From the curvy figures of the Renaissance to the “heroin chic” of the 2000s, the bodies you see in the media have always been dictated by the trends of the time. It is impossible to discuss the evolution of desirable body types without mentioning how harmful these moulds are to the average person. Society’s habit of promoting a single body type as the pinnacle of attractiveness for 10 years before running to the next physique leaves the general public distressed, wondering how to meet these sometimes impossible beauty standards. A study performed by the National Library of Medicine (2017) states, “Among Canadians included in the study, 43% of girls (and 27% of boys) reported feeling dissatisfied with their body” (Carter et al., 2017, para 6). For several centuries, these high percentages were brushed aside in favour of capitalizing on the next trend. But, in the last 30 or so years, body image has started to be taken as a serious issue, with 90% of all body image studies having been published since 1980 (Voelker et al., 2015). Body positivity and neutrality are the direct result of a negative body image being taken seriously in the cultural lens, with these two movements aiming to teach others how to love their bodies in their respective ways. In this blog post, we will be delving into the world of body positivity and neutrality. From the pros and cons of both to help you decide which method of self-acceptance you should be practicing, this blog post will act as your mini crash course into the world of body positivity and neutrality.
Rise of Body Positivity
Now, what is body positivity? Well, the first mention of the term “body positivity” historically is the fat acceptance movement established in the 1960s, run by black and queer advocates who wanted to decrease the social stigma of being overweight. This movement eventually shifted into its third wave, in the form of the social media campaigns we’ve started to see in the last 12 or so years. For many, body positivity was a breath of fresh air, acting as a stark contrast to the intense diet culture seen in the 1990s and 2000s. The body positivity movement’s aim was for everyone to love their bodies regardless of their size, “all bodies are good bodies” (Griffin et al., 2022, para 2). This movement marked several influencers’ rise to fame, social media campaigns gaining millions of views, and even companies starting to take note of the mindset shift. Over the 10 or so years body positivity was at its peak popularity, we saw many who were previously drained by society’s rigid beauty standards at ease, excited to see a change in the way body image was being portrayed in the media.
For example, Ally Sinyard was a social media editor in 2012 who was subjected to seeing the exhausting ways in which media promoted the same white-thin ideal as a result of her job. But, as the body positivity movement started to gain traction she, “scrolled, followed, and filled [her] feed with these new ‘influencers’, who were building communities by creating space for and celebrating marginalized bodies. It was a detoxifying antidote to [her] day job – an un-brainwashing. [She] consumed as much of it as [she] could.” (Sinyard, 2022, para 3). Sinyard was one of the thousands who reached for body positivity, an act to push behind the toxic ideals of the past in favour of one’s mental health. Additionally, studies have proven body positivity does correlate to positive well-being. A study performed in 2019 consisted of 195 women (ages 18-30), who were randomly shown either a body-positive Instagram post, a post promoting thinness, or a body-neutral post. Results showed that participants exposed to the body-positive post experienced a short boost in happiness compared to those who didn’t (Cohen et al., 2019). The fact that body positivity was such a mainstream movement for so long (and still holds relevance even today, more than 10 years later), with #bodypositive garnering over 18.4 million views on Instagram, shows the success that comes from putting your body first. Seeing millions of people online celebrate the idea of living in a different body than what’s been historically praised by the masses, has decreased stress, body dysmorphia, and other harmful behaviours like calorie counting among many others. But, despite the change body positivity has pushed, the movement is still far from perfect.
Fall of Body Positivity
In the last few years, people have started to notice the downsides of body positivity, and perhaps how it isn’t all that positive after all. Body positivity critics have urged others to turn their heads to how this movement puts such an emphasis on physical appearance. By putting such stress on the way the body looks in the first place, the movement has started to appear to be tone-deaf. With the logic of toxic body positivity, your looks take precedence over all of the other traits that make you human, hence why you must love your appearance. Additionally, many can describe body positivity as unduly pushing a necessary “happy” feeling about body image, completely disregarding how the road to self-acceptance is a rocky, sometimes unpredictable path. By one being told they need to feel a positive emotion towards their body, it can instill shame and disappointment into those who aren’t ready to openly love their bodies, or possibly want to work to change them for health-related or other reasons. Paige Fieldsted ran a body positivity blog for over 5 years but reported in her last post titled “The Death in My Belief of Body Positivity” (2022), her qualms with how body positivity made her feel about her weight. “I can’t support something that holds us to such an inflexible standard, I didn’t give up chasing one set of body ideals to be pigeon-holed into maintaining another. I want to live this life, in this body without shame or regret or feeling like I owe someone an explanation if I want to change, and I want that for you too” (Fieldsted, 2022, para 27). The ideology of body positivity emphasizes how one must love their body, no matter what shape it is, and wanting to change it in any capacity would be an act of forfeiting to diet culture. This mindset is toxic, with individuals just like Paige feeling as if they owe the world an explanation for wanting to lose/gain weight, an exhausting way to go about life.
It’s also impossible to mention the pitfalls of body positivity without bringing up the lack of representation for marginalized communities in a space originally made for them, by them. If you were to take a quick scroll on #bodypositive on Instagram, you would surprisingly see an abundance of white-thin, voices speaking on their bodybuilding journeys. According to another study by the National Library of Medicine (2022), a third of total posts tagged as being “body positive” are about powerlifting/bodybuilding, and less than one-sixth of total posts included actual body size diversity (Griffin et al., 2022). This data highlights the gap that needed to be filled for representing non-normative bodies in the media, even in a sphere built for them. Due to the immense popularity of body positivity, companies and influencers have coined and commercialized the term, to align with their rigid standard of what “fit” looks like, completely going against the original ambitions of the body positive movement, to get rid of the notion that “healthy” looks one way. The audience of people who crave body-positive content should shift to listen to plus-sized creators, to better understand their lived experiences. The spark of the body positivity movement was originally lit when black and queer individuals were advocating to improve their quality of life, and we should collectively try to avoid the spirit of the movement being lost to powerlifting content in the wrong place.
Body Neutrality
The body positivity movement can be seen as a wonderful start to advocating for everyone to embrace who they are, but it is just that: a start. Simultaneously, as these critics around body positivity were rising, the idea of “body neutrality” was also growing. Body neutrality, as the name implies, means taking a neutral stance on your body. Body neutrality promotes the model of being at peace with your body, and respecting its functionality, over fixating on your physical appearance. This notion started to gain popularity after Anne Poirer, an eating disorder specialist, started to bring up the idea of being “body neutral” to her clients who were struggling with their weight and fitness. She defines it as, “Not supporting the hatred of our vessel (our physical structure) or the love and adoration of our vessel” (Poirer, 2023, para 2). By using body neutrality as a coping mechanism, it may benefit anyone who was feeling suffocated by the intense, and sometimes all-consuming model of body positivity. It’s calling a truce to your body, rather than surrendering to the beauty standard, or to influencers selling you a model of what “loving” yourself is “supposed” to look like. Body neutrality is far from apathetic. Healthy body neutrality doesn’t preach how to “not care about your body”, but rather is centered around the realization that your appearance should not be the sole attribute carrying self-worth. Your identity is made up of your experiences, family, hobbies, and friends, not just what you see in the mirror every day.
Body Positivity or Body Neutrality?
This brings us to the last section: which method of self-acceptance is best for your mental health? Now before I give my answer, I would like to preface by saying that the way you go about appreciating your body is unique to you and your business. Whether you find peace by saying daily affirmations and communicating with your peers who also want to love their bodies, or by understanding how the body is simply a temporary vessel for the soul, it is important to understand that health should be the priority, no matter the circumstances. If you are concerned about the physical health of yourself or a loved one, please go or urge them to go see a GP (general practitioner) to then get further recommended to a psychiatrist, eating disorder counsellor, dietician, etc. You are not alone!
With that notion in mind, to deal with the mental turmoil that comes from a poor body image, it is best that one finds a healthy balance between both body positivity and neutrality, and avoid leaning too far into one direction. There’s nothing wrong with loving your body, but it is also important to recognize that body positivity should not be a way to push your underlying body image issues and possible health issues under the rug in place of a smile and clever Instagram caption. On the other hand, while body neutrality does address many of the issues of body positivity, with your love for your body shifting from your physical appearance to your body’s capabilities, it’s important to avoid leaning too far into this mindset and “not care” about your body anymore. You should first be able to achieve a state of health (whatever that looks like between you and your doctor), and then work towards fostering a love for your body’s capabilities. This can occur through listening to your body’s hunger cues, blocking influencers online who promote toxic diet culture/body positivity, and engaging in activities you love with your body, to eventually train your mind to associate positive feelings with your vessel. Only once you can love what your body does for you, should you be thinking about loving your physical appearance. At the end of the day, your looks are one of the least important aspects of your identity. It’s amazing to want to physically look good, but true beauty doesn’t reside in modelling campaigns full of people who have spent five hours in hair and makeup. It remains in a world where you are healthy and serene.
Final Thoughts
During the time of day when you’ve logged off of Instagram, and the only opinion left is your own, what matters isn’t the mirror’s approval, but your wellbeing, both emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Loving your body doesn’t have to mean giving in to match the body type that rules the decade, or following the most glamorous body positivity influencer, what truly will get you the physical enrichment you internally strive for is being content and clear-headed.
“You can’t eat beauty, it doesn’t sustain you. What is fundamentally beautiful is compassion, for yourself and those around you. That kind of beauty enflames the heart and enchants the soul.”
– Lupita Nyong’o
Note: The Free Your Mind Mental Health Society is an independent youth-led organization. The contents of this blog are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. In the event of a medical emergency, please call your doctor or 911 or other local emergency numbers immediately.
References:
Barrera, S., & Goodwin, R. (2024, October 1). Toxic Body Positivity. SunCloud Health. https://suncloudhealth.com/blog/toxic-body-positivity/#:~:text=In%20reality%2C%20pushing%20toxic%20body,us%20disconnected%20from%20our%20bodies
Carter, A., Forrest, J. I., & Kaida, A. (2017). Association Between Internet Use and Body Dissatisfaction Among Young Females: Cross-Sectional Analysis of the Canadian Community Health Survey. Journal of medical Internet research, 19(2), e39. https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.5636
Fieldsted, P. (2022, November 17). The death of my belief in body positivity. Paige Fieldsted. https://paigefieldsted.com/blog/the-death-of-my-belief-in-body-positivity-8-16-22
Griffin, M., Bailey, K. A., & Lopez, K. J. (2022). #BodyPositive? A critical exploration of the body positive movement within physical cultures taking an intersectionality approach. Frontiers in sports and active living, 4, 908580. https://doi.org/10.3389/fspor.2022.908580
Ohio State University. (2022, March 7). Understanding body acceptance and community influence in the body positivity movement. College of Arts and Sciences. https://artsandsciences.osu.edu/news/understanding-body-acceptance-and-community-influence-body-positivity-movement#:~:text=Body%20positivity%20and%20anti%2Ddiet,into%20the%20form%20known%20today.
Poirier, A. (2023, May 1). What is Body Neutrality Anne Poirier. Linkedin. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/annepoirierbodyjoyfulrevolution_bodyneutrality-bodyimage-selfworth-activity-7058948951634280448-gxh2/
Shauder, J. (Ed.). (2019, December 19). Is the body positivity Social Movement Toxic?. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/the-fundamentals/201912/is-the-body-positivity-social-movement-toxic
Sinyard, A. (2022). 10 years of #BodyPositivity on Instagram: How far have we come?. Body positivity: has 10 years of the social media movement worked. https://www.stylist.co.uk/fitness-health/wellbeing/body-positivity-10-years-change/723808
Voelker, D. K., Reel, J. J., & Greenleaf, C. (2015). Weight status and body image perceptions in adolescents: current perspectives. Adolescent health, medicine and therapeutics, 6, 149–158. https://doi.org/10.2147/AHMT.S68344