Have you ever gone to your GP to find out why you\u2019re always tired, only to be told to lose weight? <\/p>\n
Or perhaps you\u2019ve joined a gym hoping to move more, only to be bombarded with messages about \u201cburning fat\u201d and achieving the \u201cideal body\u201d. <\/p>\n
These experiences reflect a common approach to health promotion that treats weight loss as the primary pathway to better health. But decades of research shows that focusing on weight<\/a> worsens weight stigma.<\/p>\n Weight stigma refers to negative attitudes or behaviours towards larger-bodied people based on their weight. It includes unfair assumptions that larger-bodied people are lazy, unintelligent or lack willpower<\/a>. <\/p>\n These attitudes are so common that treating larger-bodied people badly is often considered \u201csocially acceptable<\/a>\u201d. We even see this play out on popular TV shows<\/a> like Parks and Recreation and The Office. Larger-bodied characters are often the target of cruel \u201cjokes\u201d for comic relief. <\/p>\n Weight stigma can affect many areas of daily life. Larger-bodied people may avoid playing sport<\/a>, visiting the doctor<\/a>, or dating<\/a> because of concerns about how they will be treated. <\/p>\n Weight stigma has also been linked to health and wellbeing concerns, such as increased disordered eating<\/a>, suicidal ideation<\/a> and stress<\/a>. <\/p>\n Because of this, researchers and advocates have called for approaches to health promotion<\/a> that support health without focusing on weight loss. Our new research<\/a> shows how this can be done. <\/p>\n What\u2019s wrong with the status quo?<\/p>\n Health promotion aims to create the conditions<\/a> that make it possible for people to control and improve their health and wellbeing. <\/p>\n A key commitment of health promotion is making sure everyone has a fair chance to improve their health and wellbeing. This means addressing<\/a> the broader factors that shape health and wellbeing like income, housing, education, transport and access to health care<\/a>. <\/p>\n Improving financial security, for example, can make it easier for people to afford nutritious food and stable housing. <\/p>\n Health promotion that focuses on weight loss has been criticised for not aligning with these goals. Encouraging weight loss and lifestyle changes to improve health promotes the idea that improving public health is primarily a personal responsibility<\/a>. <\/p>\n Our new research explores<\/a> an alternative approach that addresses these concerns: size-inclusive health promotion. <\/p>\n What size-inclusive health promotion looks like<\/p>\n Health promotion practice that moves beyond weight-loss and addresses weight stigma is known as size-inclusive health promotion. <\/p>\n We conducted a scoping review<\/a> (which maps what evidence there is on a certain topic) of size-inclusive health promotion. Across 58 studies, we identified 27 different initiatives, including guidelines, campaigns, programs and local health strategies used in health care, education, recreation and fitness settings. <\/p>\n Some examples already exist in Australia, including VicHealth\u2019s This Girl Can campaign<\/a>, Better Health Network\u2019s Towards Size Inclusive Health Promotion<\/a> resource, the National Eating Disorders Collaboration\u2019s Eating Disorder Safe Principles<\/a> and The Embrace Collective\u2019s Body Blocks<\/a> program. <\/p>\n While initiatives varied, three practical and widely applicable strategies for adopting size-inclusive health promotion appeared repeatedly: <\/p>\n 1. Use non-stigmatising, neutral language<\/p>\n Any communications about health, weight and bodies should avoid language that is stigmatising or harmful. <\/p>\n Instead, terms such as<\/a> fat, higher-weight and larger-bodied (depending on people\u2019s preferences) should be used. <\/p>\n A health service or gym, for example, might review newsletters, posters and websites to remove any stigmatising language (such as \u201cunhealthy weight\u201d, \u201coverweight\u201d or \u201cobesity\u201d). While these may seem \u201cmedical\u201d, larger-bodied people often find them stigmatising.<\/p>\n Read more: 2. Represent people of diverse body sizes in health promotion materials<\/p>\n Health promotion materials should include images and videos of larger-bodied people, like footage used in This Girl Can<\/a> showing women of diverse body sizes moving their bodies. <\/p>\n 3. Make sure environments are safe and welcoming for people of all sizes<\/p>\n People of all sizes deserve to feel comfortable and included in different environments. <\/p>\n This might look like sporting clubs ensuring their sporting equipment is safe and comfortable for larger-bodied people to use. Or a health service making sure blood pressure cuffs and seating in waiting rooms are suitable for larger bodies. <\/p>\n These three strategies provide \u201ceasy-wins\u201d that can be implemented across different settings, including government, health care, education, fitness, recreational and community settings. <\/p>\n
\n How we think about \u2018obesity\u2019 and body weight is changing. Here\u2019s why<\/a><\/p>\n