cleaningout:

So, going along with my absolute dislike of anything and everything involving body policing, I absolute hate food policing. What is food policing? Let me give you some examples.

1. “Oh my god, you eat like a bird!”

2. “But, like, humans aren’t supposed to be vegetarians/are supposed to be vegan/etc.”

3. “Good lord, ANOTHER cake?”

Any time you point out how someone eats, you are food policing. As someone who once had an eating disorder I can tell you how detrimental food policing is to some people. If you point out that you noticed an anorexic eating/not eating/etc. it can be very, very triggering. That aside, it’s super rude.

One of my favorite examples is my friend Meghan. She’s a vegetarian. One day we were at a meeting and she was eating her vegetarian food and a classmate asked why she became a vegetarian - out of curiosity. Totally fine. But someone else at the table had to roll their eyes and lean over to someone near them and say, loud enough for her to hear, “Humans aren’t supposed to be vegetarians!” Of course Meghan is a little spit fire and kindly reprimanded her. 

But why should she of had to? Who gives a shit what Meghan eats, or why she eats it? There’s a difference between asking someone politely why they do what they do our of curiosity and telling someone their way of eating is wrong. If Meghan wanted to eat live chickens at the table she should have been able to without having to explain why to someone else. 

What you put in your body - or don’t put in your body - is your personal business. This is why when I make posts about foods that are high in protein/fiber/vitamins/etc. I include meat, animal products and non-animal products, because there are a lot of diets out there. I acknowledge that. I help give information about it. If I see scientific inaccuracies about it, I correct them, but I never judge or reprimand. 

So that’s my rant. Don’t make excuses for what you eat, or don’t eat. Instead, question why that person felt the need to make a comment on it. Insecurity? Fear? Maybe it’s an important time to open a dialogue with that person about why they feel that way and perhaps prevent them from shaming someone else.