Forty-five听million Americans听, and though they might see short-term success,听 of those people regain the weight they lost. That鈥檚 because dieting, at least as we鈥檝e been doing it,听.听
We鈥檙e made to believe that diets fail because we听lack willpower or discipline. But the odds are stacked against a person trying to lose weight through dietary restriction. Recent research has shown that our bodies have a set weight range largely , and a听 found that if you dip below your natural weight, your brain triggers changes in metabolism and energy output to get you back to normal and prevent further weight loss.听
Fixating on appearance and weight also affects our well-being. A 听published in the journal Social and Personality Psychology Compass indicates that many of the poor health outcomes associated with 听could instead be traced to the stigma against bigger-bodied people and the stress it causes.
In short, what ails us isn鈥檛 weight鈥攊t鈥檚 our obsession with it, according to听, a registered dietitian nutritionist听and New York Times contributor. In her听book,听, which came out in December, Harrison proposes that the solution isn鈥檛 weight loss鈥攊t鈥檚 burning diet culture to the ground.听We鈥檙e trained to believe that being thin means you鈥檙e healthy and being fat means the opposite, Harrison says, when you can actually be healthy at any size.
鈥淲eight bias explains much if not all of the excess health risks in people with larger bodies,鈥 Harrison says. 鈥淔raming people鈥檚 body size as an [obesity] epidemic is weight stigma.鈥
The overzealous pursuit of thinness鈥攗nder the guise of a visual indication of health鈥攈as an unfortunate byproduct: the foods, lifestyles, and body types that don鈥檛 fit into this听narrow paradigm are demonized, Harrison argues. When a low-carb diet or a juice cleanse is dubbed 鈥clean eating,鈥 the natural assumption is that other ways of eating are dirty. Before-and-after photos celebrate weight loss听but also imply that a bigger body is a problem to be solved or a project to be worked on. Complimenting someone on looking thin suggests that something was wrong with their body before. Harrison also notes that our physical spaces reflect these ideals, like how bus and airplane seats only accommodate people of a certain size. Clothing stores often don鈥檛 carry sizes that accommodate larger bodies, and听if they do,听the options are typically few.
鈥淭he way [wellness and diet culture] conceives of health is bound up in healthism: the belief that health is a moral obligation, and that people who are 鈥榟ealthy鈥 deserve more respect and resources than people who are 鈥榰nhealthy,鈥欌 Harrison writes. 鈥淗ealthism is both a way of seeing the world that places health at the apex and a form of discriminating on the basis of health.鈥
Anti-Diet explains that discrimination itself can lead听to a wide array of听negative听: a听 from Obesity Reviews听found that repeated weight loss and gain can lead to blood pressure and heart problems. A听 in Obesity听found that people who had experienced听 in the past year were twice as likely to have a mood or anxiety disorder听and 50 percent more likely to have a substance-use disorder than those who had not.听
Institutional fatphobia can also affect the quality of health care that听larger-bodied people receive, Harrison explains. Women with high BMIs鈥攁bove 55鈥攁re almost 20 percent less likely to get gynecological cancer screenings听and have to deal with disrespectful treatment, unsolicited weight-loss advice, and inappropriately sized medical equipment in the doctor鈥檚 office, a 听found. That kind of treatment leads larger-bodied people to avoid spaces where they can expect to be stigmatized, like doctor鈥檚 offices or gyms, according to research from the听 and the听. While there is a correlation between and health outcomes like hypertension or heart disease, high weight alone doesn鈥檛 necessarily cause poor health鈥攖here are other risk factors to take into account.
It is possible to change what and how you eat without becoming a part of diet culture yourself. Instead of going keto, quitting sugar, or committing to Whole30, Harrison suggests her readers try something a little simpler:听intuitive eating, which basically means eating what you want without stress, shame, or restriction听but with careful attention to how your body feels. (If you鈥檙e looking for a how-to guide on the approach,听check out Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch鈥檚听.)
鈥淒iet culture convinces us that honoring our hunger, seeking satisfaction, and feeling full will send us down the road to perdition. It tells us our instincts鈥re听bad and wrong,鈥 Harrison writes. 鈥淲e have the capacity to get back to a place where our relationships with food are as simple as they were when we were babies鈥攚here hunger and pleasure are nothing to be ashamed of, and where fullness is a signal that we can take our minds off food for a while.鈥澨
Anti-Diet offers a much-needed unbrainwashing for anyone feeling stress, stigma, or shame about their appearance, diet, or activity levels. Even the socially conscious reader will have an aha听moment when Harrison debunks something they have accepted as truth. Though some of the more nuanced concepts are tricky to absorb, like the ways in which diet culture infiltrates progressive movements like food activism, Anti-Diet is an approachable read for anyone ready to untangle their eating habits from their self-worth.