#11: Body Diversity and Health: Why Size Doesn’t Determine Wellness

Make Peace With Food

In this episode of Make Peace With Food, certified eating psychology coach and host Emily LaVoie delves into the vital topic of body diversity. Emily, who runs a virtual private practice, emphasizes the importance of acknowledging and embracing the beautiful variety of human body types, skin colors, heights, hair colors, and eye colors. She challenges societal norms that pressure larger-bodied individuals to look like smaller-bodied individuals, explaining why such changes are neither effective nor necessary for health improvement.

Emily discusses the behaviors that genuinely foster health, such as getting enough sleep, managing stress, staying hydrated, exercising moderately, and building supportive relationships. She reveals the secrets of the "Blue Zones," regions where people live exceptionally long and healthy lives, and points out that human connection and community are crucial components of well-being.

Listeners will learn why focusing on weight loss to prevent disease is not backed by long-term research and why celebrating body diversity is essential. She also underscores the importance of having a positive relationship with food and integrating a variety of fruits and vegetables into our diets for balanced nutrition.

Tune in to discover why our unique physical characteristics should be celebrated and how embracing our natural diversity leads to a healthier, happier life.
Links:

Skin color & Diabetes T2 - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31348139/

Fair skin & skin cancer - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35346986/

Increased Height independent risk factor of AF -https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33714405/

Being short, cardiometabolic risk factor - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33408690/

Social support, an important determinant of health - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38088736/

Book - Blue Zones: 9 Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest Amazon Link - https://amzn.to/479DiNe

Intentional weight loss without behavior change does not lead to improved long-term health - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8363208/

Absence of an effect of liposuction - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15201411/

When research studies control for behavoirs vs. simply measuring weight loss - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16339599/

Health indicators can be improved through changing health behaviors, regardless of whether weight is lost - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15942543/

"Remarkable parallels between the behavioral patterns of successful weight loss maintainers from the National Weight Control Registry (NWCR) and individuals with chronic anorexia nervosa" - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28152191/

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