Diet Culture
What is diet culture?
Diet culture is a system of social pressures that tells people how they should look and eat in order to be more accepted in society (Thomas 2022). Diet culture can affect anyone and has been heavily advertised throughout social media through advertisements, shows, and magazines.
Some examples of diet culture in advertisements include:
How did diet culture start?
How did this idea that people need to look a certain way even come about? Well, diet culture has actually been around for centuries; “the idea of ‘ideal body types’ arose in the mid-1800s, and beauty became reliant on the visuals of a person’s body” (berkeley 2022). Weight loss and diet culture began their appearance in magazines:
These magazines and advertisements are a few of many attempts to keep diet culture alive, to fuel the multi-billion dollar industry of weight loss and dieting.
Who is affected by diet culture?
A common misconception is that women are only prone to diet culture and susceptible to its pressures. However, diet culture can also affect men; “unrealistic expectations placed on men and their bodies can lead to body dissatisfaction, low self-esteem, over-exercising, consumption of unnecessary (and potentially dangerous) supplements and the development of eating disorders” (Guerrini 2020).
This is an example of diet culture in magazines focused for men.
How can diet culture lead to eating disorders?
The unrealistic and unsustainable standards of diet culture can lead to restrictive behaviors and disordered eating; as a result, this could lead to an eating disorder. Diet culture installs insecurities onto society, and can lead to very destructive results, and has been influencing society for generations.
How can we stop diet culture?
To put an end to diet culture, we should refrain from enforcing unrealistic body types and diets, and stop spreading advertisements that promote diet culture. Unfortunately, “Tens of billions of dollars are spent by individuals in the United States every single year on diets and weight loss products” (Compton 2020), when people “diet”, the whole world loses. It is time to break up with diet culture and begin exploring our lives through a new lens. Say no to diet culture!
You are not alone
If you feel that you, or a loved one, are struggling with an eating disorder, please consult a professional or visit the sites below. Asking for help is not easy, but you are not alone, making that first will help you so much in the long run. Happiness and health are worth much more than societal standards.
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/eating-disorders/eating-disorder-treatment-and-recovery.htm
Works Cited
Bberkley. “Diet Culture: A Brief History - the Social and Health Research Center.” The Social and Health Research Center, 21 Apr. 2022, sahrc.org/2022/04/diet-culture-a-brief-history/#:~:text=The%20idea%20of%20%E2%80%9Cideal%20body,first%20%E2%80%9Cdiet%20influencer%E2%80%9D%20emerged.
Girlsinsights. “Weight Loss Advertisements in Magazines | 100 Years of Media Patriarchy on How Women Should Eat and Look - Girlsinsights.” Girlsinsights, 16 June 2020, girlsinsights.com/weight-loss-100-years-of-media-patriarchy-on-how-women-should-eat-and-look.
Admin, Bodymatters. “Masculinity and Diet Culture.” BodyMatters Australasia, Jan. 2020, bodymatters.com.au/masculinity-and-diet-culture.
The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness. “Breaking up With Diet Culture.” National Alliance for Eating Disorders, Oct. 2021, www.allianceforeatingdisorders.com/breaking-up-with-diet-culture/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAnNacBhDvARIsABnDa6_H_LBegioNbyPSSVfDqT0TRFObDaWZhOP8LV7oTo2Ky5fMbUmMXFYaAmwhEALw_wcB.
