The true cost of diet culture: Women spend up to 8 hours a week thinking about weight loss

If you’ve ever embarked on a weight loss journey, you might know the feeling of having your thoughts, emotions and actions dominated by your progress.

A new report from Juniper has found that this is the case for close to 20% of Australian women, who spend up to 8 hours a week engaged in weight loss thoughts [1].

Juniper’s ‘True cost of diet culture’ report sheds light on the growing burden of diet culture in Australia. Despite women dedicating significant mental energy to losing weight, obesity rates continue to climb, pointing to a system that fails to support lasting change.

Why diet culture is failing women

The cost of diet culture isn't just financial. It comes at the expense of mental wellbeing, time, confidence, and in many cases, long-term health outcomes.

Data shows that adult obesity rates rose from 27.9% in 2014 to 31.3% in 2017, which is an increase of 12% [2]. Clearly, the traditional diet approach of “eat less, move more” is not working, yet it remains a core message across diet plans, social media platforms, and the broader weight loss industry.

“More time and money than ever before is being invested in dieting and perceived quick fixes when obesity is a medical condition that requires professional support and medical intervention,” says endocrinologist and Juniper spokesperson, Dr Ramy Bishay.

“We simply can’t expect women to undo thousands of years of adaptation to starvation, which has dominated human history, in a matter of weeks or months by ‘eating less and moving more’. This mantra is failing Australian women. It’s hard-wired, built-in physiology. This report captures this precisely.”

Dieting is eating into women's time

Juniper's research paints a clear picture of how deeply entrenched diet culture has become:

• 6 in 10 (60%) women are either dieting or restricting their eating habits to lose weight at some time each year.
• Almost 1 million (919,000) Australian women revealed they are permanently on a diet or practising restrictive eating to lose weight.

The constant pursuit of thinness is one of the core values of diet culture, and it's leaving women trapped in cycles of yo-yo dieting, weight cycling, and body dissatisfaction.

The emotional cost of weight loss thoughts

More than a third of women (35%) who think about or engage in activities with the purpose of losing weight say they experience negative emotions.  These include feelings of:

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Stress
• Overwhelm
• Powerlessness
• Sadness

These responses highlight the psychological toll of dieting and the unrealistic body ideals often perpetuated by social media and restrictive diet plans.

Why expert support matters in challenging diet culture

Another troubling insight from the report:

• More than 2 in 5 (42%) Australian women who diet say that on their last weight loss attempt, they did not consult a healthcare professional. 
• Australian women who consulted with an expert were more successful in their last attempt at weight loss compared to those women who did not (72% compared to 54%).

Without professional advice, women are often left navigating a maze of conflicting nutrition advice, fad diets, and diet culture messaging, all of which reinforce the idea that one's weight determines their worth.

Regional women face greater barriers

The cost of diet culture hits harder in regional areas, where access to professional support is limited:

• 1 in 5 (19%) of those in regional areas who didn’t consult a health professional during their last attempt at dieting also cited that they either can’t get an appointment or don’t have a regular GP or nearby health professional to talk to about weight loss.
• Those in regional areas are more likely than their city counterparts to experience negative emotions when it comes to thinking about or engaging in activities with the purpose of losing weight (38% versus 33%). 

This disparity highlights the role of health professional communities in addressing weight stigma and providing equitable access to care.

What is diet culture and why should we challenge it?

So, what is diet culture exactly?

Diet culture is the system of beliefs that equates thinness with health and moral value. It promotes restrictive eating, discourages body acceptance and often leads to disordered eating patterns. It tells women they must shrink their bodies to be worthy, no matter the mental health cost.

Critics argue that diet culture reinforces fat phobia, creates a moral hierarchy of foods (labelling them as "good" or "bad"), and drives people away from intuitive eating and mindful eating practices that are more sustainable in the long term.

Recognising and rejecting these messages is the first step to breaking free.

Why the traditional weight loss method is broken

It’s clear that the current approach to weight loss isn’t working, and it’s not the fault of those trying to lose weight — many of the weight loss programs and regimes out there simply aren’t designed for successful results. 

In order to successfully manage obesity, a combination of behavioural change, clinically-proven treatments and professional support is required. Research suggests this multidisciplinary approach can reduce key risk factors associated with being overweight and improve one’s healthspan. 

This is where Juniper can help — both in losing weight and keeping it off. 

How Juniper is helping women reclaim their time and wellbeing

Juniper has helped more than 130,000 Australian women handle the mental strain of weight loss.

Our program helps to reduce food noise and alleviate some of the emotional labour that losing weight requires by providing tailored support at every stage of the weight management journey.

For regional patients, Juniper offers a convenient and effective pathway for lasting weight loss. In fact, almost 30% of our patients are located in regional or rural areas. On average, patients receive at least 10 touchpoints of communication with Juniper’s platform in the first 2 weeks of their program.

This model of telehealth saves patients valuable travel time and costs, while reducing the emotional stress of feeling unsupported and isolated on their weight loss journey, particularly for patients who face significant barriers to attending regular consults with multiple clinicians to manage their weight.

More about Juniper's Weight Reset Program

The Juniper Program starts from $349/ month for our Juniper Essentials Program and $399/ month for our Juniper Program.

The Juniper Essentials Program includes clinically proven medical treatment, unlimited follow-up consultations with your Juniper practitioner, health tracking, and access to our supportive and like-minded Juniper community.

The Juniper Program includes clinically proven medical treatment, unlimited follow-up consultations with your Juniper practitioner, health coaching, 1:1 health tracking, access to our supportive and like-minded Juniper community, a welcome kit, and more. The Juniper Program is just $2/ day more than our Essentials Program.

Juniper is an investment in your health. Unlike other weight loss methods, Juniper’s is a holistic program that provides members with access to personalised dietitian and nutritionist support, health coaching, medical support from GPs, nurses, and pharmacists, exclusive app content, digital scales, precision weight tracking, and treatments delivered to your door.

Our Juniper Program pricing reflects the additional benefits our patients receive at a competitive price.

We also offer a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can be sure Juniper is right for you.

From diet culture to body confidence

Weight loss is rarely a linear journey, and it’s often a lonely one. But with the right support, it doesn’t have to be.

Juniper empowers women to shift from diet culture and unrealistic beauty standards toward lasting change rooted in science, compassion, and care.

It’s time to put the focus back on what really matters: your health, your confidence, and your time.

{{weight-calculator}}