heavyweightheart:

This is a great piece. Highlights from the 13 dietitians:

“To people who are curious about my approach, I explain that weight does not dictate health, and there is no way of predicting what someone’s healthiest weight is. Even if we could, 95–97% of purposeful weight loss attempts fail. Instead, I help my clients build sustainable habits that aren’t built on restriction, and let their body settle at whatever size it’s supposed to be.”

“I started reading the scientific literature and going to conferences, and the evidence for HAES and intuitive eating was undeniable. I came to realize that practicing within this anti-diet paradigm was the only way to help clients truly, fully recover.”

“With all of the research we have supporting the negative physiological and psychological effects of dieting and pursuit of weight loss, I find it unethical to approach nutrition counseling with the old diet/weight-loss paradigm.”

“… our society requires that we be a certain size and at a certain level of health. I work with clients to dismantle that for themselves and to become aware of behaviors that are no longer working for them. Weight is not the issue — whether or not the body loses weight is up to the body, not up to the client or me, for that matter.”

“Now my nutrition therapy is rooted in evidence-based science as well as almost 20 years of clinical observation. I help people move toward health using only weight inclusive and non-diet theories and interventions. That means I don’t use the scale as a measure of progress because for most people it keeps the focus off health and promotes unhealthy attitudes toward body image and self-worth.”

“I provide education on the harmful effects of counting calories, points, macros, weight, steps, etc., and help them move away from quantifying health. In the beginning I have to debunk incorrect nutrition information and provide them with a model of eating that is adequate and balanced. I also help them redefine what ‘health’ is. Our culture essentially defines health by size and appearance. So we have to rewrite all of that and think of it as much more multifaceted.”