Shows
Rethinking WellnessWhat You Don't Know and Why It Matters with Timothy CaulfieldThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comHealth-misinformation researcher and science communicator Timothy Caulfield returns to discuss his new book THE CERTAINTY ILLUSION, why being too certain about anything makes us vulnerable to misinformation, how intellectual humility can help protect us, why science is sometimes “full of shit” and how to be a critical consumer of it, and more. Behind the paywall, we get into why it’s so hard for public figures to show intellectual humility, whether being smart makes people less intellectually humble and more vulnerable to mis...2025-05-0540 min
Rethinking WellnessWhy There’s No Such Thing as an “Adrenal Body Type” (Best Of)This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about the “adrenal body type” and unpacks the weight stigma, ageism, and pseudoscience embedded in this twist on the dubious diagnosis of “adrenal fatigue.”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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance to have it answered...2025-04-2808 min
Rethinking WellnessVitamin D and Health Outcomes, Part 3This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy discusses vitamin D for blood-sugar control and preventing diabetes (part of our series on commonly used supplements). If you spend a lot of time in online wellness spaces, you’ve probably heard a lot about how supplementing with vitamin D can supposedly regulate blood sugar and prevent diabetes. Even some mainstream diabetes organizations promote this idea, based on a small number of studies that seem to show a benefit. But what does the overall body of evidence say? Is this an...2025-04-1402 min
Rethinking WellnessThink You Might Be in Perimenopause? Don't Fall for These Wellness Traps.This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy discusses how to tell whether your symptoms are related to perimenopause or something else, what perimenopause has in common with dubious diagnoses (even though it’s a real condition), and what the best available evidence says about hormone therapy, weight gain, and more.This episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to a free preview here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Get full show notes and references here.Ch...2025-03-3107 min
Rethinking WellnessHow to Handle an Anxious Gut (Best Of)This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn 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 (with 9 tips for coping) is for paid subscribers. Listen to a free preview here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Christy's second book, The W...2025-03-1708 min
Rethinking WellnessGetting Savvy About Science, Spirituality, and Social Media with Amelia HrubyThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comReturning guest Amelia Hruby—who is now our very own podcast producer, as well as a podcaster in her own right with a PhD in philosophy—co-hosts this special episode for the 2-year anniversary of Rethinking Wellness. We discuss how Amelia’s thinking about astrology and tarot has shifted since her first appearance on the pod, why the spirituality-to-QAnon/MAGA pipeline is still going strong, how editing this podcast has changed her relationship with science and medicine, and more. Behind the paywal...2025-03-1031 min
Rethinking WellnessVitamin D and Health Outcomes, Part 2This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about the health effects of taking vitamin D supplements.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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance to have it answered in a future episode!Christy's second book, The Wellness Trap, is available...2025-02-2403 min
Rethinking WellnessWhen Sugar Is Survival, or: the Importance of Eating When You’re Not HungryThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this solo episode, Christy shares an essay about what her daughter’s experience with the flu taught her about intuitive eating and the importance of certain nutrients. The piece is also out today in written form on Substack.This episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to a free preview here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Get full show notes and references here.Christy's second book, The Wellness Tr...2025-02-1003 min
Rethinking WellnessDisordered Eating, Dubious Diagnoses, and Autoimmune Disease with Abbie AttwoodThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comNutritionist Abbie Attwood joins us to discuss how dealing with multiple autoimmune chronic illnesses led her down a path of dubious diagnoses and disordered eating, and how she ultimately found healing. In the free version, we get into how disordered eating can trigger and aggravate chronic conditions, why she believed she had “adrenal fatigue” and “leaky gut,” the role of obsession and OCD in orthorexia, and more. Behind the paywall, we talk about why it’s so easy to have your identity g...2025-02-0330 min
Rethinking WellnessVitamin D and Health Outcomes, Part 1This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about the health effects of taking vitamin D supplements. This will be the first in a multi-part series; today, we’re tackling claims about vitamin D for fertility, pregnancy, and PCOS.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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your ow...2025-01-2703 min
Rethinking WellnessWellness Culture, Chronic Illness, and Digestive Issues with Jonathan VatnerThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comNovelist, editor, and longtime friend of the pod Jonathan Vatner joins us to discuss his experience with a chronic autoimmune digestive condition, his ups and downs with diets and alternative medicine, nuances in the research on probiotics and acupuncture, the mind-body connection and how it’s helped in his healing, and more. Behind the paywall, we get into how he came to develop acceptance for his chronic illness, how he’s been able to take pleasure in food despite his digestive trou...2025-01-2036 min
Rethinking WellnessIs Magnesium a Miracle Mineral, or Just Another Wellness Fad?This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about whether magnesium is really the panacea it’s made out to be—or whether it’s just another example of wellness-culture hype.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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance to have it answered in a f...2025-01-1303 min
Rethinking WellnessFashion for Every Body, Functional-Medicine Failings, and Finding Your True Style with Dacy GillespieThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comAnti-diet personal stylist Dacy Gillespie joins us to discuss diet and wellness culture, her bad experience with functional medicine (and what attracted her to it in the first place), how she’s dealing with her chronic symptoms now, and why she doesn’t think clothes should be “flattering.” Behind the paywall, we get into how to shop for clothes after your body changes, how to start discovering your authentic personal style beyond diet culture’s ideals, the advice that revolutionized Christy’s approach t...2024-12-1637 min
Rethinking WellnessHow to Talk to People Who Swear By Dubious Wellness TreatmentsThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about how to talk to people who swear by certain alternative-medicine treatments—especially when they push them on you.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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance to have it answered in a future episode!...2024-12-0905 min
Rethinking WellnessSeed Oils, Intermittent Fasting, and How RFK Jr. Advisor Casey Means Encourages Dubious Wellness PracticesThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy shares answers she gave to a journalist writing a piece about Casey Means, a functional-medicine doctor, diet-book author, and wellness entrepreneur who has become a key advisor to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a...2024-12-0403 min
Rethinking WellnessDo Artificial Food Additives Cause ADHD?This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about whether artificial food colorings and other additives really have any impact on ADHD.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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance to have it answered in a future episode!Christy's second book...2024-11-1803 min
Rethinking WellnessSugar and Health: A Deep Dive Into the ScienceThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this solo episode, Christy discusses the evidence on sugar and health—specifically what the science really says about the links between sugar and the risk of various chronic diseases, as well as the inherent limitations of the data. Plus, in honor of Halloween this week, she shares some thoughts (and some data) on princess culture and girls’ body image, and why she’s starting to let go of some of her angst about her daughter’s current princess obsession.This e...2024-10-2808 min
Rethinking WellnessRepost: How to Fight Wellness Misinformation and Counter Conspiracy Theories with Seema YasminJournalist and medical doctor Seema Yasmin joins us to discuss why misinformation and conspiracy theories about health and wellness are so alluring; how to recognize and fight back against false claims; the difference between misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation; holding the two truths that science is one of the best tools we have for finding facts and science hasn’t always gotten it right; and more. Plus, Christy shares an excerpt from the audiobook of The Wellness Trap about wellness mis- and disinformation and how they’ve come to proliferate online.Dr. Seema Yasmin is an Emmy Award-winning jour...2024-08-1248 min
Rethinking WellnessIs Alcohol Really Unsafe At Any Dose?This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about whether light drinking is really as risky as some wellness influencers make it out to be, and shares some ways to explore your relationship with alcohol.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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance...2024-08-0706 min
Rethinking WellnessRepost: The Harms of Social Media, and Giving Up a Career as a Fitness Influencer with Mary JelkovskyAuthor and podcaster Mary Jelkovsky joins us to discuss her history as a fitness influencer starting at age 16, and how it triggered and exacerbated her eating disorder; how social media algorithms drive us toward extreme diet and wellness content; why and how Christy took a huge step back from social media, and why Mary is contemplating doing the same; career moves for influencers after influencing; why “just try not to think about it" is sometimes the most helpful advice in the face of wellness culture's constant push for self-optimization in every area of life; and more.After re...2024-07-291h 01
Rethinking WellnessWhy IgG Tests Don't Work, and the Truth About Glyphosate in FoodThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers audience questions about IgG tests for food sensitivity, glyphosate in food, recent headlines about chemicals in baby wipes and tampons, and whether you really need to avoid dairy for acne.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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance...2024-07-2404 min
Rethinking Wellness2 Weird Food Rules I Don’t Follow Anymore (and 4 Other Principles I Try to Live By)This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about the food rules she stopped following—and shares four food-related principles she tries to practice.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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance to have it answered in a future episode!Christy's se...2024-06-2007 min
Rethinking WellnessDo You Really Need a Gluten-Free Diet for These Autoimmune Conditions?This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about going autoimmune diets and celiac disease, and there’s a bonus one for paid subscribers about going gluten-free for an autoimmune thyroid condition.Become a paid subscriber to hear the whole thing!Get full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance to have it answered in a future episode.Christy's second book, The Wellness Trap, is available wherever books are so...2024-06-1209 min
Rethinking WellnessA Popular Protein Myth, and What the Science Really SaysThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about how much protein you really need—and explores why a certain piece of incorrect advice is so popular among influencers and “protein girlies.”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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance to have it answer...2024-05-2904 min
Rethinking WellnessRepost: The Wellness Trap with Christy Harrison and Katie DaleboutKatie Dalebout guest-hosts the show to interview Christy about her new book, The Wellness Trap! Christy shares why she wanted to write a book about wellness, the potential harms of integrative and functional medicine (and why we’re understandably attracted to these approaches), the connections between wellness culture and diet culture, the legacy of the “hysteria” diagnosis and why women are still having to push back against the idea that symptoms are all in our heads, the role of social media in spreading wellness mis- and disinformation, and more.Christy Harrison, MPH, RD, is a registered dietitian nutrit...2024-05-271h 20
Rethinking WellnessWhat Netflix's New Doc Gets Wrong About Gut HealthThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, Christy discusses Netflix’s new gut-health documentary—and why the film’s claims that gut microbes directly influence weight and disease are more hype than science. This episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to a free preview here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Get full show notes and references here.Christy's second book, The Wellness Trap, is available wherever books are sold! Order it online...2024-05-1505 min
Rethinking Wellness"Sunlight Before Screen Light" and Why You Don't Need to WorryThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, Christy discusses the science (or lack thereof) behind the wellness-culture slogan “sunlight before screen light.” This episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to a free preview here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Get full show notes and references here.Christy's second book, The Wellness Trap, is available wherever books are sold! Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore. If y...2024-05-0103 min
Rethinking WellnessLong Covid and the False Promises of Wellness Culture with Kate LeaverThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comJournalist and author Kate Leaver joins us to discuss her experience with long Covid, all the weird wellness-y stuff she tried out of desperation, and why it’s so hard to think critically about interventions that promise healing when you’re so sick you barely have the energy to read an email, let alone do a deep dive into the science. She also shares how working with a naturopath as a kid sparked her eating disorder, how she found her way to r...2024-04-2246 min
Rethinking WellnessOprah, Ozempic, and How to Be a Compassionate Skeptic About Wellness TrendsThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, Christy discusses the GLP-1 hype pipeline, how celebrities like Oprah have helped keep the hype flowing, and how to keep your cool when the whole world is losing their sh*t over the latest wellness/diet fad.This episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to a free preview here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Get full show notes and references here.Christy's second book...2024-04-1702 min
Rethinking WellnessDispelling Diet-Culture Myths About Blood Sugar and Diabetes with Wendy Lopez and Jessica JonesThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comRegistered dietitians and diabetes educators Jessica Jones and Wendy Lopez join us to discuss why people with diabetes don’t need to focus on weight loss, why the popular wellness-culture notion of diabetes “remission” or “reversal” can be harmful, how the popularity of Ozempic and other GLP-1 drugs as diet drugs is affecting people who use them for diabetes, the continuous-glucose-monitor trend among people without diabetes, Jess’s experience navigating prediabetes and other health conditions, and more. Paid subscribers can hear the...2024-04-1540 min
Rethinking WellnessMagical Overthinking, Misinformation, and the Cultishness of Wellness Culture with Amanda MontellThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comWriter and linguist Amanda Montell joins us to discuss “magical overthinking” and the cognitive biases that make us vulnerable to misinformation, celebrity culture and its intersections with wellness culture, how to deal with panic headlines, cultish language to watch out for in wellness spaces, and more. Paid subscribers can hear the full interview, and the first part is available to all listeners. To upgrade to paid, go to rethinkingwellness.substack.com. Amanda Montell is a writer and lingui...2024-04-0847 min
Rethinking WellnessWhy There’s No Such Thing as an “Adrenal Body Type”This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about the “adrenal body type” and unpacks the weight stigma, ageism, and pseudoscience embedded in this twist on the dubious diagnosis of “adrenal fatigue.”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 full show notes and references here.Ask a question of your own for a chance to have it answered...2024-04-0308 min
Rethinking WellnessHormone-Health Myths and Facts with Endocrinologist Gregory DodellThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comEndocrinologist Gregory Dodell joins us to discuss myths and facts about hormones, including the problems with doing diets and supplement protocols for “hormone balancing,” why weight-loss recommendations aren’t helpful for hormone health, how to manage thyroid conditions without falling prey to wellness fads, the truth about “adrenal fatigue,” the Ozempic craze, and more.Paid subscribers can hear the full interview, and the first part is available to all listeners. To upgrade to paid, go to rethinkingwellness.substack.com. Gregor...2024-04-0148 min
Rethinking WellnessOn Birth, Evolution, and Striving for Shades of Gray in a World that Wants Black and WhiteThis episode is an audio version of this week’s newsletter, which is an essay about the one-year anniversary of this podcast, what’s working and what’s not, and a new experiment we’re trying with the bonus interviews starting this week. Upgrade to a paid subscription to support the show and get great perks like extended interviews, subscriber-only Q&As and essays, full access to our archives, and more!Paid subscribers: Here's how to set up your private podcast feed to get bonus content in your podcast player.Get full show notes and...2024-03-2014 min
Rethinking WellnessThe Insidious Anti-Fat Bias of Wellness Culture with Julia Lévy-NdejuruThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comDietitian and author Julia Lévy-Ndejuru joins us to discuss fatphobia in health and wellness spaces, the problems with making sugar and snacks off-limits, the determinants of health that have nothing to do with our weight, how to recognize diets that masquerade as wellness, the importance (and limitations) of nuance in our discussions of diet and wellness culture, and lots more. Paid subscribers get to hear the full interview, and the first part is available to all listeners. To up...2024-03-1847 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: The Problems with Skincare and the Importance of Self-Compassion with Jessica DeFinoThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, writer and beauty-industry critic Jessica Defino returns to discuss the problems with skin products and skincare in general, why acne topicals aren’t long-term solutions, how to have compassion for yourself as you navigate through beauty culture and inevitably get sucked in, and more. Jessica DeFino is an award-winning beauty reporter and critic (The New York Times, Vice, Vogue) and author of the newsletter The Unpublishable. She writes the Guardian's beauty advice column, Ask Ugly, and...2024-03-1508 min
Rethinking WellnessThe Intersection of Beauty Culture and Wellness/Diet Culture with Jessica DeFinoWriter and beauty-industry critic Jessica Defino joins us to discuss the intersections of wellness/diet culture and beauty culture, how she went from child beauty-pageant participant to working at the Kardashian-Jenner apps to eventually becoming an outspoken critic of the beauty industry, how social media is spreading harmful beauty ideals, the ageism of “anti-aging,” how to change your relationship with beauty standards, and more. Jessica DeFino is an award-winning beauty reporter and critic (The New York Times, Vice, Vogue) and author of the newsletter The Unpublishable. She writes the Guardian's beauty advice column, Ask Ugly, and has been...2024-03-1151 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: Managing Email Stress and Supporting Kids' Attentional Well-Being with Gloria MarkThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, psychologist and ATTENTION SPAN author Gloria Mark returns to discuss what to do when stress leads to difficulty focusing, how to reclaim your attention from your inbox, how to help kids cultivate attentional well-being, and more.Gloria Mark is Chancellor’s Professor Emerita at the University of California, Irvine, and also spent ten years as a visiting senior researcher at Microsoft Research. She received her PhD from Columbia University in psychology. For over two decades sh...2024-03-0807 min
Rethinking WellnessAndrew Huberman and the Problem with "Cutting-Edge" ResearchThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comChristy answers an audience question about wellness podcaster Andrew Huberman and his promotion of intermittent fasting, cold showers, and other dubious wellness practices.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.Ask a question of your own for a chance to have it answered in a future episode!...2024-03-0605 min
Rethinking WellnessReclaiming Your Attention and Finding Digital Well-Being with Gloria MarkPsychologist and ATTENTION SPAN author Gloria Mark joins us to discuss the connection between attention and well-being, the technologies manipulating our attention (and why social-media algorithms are just the tip of the iceberg), why modern life isn’t “causing” ADHD, the individual and societal changes needed to improve attentional well-being, how to discover your own personal rhythm of attention, and more. Gloria Mark is Chancellor’s Professor Emerita at the University of California, Irvine, and also spent ten years as a visiting senior researcher at Microsoft Research. She received her PhD from Columbia University in psychology. For over two...2024-03-041h 01
Rethinking WellnessBonus: How to Navigate Capitalism Without Using Undue Influence with Jessica ElefanteThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, author Jessica Elefante returns to discuss how to use your powers of influence for good, the importance of setting limits and boundaries, how people with small businesses (including authors, journalists, and clinicians with private practices) can sell our products/services without using undue influence, and more.Jessica Elefante is a writer and bullshit artist who has spent the last few decades examining what it means to be human in our modern world.She...2024-03-0107 min
Rethinking WellnessHow to Think Critically About Influence and Influencers with Jessica ElefanteAuthor 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 bullshit artist who has spent the last few decades examining what it means to be human in our modern world.She is the author of Raising Hell, Living Well: Freedom from...2024-02-2653 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: The Countercultural Roots of Wellness Culture with Stephanie Alice BakerThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn 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 products and practices, and more. Dr. Stephanie Alice Baker is an Associate Professor and Deputy Head of the Sociology and Criminology Department at City, University of London. Dr Baker’s research explores inf...2024-02-2307 min
Rethinking WellnessWhat If You Can’t Stop Eating When Food Tastes Good?This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comReasons 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!Get show notes and references here.Christy's second book, The Wellness Trap, is available wherever books are sold. Order it he...2024-02-2104 min
Rethinking WellnessHow Wellness Culture and Lifestyle Gurus Spread Misinformation with Stephanie Alice BakerSociologist 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 conspiracy theories, and more. Dr. Stephanie Alice Baker is an Associate Professor and Deputy Head of the Sociology and Criminology Department at City, University of London. Dr Baker’s research explores influencer culture in the context of health and wel...2024-02-1954 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: How to Cut Through Gut Hype in Media and Medicine with Timothy CaulfieldThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn 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 on gut hype changed his own eating and health behaviors, and more. Timothy Caulfield is an author and professor at the Faculty of Law and School of Public Health, U...2024-02-1606 min
Rethinking WellnessWhy the Gut-Health Trend Is Mostly Empty Hype with Timothy CaulfieldAuthor 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. Timothy Caulfield is an author and professor at the Faculty of Law and School of Public Health, University of Alberta. He has won numerous academic, science communication, and writing awards, and is a M...2024-02-1256 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: How to Cut Through Gut Hype in Media and Medicine with Timothy CaulfieldThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn 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 on gut hype changed his own eating and health behaviors, and more. Timothy Caulfield is an author and professor at the Faculty of Law and School of Public Health, U...2024-02-0906 min
Rethinking WellnessHow to Handle an Anxious GutThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn 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 (with 9 tips for coping) is for paid subscribers. Listen to a free preview here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Christy's second book, The W...2024-02-0707 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: Wellness Trends to Be Excited About—and Skeptical OfThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comWell+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, executive leader, journalist and attorney with a passion for brand building and storytelling. For nearly a decade, she practiced law in competitive, fast-paced environments while building he...2024-02-0202 min
Rethinking WellnessA Critical Look at 2024 Wellness Trends with Faye McCrayWell+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.Faye is Head of Content at Well+Good. She is an author, executive leader, journalist and attorney with a passion for brand building and storytelling. For nearly a decade, she pr...2024-01-2939 min
Rethinking WellnessYou Are More Than What You EatThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comA 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 available wherever books are sold. Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore. If you're looking to make pea...2024-01-2403 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: How to Avoid Wellness Traps When You Care About Health and the Environment with Leah KernThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn 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 enjoys even though she’s critical of wellness culture.Leah Kern is an anti-diet dietitian and certified intuitive eating counselor who specializes in helping people heal their relationships with food and body. Her approach to c...2024-01-1912 min
Rethinking WellnessAnxiety Dieting, Disordered Eating, and the Crunchy-Granola-to-Wellness Pipeline with Leah KernAnti-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 with food and started taking meds, and more.Leah Kern is an anti-diet dietitian and certified intuitive eating counselor who specializes in helping people heal their relationships with food and body. Her approach to coaching is firmly evid...2024-01-1558 min
Rethinking WellnessOn Digital Boundaries, Breaking Free from Influence, and What You Want in 2024A (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 ReferencesChristy’s new book, The Wellness Trap: Break Free from Diet Culture, Disinformation, and Dubious Diagnoses and Find Your True Well-BeingChristy’s online course, Intuitive Eating FundamentalsJessica Elefante’s book (Bookshop affiliate link) and SubstackSarah McColl’s writing coaching and SubstackCan You Prioritize Gut Health and Still Make Peace with Food?How Can You Be Skept...2024-01-0517 min
Rethinking Wellness"Natural" Foods as a Gateway to Disordered Eating with Elyse ReschIntuitive 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 private practice with over 40 years of experience specializing in eating disorders, Intuitive Eating, and Health at Every Size. She is the co-author of Intuitive Eating, now in its 4th edition, the Intuitive Eating Workbook...2024-01-0148 min
Rethinking WellnessWeight Loss and Wellness, and Differences in Our Perceptions of RiskThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comWhat 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.Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold. Order it online or ask for it...2023-12-1305 min
Rethinking WellnessQuestioning Science with Nuance, and Thinking Critically While Still Enjoying "Woo-Woo" Things with Amelia HrubyThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn 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 role of social media in those rabbit holes, and more.Amelia Hruby is a writer, educator and podcaster with a PhD in philosophy. Over the past decade, she’s been a univer...2023-12-0811 min
Rethinking WellnessDigital Well-Being and Leaving Social Media with Amelia HrubyWriter 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 podcaster with a PhD in philosophy. Over the past decade, she’s been a university professor, a community organizer, and a radio DJ. Now she is the founder & executive producer of So...2023-12-041h 04
Rethinking WellnessHair Analysis, DUTCH Testing, and Heavy Metals in ChocolateThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comA 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 sign up for a paid subscription to hear the rest!Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold. Or...2023-11-2909 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: How the Wellness Industry Is Shifting to Stay Ahead of Consumer Skepticism with Rina RaphaelThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn 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 The Gospel of Wellness: Gyms, Gurus, Goop, and the False Promise of Self-Care. She writes for the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, New York...2023-11-2405 min
Rethinking WellnessHow the Media Treats Wellness Trends Like Fashion with Rina RaphaelJournalist 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 complicated history with wellness; and more.Rina Raphael is a journalist and the author of The Gospel of Wellness: Gyms, Gurus, Goop, and the False Promise of Self-Care. She writes for the New York...2023-11-201h 08
Rethinking WellnessDoes Gut Health Really Matter for Your Mental Health?This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comA 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. Listen to the first part here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the rest!Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books ar...2023-11-1514 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: How Media and Social Media Fan the Flames of Anti-Sugar DiscourseThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comProfessor 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 recommendations to cut sugar, and more.Karen Throsby is Professor of Gender Studies and the Head of the School of Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Leeds. She has been...2023-11-1008 min
Rethinking WellnessWhy Sugar Isn't As Bad As You've Been Told with Karen ThrosbyProfessor 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 Professor of Gender Studies and the Head of the School of Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Leeds. She has been researching issues of gender, technology, bodies and health for over 20 ye...2023-11-041h 03
Rethinking WellnessBonus: Author Pooja Lakshmin on How to Tune In to Your Inner VoiceThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn 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 noticing your own inner voice specifically when it comes to food and your body.Dr. Pooja Lakshmin MD is a psychiatrist and author, the founder of the...2023-10-2708 min
Rethinking WellnessReal Self-Care and Breaking Free from Wellness Culture with Pooja LakshminPsychiatrist and REAL SELF-CARE author Pooja Lakshmin joins us to discuss her experiences with faux self-care and toxic wellness culture, her definition of real self-care and how it can fit into your life, the importance of setting boundaries (and what that actually looks like), how to tell if you need self-care or professional help, and more.Dr. Pooja Lakshmin MD is a psychiatrist and author, the founder of the women’s mental health platform Gemma, and a contributor to The New York Times. Her new book, REAL SELF-CARE: Crystals, Cleanses, and Bubble-Baths Not Included, a national bestseller, ha...2023-10-2347 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: Can a Diet Really Help Solve Your Period Problems?This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comQ&A: A critical look at diet advice for period pain and endometriosis.Check out the transcript for links to all referenced studies. 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!Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold. Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore. ...2023-10-2010 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: Chronic Conditions and Acceptance, Plus: Is Alternative Medicine Safe for Recovery?This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, registered dietitian Jonah Soolman returns to discuss the role of acceptance in navigating chronic health conditions, whether eating-disorder recovery can ever be compatible with alternative medicine, what to look for in a healthcare provider given the problems with the alternative- and integrative-medicine fields, and more.Jonah Soolman is a registered dietitian specializing in the treatment of eating disorders and disordered eating using a HAES perspective. He and his wife, Joanne, co-own Soolman Nutrition LLC, a...2023-10-1311 min
Rethinking WellnessI Worked at an Alternative Medicine Clinic. Here's What I Want You to Know.Registered dietitian Jonah Soolman joins us to discuss his time working in an alternative medicine clinic run by integrative doctors. He shares some of the shady practices he saw his bosses engaging in, why food-sensitivity testing and other alt-med tests are often misleading, the dangers of trying alternative or integrative medicine if you’re in recovery from an eating disorder, the devastating situation that finally made him leave the clinic and start speaking out about the harms of alternative medicine, and more.Jonah Soolman is a registered dietitian specializing in the treatment of eating disorders and disordered ea...2023-10-0955 min
Rethinking WellnessDoes Nutrition Response Testing Work? Plus: Can a Diet Treat Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comQ&A: how to know whether a particular test is legit. Plus, in a bonus answer for paid subscribers, Christy discusses what to say to a doctor who’s recommending a diet for ME/CFS or other poorly understood illnesses.Listen to the first question here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode!Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold. Order it online or ask for it...2023-10-0413 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: Other People's Opinions, Rethinking Beauty Culture, and More with Helen Phelan-GuillemotThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, anti-diet Pilates instructor Helen Phelan-Guillemot returns to discuss workout selfies, the way people respond on social media to images of her body, Christy’s own experience navigating other people's opinions on social media, the lack of regulation in the fitness industry and why it’s a problem, how Helen is reexamining her relationship with beauty culture, and more.Helen Phelan-Guillemot is a comprehensively certified pilates instructor, prenatal and postpartum corrective exercise specialist, Institute for Integrative Nutr...2023-09-2905 min
Rethinking WellnessLoving Fitness While Hating Toxic Fitness Culture with Helen Phelan-GuillemotAnti-diet Pilates instructor Helen Phelan-Guillemot joins us to discuss her history as a dancer and how that affected her relationship with food and her body, how she moved from disordered eating into wellness obsession, how she’s come to hate toxic fitness culture while still loving physical activity, how to know when you need to take a break from fitness, why we don’t need to constantly self-optimize, and more.Helen Phelan-Guillemot is a comprehensively certified pilates instructor, prenatal and postpartum corrective exercise specialist, Institute for Integrative Nutrition health coach, intuitive eating student, and founder of on dema...2023-09-2559 min
Rethinking WellnessHow to Handle Bizarre Wellness Claims, Plus the Real Scoop on Seed OilsThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comQ&A: The next time you come across a wellness influencer saying sensational things, try this. Plus, in a bonus answer for paid subscribers, Christy discusses whether seed oils are as bad for you as some sources claim. Listen to the first question here, and sign up for a paid subscription to hear the full episode! Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold. Order it online or ask for it in y...2023-09-2009 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: How Social Media and Wellness Culture Can Harm Your Well-Being with Ling Ling HuangThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, Ling Ling Huang returns to discuss how wellness culture affected her creativity and work as a professional violinist, how she’s changing her relationship with social media, how algorithms led her to questionable wellness products out of a desire to help a loved one, her upcoming TV series, and more.Ling Ling Huang is a writer and violinist. She plays with several ensembles including the Music Kitchen, Washington Heights Chamber Orchestra, Urban Playground Chamber Orchestra, Sh...2023-09-1511 min
Rethinking WellnessWellness Culture and the Myth of "Natural" Beauty with Ling Ling HuangAuthor and violinist Ling Ling Huang joins us to discuss her new novel, Natural Beauty, and the fraught nature of that term; how working in the clean-beauty and wellness space affected her eating-disorder recovery and her mental health; why she invested so much in wellness culture at a time in her life when she could barely afford food; the fetishization and appropriation of Asian cultures in wellness; and lots more.Ling Ling Huang is a writer and violinist. She plays with several ensembles including the Music Kitchen, Washington Heights Chamber Orchestra, Urban Playground Chamber Orchestra, Shattered Glass...2023-09-1156 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: How to Support a Loved One with Chronic Illness with Eliza WheelerThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, illustrator and author Eliza Wheeler returns to discuss how to support a loved one with chronic illness, navigating her own symptoms alongside a partner who also has chronic conditions, and more. Hear more from Eliza in episode 15 at rethinkingwellness.substack.com.Eliza Wheeler is an illustrator and author of books for children, and was a recipient of the Sendak Fellowship Award. Her first picture book, Miss Maple’s Seeds, was a New York Times best se...2023-09-0108 min
Rethinking WellnessHow Disordered Eating Can Play Into Chronic Illness with Eliza WheelerIllustrator and author Eliza Wheeler joins us to discuss the intersection of chronic illness and disordered eating. She shares the unexplained symptoms that led her to try more than a dozen different “wellness” diets, her winding path to an eventual diagnosis of Lyme disease under stringent CDC criteria, why the functional-medicine approach didn’t work for her, how starting to heal her relationship with food has made her chronic illness more manageable, and more.Eliza Wheeler is an illustrator and author of books for children, and was a recipient of the Sendak Fellowship Award. Her first picture book...2023-08-2859 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: Friends in Wellness Culture, the Anti-Aging Trap, and MoreThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, Christy answers audience questions about how to navigate a friendship with a naturopath while trying to reject diet and wellness culture, how to avoid getting sucked into wellness culture's anti-aging advice, dealing with pre-wedding body image struggles, and more. This episode is a recording of the August Q&A for members of Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals course, which is enrolling a new cohort now!This episode is for paid subscribers. Listen to a preview here...2023-08-2508 min
Rethinking WellnessA Former Wellness Influencer Shares What It Was Really Like with Lee TilghmanWriter and ex–wellness influencer Lee Tilghman joins us to discuss how she got into wellness influencing in the first place (and the role of her eating disorder in that process), how it affected her mental well-being to be so wrapped up in wellness for work, what it’s been like to leave influencing, her upcoming book about influencer culture, tips for shifting your relationship with social media, and more.Lee Tilghman is a blogger, writer, creator, and speaker who has had many internet evolutions over the last decade and a half. Her blogs, For the Love of P...2023-08-1443 min
Rethinking WellnessBonus: Food and Farming without Wellness Culture, Mindful Eating without Dieting, and MoreThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, Christy answers audience questions about how to be involved in the food and farming world without falling prey to diet and wellness culture, whether mindful eating is a dieting behavior, how to know if you’re not eating enough, and more. (This episode is a recording of the July Q&A for members of Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals course, which will be enrolling a new cohort in the next few weeks.)This episode is for pa...2023-08-1109 min
Rethinking Wellness"Food Noise" and Diet Drugs, Not Wanting Sweet Foods, and MoreThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.comIn this bonus episode, Christy answers audience questions about whether diet drugs can really quiet “food noise,” and whether it means anything for your eating-disorder recovery if you don’t want sweet foods. This episode is for paid subscribers. To hear the full episode, sign up for a paid subscription here!Christy's new book, The Wellness Trap, is now available wherever books are sold! Order it online or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore.If you're...2023-07-3105 min
Rethinking WellnessChallenging Conspiracy Theories and Embracing Science with Dr. Dan WilsonDr. Dan Wilson of Debunk the Funk joins us to discuss how he went from believing in conspiracy theories about “hidden” cancer cures to becoming a scientist, what led him to rethink his conspiracy beliefs, the crossover between the anti-vax industry and crunchy wellness spaces, how to think critically about common wellness conspiracy theories, and more.Dan Wilson, Ph.D. Is a molecular biologist who earned his doctorate in biological sciences at Carnegie Mellon University. He currently works as a senior associate scientist at Janssen and spends part of his free time exercising his passion for science comm...2023-07-3151 min
Rethinking WellnessWhy Rave Reviews of Wellness Diets Are Probably Wrong with Rennie DyballAuthor and journalist Rennie Dyball joins us to discuss why she's reconsidered the rave review of a gut-health diet book she wrote for a major media outlet years ago, why journalists don't often ask critical questions of wellness "experts," why most wellness-diet testimonials you see online are probably wrong, the intersection of wellness culture and breastfeeding, her new book, B Is for Bellies, and lots more.Rennie Dyball is an award-winning author who has written 16 books and counting, from middle grade novels to celebrity memoirs. She has worked in many areas of media and publishing, and holds...2023-07-1759 min
Rethinking WellnessWhy Wellness Sells - the Benefits and Harms of Wellness Culture with Colleen DerkatchAuthor and rhetoric professor Colleen Derkatch joins us to discuss why wellness sells (and her new book by that name), how wellness culture promises an alternative to the biomedical/pharmaceutical model but fails to deliver, why it’s important to acknowledge that certain aspects of wellness culture are helpful to people even as we critique its harms, and more.Colleen Derkatch is Associate Professor of Rhetoric in the Department of English at Toronto Metropolitan University. She is the author of Bounding Biomedicine: Evidence and Rhetoric in the New Science of Alternative Medicine (University of Chicago Press) and Wh...2023-07-0352 min
Rethinking WellnessCooking Without Wellness Rules and How Social Media Is Like Diet Culture with Julia TurshenCookbook author Julia Turshen joins us to discuss her history with an eating disorder and how orthorexic thinking showed up in her work, how a loved one’s boundary on diet talk helped her realize her relationship with food was problematic, how letting go of diet and wellness rules changed her cooking, how social media is like diet culture and how she’s taken a big step back from it, and more.Julia Turshen is a New York Times bestselling cookbook author. Her latest book, Simply Julia, is a national bestseller. She has written for multiple publications incl...2023-06-1950 min
Rethinking WellnessHow to Fight Wellness Misinformation and Counter Conspiracy Theories with Seema YasminJournalist and medical doctor Seema Yasmin joins us to discuss why misinformation and conspiracy theories about health and wellness are so alluring; how to recognize and fight back against false claims; the difference between misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation; holding the two truths that science is one of the best tools we have for finding facts and science hasn’t always gotten it right; and more. Plus, Christy shares an excerpt from the audiobook of The Wellness Trap about wellness mis- and disinformation and how they’ve come to proliferate online.Dr. Seema Yasmin is an Emmy Award-winning jour...2023-06-0548 min
Rethinking WellnessThe Harms of Social Media, and Giving Up a Career as a Fitness Influencer with Mary JelkovskyAuthor and podcaster Mary Jelkovsky joins us to discuss her history as a fitness influencer starting at age 16, and how it triggered and exacerbated her eating disorder; how social media algorithms drive us toward extreme diet and wellness content; why and how Christy took a huge step back from social media, and why Mary is contemplating doing the same; career moves for influencers after influencing; why “just try not to think about it" is sometimes the most helpful advice in the face of wellness culture's constant push for self-optimization in every area of life; and more.After re...2023-05-221h 01
Rethinking WellnessThe Allure of Alternative Medicine and Parenting in the Age of Diet Culture with Virginia Sole-SmithAuthor and journalist Virginia Sole-Smith joins us to discuss the allure of wellness approaches for those with chronic pain and illness, her experience navigating endometriosis and migraines in diet and wellness culture, the difficulty of describing pain, the notes of orthorexia and fatphobia that show up in otherwise helpful kid-feeding philosophies, her book Fat Talk: Parenting in the Age of Diet Culture, and more.Virginia Sole-Smith is the author of Fat Talk: Parenting in the Age of Diet Culture and The Eating Instinct: Food Culture, Body Image and Guilt in America. As a journalist, she has reported...2023-05-081h 03
Food Psych Podcast with Christy HarrisonRethinking Wellness: The Wellness Trap with Christy Harrison and Katie DaleboutKatie Dalebout guest-hosts the show to interview Christy about her new book, The Wellness Trap! Christy shares why she wanted to write a book about wellness, the potential harms of integrative and functional medicine (and why we’re understandably attracted to these approaches), the connections between wellness culture and diet culture, the legacy of the “hysteria” diagnosis and why women are still having to push back against the idea that symptoms are all in our heads, the role of social media in spreading wellness mis- and disinformation, and more. This episode first ran on our new podcast, Rethinking Wellness. Subscr...2023-04-241h 19
Rethinking WellnessThe Wellness Trap with Christy Harrison and Katie DaleboutKatie Dalebout guest-hosts the show to interview Christy about her new book, The Wellness Trap! Christy shares why she wanted to write a book about wellness, the potential harms of integrative and functional medicine (and why we’re understandably attracted to these approaches), the connections between wellness culture and diet culture, the legacy of the “hysteria” diagnosis and why women are still having to push back against the idea that symptoms are all in our heads, the role of social media in spreading wellness mis- and disinformation, and more.Christy Harrison, MPH, RD, is a registered dietitian nutrit...2023-04-241h 20
Rethinking WellnessThe Wellness to Woo Pipeline, and the Kids in the Long Shadow of Clean Eating with Laura ThomasNutritionist and author Laura Thomas joins us to discuss what it’s like for kids living in the long shadow of “clean eating,” the “almond mom” trend on TikTok, the "wellness to woo pipeline," how parents and caregivers can let go of wellness-culture beliefs about food for themselves and their kids, and more.Laura Thomas is an anti-diet Registered Nutritionist. Her clinical work focuses on supporting parents and families to end intergenerational dieting and body shame, and work towards a greater sense of embodiment and ease in their relationship with food. She supports families of children experiencing a wide ran...2023-04-101h 00
Rethinking WellnessWellness Culture and Infertility, the Challenges of Baby Feeding, and Unpacking Food Sensitivities with Jenee Desmond-HarrisJenée Desmond-Harris, Slate Magazine's Dear Prudence advice columnist, joins us to discuss her history with wellness culture, how infertility can make people desperate enough to try dubious wellness treatments, the harmful wellness messages she’s gotten while navigating her son’s sensitive stomach as a breastfeeding parent, how social media influences our relationships with food and body, and lots more. Jenée Desmond-Harris is a Slate staff writer and editor. She writes the Dear Prudence advice column and previously worked at the New York Times, Vox, and the Root. Find her work at slate.com.If y...2023-03-1359 min
Rethinking WellnessFitness Culture with Natalia Mehlman PetrzelaFitness and wellness historian Natalia Mehlman Petrzela joins Christy to discuss her new book, Fit Nation; the historical shifts that made fitness go from being viewed as a narcissistic practice to being seen as a good thing across the political spectrum; why so many people are disillusioned with our medical system and looking for answers and validation in the alternative medicine space; how people can be critical consumers of online wellness content; and more. (Content warning: discussions of fitness and the food environment.)Natalia Mehlman Petrzela is a historian of contemporary American politics and culture. She is...2023-03-131h 07
Rethinking WellnessHealth Anxiety, Wellness Misinformation, and Media Literacy with Casey GuerenCasey Gueren, award-winning health journalist and author of It's Probably Nothing, joins us to discuss how to deal with health anxiety, strategies for recognizing and avoiding wellness misinformation online, how to develop greater media literacy, and more.Casey Gueren is currently the Head of Content at Wondermind and the former Executive Editor and Health Director at SELF Magazine. An award-winning journalist and fierce advocate of accessible health information, she was also an editor and writer at Buzzfeed, Women's Health, and Cosmopolitan. She graduated from Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey with a dual degree in Journalism...2023-03-131h 04Food Psych Podcast with Christy Harrison[Repost] #219: ANTI-DIET Launch Party! Guest Host Evelyn Tribole Interviews Christy About Diet Culture, Intuitive Eating, and Her New BookEvelyn Tribole (co-author of Intuitive Eating) returns to celebrate the launch of Christy’s first book, Anti-Diet: Reclaim Your Time, Money, Well-Being, and Happiness Through Intuitive Eating! Evelyn interviews Christy about the history of diet culture and The Wellness Diet, diet culture’s role in healthcare and the so-called “obesity epidemic,” why food activism is not as progressive as it seems, intuitive eating as the anti-diet approach to eating, and so much more. (This episode originally aired on December 23, 2019.) Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD is an award-winning registered dietitian, specializing in eating disorders and Intuitive Eating, with a private...2021-12-201h 13Food Psych Podcast with Christy Harrison[Repost] #225: Intuitive Eating & Health At Every Size FAQs, Part 2 with HAES Social Worker Ashley Seruya & Anti-Diet Dietitian Christy HarrisonSocial worker and anti-diet activist Ashley Seruya joins us for a second FAQ episode, where she and Christy respond to more questions about Health At Every Size®, including what to do if you feel uncomfortable in your body at a higher weight, how to handle chronic illness, why food-intolerance diagnoses are often problematic, the effect of health behaviors versus social determinants of health, what to make of weight-loss “success” stories, the importance of rest, and so much more. This episode originally aired on Feb. 3, 2020. Ashley M. Seruya is a psychotherapist specializing in trauma-informed care, weight-stigma, and eating disor...2021-01-111h 30Food Psych Podcast with Christy HarrisonIntuitive Eating & Health At Every Size FAQs, Part 2 with HAES Social Worker Ashley Seruya & Anti-Diet Dietitian Christy HarrisonSocial worker and anti-diet activist Ashley Seruya joins us for a second FAQ episode, where she and Christy respond to more questions about Health At Every Size®, including what to do if you feel uncomfortable in your body at a higher weight, how to handle chronic illness, why food-intolerance diagnoses are often problematic, the effect of health behaviors versus social determinants of health, what to make of weight-loss “success” stories, the importance of rest, and so much more. Ashley M. Seruya is a virtual assistant, social worker, and content creator specializing in Health at Every Size, eating disor...2020-02-031h 30Food Psych Podcast with Christy HarrisonANTI-DIET Launch Party! Guest Host Evelyn Tribole Interviews Christy About Diet Culture, Intuitive Eating, and Her New BookEvelyn Tribole (co-author of Intuitive Eating) returns to celebrate the launch of Christy’s first book, Anti-Diet: Reclaim Your Time, Money, Well-Being, and Happiness Through Intuitive Eating! Evelyn interviews Christy about the history of diet culture and The Wellness Diet, diet culture’s role in healthcare and the so-called “obesity epidemic,” why food activism is not as progressive as it seems, intuitive eating as the anti-diet approach to eating, and so much more. Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD is an award-winning registered dietitian, specializing in eating disorders and Intuitive Eating, with a private practice in Newport Beach, California. She has...2019-12-231h 13Food Psych Podcast with Christy Harrison#62: Self-Compassion and Self-Care for a Healthy Relationship with Food with Christy Harrison, Anti-Diet Dietitian and Intuitive Eating CoachChristy discusses why self-compassion and self-care are so important for a healthy relationship with food, answers a listener question about how to eat intuitively while managing a food allergy, and shares some bonus content from her new online intuitive eating course! Check out our website for the resources mentioned in this episode. Ready to make peace with food? Join Christy's intuitive eating online course! How healthy is your relationship with food? Take the quiz and get free resources at christyharrison.com/quiz!2016-05-3132 min