Wellness is about energy, balance, and connection – but it remains out of reach for many. In our latest blog, we explore how small changes and systemic shifts can help transform lives for the better.
Wellness isn’t just a personal pursuit – it’s a collective goal. It’s about balance, energy, and connection, and it’s deeply intertwined with the movement toward preventative health. Yet, for many, it feels out of reach – not because it’s unattainable, but because the systems and narratives shaping our choices make it unnecessarily difficult.
The phrase “Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels” was once a rallying cry, selling an idea of health that prioritised appearance over substance. But as we grow more attuned to what it means to truly thrive, a more meaningful perspective emerges: “Nothing tastes as good as wellness feels.”
What Wellness Feels Like
Wellness is powerful because it’s tangible. Many on our team have embraced small, impactful changes, and the results have been transformative:
- Reducing sugar and ultra-processed foods (UPFs) has brought steadier energy and greater mental clarity.
- Embracing healthy fats, once vilified in the low-fat diet era of the 1980s, has been a revelation. Foods like olive oil, avocado, and nuts are not just satisfying – they’re essential.
- Finding balance – tuning into what our bodies need and embracing flexibility – has made wellness sustainable rather than daunting.
These changes highlight the joy and vitality that come from feeling well. Yet, they also underscore how inaccessible such practices remain for many.
Barriers to Wellness
Achieving wellness shouldn’t feel like a privilege, but systemic barriers make it so. Access to fresh, nutritious food is often limited by cost or availability, particularly in lower-income communities. Confusing labelling systems, like the UK’s traffic light scheme, often mislead rather than guide, creating further obstacles.
Meanwhile, the marketing machine behind ultra-processed foods thrives, pushing cheap, addictive products while the narrative around whole, nourishing foods struggles to compete. Wellness is often reduced to personal responsibility, overlooking the structural inequities that make it harder for some to achieve.
Preventative Health and Systemic Change
Wellness isn’t just about individual choices; it’s a cornerstone of preventative health. Shifting the focus from treating illness to maintaining health has the potential to reduce the burden on healthcare systems and improve quality of life for all. To make this shift, we need:
- Policies that prioritise affordable, accessible fresh food and regulate misleading nutritional labelling.
- Education that provides clear, evidence-based guidance on what it takes to be well, cutting through decades of mixed messages and fads.
- A New Narrative that uses the power of marketing to make wellness desirable and attainable, countering the dominance of ultra-processed food campaigns.
These systemic changes are critical to ensuring wellness is no longer a privilege but a shared standard.
A Feeling Worth Fighting For
For those who’ve experienced it, wellness feels like steady energy, sharp focus, and deep satisfaction. It’s the freedom of a balanced body and mind – a state that allows us to thrive rather than just get by.
But wellness isn’t just about personal habits. It’s about creating a world where those habits are supported, not obstructed. A world where wellness is accessible, affordable, and embraced as the foundation of preventative health.
As we embrace the festive season, let’s reflect on the importance of nourishment – not just for our bodies, but for our connections and communities. Wellness is more than a personal pursuit; it’s a gift that allows us to thrive and support one another. So, let’s savour the balance, energy, and joy that come from prioritising what truly matters. After all, nothing tastes as good as wellness feels. And it’s time we made that feeling possible for everyone.
