Rethinking Wellness

Author and former brand strategist Jessica Elefante joins us to discuss her past life as a “bullshit artist” and what she learned about how to influence people, the health issues that led her to quit her job and start speaking out about the dangers of technology, how to avoid wellness-industry influence, how to question everything without overthinking, and more. Jessica Elefante is a writer and bu...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com In this bonus episode, sociologist and Wellness Culture author Stephanie Alice Baker returns to discuss the countercultural roots of wellness, how the wellness industry went from its early days in the 1970s to a multi-trillion-dollar global industry, how the concept of intuition is used to market wellness...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com Reasons why you might find yourself eating to an uncomfortable level of fullness, and what to do about it. Plus: Exciting news about Christy’s new book project! The full version of this episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to the first question here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the rest...

Sociologist and WELLNESS CULTURE author Stephanie Alice Baker joins us to discuss the rise of wellness influencers, why people are attracted to guides and gurus, the false dichotomy between expertise and personal experience, how the concept of intuition is used to market wellness products and practices, how wellness culture has become a gateway to medical misinformation, disinformation, and conspi...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com In this bonus episode, author and science communicator Timothy Caulfield returns to discuss what to do if your healthcare provider seems to be under the influence of gut hype, how journalists and health professionals can report on and advise people about gut health in a responsible way, how his research o...

Author and science communicator Timothy Caulfield joins us to discuss why gut hype has become so widespread, the gulf between the claims and the science, how mainstream media reporting and social media have helped create hype about gut health, the role of scientist-influencers, how to tell if you’re in the presence of gut hype vs. more accurate reporting about the gut microbiome, and more.  Timoth...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com In this bonus episode, Christy shares some personal thoughts on how anxiety impacts the gut, and how to handle digestive distress that’s triggered by stress without getting pulled down wellness-culture rabbit holes—particularly if you have a history of disordered eating.  The full version of this episode...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com Well+Good head of content Faye McCray returns to discuss the wellness trends she's most excited about—and the ones she plans to skip. Plus: a food-related wellness trend that's less about diet culture and more about taste and culinary tradition. Faye is Head of Content at Well+Good. She is an author, exec...

Well+Good head of content Faye McCray joins us to discuss 2024 wellness trends, including new options for postpartum care, AI in fitness, medical testing, wellness real estate, and more. We talk about the upsides and downsides of these trends, why Christy is skeptical of most of them, the unmet social needs they’re responding to, and how you can set boundaries around trends to avoid wellness traps...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com A critical look at Netflix’s latest food-fearmongering documentary series. The full version of this episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to the first question here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the rest! Get show notes and references here . Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap , is now...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com In this bonus episode, anti-diet dietitian Leah Kern returns to discuss how health-conscious people can keep from getting pulled into harmful aspects of wellness culture, how to avoid wellness traps if you’re interested in environmental issues and sustainability, and the wellness-y practices she still enj...

Anti-diet dietitian Leah Kern joins us to discuss how struggling with anxiety made her susceptible to a wellness diet that promised safety and longevity, how that diet quickly spiraled into full-on disordered eating, how being eco-conscious and “earthy” can easily lead into wellness traps, the connection between spirituality and wellness culture, why she finally stopped trying to fix her anxiety w...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com Should you change what you eat based on your menstrual cycle? And is that part of intuitive eating? Plus, some thoughts on the relationship between intuition and science. For show notes and a full transcript, check out the written version here . Subscribe on Substack for full access to this episode and ma...

A (semi)personal year in review, and a taste of what’s ahead for Rethinking Wellness—plus a chance to share your own wishes for 2024. Resources and References Christy’s new book, The Wellness Trap: Break Free from Diet Culture, Disinformation, and Dubious Diagnoses and Find Your True Well-Being Christy’s online course, Intuitive Eating Fundamentals Jessica Elefante’s book (Bookshop affiliate link)...

Intuitive Eating co-author Elyse Resch joins us to discuss her history with the natural-food movement, how trying to eat “naturally” led her into orthorexia and other forms of disordered eating, how intuitive eating is being co-opted by wellness culture, what to consider if you’re interested in “natural” foods, and more. Elyse Resch, MS, RDN, CEDS-S, Fiaedp, FADA, FAND, is a nutrition therapist in...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com What if disagreements and differences are a matter of risk perception? Plus: Is weight loss really the only way to be well? The full version of this episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to the first question here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the rest! Get show notes and references here...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com In this bonus episode, writer and podcaster Amelia Hruby returns to discuss why it’s important to question science with nuance, our different takes on astrology and tarot, how to dabble in “woo-woo” practices that feel fun to you without getting sucked into harmful beliefs and conspiracy theories, the rol...

Writer and podcaster Amelia Hruby joins us to discuss the intersections in her processes of breaking up with social media and with diet culture, how being off the platforms has benefited both her mental health and her business, how to handle guilt over leaving, ways to get exposure to greater representation and body diversity without social media, and more. Amelia Hruby is a writer, educator and p...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com A critical look at the evidence on hair analysis, DUTCH testing, and heavy metals in chocolate—and why it’s worth being skeptical of tests positioned as “new science.” Get full show notes and references here . The full version of this episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to the first question here, and...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com In this bonus episode, journalist and The Gospel of Wellness author Rina Raphael returns to discuss how the wellness industry is changing to respond to more skeptical consumers—and why that might be making it even harder to tell what’s truly evidence-based. Rina Raphael is a journalist and the author of T...

Journalist and The Gospel of Wellness author Rina Raphael joins us to discuss why most media coverage of wellness is so uncritical, and how that allows misinformation to spread; why “science-washing” is rampant in the wellness industry; how wellness is used as a band-aid for systemic issues and ironically doesn’t get to the “root cause” that’s so often touted in wellness culture; her own complicat...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com ​A critical look at research on the gut-brain axis, including whether certain gut bacteria are linked to anxiety and depression, whether probiotics have any benefit for mental health, whether you need to take digestive enzymes for anxiety, and more. The full version of this episode is for paid subscribers...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com Professor and SUGAR RUSH author Karen Throsby returns for a bonus episode to discuss how her own relationship with sugar has changed since before she wrote her book, the role of influencers and social media in spreading anti-sugar messages, why news media report so uncritically on government recommendatio...

Professor and SUGAR RUSH author Karen Throsby joins us to discuss why sugar became demonized despite a lot of actual uncertainty in the science, how anti-sugar sentiment is bound up with anti-fat bias, the different rhetoric around sugar that’s dominant in diet culture vs wellness culture, what the research really says about the supposed addictiveness of sugar, and lots more. Karen Throsby is Prof...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com In this bonus episode, psychiatrist and REAL SELF-CARE author Pooja Lakshmin returns to discuss how to tune in to your inner voice—and why that process isn’t as simple as it might seem. Plus, in a special segment for paid subscribers, Christy answers a question about how to avoid comparisons and start not...