been major advances in the Medical Aesthetics Industry which include the offering of non-surgical facelifts and implants (dental, facial, or body) at price points that middle-class Americans can afford. Today, every metropolitan city in America will have storefront business owners specializing in advanced facials like chemical peels or advanced skin treatments for acne, rosacea, sun damage, and skin pigmentation

"Driven by the increasing demand for minimally invasive procedures and the influence of social media on beauty standards, the global cosmetology and medical aesthetics market is projected to grow significantly in the next six years. Experts predict the market to exceed a value of $25.2 billion by 2029."

Good, Peaceful Sleep

Tired minds don’t plan well. **Sleep first,** plan later

If there ever was a wellness holy grail for our extremely fast-paced, internet-focused, social media-sharing, and never-ending news cycle world, it might be a good night's sleep. Consider the amount of information our brains take in over the course of 24 hours - it is truly astronomical. Holistic health experts promote quality sleep as not only being critical to brain performance, but also to the ability to physically ward off disease and to maintain a balanced mood.

Sleep disorders have been linked to a wide range of physical and mental problems including stroke, obesity, heart disease, ADHD, depression, and anxiety. According to Forbes.

"Globally, the "sleep economy," which includes everything from beds and pillows to medical devices, rings in at a whopping $432 billion a year. In 2020 alone more than half of Americans say their sleep worsened due to the pandemic..."

The recommended 7 hours (adults) to 9 hours (children) of good, restful sleep may be a thing of the past, since scientists have determined that using any mobile devices such as smart phones, tablets, or laptops and even watching television before bedtime exposes the brain to blue light waves that can interrupt the body's circadian rhythm.

Wellness via Telemedicine

Medicine can become truly **accessible**

The current wave of wellness being experienced in the world includes telemedicine or videoconferencing between patient and doctor. This phenomenon is a direct result of the isolation that was demanded of everyone during the 2020 pandemic. Telehealth medical visits replaced in-office doctor visits to the point where even grandmothers were forced to learn how to use Zoom or other videoconferencing platforms.

It took a lot of handshaking to get these systems up and running at a neck-breaking pace across the world. The result was not only a new business model for medical practitioners, but also a boom in SAAS companies (Software As A Service) companies offering video conferencing platforms and other telemedicine services or products designed for the way healthcare providers do business.

"The global telehealth market size was valued at USD 128.12 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow from USD 142.96 billion in 2023 to USD 504.24 billion by 2030, exhibiting a CAGR of 19.7% during the forecast period."

In addition to Americans being hyperfocused on health and wellness, current political and economic events around the world has everyone more tuned into not just what's happening in our homes and communities, but also across the pond. We now realize that we live in a global society where a virus that starts on the opposite side of the world can and will reach our doors in a matter of just 3 days.