The Wellness Boom

The new boom in wellness products and services is partially a result of recent breakthroughs in biology and cellular biochemistry. These discoveries are fueling the wellness revolution and the array of new offerings.

The news about these scientific advances is available in layperson's language on documentaries from the Health and Discovery channels, and in major news magazines. For instance, in the January 16, 2006 issue of Time magazine, in the “Health and Medicine” section, there was a special report, “How to Tune Up Your Brain.” The article explored the latest research on how to stay mentally sharp and it is a great read for busy professionals who do a lot of multi-tasking.

An Economic Solution to an Economic Problem

On May 28, 2003, news came from the White House that Americans need to cut the bad fats (trans fatty acids) from the diet and add more of the good fats (essential fatty acids).This urging came from the Office of Budget Management.

Regina Meredith, who hosted the PBS cooking show, “Regina's Vegetarian Kitchen” for eight years, made this comment: “I thought about that news for a minute, and what occurred to me was that a couple of guys were crunching numbers when a light went on in their heads: Hey, the boomers are way too fat and starting to show some wear. Jeez, Bob, I don't think we have enough money here to take care of them! Anyway, that's how I imagined this information finally made it to the press.”

Regina 's humor and insight helped point out that those who have been leading the wellness revolution are often found at PBS, as it continues to bring forth some of the best information on attaining optimal health of body, mind and spirit, while working through the issues of economics each year.

More evidence on the way economics is driving the wellness boom comes from the best selling book The Wellness Revolution. Author Paul Zane Pilzer makes a brilliant observation, “Entrepreneurs and revolutionaries are really the same kinds of people born into different circumstances. Both see the status quo in need of change, and both are willing to take risks, and reap the rewards, of changing it.” Pilzer is a world-renowned economist, a multimillionaire software entrepreneur, a lay rabbi, a college professor and author of several best-selling books.

As Pilzer researched the wellness industry, he began to study the health habits of those who were enjoying optimal health, and the following is what he found:

“When I looked closer at the non-overweight 39 percent of the population, I found a growing group of millions of Americans who are eating and living healthier than ever before in history. This wellness based group includes most of the movers and shakers in our society as well as celebrities who literally make their living on how they look. This group has quietly embraced a revolutionary new approach – to diet, to exercise, to vitamins, to nutritional supplements, to medical care, and most important, to the aging process itself.

“To the wellness elite, each act of apparent pain or denial, from sessions with personal trainers to navigating through menus as exclusive restaurants, is a positive, almost religious experience. At first I thought this revolutionary way of forward thinking about the impact of food on your health might be only a Hollywood or West Los Angeles phenomenon. But further research showed this to be a worldwide movement with revolutionaries throughout the globe. The reason is simple. Everyone, no matter how healthy or fit, wants to be even healthier and more fit. Everyone wants to look and feel more youthful. Until now, the few wellness products and services available were affordable only by the very rich. Now that they are becoming widely available and affordable, entrepreneurs are rushing to provide wellness products and services to a delighted public.”

Longevity and Health

Now, think about who is driving this explosive demand for wellness services and products. If you guessed the baby boomers, you are exactly on target. Although the baby boomers make up only 28 percent of the U.S. population, they account for about 50 percent of our trillion dollar industry. And, the Baby Boomers are demanding quality offerings to maintain their energy, youth and mental clarity. The greatest risk to the baby boomers – or to anyone seeking optimal health – is that are many wellness programs focus too heavily on the mind or spirit – and the body just gets fatter.

In the book The Baby Boom: Americans Aged 35 to 54 , Cheryl Russell points out: “One of the most important truths about boomers is that they are still the youth market. In their teens and twenties…boomers created the youth market. As they enter their forties and fifties…boomers are proving the youth market to be a state of mind rather than a stage of life. Most boomers still live in that state, refusing to adopt the attitudes and lifestyles of their parents.”

Visionaries and Leaders

In 1954, J.I. Rodale, launched Prevention magazine, and fought fiercely to educate people about optimal health. He was one of the pioneers in bringing a message of health to Americans. Since then, a luminous list of visionaries and leaders have come forth to inspire and educate people on the benefits of eating nutrient rich foods, proper exercise and caring for body, mind and spirit. These forward thinking individuals – including Dr. Dean Ornish, who inspired millions to think about heart health in 1990, to the dominant names of today – Drs. Andrew Weil, Deepak Chopra and Wayne Dyer – are leading the wellness revolution. And, almost everyday, millions of viewers turn to Oprah as she shines light on new practices to achieve a lifestyle of well-being and balance.

Be sure to renew your commitment to wellness each day, and keep your discernment alive. That way you can discover many of the best wellness practices from around the world – and remember, many of them don't come from the most popular names – they come from the wellness visionaries who forge forward ahead of the crowd, devoted to saving lives and changing the world.