Whether you are on a recovery journey or looking for a provider that aligns with your own values, people from all walks of life deserve quality healthcare. This includes individuals of all shapes and body sizes. This mentality is known as Health at Every Size, or HAES.

Many healthcare providers will give advice or make comments or assumptions about a person’s health as it relates to their weight — even if they don’t ask for it.

However, research shows that:

“…a HAES approach is associated with statistically and clinically relevant improvements in physiological measurements (e.g., blood pressure, blood lipids), health behaviors (e.g., eating and activity habits, dietary quality), and psychosocial outcomes (such as self-esteem and body image), and that HAES achieves these health outcomes more successfully than weight loss treatment and without the contraindications associated with a weight focus.”¹

HAES providers — including dietitians, doctors, and others in the healthcare space — align with HAES principles and provide care free of weight stigma. However, it can be challenging to find a HAES provider. Here’s what to know to find quality care.

How To Find a HAES Doctor, Dietitian, or Other Provider

When searching for a HAES provider, you want to find someone who aligns with the kind of care you want — and deserve.

HAES Principles

HAES principles were recently revised, but the core remains the same: All people have a right to receive unbiased health care, regardless of body shape, size, and other factors.

HAES Principles include:²

• Healthcare is a human right for people of all sizes: Without exception, people of all body sizes have a right to compassionate, comprehensive care.
• Care, healing, and wellbeing are personal and collective resources: People deserve to make autonomous decisions about their own bodies, and providers and advocates must promote resources for the wellbeing of the entire community.
• True care only exists when it is given to all people of all sizes, free from anti-fat bias: Providers must actively work to dismantle anti-fat bias and provide care for people of all body sizes.
• Health is a sociopolitical construct and reflects society’s values: The way many people describe health is “rooted in white supremacy, anti-Black racism, ableism, and healthism.” Health care and access should never depend on variable factors, like a person or community’s “health status, pursuit of health, or compliance with health recommendations.”

What Is a HAES Provider?

A HAES provider will align with HAES principles and integrate that mindset into their care.

Their approach to care will not be focused on your weight or weight loss. They will not make assumptions about your weight or health as it relates to your weight, and they will not give unwarranted advice related to body shape or size and push for you to change it.

A HAES provider will give you quality care as you are in your body now and not tell you that you need to change it.

Most of all, they will listen to you, your needs, and your concerns and be compassionate.

They will also make an effort to educate themselves about existing biases, and work to acknowledge, dismantle, and fight against those biases — both systemically and as they may exist in their own practice.³

Finding a HAES Provider Near You

It can be challenging to find a HAES provider. However, once you find one that aligns with the care you’re seeking, it can be transformative.

Look at a HAES provider directory: There are a number of online directories you can search, including the Health at Every Size Healthcare Provider Listing.⁴ These providers will be generally vetted and approved, so you can have peace of mind that they will be HAES-informed.

Contact any centers near you: Even if you are not in a higher level of care or an eating disorder recovery journey, many recovery centers will have preferred provider lists that are HAES-focused and informed. Reach out to them and see if they have lists of HAES healthcare providers in your area.

Ask for recommendations: Friends and online forums can be a great resource for finding HAES-focused care. If you have one HAES provider, like a dietitian or a therapist, you can also ask if they have a network of other HAES professionals that they could recommend.

Consider online care when possible: While many people prefer working with providers in person — and for many instances, it may be a necessity — consider online care when possible, as it can help expand your options if there are not many HAES providers located close to where you live.

Questions To Ask To Find if a Provider Is HAES-Friendly

When searching for a provider, here are some HAES questions you can ask to determine if they are a good fit:⁵

• “How would you care for and treat me if weight were not a factor?”
• “How do you acknowledge weight biases in your care and work to dismantle them?” 
• “Would you give me the same advice if I were a different body shape or size?
• “Can you think of different causes for symptoms aside from my weight?”
• “What additional steps or recommendations would you make for my health concerns without considering my weight or body size?”

The Importance of Advocating for Yourself and Your Health

Don’t be afraid to get a second opinion or find a new provider. Just because you see a provider once doesn’t mean you have to see them again. If you feel off about the care you received or it doesn’t align with HAES principles and the kind of care you want and deserve, you can see someone different the next time.

HAES Health Sheets has some helpful resources, including self-advocacy cards you can share with your healthcare provider.⁶ This includes cards requesting not to be weighed, advice for conversations with your doctor, and more.

You Deserve Quality Care in the Body You Are In

It can be disheartening to receive comments, unwarranted advice, or a lack of quality care due to a professional’s assumptions about your body shape or size. However, you have a right to receive compassionate care in the body you are in, free of those biases.

Finding and working with a HAES provider can be transformative and even critical for your health.

If you’re searching for a health at every size (HAES) dietitian, Life Cycle Nutrition has a team of informed professionals who are ready to walk alongside you on your nutrition journey. Schedule an appointment today and receive the quality care you deserve.

Citations

1. Bacon, Linda, and Lucy Aphramor. 2011. “Weight Science: Evaluating the Evidence for a Paradigm Shift.” Nutrition Journal 10, no. 9 (January). https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2891-10-9.
2. Association for Size Diversity and Health. 2024. “The Health at Every Size® (HAES®) Principles.” ASDAH. https://asdah.org/haes/.
3. Freedman-Diamond, Paula. 2021. “What It Means to Be a Health at Every Size (HAES) Provider.” Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/fat-is-not-feeling/202106/what-it-means-be-health-every-size-haes-provider.
4. “Health at Every Size® Healthcare Provider Listing.” n.d. ASDAH. Accessed September 28, 2024. https://asdah.org/listing/.
5. Multi-Service Eating Disorders Association, INC (MEDA). 2021. “Navigating Weight & Scale-Neutral Conversations With Your Doctor.” MEDA. https://www.medainc.org/navigating-weight-scale-neutral-conversations-with-your-doctor/.
6. HAES Health Sheets. 2021. “Resources.” HAES Health Sheets. https://haeshealthsheets.com/resources/.