24/06/2022
How effective is mindfulness for treating mental ill-health? And what about the apps?
Mindfulness forms part of the trillion-dollar wellness industry, representing 1.5–6% of yearly spending around the world (estimated to be more than US$200 million) on wellness products and services.
Smartphone apps, in particular, have skyrocketed in popularity offering incredible promise for mental health with wide reach, and scalability at low cost. Mental ill-health was on the rise before the pandemic but reached new heights during it.
Correspondingly, COVID created previously unseen demand for mindfulness apps and online courses.
The article below is a useful commentary on what is available out there.
Mindfulness can have benefits, but it shouldn’t replace first-line treatment, and it shouldn’t claim to be able to.