Wellness is going big. Over the past five years, the global wellness industry has exploded and is now approaching $4 trillion annually —making it one of the world’s fastest-growing, most resilient markets.
Fact is, unwell workers are a massive drain on corporate profits, and U.S. healthcare costs are continuing to rise 5% to 10% a year. Ugh! So what’s a company to do? Well, you can expect more businesses to jump into the arena with both workplace solutions (like our pioneering behavioral health client, AiRCare), and offerings that appeal to the increasing number of Americans who are embracing and prioritizing well-being as an antidote to our increasingly hectic, over-connected lives.
It’s no surprise that the chaos and pace of modern society is directly responsible for some of the biggest wellness trends right now. Here are three worth watching, courtesy of the Global Wellness Institute.
1. Mind over matter. Wellness culture has historically focused more on “body” than “mind.” Now a slew of mental wellness approaches are trending: from sleep health to meditation mainstreaming and apps that use neuroscience to track mental wellness and stress. Have you gotten into a good HeadSpace lately?
2. You: Unplugged. In a time of 24/7 connectivity and noxious news, more businesses and wellness destinations will take a radical new approach: absolute silence and disconnection. Look for new “silent spas,” “wellness monasteries” and hotels (and workplaces) with “quiet rooms.” Even silent restaurants, gyms, hair salons, stores and airports are appearing. Shhhhhh.
3. Wellness for all. Forget the $300 yoga pants; look for a wave of wellness products and services at lower price-points: new affordable healthy grocery stores, fast food chains and more accessible sliding-scale classes that are priced based on income. In other words, no more excuses!