Trend Perspectives by Cynthia Maxwell
Health & Wellness | Trendy diets, detoxes, weight loss goals, and fitness are all huge topics on the consumers mind as we head into a new year. ‘New Year, New Me!’ is announced across all social media. What’s the biggest, hottest and maybe most effective health and wellness trends that you may or may not know about?
First lets take a look at some stats:
•Trip Advisor reported that bookings for wellness experiences jumped 69% in 2018 over 2017 and Costa Rica, Reykjavik and Thailand are a few of the most booked.
•With the increased interest in alternative proteins like quinoa, chia seeds and chickpeas Business Wire forecasts that with the alternative protein market accounting for $4.2 billion in 2016 there is an expectation of CAGR of 6.8% between 2017 and 2022.
•The Global Ayurvedic Market is expected to reach over $9 million by 2022 based on the increased demand for natural and organic products focused on areas such as hair and skin care, cancer treatments, mental health, nervous system disorders, etc.
Now on to some of 2019’s big health & wellness players…
CBD and Adaptogens | Everyone is talking about CBD! At the fitness center, parties, even my mom! There are a lot of inquiries about effectiveness, quality, gummies, oil etc. Even if you don’t want to talk about it, the topic will most likely come up somewhere. Both CBD and hemp oils are making appearances in beauty products and Refinery29 went as far to say “all things hemp and CBD might be the biggest wellness to beauty trend this year.”
Last year, I wrote about how mushrooms are starting to show up everywhere from restaurant menus to home decor. Reishi, Lions Mane and Chaga are replacing coffee, hot chocolate and are being added to face masks, shampoo, and the list goes on. But the key word here is ‘adaptogens’—herbs used in Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine. The mushrooms mentioned above are adaptogens and you might also recognize herbs Ashwagadha, Maca and Ginseng that have been mixed into juices, drink powders and beauty products. These ancient herbs are being used to fight stress, balance hormones and lose weight. Just remember some adaptogens have to be combined with other herbs/vitamins to actually work. These herbs were used in 5,000 year old science and their healing properties are not that simple. Regardless, they are hot right now.
RELATED: CBD Trendspotting at the 2019 Winter Fancy Food Show
Fitness | The variety of fitness classes to choose from these days is vast. Excellent for anyone that needs a ton of variety. At home fitness has become a hit; think the Peloton bike, and hotels are adding more on-demand classes. I just participated in a 30 day Grokker.com wellness challenge, who in my opinion has some of the best online yoga instructors.
“VR fitness has been adopted in some form by more than 12,000 health clubs internationally” (Men’s Health Magazine). One example, “THE TRIP immerses you in cycling journey of digitally-created worlds-burning serious calories” (lesmills.com).
Now that it’s so easy to exercise everywhere, there’s no room for excuses!
Diet | There are a lot of trendy diets to choose from but ketogenic, paleo and Whole 30 are among the most popular. The ketogenic diet has been given props for introducing MCT oil to the mass market, putting it at the top of the 2019 wellness trends. This oil helps with weight management and anxiety. You might be familiar with it via Bulletproof coffee, now look for it in smoothie powders, energy bars and bottled/canned lattes.
In the last few years there has been some talk around some real healthy living like those lucky enough to live in a Blue Zone. Time Magazine and National Geographic put out entire issues about it. Blue Zones are five areas in the world where people live longer, healthier lives. Their diets usually consist of more vegetables, grains, fruits and minimal meat. They are family focused and walk a lot! Blue Zone inhabitants live to 90 and above with little to no chronic illness. These are just basics, but I look for more people to adopt healthier ways of living as opposed to extreme diets.
Planet Love | Of course I have to talk about earth-friendly wellness trends and this year everyone is talking about eco-friendly packaging. I’m sure you’ve heard of this before, but it’s getting even more real. Multi-use packaging will be creating the most buzz. So far this year, my favorite is Culina plant-based yogurt based out of Austin, Texas. Their charming packaging alone is worth buying. The organic coconut yogurt is sold in a reusable pot made from soil and water. The pot, which resembles a basic clay plant pot, is microwave, dishwasher, oven and freezer safe—you can even use them for planting!
You can expect multi-use packaging to expand in most product categories, giving the consumer more incentive to purchase.
As these are just a few of the top health and wellness trends this year, you can see this industry is huge an growing. The consumer definitely has more than enough options to be their best selves! Cheers!
