Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop website criticised for telling women to achieve their ‘leanest liveable weight’
'Never have four words grouped together made me quite so furious'
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle website Goop has come under fire for publishing an article that encourages women to achieve their “leanest liveable weight.”
In the piece, entitled “Busting Diet Myths”, Traci Mann, PhD, explains the term as “the weight at the low end of your 'set range.'”
“Your set range is a genetically determined range of weight that your body generally keeps you in, despite your efforts to escape it" she says.
Despite clarifying her statement by saying that she does not encourage calorie deprivation, critics on social media have taken issue with the use of the phrase “leanest liveable weight” and deemed the article as “dangerous.”
One even went as far as to re-name the piece “How to be as thin as possible without dying.”
Another added, ”Never have four words grouped together made me quite so furious.”
While one Twitter user asked, “How about encouraging women and girls to be a healthy weight?”
Ironically though, it seems that Mann’s article actually intended on addressing how to find a healthy, manageable weight.
“I urge people to aim for their leanest liveable weight, rather than below it,” she said.
“Embrace it—it's where your body wants you to be, it's easy to maintain, and you can be healthy there.
“Since this weight is within your set weight range—where your body tries to keep you—the only reason you would need to diet is if you're currently well above that range.”
As such, many leaped to Goop’s defence accusing critics of not reading the article properly before making judgement.
“Guys, leanest liveable weight doesn’t mean what you think it means,” one person explained.
Of course, this isn’t the first time Paltrow’s website has been criticised for its controversial content.
Recently, Goop came under fire for promoting a $135 (£100) DIY coffee enema kit that medical professionals said could prove harmful to people’s health.
And, it was also heavily condemned in December for publishing an article with celebrity fitness guru Tracy Anderson entitled “how to lose weight fast.”
In the piece, Anderson suggested that readers should jump-start their weight loss by working out every day and adopting a gluten-free, low-carb diet.
The Independent has reached out to Goop for comment.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments