For Immediate Release: Monday 16 January, 2012
Susie Orbach calls for greater scrutiny of diet industry with protest
Susie Orbach is heading up a protest outside Parliament on 16 January organised by Endangered Bodies to raise awareness of the misery caused by the diet industry.
Dr. Orbach, the convenor of Endangered Bodies - a group that campaigns against the culture of body anxiety and hatred – and a psychotherapist with thirty years experience of treating people with eating problems, and author of ‘Fat is a Feminist Issue’, is giving evidence on Monday at the All Parliamentary Party Group’s Body Image Inquiry, alongside Weight Watchers, Slimming World and Holland & Barratt.
The demonstration centres around a hazardous waste bin into which Endangered Bodies is encouraging people to ditch their toxic dieting materials - diet plans, magazines, calorie counters, the lot.
Susie Orbach said: “Diets don’t work in the long-term. Ninety-five per cent of people who lose weight through dieting will regain that weight and more after five years [1]. Endangered Bodies is protesting today to highlight the damage caused to people’s mental and physical health by the diet industry. They are making fat profits out of making us feel miserable about ourselves. We want to encourage people to listen to their appetites, enjoy their bodies and ditch dieting.”
As part of their Ditching Dieting campaign, Endangered Bodies is calling for:
- An investigation into the diet industry by Trading Standards;
- Truth in diet advertising – including the real diet results: 95% recidivism;
- Research into the real costs of dieting – cost per pound lost.
Endangered Bodies wants to raise awareness of the damage dieting does to:
- Our mental health – dieting induces, and is a form of, disturbed eating that undermines people’s confidence in a normal body function.
- Our physical health - Yo-yo dieting plays a large role in various ailments, ironically often attributed to obesity: high-blood pressure, congestive heart failure, diabetes, and even premature death. [2]
ENDS
NOTE TO EDITORS
The protest is starting at 2.30pm on Monday, 16 January, before the Body Image Inquiry, which begins at 4.30pm. We are meeting under the Lion on the Southside of Westminster Bridge.
For more information or to arrange an interview with Susie Orbach, or an Endangered Bodies representative, please contact Amy Anderson on anderson_amy@live.co.uk or 0775 4039901
- Dr Susie Orbach pioneered the treatment of disordered eating in this country. As co-founder of The Women’s Therapy Centre she provided programmes for women and their families to address the psychology of eating and fatness. She is the author of four books on eating problems and three on women’s psychology. She has also written widely on psychological and social issues. She is visiting Professor at the LSE.
- For more information on the Endangered Bodies ‘Ditching Dieting’ campaign, including the research that proves that diets don’t work, go to www.ditchingdieting.org
- Endangered Bodies is a global and local initiative to fight the culture of body anxiety, body hatred and fear that is pervading all parts of our society. For more information go to http://www.endangeredbodies.org
- For more information on the All Parliamentary Party Group’s Body Image Inquiry go to http://www.ymca.co.uk/bodyconfidence/parliament
- Susie Orbach, or an Endangered Bodies representative, is available for interview on Monday 16 January before 3pm.
References:
2 Paul Campos, The Obesity Myth, New York: Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 2004, 32-33. See also http://spectrum.diabetesjournals.org/content/20/3/166.full
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News for release: Monday 7th February, 2011
Susie Orbach launches Endangereded Species International Summit to challenge body beautiful culture
Endangered Species International Summit - established by Susie Orbach and launched today in London - will celebrate body diversity and challenge the culture that teaches girls and women to hate their own bodies. Events will take place around the world in March - the same month as the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day - with the main UK event to be held at London’s Southbank Centre on 4th March 2011.
To launch the summit, Endangered Species, together with DIVA magazine, invited advertising and creative agencies from around the UK to submit ideas for a billboard campaign to communicate the Endangered Species’ message: save future generations of women and girls from hating their own bodies. The winning entry from Manchester’s RED C Agency is unveiled today and will be seen at 11 sites across the capital running up to the Endangered Species summit in London on 4th March. The sites have been donated to Endangered Species and DIVA courtesy of global out-of-home advertising company Clear Channel International.
The Endangered Species billboard campaign features in the March issue of DIVA magazine which is guest-edited by world-renowned psychotherapist, author and activist, Susie Orbach and goes on sale today.
Jane Czyzselska, editor of DIVA magazine, says:
"When Susie told us about Endangered Species, her upcoming event aimed at correcting the warped view we have of ourselves, which is created and supported by our personal histories and the powerful visual media, we decided to join forces and asked Susie to guest-edit a special issue of DIVA. We’re excited about the impact our efforts could have in changing the cultural discourse about our bodies and in turn helping women to feel truly at home in their skin."
Supported by Equalities Minister Lynne Featherstone, fashion guru Caryn Franklin, actor and writer Emma Thompson and DIVA magazine, Endangered Species aims to engage people from the worlds of politics, corporate life, fashion and media and ask them how they can best contribute to changing those aspects of the commercialization of beauty which are causing such harm to girls and women around the world today.
Susie Orbach says:
"Endangered Species summit is an urgent call to action: to save future generations from the body misery which can start as early as 6 and continue until women are in old age homes. The summit aims to show girls and women how they can do something about it, and to inspire them to embrace change.
Over the past 30 years the workings of the diet, pharmaceutical, food, cosmetic surgery and style industries have made us view the body we live in as a body which must be perfect. The goal of perfectibility has turned generations of women against their own bodies. The young woman who can feel free to explore her interests without being preoccupied by how her body appears or focus on what procedure she should have in the future to change it is becoming an ‘endangered species’."
Notes to Editors
- Endangered Species is an International Summit with its UK event taking place at the Royal Festival Hall on London’s Southbank on 4th March. Individuals and groups from the UK and Ireland will be joined by initiatives throughout Europe to showcase the work they are already doing with and about young women – from projects in schools, colleges and communities to web-based groups and campaigning organisations. Performance, videos and artwork will frame the day and underline the urgent message of this summit. A truly global summit, Endangered Species events will take place in London, New York, Buenos Aires, Melbourne, Sao Paulo.
- The winners of the Endangered Species/Diva Billboard campaign competition, chosen from over 100 entries, were: 1st Place: Red C ‘Is this the happiest she’ll ever be about her appearance’; 2nd Place Hillcoat-Watson’s ‘Don’t Conform – Change the Norm; 3rd Place: Rapp’s ‘Nip and Tuck Off’. The judges were Susie Orbach and Diva’s Jane Czyzselska, Louise Carolin and Eden Carter Wood
- Diva is the biggest selling magazine for lesbian and bi-sexual women in the UK www.divamag.co.uk
- Clear Channel International (CCI)
Clear Channel International (CCI) works with advertisers to create inspiring out-of-home advertising campaigns in 30 countries across Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. The company has a growing portfolio, which is currently made up of over half a million displays, which span traditional and digital formats on roadside billboards, street furniture and in retail, point of sale, airport, transit and lifestyle environments. It employs over 5,000 people and, in 2009, its revenue was $1.46 billion USD.
CCI is part of Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc (CCO), the world’s largest out-of-home advertising company with operations in 44 countries. CCO is, in turn, 89% owned by Clear Channel Communications, Inc the global media and entertainment company. The remaining 11% of CCO is traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
www.clearchannelinternational.com
www.clearchannel.co.uk
- For all press enquiries please contact Annabel Robinson or Fiona McMorrough at FMcM Associates on 020 7405 7422 or email annabelr@fmcm.co.uk / Fionam@fmcm.co.uk
- To arrange for a high-resolution image of the billboard campaign winners please contact annabelr@fmcm.co.uk
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