MONTHLY BAROMETER As we argued in past editions, a deceleration in global growth won’t affect global tourism (and wellness tourism) in a proportional/linear manner. The rise of the global middle class combined with the rise of discount travel (plus the insatiable human appetite to discover new places) means that tourism will continue to grow, (almost) no matter what. It did even in the midst of…
An issue to watch is how “digiceuticals” (digital therapeutics) will affect the wellness industry. This new generation of digital medicines that rely on software for curing or managing a disease is booming—200 deals closed in the US in the first half of this year, representing a cumulative investment of $3.4 billion. They go beyond wellness apps, whose purpose is to maintain a healthy lifestyle and…
The Nonpsychoactive Cannabis Extract Looks to be a $1.8 Billion Industry in the US by 2020* The next access+INSIGHTS Zoominar takes place on Wednesday, September 26, 2018, at 5 p.m. EDT on CBD: The Buzziest Wellness Trend. Cannabis’s cultural stigma is fading fast in the US. Now that CBD, a nonpsychoactive compound derived from the cannabis or hemp plant, is said to have serious healing and beautifying properties, it’s enjoying…
Fidget Spinners, Weighted Blankets, and the Rise of Anxiety Consumerism – Vox, September 10, 2018 This is an article about the growing “anxiety economy,” composed of products designed to calm us down. An entire flourishing industry now deals with the treatment of anxiety through items such as fidget cubes and gravity blankets. What does that tell us when we start dealing with mental health issues…
A large new study from the French National Institute for Health, analyzing over 470,000 participants, found that people who consume (on average) food with lower nutritional quality (junk food) were at significantly higher risk for cancer overall. Specifically, eating junk food was associated with a higher risk of colorectal, digestive tract and stomach cancer—and lung cancer in men and liver and postmenopausal breast cancer in…
The July edition of the Wellness Barometer caused quite a stir by mentioning a recent peer-reviewed study stating that corporate wellness programs may not be as effective as previously thought. In response, several members of the GWI community pointed out that the study’s methodology was “inherently flawed” (published in the GWI Brief of August 29). This prompted us to engage in some basic research on…
