Conspirituality Podcast

Episode: Bonus Sample – How Wellness Influencers Became Radicalized
Host: Derek Beres
Release Date: September 8, 2025

Episode Overview

In this bonus episode, Derek Beres examines the roots and evolution of wellness rhetoric, specifically how the original ideas about personal health and self-determination have been transformed—and often weaponized—by today’s wellness influencers. Beres draws a direct line from early thinkers like Halbert Dunn to modern figures such as Callie and Casey Means, and even to political actors like RFK Jr. He explores how metaphysical ideas about energy and holistic wellness are repackaged into contemporary conspiratorial thinking, questioning the blurry line between genuine health advocacy and dangerous pseudoscience.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Origins of “Wellness” and Halbert Dunn’s Legacy

• Halbert Dunn’s Background: First biostatistician at the Mayo Clinic (1929); ran the National Office for Vital Statistics (1925-1960).
• Influence: Delivered 29 lectures in late 1950s, published as High Level Wellness (1961).
• Dunn’s Philosophy: Emphasized achieving a “higher potential of functioning.” Not a grifter—invested in public health, not profiteering.
• Tone of Dunn’s Work: “A bit quaint and charming in that sort of 20th century mid century theory of everything sort of way.” (Derek, 01:48)
• Connection to Modern Wellness: Many new age and wellness influencers echo Dunn’s original ideas, often without attribution.

2. From Empowerment to Distrust: The Evolution of Rhetoric

• Self-Determination: Original messages like “You are your own best doctor” found in 90s yoga studios, intended to empower.
• Modern Weaponization: That phrase has transformed into “Don’t trust doctors”—a sentiment amplified by wellness influencers and conspiracy theorists.
  • Notable Example: “You are your own best doctor has become ‘don’t trust doctors’. Which is an actual tweet that RFK Junior advisor Callie Means sent out a year ago.” (Derek, 03:30)

3. Influencers and “Science-ish” Claims

• Callie and Casey Means: Wellness entrepreneurs/authors of Good Energy—neither are endocrinologists but advise on metabolic health.
• Science-ish Language: Both Dunn and the Means siblings veer into metaphysical explanations using scientific terms (energy, mitochondria).
  • Notable Comparison: “This phenomenon certainly rhymes with Dunn, a statistician edging into science-ish throughout his book, and both quickly turned toward the murky realm of metaphysics when they tried to explain health.” (Derek, 04:07)

4. Modern Wellness Meets Conspiracy

• RFK Jr. and the Means Siblings:
  • The Means’ influence extends to political spheres—Casey is RFK Jr's nominee for Surgeon General, Callie is an advisor.
  • Pseudoscientific claims (e.g., diagnosing children’s mitochondrial health by sight) are spread at high levels:
    • “RFK Junior... claims that he can identify mitochondrial challenges in children by looking at them in airports. Yeah, that's not a thing and it's also creepy as fuck, but that's his claim, not mine.” (Derek, 05:14)
• Spiritual Crisis Framing: The Means’ book transitions from science-ish to the metaphysical:
  • Quote from Good Energy: “The body is an awe inspiring and interconnected entity that is constantly regenerating and exchanging energy and matter with the external environment every time we eat, breathe or bask in sunlight.” (cited by Derek, 05:47)

5. Commercialization and Reductionism

• Critique of Means Siblings: Accused by metabolic experts of reducing complex health issues to simple metabolic problems (fitting their product lines).
• Product Tie-ins: Casey’s company sells continuous glucose monitors; Callie’s company sells supplements.
  • “This makes sense if you're trying to sell continuous glucose monitors as Casey's company does, or if you're selling hundreds of supplements as Cali's company does. At least Halbert Dunn never sold Alt Med products.” (Derek, 06:13)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Appeal of Wellness Rhetoric:
  • “These people are not reinventing the wheel... within that book [Dunn’s] are the seeds of modern wellness.” (Derek, 01:19)
• On the Evolution of the Message:
  • “Rhetoric that I heard in yoga Studios in the 90s like ‘you are your own best doctor and nobody knows your body better than you’... has now weaponized such sentiments.” (Derek, 02:55)
• On RFK Jr’s Health Claims:
  • “He claims that he can identify mitochondrial challenges in children by looking at them in airports. Yeah, that's not a thing and it's also creepy as fuck, but that's his claim, not mine.” (Derek, 05:16)
• On Spiritual Claims in Wellness Books:
  • “In reality. The body is an awe inspiring and interconnected entity that is constantly regenerating and exchanging energy and matter with the external environment every time we eat, breathe or bask in sunlight.” (Means siblings, as quoted by Derek, 05:49)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:03 — 01:48: Introduction to Halbert Dunn & the origins of wellness statistics
• 01:49 — 03:29: Dunn’s lectures, ideas, and influence on modern wellness
• 03:30 — 04:25: “You are your own best doctor” and its evolution into anti-expertise rhetoric
• 04:26 — 05:13: The Means siblings and their “science-ish” approach
• 05:14 — 05:58: Pseudoscientific claims by RFK Jr. and the spiritualization of wellness
• 05:59 — 06:47: Critique of commercialization, product tie-ins, and reductionism

Episode Tone & Style

Derek Beres maintains a critical yet conversational tone, blending journalistic skepticism with personal observations. The style is incisive, often irreverent (“creepy as fuck”), but maintains clarity and focus on the impact of rhetorical shifts in wellness discourse.

Final Thoughts

This episode tracks the evolution of wellness language from well-meaning public health ideas to their radicalized, highly commercial, and often pseudoscientific incarnations among today's top wellness influencers. Beres highlights how these shifts mirror wider cultural trends of distrust in expertise, the commodification of health, and the entanglement of spiritual and conspiratorial thinking.

For listeners looking to understand how wellness narratives have morphed—and why the rhetoric matters—this episode serves as both a cautionary tale and a call for critical engagement.