“Our ‘diet industry’ has become a ‘lifestyle change industry’. Same concept. Same strategy. Same outcome. Different music. It’s rather effective. Think about how easily and automatically this excludes various groups of people. Who is instantly exiled the second health becomes the top measurement of worth? People with physical disabilities. People with chronic or incurable ailments. People who live in poverty and can’t afford balanced meals. People who don’t have the resources or education required to learn about how to take care of their bodies. People who live with a mental illness that doesn’t allow them to take care of themselves at all. People so focused on just surviving that there isn’t any energy left to focus on physical maintenance. Lots and lots of people who are unable to fully participate in our ‘wellness culture’ because of the body and life they were born into. Defining worthiness by health and fitness level is not just about size discrimination. It’s also about classism. Racism. Ableism. And much more. Thanks to this new ‘beauty myth’, far more people are unable to achieve not only the body that we say is acceptable, but also the lifestyle that we demand. It almost feel like we’re looking at the most extreme form of elitism yet.”
