Welcome to Debate Club! Please be aware that this is a space for respectful debate, and that your ideas will be challenged here. Please remember to critique the argument, not the author.

What is your opinion on the anti-diet movement?

threewins
threewins Posts: 1,455 Member
If you don't know what that is, just Google it, you will find 'healthy at every size' (which I think refers to ways to become healthy, not specifically that everyone is healthy at every size) as one of the parts of the anti-diet movement, plus intuitive eating. I can understand why some people reject the idea of attempting to lose weight, given the pitiful weight loss success rates, I'm willing to bet that most people on myfitnesspal aren't on their first attempt at weight loss.

Replies

  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,966 Member
    I think it's great in some ways, and slightly irritating in others. I love the idea that people shouldn't demonize certain foods, they should focus on adding healthy things into their life/diet instead of eliminating things, and create balanced meals etc. I like that they focus on becoming healthier no matter what size you are, focus on health vs. your weight. However it's extremely unhelpful for people like me who just want to lose a little bit of weight lol. I'm at a healthy weight already, so I feel like dietitians do not approve of me trying to lose and don't offer any advice that would actually help me achieve my goals. So I suppose it's good for people who have a damaged relationship with food (eating disorders, people who yo-yo diet, people who are obsessive about what they eat etc) but not so good for someone like me who is already pretty healthy, I have a good relationship with food, I just want to lose a little weight because I just want to.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    Can be good, can be bad depending on the specifics of what one means by it.

    I think getting away from the diet mindset and focusing on other ways to improve the diet, get into a deficit, and live healthfully can be very positive, and for some focusing on dieting can be counterproductive (which is different from saying some very obese people physically cannot lose weight).

    I think some take it too far and either claim that trying to lose weight is inherently bad or not significant no matter what one's weight for healthy reasons. Similarly, others are so into the idea of intuitive eating that they tend to slam other ways of losing or act as if everyone is the same and because it worked for them (or because they've never been overweight but struggled with eating disorders) than trying to eat at a deficit or focusing on calories is inherently bad. Obviously I think that is wrong and unhelpful, even though for some intuitive eating might be the best approach.
  • psychod787
    psychod787 Posts: 4,099 Member
    @AnnPT77 Yes ma'am, a correction, the HAES movement did exist. They were just not quite as out there. The rise in social media, i think, was one of the reasons they are better known now.

    I definitely got more negative reaction (from my social circle) to my weight loss than I ever got to being fat/obese . . . at first, anyway. They've mostly gotten used to me being thinner, several years on, and have filed me in the "so lucky, don't need to do anything because naturally thin, and so active"

    I received the negative reactions of, "you look sick." "you need to quit losing so much weight." <--- should have come later when I did get super lean. I now also get the, "eat a burger, you're skinny" whenever I decline one from folks who never knew I was 50+ bmi. Not skinny now. BMI is actually 26.4. BF is normal though. So I still say that being a "normal" bw is becoming stigmatized. I've seen it from both ends.

    (I'm not demonizing people with genetic issues or degenerative diseases, history of accidents leading to movement limitations, etc.
    I think the fact that you have to put this in your post to not "hurt" peoples feelings is a sign of times. Or maybe you are just a super polite gal. ;)
    Glad to be back Aunt Granny. Love you too! <3
  • RockingWithLJ
    RockingWithLJ Posts: 243 Member
    The idea is ridiculous. A diet is just what you eat. People eat like s*** and then want to change their diet to some sort of new diet plan in order to achieve something, etc etc. At the end of the day the diet is just what you consume
  • LaBellaHarris
    LaBellaHarris Posts: 63 Member
    edited April 2022
    Theoldguy1 wrote: »
    Sounds like something that if enough people post it on social media it gets to be true instead of looking at the science that obesity seriously impacts health.

    There's also science supporting the idea that doctors overlook serious medical conditions because a person is overweight. Here's one article,
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5201160/
    But it's been a widely studied and publicized phenomenon at least since my college psychology courses when I was actively paying attention to stats and research (circa 2007-2011), so it's probably not fair to just roll your eyes and blame kids on social media these days. Not catching an unrelated medical issue early enough for treatment because the doctor didn't think it necessary to do any testing on a fat person (or because the equipment doesn't fit a fat person or is inconvenient on a fat person), is a very real, very documented problem in Western healthcare. Sometimes you need to treat the cancer before you lose weight, you know? Because sure, being obese will shorten your life span, but the cancer is what's killing you today. It's about triage.