The toxic comeback of 2000s thin culture & why we MUST reject it in 2024. 

The trigger warning is in the title my loves. Please don’t watch if you’re in a really bad patch mentally when it comes to this topic ❤️ If you’re actively working through it or if you’re stronger mentally now…please chat to me down here about how the thin culture of the past impacted you & how you feel about the trend cycle of women’s bodies xxx

Honestly I think that thinness is coming back bc the “body positivity” movement did not even touch the core issue. They are still hyper fixating and moralizing bodies. The blanket praise of thinness is the same as the blanket praise of fatness- it’s still saying ”good job for having this specific body! It’s now your personality”. We need to move towards body neutrality. This is a body and I live in it. It’s the least interesting thing about me.

this is why millenials and gen x dont want to give up high rise. we were finally free. i had severe anorexia in the early 2000's (2004-5) and I had to be hospitalized. Im almost 40 now... and I have found those same feelings creeping back in. This really weird obsession with my body. I truly think its the trends recirculating. I worry for my 13 year old daughter.

It's called cachexia. When the body wastes away and loses muscle, and often fat as well, due to illness. During medical school we are drilled to ask every single patient if they have any unexplained weight loss because it's a huge red flag for cancer, mental health issues etc. After asking it about 100 times it began to change my perception of weight loss, helped me to glorify it less in my own head

God i remember even sitting on chairs pointing my toes so that my thighs didnt rest on the chair and look 'big'

Unfortunately, all this is nothing new. I grew up in the 70s-80s and while we didn't have the Internet and influencers, we did have massive messaging in the media, women's and teen magazines, and a lot more ignorance about eating disorders and nutrition. It totally messed me up. It still messes me up often, and I know a lot more now. Part of it is that I can intellectually reject the messaging and all the toxic beliefs about bodies and weight and beauty, but I can still feel like sh*t about myself. It's so hard to hang onto your own self worth and body appreciation in a screwed up culture.

The fucking irony that RU-vid ran three different diet adverts while I was watching this video. But thank you, Melanie. You do amazing work and speak truth, I really appreciate you. Someone who has experienced disorder eating, body dysmorphia and self harm because of toxic diet culture. This video really meant something to me, so thank you.

I’m 41. I’ll never forget that when I was a size 6 teen in the late 90s/early 00s, ppl would tell me it was ok to be “bigger” bc Selma Hayek and Gerri Halliwell were “bigger” and still considered sexy. 💀

My own mother used to tell me that “pinch an inch” thing. I remember being 12 and she noticed my tummy rolls when I was sitting down (I was all of 125 lbs soaking wet) and that began an eating disorder for me. Came to find out she herself was anorexic and was just downloading her own issues onto me… it makes me so sad for our generation. I’m 32 and I finally accept myself. It feels great. Am I happy with everything? No. But who is? I’m just glad to be healthier now. ❤❤

Body size and "thinness" should never be a fashion trend.

I'm just confused at the lack of criticism about glorifying "curves", big butts and boobs as some kind of standard, and calling thinner women "flat", but when skinny comes back in fashion, suddenly it's bad again. Both are bad. Embrace people's natural bodies.

Let's also get rid of the "curvy" trend. There are people who now shame women for being "flat". There are even people calling certain body shapes "perfect" or "that's what men want", etc. Funny how men's wants seem to change with the trends too. I don't remember them complaining when size zero was in fashion.

Please don't support BetterHelp.

Great conversation. The thin look was earlier than 2000's. Lost my 20's, 30's, half 40's to it. What a waste of life. The world becomes very small as your organs, particularly the brain, become depleted. Keep taliking about it Girls. Call it out. Aim to feel healthy, which will likely mean you will need a decent layer of weight to hold a sense of balance and calm within your system, and not have obsessive mental thoughts. AI and social media will make life impossible for reality. Appreciate the body you have been gifted. No option.

Glad I’m not the only one who’s noticed this start to trickle back in. Great video!

I got so confused by all these movies you listed. I remember watching Bridget Jones when I was in middle school and being so confused about why they constantly talk about her weight. My mum had the books, so I opened one and it said she was somewhere around 60 kilos, I think. Even suggesting that is an unhealthy weight is COMPLETELY ABSURD!! Then I asked myself: well what does that make me? I developed anorexia at 15, bulimia at 17, BED in early 20s and still have body dysmorphia in my 30s.

it’s really great to hear this from someone who went through those terrible “heroin chic” years. im a ’98 baby but i was obsessed with teen magazines as a child and the skinny fad was so prevalent. it’s crazy now seeing videos of objectively small women where all the top comments are calling them fat in one way or another. it gets framed as okay because it relates to health, even though we know it’s not really about that. as if people aren’t ever healthier when they’re heavier. or as if it’s anyone’s business what someone is or isn’t doing for their health. it’s unsolicited advice taken to the cruellest level because for some reason it’s okay to treat fat people horrendously. and you’re right it gets so complicated when body positivity influencers are held to crazy standards to be the perfect role model. it’s hard to reconcile the mass amounts of information about health and wellness and expectations on the internet. i just wish there wasn’t so much moral value applied to someone’s size. i gained weight entering adulthood the way a lot of people do and i'm worried for teenagers today coming out of this when the culture on the internet is inescapable nowadays

I lived in L.A in the early 2000's. Women were living on black coffee, cigarettes, and Adderall. I saw so many young women who could barely walk because they were starving and exhausted (they also worked out for hours a day). I gave birth to my kids in 2001 and 2003. Waddling around Melrose Avenue surrounded by 19 year-olds in size 00 low-rise jeans was... an experience. Also, have you noticed that the super-skinny trend always seems to come back around whenever women's rights are in the spotlight? Almost as if society wants us to be too wrapped up in our appearance, and be too exhausted, to focus on the really important stuff.

“I was one of the weird kids that sat under the stairs.” I felt that very viscerally 😅 Same. Same.

The irony of getting an Ozempic ad right after this video ended

Not sure if you’ve heard of the better help controversies 😅

Wow thank you for this video melanie! What you said about being sandwiched between diet cultures’ unrealistic standards + body positivity/fat acceptance resonated so deeply. I’ve been stuck in that place for so long, afraid to create any boundaries with food out of fear that it would spiral into the early 2000’s type of dieting and body hate. I’ve never heard that articulated so clearly before!! Thanks to time and growth though I am now learning how to take care of my nutrition without going to an extreme end. 🤞

My eating disorder (anorexia) is so ingrained that no matter what I’ve always felt ‘happier’ at an extremely low weight even when I was actually… not ‘happier’. I still would take that over being a bit chubbier and happier. And I don’t know how to ever let go of it. Being thin is like the only thing I can… do. And control. And be… it’s me :( and it’s so sad. I would never want young girls to end up like me where this is just… it. For the rest of their lives. I can’t see ever letting it go. I can’t let it go. It’s always there, when I feel like I have nothing left. It’s sick!!! I was a preteen/young teen with unrestricted access to the internet during the HEIGHT of the pro ed culture. It’s really sad. I am scared to see thinness becoming SUCH a trend again but I don’t think it ever actually went away to begin with.

This thin worship is not going away any time soon. I grew up in the skinny seventies and it was already bad then. I went through hell trying to achieve a figure that my healthy athletic build was not shaped for. Even now, with bad body dysmorphia, I struggle and can only manage disordered eating

I'm a person who turns to food for comfort, with a brain who is constantly chasing dopamine. I'm bigger than what I've ever been.. I just can't stop.. I will never say that being fat is healthy, but I'm also so tired of people thinking that fat people have no self-awareness.. I know I'm fat, I know it's not good or healthy, I know what there is to do about it.. I KNOW! But my depression doesn't allow me to have willpower to try to fix it... Don't disguise bullying as caring.

God the 2000s where brutal to every woman that had a figure of a woman and not a child. Still suffering

It was a crazy time! I was 5''5" and 116 lbs, US size 2, and felt monstrously fat. I could barely wear a tank top in public. Forget about a bathing suit! The celebrities and "hot" girls were all medically underweight, and we all aspired to be anorexic. So crazy.

I forgot how toxic the early 2000’s were - I remember being around 10 years old and doing ridiculous amounts of sit ups in my bedroom to get ‘abs’. The body shaming in magazines too - ugh!! I think it was the start of me becoming aware of my appearance and feeling insecure, those feelings never really left. I wish we’d leave bodies alone ❤

Better Help is a horrible disgusting company and you really shouldn’t be accepting them as a sponsor

This is so true. I have a mild eating disorder in the hopes I will stay slim, BUT the reality is that my body will NOT get slimmer no matter how much I don't eat. I have hips, bum and boobs and have been 62kg for the last 10 yrs. Wow, even writing this comment is an eye opener 😢 Thank you Melanie for making this video ❤

This is a reminder of how different social media is based on algorithms. I knew nothing about the diet culture resurgence! Feeds and algorithms change a lot, but I’m glad mine makes me feel safe and happy right now.

I was born in 1971. Growing up in the '70, '80s & early '90s gave me life long body images. There were 2 sizes-thin & thinner. I am not a heavy person but anyone that was my size in the media would have been called 'plus size'. Media, please stop the pressure on us.....

I just turned 39 myself. I think what's happening is the fashions are coming back which means crop tops.

I frickin love your mind, Melanie! Being a millennial and experiencing all that unhealthy content about bodies, beauty, and health was so hard! And now, to see it resurfacing is scary... Also, I think a lot of millennials have never shaken off those unhealthy messages and perpetuate that cycle in their own lives. I remember, here in the US, we have a crappy MLM known as Herbalife, and so many people fell victim to their health products and their unethical work practices. I thought most of us realized they are a terrible company! But low and behold, I have family that are well into their 30s and are now posting content about herbalife and how it can help you obtain the body of your dreams.... feels like deja vu of the early 2000's 😢

I remember a couple of places Christina Applegates characters said some things that have stuck with me. "A moment on your lips, forever on your hips." I think that was her. Specifically from a Friend's episode as well as the movie, The Sweetest Thing. In that movie, they were hill walking to work off something considered indulgent.

not even about Britney stopping exercising, she literally just aged. people just compared a teenagers body to a woman's.

As someone who went through ED recovery, the hardest part was noticing the fatphobia and dietculture all around us. All the comments from women feeling like they‘re eating too much, they’re being fat, was so upsetting. And not participating in it made me seem weird - especially because I gained 60lbs during recovery and was bigger than ever. But also the whole hate against Ozempic makes me so mad because losing weight is not just counting calories. During my ED years when I didn‘t eat much at all, I was never skinny. Taking a medication for a medical indication is so valid! And it works! And it gave me back my life without falling back into disordered eating. I dream of a world where the obsession with women‘s bodies finally stops.

So happy you’ve made this video. I’ve noticed this so much recently. Especially on that news talk interview. I was ENRAGED

Hey! I really loved this video, alongside many others of yours (started watching you in my teens, 27 now) Just one comment.. I think it's a shame after all the great stuff you said about body acceptance and positivity to make the comments about your lips being small. As someone with naturally very thin lips, this beauty ideal in the media can be hurtful, especially coming from someone like yourself who has beautiful full lips. I just don't feel any sort of negative comments about our features or weight are necessary as it reinforces that there is only one beauty ideal

I wish youtubers would stop shilling betterhelp.

I am 28, expecting my first. My body is changing and I am embracing it. But I have to say, looking back, I was never satisfied with my body, even when I was considered skinny. It saddens me that I never appreciated myself, always saw the imperfections. But for some time I am loving myself for myself, accepting my body and just focus on trying to get healthier. Not for the sake of being skinny but to live a longer life. That said, all I see in shops is unreasonably tiny dresses, skirts, shirts etc. You always get reminded that you are not that tiny & thin. We need to remind ourselves that our personalities come from within and not from BMI.

I’m relapsing bad right now due to this, I just got out of treatment last year for the second time and thought I was on track to make a full recovery but society had other plans, thank you so much for talking about this it felt like I was going crazy

To be honest - i didnt click on your 'what i eat in a day and do to keep fit as a busy mum' video for WEEKS because the thumbnail had 2 images of yourself seemingly comparing yourself. like i LOVE your content but didnt want to click, and having watched it now i know that's definitely not the focus of that video. Love this commentary - and im here for rejecting media that spews toxic rhetoric. Body shapes and types should not be idolized!!!

This really brought me back to how media was when I was in my teens! I used to be SOOO envious of Britney and Nicole Scherzinger abs!! I've taken a break from IG + TikTok and feel such a change mentally. (not feeling infiltrated by everyone else's opinions and judgements + societal expectations!) Thank you for making a video to highlight this and come from a very loving perspective! ❤

What I learnt frombeing smaller and bigger is that clothes majorly affect how I see my body. Uncomfortable clothes that fit poorly affect my self image majorly. Not a fan of low rise jeans and other stuff that focuses on the stomach, as I'm a rectangle naturally. BTW, I too lost quite a lot of fat (and gained quite a bit of muscle) during and after my second pregnancy. I became OK with the weight gain after my first child... but apparently, not the people around me. I've had so many comments like "you were quite larger last time I saw you!". What is it about people feeling OK to comment on other people's weight nowadays?

Ugh. Low rise skinny jeans. …I never felt so fat! And it wasn’t bc of my body either- it’s bc of the nature of the shape of the jean- they’re always sliding down bc they’re not able to hang on to any part of the body that would keep them from falling down- so you spent all day hiking them up, until you finally ripped the belt loops off. Internet shopping and online bank card usage wasn’t popular back then either, so you couldn’t find anything BUT low rise jeans to save your life. I remember finally finding mid- and high waisted things at the thrift store and being so relieved and feeling so beautiful in my body- and getting absolutely eaten ALIVE by people making fun of me for wearing them. They told me I looked like a “stewardess” or a “librarian.” …guess who’s having the last laugh, now that everyone is wearing them. 🙃

You are so gorgeous it’s INSANE

I’m so glad you made this. It touches on so many good points.

Ahhh, yes. I still remember the medical check-up I got a couple of years ago when the doctor told me that I was dangerously close to being overweight. I weighed 70kg (154 pounds?). For reference I'm 176cm tall (5'7?).

Thank you for touching on this topic! I’ve a history of eating disorders/body issues and I’m also in my 30’s, living through this the first time was hard enough. It’s been a little bit triggering lately but I’ve got my coping skills and support network - it’s the young girls I feel for. Hopefully with people speaking out they can see all body types are beautiful 🖤

The irony of the "kate moss saying" is that it was said as satire at the time. The model girls had it stuck to their fridge as a joke because they were constantly eating, partying, living the celeb lifestyle. They were literally taking the piss out of the whole thing, then she tries to tell the in joke to the world via a magazine article and not only did the joke not land, but they even misquoted her and it stuck, she has forever been stuck to that phrase.

I’m 33 and it’s so refreshing to be in a place in my life where I just don’t care. I’m like damn how am I turning 34 this year? How do I have 2 children? What is this? It makes me realize how short life is. And just how absurd it would be to waste a second of it on how I look. As if anyone gives a damn. My husband is obsessed when I have a little extra going on too so it’s truly pointless to care ever again. Eat healthy. Try to move your body. And live your liiiiife! ✌🏻

Yep. I'm 40, almost 41. I fight with anorexia for almost 30 years. And now this culture is fricking BACK?!

Ugh thank you for this! I was just remembering that when I’ve been at my smallest as an adult it was always because I wasn’t doing well mentally or physically. I either had such bad anxiety that I felt nauseous all the time and physically couldn’t eat enough or I had GI issues, and these are besides the eating disorder that was soooo happy I was getting smaller. I felt horrible and was scared. It’s not worth it!

are there actually people in the world anymore who do have a truly healthy and positive outlook on their body?....are we all just not effected?

Hi Melanie, can I quickly say something about the sponsorship? I know that you've personally used better help but recently I've come across several posts and articles talking about better helps misconduct when it comes to customer data and also their general work ethic. It might be worth looking into it, if this is a company that really aligns with your believes. I know, mental help is an important issue for you and it would be sad if you realize you promote something to your subscribers, that isn't really what it seems. 💕

I shaved my head this years even though I loved my long curly hair because I felt like other people were just responding to my image rather than to me. My female boss was clearly challenged by my youth and she has calmed down a lot since I shaved my head, I get sexually harassed less on the streets and people at work take me more seriously and other people think I am less naive. Being a woman is hard and I hate that I can’t be feminine and still be thought of as savage and brave as much. It has been a real eye opener.

I love how balanced this conversation is! As a woman a bit younger (29) I remember some of this stuff, but I think it seeped in less. Whereas my mom who has been overweight most of my life due to injuries preventing her from being ambulatory for long periods, was often trying to lose weight and be healthier, I saw plenty and had some stuff that weaseled its way in, it's always about my stomach weight or my skin being flabby and not toned on my arms or legs. CRAZY stuff. But it is important to consider your health above anything else. I have always loved your take on health, fitness and body positivity. This video is great!

In middle and high school I was literally a size 2-4 and thought I was fat because of 2000s thin culture. Sometimes I remember it and think to myself "how could I have possibly thought that" but whenever I watch nearly any 2000s movie I instantly know exactly why.

in I think 2009 I hit my lowest weight of 140-145 lbs at 5'9. I still had cellulite, I still had fat in the places my body just develops fat, and I was miserable about it. I was also cold all the time and hungry all the time because I was working out two hours a day and eating like 1600 calories. it was RIDICULOUS. the only good thing that came from that whole phase was that I realized I genuinely enjoyed running, and the feeling of satisfaction from hitting a new PB. unfortunately, fit and athletic has never been an aesthetic for women, almost as though forcing us to be obsessed with our appearance and how we look to men/society makes us easier to manipulate than encouraging us to enjoy our bodies for what they can DO.

This is off-topic and I hope not over-reaching, but Melanie, I've followed you for almost seven years now and you LOOK GLOWING FROM THE INSIDE OUT. You truly look the most beautiful I have ever seen on your channel - and I feel it comes from internal factors rather than the external bits. Just amazed at your journey and so appreciate you being honest and genuine as always. Sending love from the US!

People have different genes, different medical conditions, etc. We can't know a stranger's health or lack thereof very easily. Unless someone is on the extreme end, like in body conditions that make them weak from lack of energy or unable to move or in genuine danger of death as determined by a doctor, diversity is strictly a good thing. One of the most healing relationships I've ever had was me bonding with a very skinny guy over how harshly we were judged by strangers over the visible results of our invisible mental and physical health problems. Stress contributes to weight issues. Everyone's on their own journey. The world sucks less the more we support each other, and embrace diversity and healthy lifestyles.

i think i'm still scarred from that time... i will probably for the rest of my life always look at myself and think: i wish i was skinnier. it's so deeply ingrained in our brains.

Imagine if we stopped praising or insulting others for their appearance. Imagine if we didn’t teach people (especially girls/women) that their worth as a human being is tied to the attractiveness of their body in any way. Imagine if there were no unacceptable ways to exist in a body. If you’re struggling with body image, this is what helped me: pay attention to what makes you feel worse, and give yourself permission to stop doing it. If watching a beauty influencer makes you feel insecure, unfollow them. If you’re taking pictures of yourself and you start to feel bad and ugly, it’s okay to stop taking them, even if you didn’t get a “good one.” If examining yourself in the mirror is making you sad, you don’t have to do it anymore- try doing something else! You’re not losing or failing anything if you let yourself stop doing things that make you feel unhappy. Making yourself miserable every day will never lead to happiness in the future. That’s just a lie our brains tell us. You can’t hate yourself into a body you like, and you don’t have to try. If you don’t find beauty in the mirror, find it in music or nature or your friend’s laugh or a book. It’s way easier than trying to force yourself to be something you’re not, and you’ll have a much better time.

Such a beautiful message! I am 20 years old and have noticed a certain shift towards thin bodies, especially now with the popularization of Ozempic, which has been treated so casually that at one point, it almost convinced me to consider it. I have always been a bit bigger and have struggled with my self-image for most of my life due to societal standards and criticism from my own mother. Seeing how lovingly you speak of your daughter made me tear up. The expectations for women can be extremely overwhelming, but being shown love and respect at home can go a long way. I say this because it’s what I wished I had as an insecure, bigger-sized teenage girl. Sending much love to you! :)

just turned 40 this year...and ONLY in the past....YEAR or so? have i looked back in shock and realised just how distorted my perception was. the craziest part to me is that i was WARY of body dysmorphia - my older cousin had anorexia (and does to this day) - and i STILL was completely befuddled into thinking my body was unacceptable. it's crazy.

Ok another comment, I have so many thoughts! I was extremely depressed and unable to function at my lowest weight.. when you’re faint and famished all the time, you can’t hardly work or do school or anything - and you can lose brain mass and cause yourself heart problems. I only thought about calories, and I still hated my body. No matter how much weight I lost, my body type was still my body type, and I felt so hopeless about it. I still have a hard time accepting my genetics but am grateful now for my health, mental capacity, and strength/fitness, and make an effort to honor my body type by dressing in proportions that flatter it.

Not the betterhelp ads😭

I feel so guilty. This year because of all the talk about thinness (even though I know better and I educated myself about body acceptance in the past) I felt and talked badly about my body because my body is changing. I don’t know why but I just don’t fit in my old clothes anymore. Those clothes are things I wore when I was a teenager so it is obviously not gonna fit forever. So this video came at the right time. I also send it to my sister who is 15 and just started her fitness journey. I am proud of her but I see her believing the lies media tells us AGAIN. It never stops

My personal biggest shock about loosing weight was around my pregnancy and birthing in 2022. I gained very little weight throughout pregnancy, and then infact lost some weight at the end because 1, I was incredibly nauseous the entire time and it was hard to eat 2, I was put on a GDM diet in the 3rd trimester and also was ill for like a month of that trimester (kidney infection and covid after that). As a result after I gave birth I was 7 kg lighter than when I got pregnant and I felt horrible. My joints acked and I just didn't feel healthy in my body. AND I got congratulated left and right about how thin I was right after giving birth....

Wait, that wasn’t JLo on the song? 😮😮😮😮😂

I was also young during the 2000s, when thin was in. I was trying to look slimmer because I thought I weighed too much (even though I was already lean). Now, being much older, I am at the point of accepting my body as it is, with all of its "imperfections" (I think that they are also beautiful because they make me, me). One thing that did stick for me was the low-cut jeans. I love those and wear them as I never liked denim pushing on my tummy. Great video.

Not a criticism at all. But it’s so telling that even though Melanie has done so much reflection and education on this topic of body image, her closing comment is still to critique and apply a judgment to her lips. It is SO HARD to love yourself in spite of everything we see and hear.

I was feeling 90’s nostalgic the other day so I started watching the original WB Charmed TV show and I was shook at how thin those women were and how tight and cropped their tops were. I had almost forgotten how much standards of beauty have changed. That was around the same time as the early Friends episodes too. There was NO room for being soft around the middle.

Why don't we let people decide how they want to look and feel...

Let's also get rid of the "curvy" trend. There are people who now shame women for being "flat"....

"that voice started speaking to me when I was in a pair of low-rise jeans" - DAMN, this hit 🎯 excellent commentary and analysis. I was an early 90s baby as well and so relate to al of this. I still can't shake 'nothing tastes as good as skinny feels' occasionally popping into my mind

There's nothing wrong with working out (even doing a 100 situps at home every day) and watching what you eat while aiming to be HEALTHY. The hyper focusing on a specific shape and look for a woman's body is what's the problem. In the 00s it was 'scary skinny', in the 2010s was 'curvy', now it's swinging back to skinny. It is a cycle that will never end untill we start focusing on health instead of aesthetics, and are able to speak freely and be honestly about what that even means.

The fact is: online culture is a youth culture. And it doesn't matter how much we scream at young people to not make our mistakes - what they deem cool is more important to them than what some old farts like us millennials tell them is better for their psyche. If young people want to starve themselves, there is no stopping them. I've come to the realisation at the ripe age of 30 that I can reject weird trends and scoff at people's bad taste but that ultimately, I can only protect myself from toxic trends, not others.

Holy cow that special K commercial was NUTS

Thanks Melanie! What an important conversation, there are so many markers of health besides weight.

kate did have a minor eating disorder. a naturally thin person doesn't think about nothing tasting as good as skinny feels. in certain pictures you can see she looks unhealthy. she was naturally thin, but not that thin.

I saw a comment on a video about the Blake Lively “It Ends With Us” drama. Someone called her “big boned”. I was stunned. She had a baby in February. She already lost all the weight. In what world is she considered large??!?!!! 🤦‍♀️

My favourite sayin someone said that really clicked all the external influence:" i wish i was as skinny as the first time i thought i looked fat." I was shook cos i was like i was a child when i was first thinking i was fat. My friend said exactly. The journey of looking thin is never enough. Youll always look back and want that. If we could have said your a child who is growing n changing. Focus on how you feel. The outside doesnt matter. I wish i could say i have a healthy relationship with food now. But im working on undo the trauma responses at 33. So if anyone sees this i hope it brings light to when the harm probably started. And you can work through loving yourself. One thing ive done is to put on my favorite happy song get naked, and eat and dance in the mirror. The movement of your body shows you how much dimension there is. The endorphins and seratonin from song n dance tricks me into feeling good about eating in the start of my day

Mid 30s now.... In 2007 at 6'1" and 140lbs I was told I still needed to be thinner. This was not a fun time for body image.

This video is so important. I was recently in a public library and was horrified to hear young girls working out how many calories they had burnt whilst studying. I’ve also had orthorexia before and a while ago me and my friend admitted to each other that the thing we’re most afraid of in life is getting ‘fat’. It’s all so wrong! Like you say, we need to accept that healthy looks different for everyone, I want us to love our bodies and nourish them for their individual quirks and how they support us throughout our whole life.

Public service announcement: LOW RISE JEANS HAVE NEVER LOOKED GOOD ON ANYONE, EVER! This message has been paid for by the Fashion Crime Prevention Office

Lady, have you not seen the damage that the body positivity movement made? Not saying this thin culture is good, definitely not , but it’s a reaction to how stupid it is to say to people they’re beautiful at 400 lbs eating themselves away with heart conditions and diabetes. Of course people want to get away from that. Moss should have said ‘Nothing tastes as good as healthy feels’. Now that’s something anyone with enough common sense could applaud. People don’t want to get back to thin culture; they’re just tired of being called fat phobic for pointing out you cannot be healthy when you weigh a ton and that looking at your weight is basic self care behavior.

You are glowiiiinggg Mel💚

being fat is not healthy, yet all you guys do is cry and complain about skinny women existing. 70% of adults are overweight, less than 5% is underweight. but yeah, let’s focus on the tiny minority…

as a thin person (due to illness that i "recovered" recently after 3 years) a part of me is happy about skinniness being trendy because i lost all my curves. another part of me is like: i had to be ill to become this figure and i feel so ugly losing my curves. can't we just aim for a healthier body? i feel like sht at my size as muscles doesn't exactly come with the skinny trend

Looks like being healthy is cosidered too boring nowadays. From getting obese to getting anorexic. From one edge to another. How about the "golden center"? No toxic dieting, no toxic fat acceptance. Who's with me?

This is so triggering. For years I believed and maybe I still do that you are only worthy and loveable if you are skinny. It's horrendous. We were and still are attacked everyday by media and society. That if you are not slim you aren't worthy. 😢

Glad I’m not the only one who’s noticed this start to trickle back in. Great video, thank you! The societal desire for thinness is even more sinister when you realise that fatphobia is entrenched in racism and the predatory nature of putting traditionally prebubscent figures on a pedstal if you can even call it that, and not paedophillia!

Excellent video! Even on the smallest body, low rise jeans look terrible. They are coming back now so everyone will go out and buy them (to profit the clothing industry), which of course feeds into all you are saying. Let's not forget about toxic men who are critical of women's bodies while thinking they are all Adonis (hahaha-they need to take a hard look in the mirror). It's important to be healthy and happy with yourself and to be who you really are other than a physical presentation. Thank you again for this video and I am sure, even though your daughter is so young, that this concerns you greatly!

Honestly, this trend of being super thin AND thick at the same time is worse (Kim Kardashian body type), since you can really only meet that standard with surgery or filters, .0001 % of women are born naturally that way and still have to constantly work out and diet to maintain that figure since women with that body type tend to gain weight quickly.

Omg I sooooo remember that Britney 1000 crunches

I’m definitely thinner than the average person, but not thin enough to call it unhealthy, but ever since the whole “thick” trend started I’ve been shamed for being thin and “flat”. It’d be nice to have thin back in again, but we all know that means going back to shaming thick women and praising unhealthy thinness and practices to get thin. I just want all the body shaming to just end already.

T.W. Thanks to the resurgence of thin culture now I developed an ED.

I absolutely agree with everything that you are saying, especially in regard to people being basically told off for wanting to lose weight, there is almost no obese person who is healthy - coming from an obese person. I am so aware that I am extremely unhealthy and it really worries me the level some of these content creators who are championing body positivity are going. I need to stop eating takeaways, have less snacks and more healthy food and exercise more and ultimately I NEED to lose weight! But some of these people who are championing body positivity say things like “you can be healthy at any size” “you don’t need to change just because society says you need to change” and I fundamentally disagree with some of the things these people say.