Why I'm Petitioning Khloe Kardashian’s Latest Show as Someone With an Eating Disorder

I believe Khloe Kardashian’s newest venture, a TV show called “Revenge Body,” is the most potentially damaging move of hers. Everyone has seen weight loss shows like “The Biggest Loser,” but in my opinion, this show sends the worst message about weight/body image.

For those who don’t know, the premise of the show is your typical makeover style show. Person comes in, talks about how this person or that person did them wrong and how now they are out to create a new version of themselves.

Fine. I’m all for that. If you feel the need to recreate yourself after losing your job or a bad breakup, that can be a fine way to clean the slate and move forward. But Khloe recommends the best way to move on is to lose loads of weight and then show their “revenge body” off to the people who did them wrong.

The first two contestants are Will and Stephanie. Will’s boyfriend broke up with him because of recent weight gain and Stephanie’s friends have designated her as the “DUFF” or the “designated ugly fat friend.” Just reading that, I think it’s safe to say that what both Will and Stephanie are in need of some different people in their lives, not weight loss. By Khloe creating this show, she is sending the message to millions of people watching that the way to deal with a difficult life situation is losing weight.

Nope.

That’s the kind of mindset that can develop into an eating disorder. Losing weight can get highly addictive and does not at all point at the root of the problem in Stephanie and Will’s life. At the end of the episode, the idea is that they stand up for themselves in their “new and improved” body because for some reason, losing weight means they are suddenly capable of having the power to vocalize how awful their friends/significant other made them feel. News flash: You always had the power to stand up for yourself because you’re a person, not because you’re thin. The more episodes of this show run, the more people will think they should deal with their problems by losing weight. This cannot happen. In the United States, 20 million woman and 10 million men struggle with an eating disorder at some point in their life, and nobody needs Khloe Kardashian perpetuating this unhealthy mindset.

If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, you can call the National Eating Disorders Association Helpline at 1-800-931-2237.

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Image via Revenge Body with Khloe Kardashian Facebook page