How the Health industry is destroying your Mind and Soul

“The trouble with always trying to preserve the health of the body is that it is so difficult to do without destroying the health of the mind”.~ G.K. Chesterton   

When I read this quote, I had to stop and do a double take. WTF? There is such a profound and deafening truth to this. The health and wellness industry can be such a judgemental and fear-based industry and as a woman who has always struggled with body image and what is considered a ‘healthy weight’, reading this quote certainly triggered me.

Now I know from personal experience, that this is huge for many, many women, because this subject invariably comes up in every workshop that I run, no matter what the actual workshop is about. Why? Because it is an experience lived by all women, no matter their body shape or size. 

But just to clarify before I go any further, I realise men also have negative experiences with body health and image, and I acknowledge their struggle also, but I specifically talk from women’s perspective here, because that’s who I work with. 

So, let’s talk about the truth behind this quote. Here’s the thing, in 2018, the global health and wellness industry was valued at $4.5 trillion dollars and the diet industry (as part of the wellness industry) was valued at $702 billion dollars. Now, if we think about the current state of the world in 2021, and the increased focus on health, we can assume that the industry is going to continue to explode, and these figures are going to continue to sky rocket. There are many reasons for this, not least of which is people now seeing much more clearly their vulnerability when it comes to good health.

The problem with the $702b ‘healthy eating, nutrition and weight loss’ industry though, is that it is not just selling ‘good health’, what it is actually doing, is perpetuating fear, judgement and self-hatred, and the ideals purported by these people taking our money, are actually making many women unwell in body, mind and spirit. 

Why? Because the constructs being sold, of what constitutes ‘being healthy’, actually create a culture of comparison and competition. What is supposed to make us feel whole and healthful is preventing us from being able to live in our whole truth, as our authentic selves. What the health and diet industry is actually doing, is perpetuating a culture of fat shaming and body hatred. They are feeding the comparison culture and they are destroying the health of our minds and our spirits. 

The truth is, what the ‘health’ industry is selling us, is ways to have/gain a healthy body, which in and of itself isn’t bad. But, when you look under the surface of each new fad, what you see is an industry selling the idea that a healthy body, is actually about being thin. And so, it’s these fallacies that teach us to believe that a healthy body should be a thin body which perpetuates the ill-health of the mind and spirit. The cold hard truth is that many of these wellness methodologies that are being prophesied as the next best thing for us in attaining this all-important healthy body, are either openly or covertly, purporting that health equals thin. 

But I question this. Who determines what a healthy body should look like? The fact is that many people who would be considered overweight or obese, on the Body Mass Index scale (which most Western doctors use to determine health) actually live long, disease-free lives (Linda Bacon, Ph.D). And many thin people are diagnosed with illnesses that are often associated with being overweight, so again, I ask you, what constitutes a healthy body and who decides? 

If this tells you nothing else, let it show you that we need to move away from the socially generated constructs of what we’ve been told constitutes healthiness and start to determine what constitutes our own personal health. 

It cannot just be about the healthy body (the thin body) that Western medicine, patriarchy and society in general tell us it’s about. Because if we go back to Chesterson’s quote, attainment of that healthy body so often destroys a healthy mind. Why? Because we’ve had that unrealistic (for most women) image shoved down our throats all of our lives, and we’ve been killing ourselves trying to attain it, just to fit in and feel accepted. And when we can’t, we then beat ourselves up with shame, judgement, comparison, and self-hatred, which for some then leads to life long disorders, with food, with body image and with self-esteem. 

So how do we work towards a healthful body without destroying the mind and spirit? Well, firstly, we need to begin seeing wellness, healthfulness, as an individual thing. We need to stop buying into the commercialisation of what a healthy body should look like and stop feeding into the generalisations and assumptions about health and wellness that we are being sold on a daily basis. Because size does not automatically equal illness. 

My point here is, that as long as you are eating well and taking care of yourself and your body, and you feel healthful, then that is all you need to be doing. You know your body better than anyone. And if you are tuning in and listening, your body will let you know when something isn’t right. 

So, I beg of you, stop buying into every new health fad, like green smoothies, keto, high protein, raw foods, intermittent fasting, super foods, clean eating, plant based dieting, slimming teas and the list goes on and on and on. Stop buying into it as your next quick fix and rather, just start tuning in and listening to your own body. If your body tells you it needs something, then do that something. We need to get to know and understand our own bodies and what makes us feel healthful on an individual basis, not just buy into the next fad that ultimately costs you money and probably doesn’t get you results. 

And it’s important to remember on your journey that a healthful body isn’t all about the food that you put into it. A healthful body is also connected to a healthful soul, spirit and mind. So, on your journey to health and wellness, you need to remember that part of you as well. Body massages, energetic and spiritual healings, psychological support through counselling or coaching, mindfulness and movement, meditation and reflection. Again, go with what calls you, what feels good and right for you, not what the latest fad or socially constructed view is. 

You know you better than anyone. Look inside for your guide to healthfulness, you will enjoy the journey much more when you do.

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