Demi Lovato warns against ‘harmful’ comments about weight loss after eating disorder

‘If you don’t know someone’s history with food, please don’t comment on their body’

Demi Lovato has asked their followers to refrain from making comments about someone else’s weight loss.

The singer broached the topic over the weekend on their Instagram story, writing in part: “Idk who needs to hear this but complimenting someone on their weight loss can be as harmful as complimenting someone on their weight gain in regards to talking to someone in recovery from an eating disorder.”

Lovato added: “If you don't know someone's history with food, please don't comment on their body. Because even if your intention is pure, it might leave that person awake at 2am overthinking that statement...”

The artist, who has been open about their own experiences with disordered eating, said that such comments can feel “great” at times, “but only to the loud-ass eating disorder voice inside my head”.

“I am more than the shell for my soul that is my body and every day I fight to remind myself of that,” they added, “so I’m asking you to please not remind me that this is all people see of me sometimes.”

The comments came days after Lovato came out as non-binary, stating in an Instagram post: “Today is a day I'm so happy to share more of my life with you all – I am proud to let you know that I identify as non-binary and will officially be changing my pronouns to they/them moving forward. This has come after a lot of healing and self-reflective work.”

Earlier this year, Lovato was the subject of the four-part documentary Dancing with the Devil, in which they discussed a range of topics including a near-fatal overdose in 2018, and their approach to sobriety.