If your social media feed looks anything like mine, you’re seeing hundreds of health influencers spouting “the new study that shows…” every single day. Whether it’s a video about dopamine detoxing, a thread on miracle supplements, or a reel convincing you that cold plunges can cure depression, the wellness industry thrives on an endless stream of content dressed up as science. In our practice, we hear from countless adults who have convinced themselves overnight that they “suddenly” have ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, or bipolar disorder—often after falling down a rabbit hole of pseudoscientific posts.
Jonathan N. Stea’s Mind the Science: Saving Your Mental Health from the Wellness Industry arrives at a critical moment in this cultural swirl. Stea, a psychologist and researcher, makes a strong case for the importance of scientific literacy and skepticism in an age when misinformation is not only common but commercially incentivized. The book is part primer on the history of pseudoscience, part exposé of the trillion-dollar wellness industry, and part toolkit for consumers trying to navigate their health choices responsibly.
What the Book Gets Right
One of the book’s biggest strengths is the way Stea situates today’s wellness industry in a longer historical arc. He reminds readers that pseudoscientific movements aren’t new—whether it’s phrenology in the 19th century, fad diets in the 20th, or “biohacking” in the 21st, these trends all capitalize on a mix of curiosity, fear, and hope. Understanding this lineage makes it easier to see that the latest TikTok mental health hack is rarely as revolutionary as it claims.
Stea also breaks down the psychological tricks that the wellness industry uses to draw people in: manufactured authority (the influencer in a white coat who isn’t actually a doctor), cherry-picked data, and emotionally charged testimonials that overshadow evidence. He shows how algorithms reward the most extreme, engaging content—meaning that your feed will rarely be filled with sober, nuanced science, but instead with quick fixes and miracle cures.
The most practical part of Mind the Science is its vocabulary for thinking critically. Stea encourages readers to ask: Who is making this claim? What evidence are they citing? Is it peer-reviewed research, or just a “study” with ten participants and no control group? He empowers consumers to spot red flags, such as oversimplified claims, fear-based marketing, and the frequent misuse of psychiatric terminology. For patients overwhelmed by conflicting advice, this is enormously useful.
Where Readers Should Be Cautious
That said, the book is not without its limitations. While Stea is persuasive in debunking pseudoscience, at times his critique risks painting with too broad a brush. Some alternative health practices—like mindfulness meditation or certain dietary approaches—have gradually gained legitimacy as evidence has accumulated. Stea acknowledges this, but the nuance can get lost amid his broader critique of the wellness industry. Readers might leave with the impression that anything outside the mainstream medical model is inherently suspect, which could unintentionally discourage exploration of practices that are safe, affordable, and genuinely helpful when combined with conventional care.
Another caution is that Mind the Science assumes a fairly high level of trust in institutional science and medicine. For readers who already feel disillusioned by the healthcare system—whether because of access barriers, cultural insensitivity, or past negative experiences—the book may come across as overly defensive of the status quo. Stea could have devoted more space to acknowledging the shortcomings of mainstream mental health care, which often create the vacuum that pseudoscience fills.
Why This Book Matters
Despite these caveats, Mind the Science is an important contribution to the conversation about mental health in the digital age. For clinicians, it provides language to help patients distinguish between credible advice and marketing spin. For patients, it offers both reassurance (“you’re not crazy for being confused—this is how the system is designed”) and guidance on how to move forward more wisely.
The wellness industry isn’t going away anytime soon—it’s too profitable, too seductive, and too easily amplified by technology. But Stea’s book reminds us that we do have agency. By slowing down, questioning sources, and understanding the playbook of pseudoscience, we can better protect our mental health and our wallets.
In short, Mind the Science is not a perfect book, but it is a timely one. For anyone feeling overwhelmed by the cacophony of health claims online, it offers a compass pointing back to evidence, humility, and critical thinking—tools we need more than ever.