When diet culture demonizes certain foods while elevating others, it conveniently distracts our attention from the real issues. Rather than admitting that its methods of deprivation, restriction, and self-blame don’t work—and that they instead actively harm our physical and mental health—diet culture points the finger at particular foods it falsely labels as “toxic,” “addictive,” or just plain “bad.” From cookies to gluten to tomatoes, the foods that diet culture demonizes vary based on trends and flimsy science. But for the vast majority of people, restricting those foods never leads to
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