Wellness has come for Christmas – is nothing sacred anymore?

The wellness world has infiltrated Christmas, and I'm not feeling good about it.

Where you used to find a Christmas pudding-shaped chocolate behind your numbered door, this year has seen the advent of supplement calendars, with each day "treating" you to a limited-edition flavour of collagen.

I kind of get it – if you're someone who struggles with consistency when taking collagen (or any other supplements, for that matter), finding it behind a fun, festive door could be the kickstart to turning it into a habit that lasts long into the new year. Once you've been doing it for a month, it'll be easier to keep up the ritual even when your collagen sachet is no longer Christmassy.

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While I understand the thinking behind a collagen advent calendar, I do think there's something a bit bleak about taking away the joyful little chocolates and replacing them with something that is essentialy a chore. I don't know anyone who leaps out of bed, excited to take their supplements – and I have met a lot of wellness devotees.

In defence of supplement advent calendars 

Boots' Head of Category for Christmas Gifts (head elf, you say?), Charlotte Ursell, explains why we're seeing wellness take over the most wonderful time of the year – and it does make sense when she says it.

"The festive season can be one of the busiest times of the year, so gifts that encourage us to slow down, look after ourselves and prioritise our wellbeing will be more important than ever."

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So perhaps I'm being too Scroogey about this.

If you're already someone who takes collagen every day, maybe it'd be fun to have different ones to try in the lead-up to Christmas, and a thoughtful offering if someone bought it for you.

But, if I really want to get pernickety, I could argue the point that studies say that ideally you need to take collagen for three months to see results, so one month of collagen isn't going to make a difference, but that's not a hill I'll die on – a month isn't going to hurt, even if it won't deliver bouncy, dewy skin by Christmas Day.

Wellness stocking fillers 

Supplement advent calendars aside, wellness has also come for stocking fillers, with little crackers filled with collagen supplements peppering the high street – and this is where it gets silly, because one sachet inside a pretty cracker is going to do nothing for your skin, and it's not going to help you form a habit or feel better immediately upon taking.

There are also electrolyte Christmas crackers on the way. This one I can get behind. Electrolytes are handy for easing a hangover, so maybe you'll pull your cracker at your Christmas party, stash away the sachet and then find the electrolyte at the bottom of your going-out bag the next day – this I approve of.

Electrolytes don't need to be part of your everyday wellness routine in the way other supplements do, but a one-off sachet of salty goodness could send your hangover packing in time for next party, so that makes sense.

Perhaps another benefit of wellness stocking fillers and advent calendars is their ability to minimise waste. We've all been given mini hand creams at Christmas which we never use, leaving them to languish in drawers in our homes until we eventually bin them. With a collagen sachet, at least you take it, and there's minimal packaging or waste…

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It's also nice to give someone the gift of good health rather than another pair of socks, so I can see the thinking there. So, in summary, I can see the benefits of supplement calendars if A) you already take collagen daily, so it's a special, seasonal way to take it, or B) you need chivvying in the right direction to take your supplements.

But, being neither of these, I still want a Lindt chocolate every day in December rather than a collagen sachet, thank you very much.