The one New Year’s Resolution EVERYONE should have

New Year’s Resolution for 2015 and onwards– No more food shaming!

With 2015 approaching, many of us are making new year’s resolutions. At the top of the list is usually, “get healthy”, “eat better”, “exercise”, etc..

And all of this is great! Everyone should have the goal of living the healthiest life possible.

To help with that, Positive Eats would like to add the following Resolution to EVERYONE’s list:

*****^^~~NO MORE FOOD SHAMING!~~^^*****

Got it? That mean’s no more commenting (either out loud or even thinking in your head!) on the food choices of others–especially negative comments! No more “that’s going to make you fat”, “oh you must be on a diet”, “is she really going to eat that?”, “did you know that Food X is bad for you?”. NO MORE!

No more labeling foods as good or bad, and especially NO MORE LABELING PEOPLE by the foods they eat!

You have no idea why someone is eating what they are eating, and you have no reason to judge another individual’s food choices. So stop it. Now.

Food shaming stems from the belief that certain foods have certain moral values, and that is wrong wrong wrong. ALL FOODS OFFER NUTRITION. Choose to look at foods objectively (or positively:)), as vehicles of nutrition, as just plain ol’ foods! And move on with life. And don’t bug others!

Now go celebrate the New Year! And tell us, do you agree with this New Year’s Resolution?

Are you guilty of this?

You’re at a party and someone offers you a Coke. You decline, saying “I don’t drink soda-it’s really bad for you”.

Or how about at a birthday party and you decide to skip the cake because you are “watching your figure”.

Or at an office breakfast and you make a comment about how the donuts will give you all heart attacks.

Now think about this:

How do you think those comments make other people feel? Commenting about how unhealthy or bad a certain food is, especially in the company of others who are consuming the food or have worked hard to make the food is FOOD-SHAMING and it needs to stop.

Food shaming is something we are all guilty of at some point or another. Even if it is done inside the mind. Have you ever saw someone who appears over-weight eating at an ice cream cone and thought to yourself, “maybe he shouldn’t be eating that..” Have you ever judged yourself and felt bad after eating 4 slices of pizza?

Why are we so judgmental about food?

Even when consuming stereotypically “healthy” foods, people feel the need to comment. Ever order a salad when out with friends at a BBQ restaurant, and then been accused or sarcastically teased for being “no fun”, “so healthy”, or “on a diet”.

This article sums up how we should deal with this cycle of judgement:

Letting go of “good” food/”bad” food thinking is key to embracing a healthy, shame-free approach to eating—but that doesn’t mean that you have to consume ice cream and cookies whenever you have the slightest desire to indulge in something sweet.

“There’s nothing wrong with having healthy food preferences,” says Tribole. “The issue is when it becomes rigid and when you take on an all-or-nothing attitude.”

In other words, if you’re choosing between the fruit bowl and a chocolate chip cookie and you would legitimately be happy with either one, then by all means, choose the fruit bowl. But if you find yourself really, really wanting the cookie and you go with the fruit because you’re judging your sugar craving, that’s when your decision may lead to dissatisfaction—and maybe even overeating or secret eating later.

“The first step is to acknowledge that food judging isn’t helpful, even if it’s well-intended,” says May. After that, it can be helpful to try some of these techniques to break free of the food-shaming cycle:

– Notice when you (or someone else) is entering judgmental territory
– Remember that you’re the only expert on you and what you need to be eating
– Remind yourself that eating “perfectly” isn’t worth sacrificing your mental health
– Give yourself permission to get pleasure from food

We at Positive Eats believe that there are no bad foods and that the sooner we can break out of this food-shaming business..the happier and healthier we will all be.

What do you think? Who is on board with us to end food-shaming?