Content Warning: The article discusses topics related to body image, eating disorders, and the like.
Summer’s hottest days are right around the corner, and the pressure to achieve a perfect beach body is at an all time high. This can be particularly stressful for women, who have historically been the target of rapid weight loss programs, fad diets, and unattainable physique standards. Public opinion on the validity of diet and exercise solely for the purpose of aesthetics is divided, with some agreeing that adhering to a certain mold of thinness is what defines health while others focusing on overall happiness as the true measure of health.
As a girl growing up in the era of pro-anorexia Tumblr, my introduction to exercise and diet was from the aesthetic perspective. Young girls were encouraged to sustain themselves on low calorie diets devoid of nutrients to achieve arbitrary body goals like thigh gaps and visible rib cages. It didn’t matter if you felt weak from denying your body appropriate nutrition as long as you could be skinny. After all, “nothing tastes as good as skinny feels.” By only using thinness as a metric for health, pro-anorexia Tumblr neglected to inform young women of the potentially life threatening risks that come with restrictive eating disorders such as stunted growth, brittle bones, and heart problems, among many others.
Recently, pro-anorexia Tumblr has reared its ugly head again, this time in the form of #skinnytok. While the hashtag itself was banned by TikTok after concerns regarding the physical and mental well being of women and young girls, pro-weight-loss influencers have continued to peddle potentially harmful methods to their impressionable audiences. While the appearance of slimness may look outwardly healthy, it is not necessarily what will keep a woman healthy in the long term.
What seems to be missing in all these discussions about women’s bodies, their diets, and what they should aim to look like is the matter of women’s health. It is well established that women face the risk of age related diseases like osteoporosis upon menopause, and one of the best ways to maintain good health in old age is a strong body. Focusing on mobility, strength, and a nutritive diet are much more important than visible abdominals for longevity and overall happiness. However, time and time again, we focus more on women’s outward appearances than their happiness.
After recovering from almost a decade of disordered eating and unhealthy notions about body image, I find it troubling that we continue to prioritize women’s looks as their most valuable asset. There is so much more to life than arbitrary beauty standards. Having a strong body is a blessing and having the strength to engage in activities that make us happy is more important than the measurement of our waists. What’s en vogue today may be undesirable tomorrow, but the freedom that comes with good health doesn’t go out of style.
