#diet-culture

#diet-culture

These ads avoid the explicit "weight loss" pitches of the past, like the days of Jenny Craig. Many ads never even say the word "weight," it is simply implied. Instead, these brands frame GLP-1s as a route to better healthcare and medical well-being, positioning them as an easy step to "take charge of your health." While the message is polished, the subtext is the same: losing weight leads to confidence, health, and self-worth.

Diet culture norms have led to a multibillion-dollar industry promoting diets that each come with their own set of rules, with each claiming it's the only way to be healthy or lose weight. When access to nutrition information is at an all-time high online, people are often left digging through conflicting information when trying to figure out what to eat or what a healthy diet look likes.

This is what we know: Dietary restriction (also called caloric deprivation) results in hunger, which leads to a biologically driven binge. My previous mentor liked to say that our bodies don't care if we are happy; they want us to survive. So just as depriving your body of fluids creates extreme thirst (our body's way of urging us to drink water)

I remember as a kid I was obsessed with Halloween candy. It was the one day of the year where I could get as much candy, eat as much candy as I could. I had a one-track mind. I didn't find joy with Halloween because of the costumes or hanging out with friends. I'd just get a pillowcase and fill it up with as much candy as I wanted.

In 2018, Weight Watchers rebranded itself as "WW," announcing that it was no longer a diet but a "wellness and lifestyle program." The shift sounded refreshing - even progressive. After decades of being synonymous with calorie counting and weigh-ins, the company seemed to embrace a broader vision of health. But beneath the glossy marketing and pastel app graphics, little had actually changed. The points system remained, weigh-ins persisted, and the focus on weight loss stayed the same.

An influencer pops up with a "what I eat in a day" post-the perfect-looking meals have no carbs, few calories. Another influencer tries to humorously share their night out partying, and a mom shows how she needs wine to get through the day. Ads for fitness programs fill your feed, promising that "you can fix your life in 3 simple steps!" The next day, a coworker talks about the new diet they want to start;

Menopause can trigger or reignite disordered eating patterns, as body image issues worsen due to societal ideals around youth and thinness.

There is nothing I find more annoying than the fact that exercise makes your brain feel better. Why can't I be rewarded for simply lying down?

In the 1970s, bodybuilding was considered an odd endeavor. By the 90s, even the President was seen lifting weights, signifying a cultural shift towards embracing strength.