What is Weight-Inclusive Nutrition and Why Does It Matter?
What if your health wasn’t measured by a number on the scale? Weight-inclusive nutrition challenges the idea that weight is the best indicator of health and instead focuses on behaviors that actually improve well-being—like nourishing your body, eating a variety of enjoyable foods, and managing stress. Restricting calories usually leads to weight regain and weight cycling, which just causes more harm in the long run. A weight-inclusive approach offers a way to care for yourself in an authentic and meaningful way—without the guilt, shame, or impossible cultural expectation of shrinking your body.
A weight-inclusive approach is guided by respect, autonomy, and evidence-based care that supports well-being at any size. Instead of chasing a smaller body, it encourages sustainable habits that help you feel your best—physically and mentally.
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Weight-Centric vs. Weight-Inclusive Nutrition: How Are They Different?
| Weight-Centric Nutrition | Weight-Inclusive Nutrition |
|---|---|
| Assumes weight determines health | Recognizes health is influenced by many factors, not just weight |
| Encourages restrictive dieting for weight loss | Encourages sustainable, flexible eating patterns |
| Promotes external rules (calorie counting, portion control) | Supports internal cues (hunger, fullness, satisfaction) |
| Views higher weight as a problem to fix | Recognizes body diversity as normal and valid |
| Can lead to disordered eating and weight cycling | Supports a stable, positive relationship with food |
| Patients in larger bodies are often dismissed or blamed | Patients are treated with dignity and respect, regardless of size |
The Weight-Centric Approach is Failing Us
Diet culture wants us to believe that weight is the primary determinant of health. It claims that people in larger bodies should just "eat less and exercise more." But there are major problems with the weight-centric approach:
1. Diets Don't Work
Weight loss studies may claim success in their conclusions, but most have short durations and high dropout rates. When participants on calorie restricted diets are followed long-term (more than 18-24 months), the vast majority regain weight, and many (up to 67%) end up weighing more than they did when they started.
2. Weight Cycling
Because calorie restricted diets are so unsustainable, repeated weight loss attempts lead to weight cycling (also called yo-yo dieting). Studies show that weight cycling is more harmful to health than simply maintaining a higher weight. It's associated with a higher risk of mortality, heart disease, high blood pressure, and inflammation, among other concerns.
3. Weight Stigma
Diet culture reinforces weight stigma—negative attitudes and discrimination based on body size. Studies show people who experience weight stigma have worse health outcomes, regardless of body size.
Unfortunately, we live in a society where weight stigma is very real, affecting everything from medical care to job opportunities and relationships. Doctors miss diagnoses when they assume a patient's symptoms are caused by excess weight. And people who experience weight stigma often delay or avoid healthcare and are more likely to engage in disordered eating behaviors.
It’s completely understandable that many people want to lose weight in this environment. We need widespread systemic changes to reduce weight-based stigma and discrimination. We all deserve access to compassionate and respectful healthcare, regardless of size.
BMI is BS
One of the primary indicators of health in weight-centric nutrition is the Body Mass Index (BMI)—but this metric is deeply flawed.
- It was never designed to measure health. BMI was developed by a mathematician in the 1800s as a population-level statistic. It was never intended to be used as an individual health metric.
- It is rooted in racist and exclusionary science. The BMI was based on white European men only, and it doesn't account for diverse body compositions across different populations. If you want to learn more about the racial origins of weight bias, I recommend Fearing the Black Body by Sabrina Strings. (You can read more about it in my non-diet book recommendations post.)
- It doesn’t accurately measure fat composition. BMI simply looks at the relationship between weight and height, so someone with a lot of muscle and bone mass could easily have a high BMI, regardless of fat.
Weight Science Is Flawed
Despite the widespread assumption that weight loss improves health, research on this topic has major flaws. Often studies that link weight loss with health benefits:
- Have short follow-up periods—making it impossible to assess long-term effects, including the weight regain that commonly occurs after 18-24 months.
- Don’t control for weight stigma or weight cycling—both of which negatively impact health, and which may create most, if not all, of the same symptoms that are blamed on weight.
- Ignore social determinants of health, which play a MAJOR role in health outcomes.
When we adjust for these factors, research supports the idea that behaviors—not weight—are the real predictors of long-term health. This is one of the main reasons I encourage sustainable habit change over a fixation on body size.
What is a Weight-Inclusive Dietitian?
Working with a weight-neutral or weight-inclusive dietitian is a completely different experience from traditional nutrition counseling. Instead of being handed a restrictive meal plan or told to track every single calorie, you’ll be supported in healing your relationship with food and your body.
Using principles of intuitive eating and Health at Every Size® (HAES®), a weight-inclusive nutritionist will help you reconnect with your body’s natural cues, find joy in food again, and build habits that are truly sustainable. There’s no judgment, no weigh-ins, and no pressure to shrink your body—just guidance that meets you where you are and helps you move toward better health in a way that feels right for you.
As a registered dietitian, I use a weight-inclusive approach because it's what is supported by evidence-based research, as well as my ethics and values. Instead of focusing on weight, we can shift the conversation to how you feel, how you nourish your body, and how to care for yourself holistically.
Weight-Inclusive Nutrition Care:
- Supports the ethical principle of “do no harm.” For me, encouraging intentional weight loss despite the risks of weight cycling and disordered eating is not ethical care.
- Is more sustainable and effective. Weight-inclusive nutrition prioritizes realistic habits that improve well-being, rather than short-term diets that don’t last.
- Is supported by research. Studies show that health-focused behaviors (like improving nutrition, movement, and stress management) lead to better health outcomes—regardless of BMI.
When we embrace weight-inclusive nutrition, we move toward a more compassionate, effective, and sustainable approach to health—one that benefits people of all sizes.
If you're ready to break free from weight-focused nutrition and adopt a sustainable, evidence-based approach to well-being, I’d love to support you. Sign up for my free intuitive eating course or book a 1:1 nutrition counseling appointment to get started.
