“Health at every size” is one of the most popular movements in the US along with the body positivity movement. Unfortunately, the idea can be misleading, jeopardising its well-intentioned goal. A severely underweight person is as unhealthy as a severely overweight person. Beyond looks and appearance, this is an internal, physical, biological and metabolic health issue. Severely underweight people are more likely to suffer from brittle bones, low blood pressure, amenorrhea, malnutrition and mental illness. Correspondingly, people afflicted by sick fat are more likely to suffer from high blood pressure, heart disease, type 2 diabetes and mental illness.
Body positivity may be well-intentioned and while it is good to have these “good vibes”, we should never ignore the health risks associated with adiposity and imagine that we are “not at risk” even if we are severely obese. It is understandable to cling to optimism as a form of encouragement when we face shaming from many corners of society, but that doesn’t mean we deliberately give ourselves false hopes irrespective of reality. In doing so, we neglect our emotions and adopt a coping technique that is actually unhelpful or even toxic.
The term “toxic positivity” is gaining momentum in the media parallel to the body positivity movement. Toxic positivity holds that you should always maintain a positive mindset, no matter how difficult the situation is. This belief is toxic for several reasons – it is unrealistic to expect someone to think positively regardless of circumstances; we are too complicated and multifaceted for that to happen. Besides experiencing positive feelings like happiness and joy, we also experience negative feelings like frustration, anger, sadness, grief and shame.
By insisting on remaining positive at all times, we will be doing a disservice to ourselves. We need to acknowledge our negative emotions when warranted as much as we need to celebrate the positive feelings and experiences when they come.
Toxic positivity is counterproductive and intensifies the pain on top of an already difficult situation. The person feels guilt and shame when unable to maintain a positive, upbeat mindset. It prevents their growth as well if they constantly pretend that the problem doesn’t exist and persist on “looking on the bright side” and having “good vibes only”.
Similarly, toxic body positivity can be harmful too. People place a lot of pressure on themselves to love their bodies unconditionally, but is it possible to truly love yourself? Is anybody able to do so? When you see someone who may look perfect to you, you are likely to find faults in your appearance when you look in the mirror. Body positivity tells you to ignore any negative body image issues, which outright disregard your living experience.
Adding insult to injury, today’s landscape of the body positivity movement is very different from the fat activism movement it started out to be. As the hashtags #bodypositivity, #selflove, #selfacceptance and their variants gained popularity, people with smaller bodies began sharing photos and selfies of themselves in their #OOTD (outfit of the day) at the gym mirror tagged the same way. So now, when you search #bodypositivity on Instagram, you are more likely to see thin, lean and fit people than larger-bodied people whom the movement was created by and for. Unfortunately, this made larger-bodied individuals feel marginalised yet again.
To address the toxic undertones of pure body positivity, many activists are now advocating for “body
neutrality” instead. This method focuses on health rather than appearances. They propose that you should seek to feel neutral about your physical appearance and love your body for what it empowers you to do. In principle, self-love without focusing on your physical appearance will naturally translate into behaviours that nurture your body. Rather than exercising to lose weight, we will exercise to improve our health. We won’t “diet” but we will eat well.
In a New York Times article, Kelly DeVos, writer and author of Fat Girl on a Plane states, “I am a fat woman. Growing up, I was chubby even during my adolescence.” Kelly recalls being bitten by a spider and hospitalised days later due to a severe flesh-eating infection. “It took me years of hard work to learn to accept myself, but I finally embraced the idea that my body was healthy at any size,” she says. At 41, she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, which was rapidly advancing. She was dumbfounded. “How can I have type 2 diabetes?” she remembers questioning her doctor. “Fruits and vegetables are staples in my diet. I walk and do Pilates. I thought you could be healthy at any size? “The doctor replied, “You’re not healthy at any size. Unless you make some major changes, you probably have about ten years to live.”
Kelly’s prognosis for her health was devastating, but it enlightened her about herself and the body positivity movement. It made her doubt the movement’s principles, which claim that one should not attempt to reduce weight because it always reflects the psychological toll of fat shaming. She realised that was fallacious because she could choose to love her body while losing weight to love it better.
In many circumstances, adopting this mindset will result in actual “health at every size”. This simply means that you can be any shape or size provided that your body remains healthy and thriving, your internal processes are functioning properly and your organs can perform their intended tasks without difficulty. Someone who has trouble walking up the stairs, either because their weight is so low that they lack energy or so heavy that they can’t catch their breath, is not healthy at any size.
Excerpted with permission from The Book Of Body Positivity: How We Got It All Wrong And What We Can Do About It, Rajeev Kurapati, Penguin India.