ADVOCACY
Creating momentum for change in relation to body image, weight, and health
We have decades of body image research that tells us what is effective in promoting body image, and achieving mental and physical health outcomes.
What we need now is an urgent need for change to public health policy and practice in order to enhance wellbeing.
ADVOCACY FOCUS AREAS
A coordinated, evidence-based approach to making a difference
INCLUSIVE PUBLIC HEALTH MESSAGING
Health for all
Research now shows that health promotion messaging that takes a 'shame and blame' approach is harmful, and ineffective (1-3).
There is an urgent need to create more inclusive practice that focuses on using evidence to drive adoption of health behaviours rather than creating shame around weight.
CRITIQUING WEIGHT LOSS AND MUSCLE BUILDING SUPPLEMENTS
Unsafe and ineffective
The muscle building and weight loss supplement industry is a $20 Billion dollar industry. But no one is checking that supplements are safe, and there are no guarantees that they are effective.
In collaboration with our advocacy partners, the Strategic Training and Research Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders [STRIPED] at the Harvard School of Public Health, we take action to educate, regulate, and legislate these dangerous supplements.
INCLUSIVE IMAGERY
Reducing media impact
Decades of research has confirmed that looking at images of thin and muscular models is damaging for our body image and mental health (4).
We advocate for change, to encourage all organisations, businesses, and individuals to use a broader range of images that represent people of all shapes and sizes, more aligned with population averages, so that we are not constantly exposed to unrealistic standards of beauty.