The unhealthy side of wellness tourism

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This was published 1 year ago

The unhealthy side of wellness tourism

By Lee Tulloch
Ayurveda is extremely fashionable in the western world now.

Ayurveda is extremely fashionable in the western world now.Credit: iStock

A few months ago, an Ayurvedic doctor at a Fiji resort told me that I "think too much" and prescribed a seven-day program of Shirodhara, a traditional healing treatment where warm oil is dripped slowly on the patient's "third eye."

I was to do this as soon as I returned to Sydney, as well as following a five-day program of drinking water boiled with different herbs, such as cumin and turmeric, each day. I was not to eat rice, oats, wheat - ever. My morning porridge, I learnt, was very bad for me.

I had tried Shirodhara once, years before, and I disliked the feeling of oil dripping down the back of my neck. When I researched it, I found that a few sessions in Sydney would have set me back more than $1000. Drinking boiled water with coriander seeds didn't sound too difficult but it also didn't sound particularly effective either.

I smiled nicely, thanked him and then ignored his advice. I've since resigned myself to being a person who "thinks too much."

I'm not debunking Ayurveda, an ancient system of medicine that originated in India and Nepal over 3000 years ago. Treatment starts with an internal purification process, often involving eating the fat ghee for days, followed by a special diet, herbal remedies, massage therapy, yoga, and meditation.

Ayurveda is extremely fashionable in the western world now and you're likely to come across a version of it, often quite watered-down, in the spas of resorts and hotels worldwide. I have friends who have booked themselves into serious Ayurvedic retreats in India to do the purification part, which is quite challenging, and all strength to them.

But it's more than adding turmeric and coriander to your massage oil. I once had a genuine Ayurvedic massage in India and it was rough, invasive and memorable for the wrong reasons. I'm guessing that, like eating ghee, there's an amount of sacrifice involved if you want to come away with a real benefit.

The global wellness industry is worth $US4.4 trillion, of which $US436 billion comes from wellness tourism. These are 2020 figures and it's expected that, as a result of the pandemic and people's focus on health, the value of wellness tourism might exceed $US16 billion annually by 2030.

But I'm wondering how much of that money is well spent, given that I suspect most people are like me, dabbling in medicines and alternate therapies when on holiday, and ignoring the advice as soon as they get home, not because they lack good intentions, but because it involves a significant change to their lifestyles.

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The wellness industry is especially good at making you feel lacking in some way – in fitness or diet or body shape – and when you're on holiday you can be even more vulnerable.

These days, resort spas are ever more glamorous destinations in themselves, with tinkling water features, bowls of fragrant flowers and therapists in linen pyjamas who speak in reassuring whispers, as if you need calming. (And perhaps you might, when you see the prices, which are usually charged in USD.)

Lately I've come across a lot of treatments that "reconnect" me to the ocean, or nature, where in fact I could reconnect by simply going for a swim. Along with Ayurveda, treatments that involve organic herbs grown in the resort's garden are popular. Which is fine, if you think becoming a salad for an hour might cure some of your ills.

I love massages. I'm game for any kind and I've had most of them, from the hard kneading they do in Eastern Europe to Hawaiian lomi lomi with stones. I'm not knocking pleasure. It can be very lovely, which is why many people include at least one in their resort holiday. But a massage is rarely life changing.

Finding a gifted local to do it, in a Moroccan hammam or beachside in Bali, is probably a better option and better for the local economy. Resort spas are often more about style than substance. They can be strangely unsatisfying, once you've come down to earth.

In the same way, consultations with spa "doctors" can feel like a rip-off. Unless you're booked into a serious health retreat where your whole body is being assessed and treated over time, half an hour with someone who can't possibly know your health history is just a waste of money.

And you might end up with oil on your head.

lee.tulloch@traveller.com.au.

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