‘Before’ and ‘After’ Weight Loss Photos Are Back and Just as Problematic as Ever

glamour.com:

. I used the pictures as “inspiration” and “motivation”; I even printed a few out to keep on my desk or pin on the fridge. If I could just get there, achieve what these people had managed, I thought it would guarantee me happiness, success, praise and worthiness.‌It took me a long time to realize that these images were problematic.

They weren’t serving as inspiration or motivation; they were merely reinforcing in me that I wouldn’t be happy until I got my “after” picture—something that proved very unattainable and unrealistic to me without developing a full-blown .‌But that only scratches the surface of why these transformation pictures are so damaging.

They and anti-fat bias by portraying larger bodies in a negative light and equate things like worth and happiness with thinness.

We never see a transformation where the subject has gained weight paired with a positive message, do we? I’m sure the comment section would no longer be full of praise, admiration, and desperate demands to know details.‌What’s more, they are quite literally a snapshot, a momentary glimpse into someone’s life.