In this episode of The Joyful Nourishment Podcast I explore:
What exactly is Diet Culture? And how does it impact our relationship with food, eating and our bodies?
Diet culture refers to a rigid set of expectations about valuing thinness and attractiveness over physical health and emotional well-being. Diet culture often emphasizes “good” versus “bad” foods, focuses on calorie restriction, and normalizes self-deprecating talk. Diet culture is toxic, and it can be a risk factor for body dysmorphia, disordered eating, and other mental health issues.
(From Shelby Gordon’s presentation on Weight Stigma in Health Care June 2023 for TCME)
Diet Culture has roots in racism, colonialism and eugenics. Body hierarchies are imbedded in our cultural fabric and it is everywhere.
I believe that disordered eating and eating disordered eating are not mental health issues alone, but are biopsychosocial disorders, meaning that there are also both cultural influences as well as physiological influences on our mental health, and our relationship with food and our bodies.
In this week’s solo episode I will explore with you what Diet Culture is, how it tends to show up everywhere and that is does have an impact on everyone (but that people who are living in larger bodies and are fat are disproportionately harmed more than people who are thin.)
I also invite you to get curious and reflect on where you are noticing diet talk showing up in your own life. And come over and share your experiences in the Substack community so that we can all learn and support each other on this different and radical path.
If you are interested in working with me 1:1 go here or sign up to my weekly Substack Newsletter to stay in touch
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