Love Yourselfie

Let’s define “diet culture.” It’s societal expectations valuing thinness and the physical appearance of health created and maintained by, for example:

• Messages about how one should look or eat
• Messages about how much one should weigh
• Labeling foods as good or bad (and labeling yourself as good or bad if you eat them)
• Viewing certain eating and fitness practices as morally superior or inferior

You don’t have to be on a diet to be impacted by diet culture.

In 2021, one-thousand American social media users aged 16 to 34 were surveyed. The majority said they followed social media influencers who were similar to themselves (e.g., age, gender, race, and lifestyle). By comparison, only 130 reported following influencers who were different from them. But real bodies and real people may not be so similar to you - and you may discover that some people you think of as “different” are actually more similar than you realized. Diversifying your media feeds can broaden your worldview, potentially increasing your body- and self-confidence and your capacity for inclusivity, too.

There’s an interesting video on YouTube by the Association of Size Diversity and Health called “The Problem with Poodle Science.” The short film brings to light that under the umbrella term “dogs,” different breeds with naturally distinct physiques and requirements for health exist. It makes logical sense that a bullmastiff that loses enough pounds to weigh the same as a poodle is not a fit bullmastiff ; it’s a starved bullmastiff. Not everyone is supposed to be in a poodle’s weight range, especially if you’re a Chihuahua or a Great Dane. However, that’s far from the message that permeates Western society.

Something to think about: “ BMI (Body Mass Index) was developed by a mathematician based on his concept of “the average man.” It was not created to consider differences across ethnic groups, race, gender, age, fitness levels, or the proportions of bone, muscle, and fat in the body.”

Excerpt from 30+ Truths About Diet Culture, Eating Disorders, and the Process of Healing by Gia Marson, Ed.D.

Healthy eating is a huge topic. And, what’s promoted as “healthy” might not be “healthy” for you.

• Let’s say you’re allergic to, dislike, or have a sensitivity to kale, which’s been promoted as a superfood. Then for you, kale won’t be so “super,” right?
• Following someone else’s plan for how we “should” eat can dull our ability to listen to our body’s signals (e.g., cravings, hunger/fullness).
• Science backs that weight loss diets fail in the long run most of the time. (Did you catch that? They fail, you don’t.)
• Adhering to (or trying really hard to!) “healthy” diets and food plans, many of which often restrict categories of food or food overall, can end up making someone malnourished–which is the opposite of healthy.

In general, healthy eating might be summarized as this: Eating in ways that keep your body steadily fueled, your moods supported, your energy maintained, and that offer your body variety and pleasure.

Author of Food Freedom Workbook, Dr. Gia Marson, EdD., PsyD. states: Eating is one of the most natural things we can do. Yet many of us apply unnatural rules to the way we eat. Our culture idealizes appearances, certain body shapes, dieting, and weight limits as part of a “healthy” life. The result is that most of us have unwittingly developed a dieting mindset. This means that we are constantly thinking about what we “should” be eating while also feeling deprived by what we’re not eating.

• What is intuitive eating? Intuitive eating helps you to exert positive control over your eating habits by eating in sync with your body’s built-in cues; choosing foods based on energy, nutrition, taste, and satisfaction; and giving up external rules about food.
• What is mindful eating? Mindful eating helps you to change negative self-judgments to compassionate self-talk so that you may empower yourself to pause before making choices about food.