“The following series is designed to entertain and inform – not provide medical advice. You should always consult your doctor when it comes to your personal health, or before you start any treatment.” This is the warning you are shown before watching the new series, The Goop Lab on Netflix.
A series of 6 episodes, each one lasts around 30 minutes and covers a range of different wellness topics to, as Gwyneth states in the intro, “achieve optimisation of self”. Set to the cultural backdrop of rising anxiety and increasing importance of mental health, we watch staff “Goopers” embark on different treatments from psychedelic healing trips to embracing and achieving female pleasure.
The series has sparked much controversy across the UK & US. Most recently the docu-series been criticised by NHS England chief executive Simon Stevens for posing a “considerable health risk” to the public.
As reported in Stylist he said “Myths and misinformation have been put on steroids by the availability of misleading claims online. While the term ‘fake news’ makes most people think about politics, people’s natural concern for their health, and particularly about that of their loved ones, makes this particularly fertile ground for quacks, charlatans and cranks.”
According to the BBC, a spokesperson for Goop said it was “transparent when we cover emerging topics that may be unsupported by science or may be in early stages of review.”
Goop is the infamous lifestyle and wellbeing brand set up by Gwyneth Paltrow, reportedly worth $250m. The company is by now used to this type of backlash and is holding firm to the desired outcome of the series to “entertain and inform”.
For the trailer and more information click here
Goop Lab is available to watch on Netflix now.
