💥 Grift Mythbusting 101

🎉 Happy Friday, Friends!

Here at StrongWithDana, we're always unpacking the latest wellness grifts. I don't approach everything with skepticism, but I've been around the block long enough to be able to spot nonsense from a mile away. The latest wave of wellness grifters wants you to inject expensive peptides at home, use an IV to recover from a hangover, and obsess over the temperature of your mattress to "optimize" your sleep.

There’s always some new, ridiculous health hack being doled out by, of course, a white man.

But here’s something they won’t tell you: the biggest predictor of long-term health and well-being isn’t a biohacking gadget or a procedure out of a genre-bending horror/sci-fi movie - it’s the quality of your relationships. Harvard just published the findings of the longest longitudinal study on happiness and loneliness, an 80-year project that followed 286 Harvard sophomores. They were all men, unfortunately, but we can still gather some important findings here.

The not-so-shocking conclusion was that relationship satisfaction was just as - if not more - important as taking care of your physical health. That's why so much of my newsletter is about preserving and supporting your community and relationships. It's wellness. The science confirms that.

The study mentions that a happy marriage is a great way to improve health outcomes across the board. But let's unpack that, especially considering most of the health, financial, and day-to-day benefits of marriage appear to go to men. Marriage is just one type of social tie, so instead of focusing on the romantic love institution of it all, what about the flipside?

(Also, let’s all remember that the majority of health, financial, and day-to-day living benefits of marriage appear to go men. Who knew that having someone around to beg you to go to the doctor more often would help?)

What about the fact that study after study shows that having strong social ties helps people decrease depressive symptoms, manage blood sugar, and overall improve mental health?

This is all a lot less mysterious than it might seem. Think about it. People who have strong social ties might have…

Something as simple as a person nearby to call an ambulance for them.

They have multiple people to unpack their problems with, providing a variety of solutions through which they can triangulate the best option.

They have more people to share their happiness with, creating a greater focus on the positive.

They are able to ask for help in an emergency, but also in regular situations, lowering overall stress and potentially reducing emergencies!

They share their resources, including time, money, knowledge, and things like food, clothing, and Netflix subscriptions.

Meanwhile, so-called wellness “experts” are making money off isolation and monetizing our sleep. They tell you that normal signs of aging are failures, that your current body is broken, and that if you just follow their obsessive, expensive plan, you’ll finally be worthy.

It’s not a coincidence that so many wellness grifters are also right-wing grifters! Did you know right-wing grifting is actually more lucrative than saying left-leaning stuff online?

So, Dana, how do we resist?

Lean into real-life connections. See people in person if possible. Visit real, physical, local businesses. Show up for concerts, chat at a coffee shop or park instead of at home, and ask strangers questions whenever you can.

Move with others. Walk with a friend, take a class, or just find ways to move that feel like play. Strength and longevity don’t come from restriction, supplements, or carefully avoiding sunlight. They come from use, laughter, effort, and hope.

Engage in your local community. The grift thrives when we’re disconnected and doing most of our social activity online. Support local food systems, join mutual aid efforts, and remember that health is collective, not just individual. Volunteer your time, energy, and money if you can.

Be skeptical, together. This broken-ass wellness industry counts on us being too busy or overwhelmed to fact-check the posts that make Andrew Huberman look like a genius. Talk with your people, share knowledge, and remind each other that you don’t need an $800 sleep tracker to know when you’re tired. And do your own research, especially on claims regarding skincare, your daily routine, food, and medicine. Bonus: research via tracking your own emotions and physical sensations. Your body is your highest source of truth.

Wellness was never meant to be a solo pursuit. It’s time to step away from algorithm-driven fear and back into something real.

Stay strong (and connected),
Dana