How Influencers are Encouraging Followers to Ditch Diet Culture

By Halee Miller

Scroll, scroll and more scrolling; it’s what most of us do all day, everyday. Whether it be going through Instagram and TikTok for hours on end or cramming a 10-page essay for a class, we’re all guilty of looking at screens for way too long. While these endless hours typically lead to comparison, unnecessary feelings of poor body image and for many- a direct pathway to the influences of diet culture; some social media influencers are taking it into their own hands to help young women end the cycle of trying to constantly shrink themselves and start properly caring for and loving the body that they are in.

A current Iowa State Grad Student and future Registered Dietitian, Jen Pilut, started her Instagram account, “@Jenfiter”, about seven years ago. Pilut says she uses her platform to prevent others from going through what she went through as a young woman. As she has matured through college, she has now been able to pinpoint exactly what she wants to tell her audience- and that’s informing them on how to be anti-diet culture.

“Dietitians now are speaking up. Dietitians have the platform now to say this isn’t okay,” says Pilut regarding this societal norm of extreme dieting and guilt-inducing tactics.

The future R.D. says diet culture is often a marketing strategy used by companies or influencers to make profit off of people feeling guilty about their food and exercise choices. For example, Chipotle releasing their new cauliflower “rice” as an alternative to real rice is taking advantage of people’s body insecurities. The marketing makes them feel guilty enough to buy the new cauliflower option, whether they enjoy the taste or not. Young women especially, then find themselves in a vicious binge and restrict cycle due to wanting to look like what society and social media makes them think they “should” look like. These thoughts can then spiral into other mental health conditions including anxiety and depression.

To combat these effects of modern-day diet culture, Pilut says intuitive eating plays a large factor. Intuitive eating means to have true food freedom, being able to honor your cravings, and eating when you’re hungry and stopping when you are full.

“Intuitive eating is eating how we ate when we were two-years old, when you didn’t think about how much or how little you should eat,” Pilut explained.

In addition to intuitive eating, she says practicing 30 minutes of joyful movement (moving in a way that makes you happy and feel good) each day is another great way to stay active while protecting your mental health. She said everyone should also have the correct “why” behind wanting to pursue improving their health- you should truly want to do the things you are doing, not feel like you have to.

Another influencer and owner of the “@natsneateats” Instagram account, Natalia Seliger, suffered from the effects of diet culture herself and is also using her platform to help others that are struggling.

“Listening to my body has been the biggest game changer for my mental health,” says Seliger.

For her, intuitive eating is eating whatever she wants and listening to her cravings. She said that there should be more focus on adding in more foods, like fruits and vegetables, rather than restricting any food. For exercise, some days she does strength workouts and dancing, other days she goes on a long walk.

“Someone’s ‘What I Eat in a Day’ video is not something to compare, but to be inspired by,” said Seliger. “Don’t compare your meal portions to others, don’t compare any of that stuff because everyone’s bodies require different things and prioritizing balance is what should be most important.”

Pilut’s and Seliger’s Instagram accounts both share much more than just nutrition education, recipe inspiration and workout routines. They share what else wellness means to them- getting enough sleep, practicing gratitude, being mindful, having healthy relationships and social connections, dancing, attending therapy and learning the art of saying “no.” Their accounts have given their followers a community to be a part of and learn from. Their followers no longer have to feel alone in their struggle because of the influencers’ relatable and vulnerable content pertaining to mental health and their relationship with food and exercise.

These two accounts have given the bad reputation of social media a new light. The two women behind them are changing and perhaps, even saving lives. Instead of posting highly-edited selfies and excessively-posed swimsuit pictures, they are addressing difficult subjects like diet culture, disordered eating and mental health. Men and women alike can all take something away from their content--- and it might just change their life for good.