‘Anti-Diet,’ ‘Body Positivity’ and the Rise of Junk Food in Wellness
Having a positive body image and eating unhealthy foods without guilt do not erase the chronic health issues that arise with poor diet.Health ViewpointsNot surprisingly, according to studies, most Americans are metabolically unhealthy. In fact, seven out of eight of us don’t meet the criteria for metabolic health. Researchers describe this as “alarmingly low,” and I agree. As a functional medicine doctor, I see this every day in people around the world.And worse—I see the health implications commonly associated with poor metabolic health—including brain fog, fatigue, infertility, digestive problems, hormonal issues, skin problems, and low libido. Just because something is common, doesn’t make it normal.Despite all this, the “anti-diet” movement has become louder and more mainstream than ever—overcorrecting toxic diet culture to preach the merits of no-limits indulgence—without regard to the value of proper nutrition and true health.The Anti-Diet PhenomenonLike many fads that end up going too far, the anti-diet movement emerged from a healthy intention. The shame-based, over-restrictive dieting practices common 10, 20, 30-plus years ago rarely took proper nutrition into account. They over-emphasized calorie cutting, food restrictions, and vigorous and excessive exercise—on top of societies’ blatant judgment towards individuals struggling to maintain a healthy weight.Having consulted thousands of people around the world, I absolutely agree that for people to thrive mentally and physically, there is no place for shaming, over-restriction, or unhealthy obsessions of any kind. To achieve true health, we all need to feel supported, satiated, and nourished in body and mind.However, instead of considering science-backed nutrition and lifestyle adjustments, today’s “anti-diet” social media message has been vastly over-corrective, claiming “there is no such thing as bad food,” and that intuition is all we need to eat well.Related StoriesThough I wish our collective or personal intuition was sufficient to keep our nutrition in support of optimal health, the average person is up against too many obstacles for that to be the case, illustrated by the fact that only one in eight Americans is metabolically healthy.The anti-diet “wellness” subset is equally as toxic, or perhaps even more toxic than diet culture itself. The extreme aspects of the “body positivity movement,” “health at every size,” and “anti-diet culture” ignore basic nutrition science and are steeped in enabling and virtue signaling.The Rise of Metabolic and Autoimmune ProblemsWith nearly 50 million Americans having a diagnosable autoimmune condition and millions more somewhere on the autoimmune/inflammation spectrum, we need to ask “Why?”The overwhelming majority of metabolic health conditions are caused, at least in part if not in many cases entirely, by the foods we eat and the foods we are not eating. To say “there is no such thing as bad food” intentionally misrepresents a leading cause of illness for millions of people. It’s simply not accurate.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 80 percent of those struggling with metabolic illness are not even aware of it.Yet, according to “anti-diet dietitians,” health can be achieved by eating whatever you feel like, as long as it is “intuitive.” I am all for mindful eating, but it is very difficult to eat intuitively when you’re in a state of a blood sugar roller coaster and inflammation. Is it intuition or “hangryness?” Intuition or hormone imbalance?It is hard to hear the still, small voice of your intuition when it’s clouded by the noise of a dysregulated metabolism. The message pushed by the anti-diet culture is dangerous and grossly misleading to the majority of American adults who would benefit from a metabolic assessment and a health-first approach to address the myriad of health and longevity concerns that come with metabolic disorders.Big Junk Food and the Anti-Diet MovementThe word “diet,” has become a four-letter word, when in reality its definition describes plainly “what we eat.” The majority of Americans have been failed by a lack of empowerment and access to real food and a health care system that does not prioritize nutrition and is only now beginning to understand the enormous impact our diets have on our health.What is readily available, subsidized, and heavily marketed is—you guessed it—food that doesn’t love the human body back.It’s no surprise that Big Junk Food has joined in on the anti-diet movement. General Mills—maker of Lucky Charms, Betty Crocker, and Häagen-Dazs ice cream—has launched a nationwide campaign to warn against the evils of “food shame,” partnering with dietitians on social media to add credibility to their claims.By co-opting the already distorted anti-diet movement, companies like General Mills have effectively flipped the switch on true health initiatives, capitalizing on an opportunity to reclaim what has been lost to health and wellness trends. C
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Having a positive body image and eating unhealthy foods without guilt do not erase the chronic health issues that arise with poor diet.
Health Viewpoints
And worse—I see the health implications commonly associated with poor metabolic health—including brain fog, fatigue, infertility, digestive problems, hormonal issues, skin problems, and low libido. Just because something is common, doesn’t make it normal.
Despite all this, the “anti-diet” movement has become louder and more mainstream than ever—overcorrecting toxic diet culture to preach the merits of no-limits indulgence—without regard to the value of proper nutrition and true health.
.
The Anti-Diet Phenomenon
Like many fads that end up going too far, the anti-diet movement emerged from a healthy intention. The shame-based, over-restrictive dieting practices common 10, 20, 30-plus years ago rarely took proper nutrition into account. They over-emphasized calorie cutting, food restrictions, and vigorous and excessive exercise—on top of societies’ blatant judgment towards individuals struggling to maintain a healthy weight.Having consulted thousands of people around the world, I absolutely agree that for people to thrive mentally and physically, there is no place for shaming, over-restriction, or unhealthy obsessions of any kind. To achieve true health, we all need to feel supported, satiated, and nourished in body and mind.
However, instead of considering science-backed nutrition and lifestyle adjustments, today’s “anti-diet” social media message has been vastly over-corrective, claiming “there is no such thing as bad food,” and that intuition is all we need to eat well.
Though I wish our collective or personal intuition was sufficient to keep our nutrition in support of optimal health, the average person is up against too many obstacles for that to be the case, illustrated by the fact that only one in eight Americans is metabolically healthy.
The anti-diet “wellness” subset is equally as toxic, or perhaps even more toxic than diet culture itself. The extreme aspects of the “body positivity movement,” “health at every size,” and “anti-diet culture” ignore basic nutrition science and are steeped in enabling and virtue signaling.
.
The Rise of Metabolic and Autoimmune Problems
With nearly 50 million Americans having a diagnosable autoimmune condition and millions more somewhere on the autoimmune/inflammation spectrum, we need to ask “Why?”The overwhelming majority of metabolic health conditions are caused, at least in part if not in many cases entirely, by the foods we eat and the foods we are not eating. To say “there is no such thing as bad food” intentionally misrepresents a leading cause of illness for millions of people. It’s simply not accurate.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 80 percent of those struggling with metabolic illness are not even aware of it.
Yet, according to “anti-diet dietitians,” health can be achieved by eating whatever you feel like, as long as it is “intuitive.” I am all for mindful eating, but it is very difficult to eat intuitively when you’re in a state of a blood sugar roller coaster and inflammation. Is it intuition or “hangryness?” Intuition or hormone imbalance?
It is hard to hear the still, small voice of your intuition when it’s clouded by the noise of a dysregulated metabolism. The message pushed by the anti-diet culture is dangerous and grossly misleading to the majority of American adults who would benefit from a metabolic assessment and a health-first approach to address the myriad of health and longevity concerns that come with metabolic disorders.
.
Big Junk Food and the Anti-Diet Movement
The word “diet,” has become a four-letter word, when in reality its definition describes plainly “what we eat.” The majority of Americans have been failed by a lack of empowerment and access to real food and a health care system that does not prioritize nutrition and is only now beginning to understand the enormous impact our diets have on our health.What is readily available, subsidized, and heavily marketed is—you guessed it—food that doesn’t love the human body back.
It’s no surprise that Big Junk Food has joined in on the anti-diet movement. General Mills—maker of Lucky Charms, Betty Crocker, and Häagen-Dazs ice cream—has launched a nationwide campaign to warn against the evils of “food shame,” partnering with dietitians on social media to add credibility to their claims.
What Is Good Metabolic Health?
Studies like that out of the University of North Carolina define good metabolic health according to five key metrics. Conventional labs are largely looking at statistical averages of people who go to labs, who are not the healthiest group to assess longevity and optimal health. In functional medicine we are looking at optimal, not average, when it comes to these key metrics of metabolic health:- Fasting glucose: optimal less than 90 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL)
- HDL (High-density lipoprotein): optimal greater than or equal to 60 mg/dL
- Triglycerides: optimal less that 100 mg/dL
- Waist circumference: optimal less than 40 inches for men and 34 inches for women
- Blood pressure: optimal systolic less than 120 and diastolic less than 80 millimeters of mercury
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Self-Respect–Key to Combatting Toxic Diet Culture
When it comes to combating toxic diet culture, the solution does start with self-compassion because you can’t heal a body you hate. You can’t shame your way to wellness. You can’t obsess your way to health.Yet, if we are “loving ourselves” by regularly eating certain foods without guilt according to the “anti-diet/body-positivity” movement—many of those foods don’t love us back—and avoiding them is not “restrictive toxic diet culture”—it’s self-respect.
Anyone who normalizes the chronic consumption of foods that don’t love you back is enabling you to be okay with eating foods that don’t serve the body’s health and well-being. This truth can be delivered gracefully and with love—and without shame. Eating foods that don’t love you back doesn’t make you a bad person, but it doesn’t make you healthy either.
When we begin to heal our bodies with real, nourishing, nutrient-dense foods our bodies begin to crave what is best for us. That “body intuition,” like a muscle, takes time to develop and can be elevated with a serving of proper nutrition education. Until then, “intuitive eating,” as it is espoused today on social media, is not a reliable way to pursue health.
