Size Inclusive/HAES Dietitian
Size Inclusive Health Australia
Australia now has it’s own size inclusive body called Size Inclusive Health Australia
Size Inclusive Health Australia follows the same HAES principles as outlined on the ASDAH (association for size diversity and health) website.
The Health At Every Size Principles are:
1. Weight Inclusivity: Accept and respect the inherent diversity of body shapes and sizes and reject the idealizing or pathologizing of specific weights.
2. Health Enhancement: Support health policies that improve and equalize access to information and services, and personal practices that improve human well-being, including attention to individual physical, economic, social, spiritual, emotional, and other needs.
3. Respectful Care: Acknowledge our biases, and work to end weight discrimination, weight stigma, and weight bias. Provide information and services from an understanding that socio-economic status, race, gender, sexual orientation, age, and other identities impact weight stigma, and support environments that address these inequities.
4. Eating for Well-being: Promote flexible, individualized eating based on hunger, satiety, nutritional needs, and pleasure, rather than any externally regulated eating plan focused on weight control.
5. Life-Enhancing Movement: Support physical activities that allow people of all sizes, abilities, and interests to engage in enjoyable movement, to the degree that they choose
The Health At Every Size Approach – fact sheet to download
As size inclusive dietitians, we help people work towards their health goals, but without the expectation of weight loss.
A size inclusive approach is not anti-weight loss, just anti-pursuit of weight loss as a means to better health. After all, your weight is not a behaviour and a change in behaviours is typically what is required to make a change to your health.
Size inclusive dietitians also acknowledge that your health is so much more than just what you eat or how much you move. Our physical health is only one small aspect of health, with our social health, mental/emotional health and spiritual health (ie your purpose in life) being just as, if not more, important. Very often, a focus on weight loss and restricting food or dieting, takes away from these key aspects of health.
