Five Myths about the Health At Every Size movement

MYTH ONE HAES means everyone who follows it is automatically healthy

HAES is a way to become healthier, both physically and emotionally. It does not guarantee any form of health. The idea is to encourage people to develop healthier habits which can last for a lifetime.

MYTH TWO HAES means eating junk food is good for you

As with everything else, moderation is the key. Everyone should be able to enjoy a slice of pizza or chocolate cake now and then! HAES wants you to pay attention to what you eat to choose more healthful and nutritious foods. But it also doesn't want you obsessing about not having a treat when you want one.

MYTH THREE HAES is saying that you don't care about your body

HAES says exactly the opposite.

HAES says that you want to take better notice of what you eat.

HAES says that regular exercise is good for your physical and mental health.

HAES says that hating yourself because you're too or not enough [whatever] isn't good for your mental health, and learning to like yourself is a better motivation than self-loathing, if you want to make long-term changes to your lifestyle.

MYTH FOUR HAES means you refuse to accept that you are unhealthy

What is health? It's not something decided by strangers on the Internet. There are medical risks with weight, but there are risks to everything in life. Every person has to decide what risks to take and what risks can be abated.

Studies show that people who follow HAES can improve their cardio-vascular health and that, in general, people who exercise regularly and eat well can lower many medical risks independent of body size.

MYTH FIVE HAES is only for fat people

HAES is anti-dieting, not anti-weight loss. It is against being restrictive about what you eat, and about removing food guilt ("I'm a bad person if I eat that" type of thinking).

HAES is gaining acceptance and use by Registered Dieticians who treat people with eating disorders, no matter their body weight. Much of EDs is about food guilt and self-loathing.

Thin people can benefit from HAES because a sedentary lifestyle is dangerous to everyone, and obsessing about food can be dangerous to both mental and physical health.

Up to 30% of people with a "normal BMI" have what is called Normal Weight Obesity (commonly called Skinnyfat), which can have a greater health risk than just having a higher BMI. Healthful eating and regular exercise can reduce that risk.

Many fat people find that following HAES causes some weight loss. It makes sense, as not all of us are mindful of what we eat, exercise regularly, and many of us hate the way we look or think we're weak.

HAES encourages life-long changes for getting more healthy.


Some references:

HAES works towards better health than restrictive food intake:

http://nutritionj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1475-2891-9-30

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17426331

Role of regular exercise for health in everyone:

http://www.drsharma.ca/activity-trumps-weight-loss-for-health

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15793192

http://www.weightymatters.ca/2010/03/weight-aint-about-exercise.html

http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2212267

Normal Weight Obesity:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24438734

http://blogs.plos.org/obesitypanacea/2015/04/30/30-of-people-with-a-healthy-bmi-are-actually-obese/

A sampling of RDs who are using HAES:

https://daretonotdiet.wordpress.com/2016/05/09/am-i-healthy-at-any-weight/

http://bvmrd.blogspot.com/

http://www.oliverpyattcenters.com/why-is-health-at-every-size-so-controversial/

http://www.soolmannutrition.com/the-blog/

http://dietitianwithoutborders.com/why-i-dont-like-fitspo/

(and many more)