Wellness (alternative medicine)

This article is about the concept of wellness as used by the alternative medicine community. For the concept of wellness in scientific medicine, see Health. For other uses, see Wellness (disambiguation).
The Eight Dimensions of Wellness
The Eight Dimensions of Wellness[1]
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Wellness is a state beyond absence of illness but rather aims to optimize well-being.[2]

The notions behind the term share the same roots as the alternative medicine movement, in 19th-century movements in the US and Europe that sought to optimize health and to consider the whole person, like New Thought, Christian Science, and Lebensreform.[3][4] Ayurveda mentions the concept and also has dedicated a whole speciality for the concept of wellness and maintenance of health.

The term wellness has also been misused for pseudoscientific health interventions.[5]

  1. ^ Stoewen, Debbie L. (2017). "Dimensions of wellness: Change your habits, change your life". The Canadian Veterinary Journal. 58 (8): 861–862. ISSN 0008-5286. PMC 5508938. PMID 28761196.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYT2010 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Kirkland, Anna (1 October 2014). "What Is Wellness Now?". Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law. 39 (5): 957–970. doi:10.1215/03616878-2813647. ISSN 0361-6878. PMID 25037836.
  4. ^ Blei, Daniela (4 January 2017). "The False Promises of Wellness Culture". JSTOR Daily.
  5. ^ Freeman, Hadley (2015-04-22). "Pseudoscience and strawberries: 'wellness' gurus should carry a health warning". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 December 2018.