Have you watched Netflix’s new series, Apple Cider Vinegar?

I decided to watch the first episode this past weekend to do some research for The Daily Dollop podcast. I then binge-watched it until 1 a.m. that night!

The series was compelling. It got in my head. I couldn’t stop watching it, and I dreamed about it.

My brain is now a beehive of activity, trying to articulate concrete thoughts about the incredibly complex themes the series raised about wellness, nutrition, health, and how we consume health information.

I’m going to try to get them out now:

The themes that Netflix’s Apple Cider Vinegar series raised for me:

The strong allure of wellness messaging to people who are genuinely sick and have a poor prognosis and no hope

This is the main one. The idea is that highly influential people on social media might be killing people with their lies by pushing a narrative that’s not true. Netflix had posted a promo image on their Facebook page with the quote:

Two young women advocate for wellness remedies to cure deadly diseases, unraveling their lives as they unknowingly – and knowingly – mislead the world.

The cult of personality

The creation of mass media—radio, magazines, TV, and now social media—allows leaders, public figures, and now everyday people to present a particular side of themselves on the internet and amass a strong following of devoted fans and followers. They are also highly influential in what these followers think and do. This concept has been used to describe many strong political leaders, and monarchs, etc. It’s a fascinating concept to read about.

We see every day the power of social influencers—their followers idolise them so much that they will believe anything they say and do what they say, even to their own detriment.

The way conventional medicine is seen to ‘let people down’

I’ve listened to lots of commentary on this topic, and if conventional medicine can learn anything from wellness, it is that it needs to combine evidence, logic, and fact with emotion, connection, and feeling.

Another thought I have is that conventional medicine, although as advanced as it has ever been, has limitations. It can’t cure everything, and that’s not its fault. Human health and disease is complex. However, when held side-by-side with the audacious claims of alternative therapy and wellness messages, conventional medicine often appears to be lacking.

The controversial subject of whether or not diet can cure cancer

It cannot, but many people (the public and ‘experts’) cling to this notion ever so tightly.

Old wives’ tales and snake oil tactics from so-called doctors, who were debunked years ago, spread like wildfire across the internet and are frequently found by doing ‘research’.

But really, the Google-er is simply reading blog articles and media articles that regurgitate each other’s misinformation, making it appear to be reinforced when, in fact, there is no good scientific evidence to back up their claims.

Humans may appreciate facts, reason, and logic but they connect with emotion, feelings, and a good story.

Read blog article after blog article on the perils of conventional medicine, the conspiracy theories of ‘big pharma’ and the wonders of natural healing techniques used by our ancestors, and you’ll brainwash yourself into believing that what you’re reading is accurate.

Just because you read the same thing repeatedly doesn’t make it accurate. They are all just regurgitating each other’s BS, and if you’ve been battling a health condition or had a poor experience in the conventional health system, it’ll all sound way too alluring (and it’s generally a case of ‘too good to be true’).

Wellness culture believes that people ‘did it to themselves’ and that they must now cleanse themselves and ‘do the right thing’

There is much guilt and shame surrounding health due to the belief that people make themselves ill. Health is far more complex and nuanced than this. There are many social, economic, psychological, demographic and genetic determinants of health, and many of them are out of an individual’s control. Yes, we can repeat behaviours that impair or promote health, but they are not done in isolation, and they cannot carry the full weight of causing health outcomes.

The idea that something ‘natural’ is good and man-made and clinical is ‘bad’

The naturalistic fallacy is the idea that what is found in nature is good. The reality is that when it comes to health, many ‘natural’ things are bad for our health, and many ‘unnatural’ things are good for us—and vice versa. Being ‘natural’ or ‘unnatural’ should be viewed as neutral and not hold a moral or health value as being ‘good’ or ‘bad’ because it’s a poor framework on which to make a decision.

I’ve often wondered if pushers of misinformation know that they’re spreading BS and making it up. And they don’t care because it’s making them money and giving them fame and influence

This was well presented in Apple Cider Vinegar, where the fictional Belle thrives – throughout all six episodes – off the social likes and comments of support that her lies garner.

In contrast, the other influencer portrayed in the series genuinely feels she’s doing a good thing for the world.

When we take things into our own hands, we feel a very real sense of personal power and resolve

I imagine people must feel very out of control when following and trusting the conventional medical system, so pulling away from that, doing your own research, and making your own decisions is a very real way to regain that power.

We can’t underestimate the powerful human desire to be in control. To have a say in what happens to us. To forge our destiny. When you become unwell, you lose so much of that power and have to trust others. The ability to CHOOSE who you trust is a way that individuals who are suffering can get their power back. Wellness, alternative therapies and misinformation are often presented in a way that leads people down a road of feeling like if they choose the alternative route, they are taking their power back.

We must have much grace and compassion for these individuals who feel this way.

Does wellness information or misinformation cause harm?

“She could be killing people with her lies!”

(Quote from the series.)

Should you let them put crystals in their water if it makes them feel better, even though it’s bollocks? It won’t hurt them.

And is that the same as living on juice and coffee enemas for months and rejecting conventional treatment?

I don’t think we can tar all misinformation with the same brush. Each piece of info needs to be evaluated on its own merits and in the context of the individual in question; their feelings, their needs and their health.

When speaking out against misinformation as a health professional, we can cop flack

If you speak out against misinformation online, you can easily be seen as a ‘Negative Nancy’ or ‘Debbie Downer’. If I’ve done it, I’m not trying to criticise, but I’ve seen firsthand the damage that misinformation can cause. It’s a difficult tension to manage.

Those who speak out regularly feel a consequential public responsibility to set the record straight.

Is it the responsibility of qualified people to do so? What do you think?

Please listen to more of my commentary about this topic on The Daily Dollop podcast and contact me with your thoughts. I’d love to hear them!