From Towie regular to 'fitness guru', Lauren Goodger recently confused body positivity to blatant body shaming.
The newly svelte star has decided while she thinks Ashley Graham is great and looks incredible in her (Ashley's not Lauren's) newly launched line, if Ashley were to tip the dress sizes just one size up, Lauren would not be cool with that.
According to Lauren while it's great that Ashley is showing plus sized women they can and should love themselves, it's only OK if they are not too plus sized (up to an 18 if you wondered) and she is particularly narked by the idea that Swimsuitsforall make the Ashley Graham line up to a size 28 (UK).
Goodger, like many people I have spoken to since launching SLiNK have not quite got their head around plus size clothing and somehow believe that part of the cause for obesity is the fact that people can buy clothes in larger sizes. Aside from this being one of the most moronic questions I ever have the pleasure of answering (usually live on air) it suggests a complete lack of understanding of the subject.
Firstly Lauren, if someone doesn't have nice clothes to wear, this actually does hurt their mental health, feeling bad about oneself doesn't motivate a person to make good and healthy choices. Equally if there were no swimsuits in a size 28 how would that woman go swimming? Are you suggesting that at a size 28 said woman shouldn't even attempt to exercise or leave the house feeling good - should she just stay at home? That seems like a very negative and isolating approach.
Secondly Lauren, I think I must have missed when you received a medical degree. Now we all know you prefaced this with 'in my opinion' but sadly we live in a society where young girls are more likely to want to be reality tv stars than doctors - except ironically the Dr is the only one that can decipher the woman above a size 18's health. You can not visually diagnose anyone, not you, actually not even a doctor but reinforcing negative stereotypes to your legions of fans is bad for body image of young girls and it's damaging for all of us who truly understand that healthy doesn't have a dress size and you can be unhealthy at a range of sizes.
How you ask?
Well because health is complex, our bodies are complex. Health is a combination of physical and mental health. This often gets glossed over because we can't see mental health - so just like you judged every woman over a size 18 in your sweeping comment, we do that with mental health everyday. We have to account for mental health in our overall wellbeing and this can be affected at every size. Having strong mental health means that we can feel good about ourselves and we can make good and happy decisions for ourselves, that's actually just as if not more so for a lot of people more important than what dress size you wear - because that is not an indication of health.
If we were all meant to be one size - we would all probably be the same height, with the same eye colour, the same hair - but we aren't. Our bodies are all different. Even at the same size weight can distribute itself different - that's kind of what's awesome about people, is we are all individuals.
Knowing someones health can't be told by looking at them, or checking their jeans label. It can only be known by medical tests and a thorough look at their lifestyle. I know women above a size 18 who work out regularly and eat well just as I know size 8 girls who never run and eat unhealthily - the outside doesn't always necessarily reflect the inside.
Your generalisations don't focus on health, they focus on your outdated view and lack of understanding of what makes a healthy person and someone with such influence over young girls should think twice.
Your negative and judgemental stereotypes make a mockery of all the work people (especially women) have done to remind women and young girls that health (both physical and mental) not size or looks are a priority.