Rachel Bilson Hates the Attention Body Image Receives
August 2, 2010 in Beauty & Body Image, Celebrity Quotes, Rachel Bilson by Versus
“You know what I hate?… the amount of attention that is put on weight and body image. It is so backwards and sends out the wrong message. ‘What do you eat? Do you work out?’ It’s not what young girls should be stressing about. They look up to these actresses and read about plastic surgery and what they do and don’t eat. I eat, I love food, I wanna eat when I wanna eat. If you are not feeling good about yourself, then you work out. But you do it for you.”
… says Rachel in InStyle Magazine this month.
What do you think about her words?
See 2 more shots!
Very true. Love her makeup in the second pic.
Funny thing : It’s nearly always the really thin celebs who are saying something like that. Saying one thing, doing another, yes Rachel you might like to eat, but the fact is you are not eating much at the moment. (if she eats she is more than 20more)
Sounds a bit odd to me, talking like that, acting opposite…..
But of course it’s true what she is saying. But think that’s just for good image.
Nobody who likes to be popular and have a good image would say, yes I’m eating max. 700 kcl a day I’m always on diet….
who says shes not eating that much? She’s a very petite girl, and she’s always been tiny. It is very possible to be able to eat what you want and stay slim. I absolutely can’t stand that people think it is impossible to just do what you want and be slim. As long as being healthy is part of your life, it can be a lot more effortless than many people think.
I always eat whatever I want, and I exercise when I feel I want to. If you have a healthy view on your body and food it is completely possible. I eat healthy foods every day, but if I want to eat something, I do not hesitate to eat something I love just because it isn’t considered healthy! I exercise to keep healthy and fit, but no where near excessively. In fact, I only do what I want to, when I want to do it. And that view combined with the fact that knowing that food is for nutrition and feeling good, and so is exercise, you will never feel restricted, and food and exercise won’t feel like a chore.
I have really thin friends myself and I don’t say everyone who’s is thin is on permanent diet.
(btw I’m not, I just wrote in subjunctive)
I saw also pics of her where she was still slim but not like on this pics here,´…
Thats why I assumed she is also dieting.
Maybe I hit the wrong person with this comment but at least it would fit 80-90′% of other female celebs
Ever heard of the wonders of photoshop ?
Of course she doesn’t look like that in real life, although those pictures are pretty close. Plus I believe her , she looks healthy and has always been petite. Looks beautiful as in most pictures of her.
I don’t know why “petite” means naturally thin to you. I am 5’1 and I work very hard to stay slim; if I eat only slightly more than I should, then I gain quickly. I work out and I certainly don’t eat whatever I want. Just b/c someone has “always been petite” doesn’t mean they aren’t working hard to be slim. It’s really irritating when people like you assume otherwise. Every person is different.
You should really eat more than 700 calories a day; that´s too little.
who are you talking to? I never said anything about eating only 700 calories a day. That’s terrible, and grounds for an eating disorder!
Sorry, it was meant as a reply to ines, who you replied to as well. She says she´s always on a diet and only eats 700 a day.
She was using that as an example.
let’s hope, because that’s not a diet, that’s starvation!!
I disagree I think rachel is at a very attainable weight, she is not very toned (if you have seen pics of her in shorts or a bikini you can see this, and btw I have no problem with anyone who is not “toned”, not everyone wants to spend lots of time in the gym, myself included) she has what I would call a normal, slim body. She does not appear to to obsess over her body so this is one of the rare occasions where I believe a celeb when they are talking about food and body image.
And she is right, all these questions about what do you eat, what do you do to keep in shape, its is NOT what girls need to be hearing about. It would be nice if interviewers asked these successfull women other questions than “how do you stay pretty” :s
She might not be eating loads, but with a perfectly normal metabolism (not abnormally fast i mean), you can still, as a petite woman, be eating easily a 1500-1800 kcal a day, if you exercise even over a 2000 might not be a problem. If you have quasi healthy eating habits you can basically eat what you want and even eat the desserts and cakes and stuff from time to time. She’s not saying she only eats and eats and doesn’t exercise, imo she’s only critisizing how much time, effort and value put into the whole thing.
yeah, but if a fat celeb said it, it’d be even worse.
Rachel might be slim, but it’s not like she’s underweight. It sounds like you’re trying to imply that every slim person must be dieting/obsessing to look the way they look, and that any slim person who says they aren’t starving themselves is lying.
But frankly, that’s just as illogical as saying that every woman with large breasts has had breast augmentation, or that every older man with a full head of hair must have hair plugs, or that every redhead must dye her hair.
Just because something doesn’t come naturally or easily for you does not mean it can’t come naturally or easily to someone else.
Well said Erica.
completely true. rachel seems to be at a healthy weight for body type, which means she looks at food in a healthy way. if an overweight (and i mean unnaturally overweight, not just bigger than a size 2) person said this it wouldn’t make as much sense, because they are probably (but not necessarily) approaching food in an unhealthy way
I hate these kinds of comments. There’s the people who get all fussy when size 0 is brought up, but I take offense when people attack celebs like Rachel or Penelope for saying things like this. You think they don’t feel pressure? They may be thin, but they’re not perfect, either. There’s always going to be someone taller, thinner, younger…of course they feel pressure. Just because she’s not 180lbs doesn’t mean she can’t speak to this.
Hello! I’m portuguese and today started a new show in my country which is similar to Americaa’s Next Top Model. I expected to see that all women were embraced, but the judges were really, really strict when it came to the model’s required measurements. In my opinion it gived a wrong message to young girls like me who are 17 and think that to be pretty we have to be skinny. So, when I read this and other posts, I have to agree that our society is getting mad! I mean, I have concerns when it comes to food and workout, but I don’t want to be scary skinny.
Well, I also wanted to say that I read this site and I love it.
Eu não vi o prograrma mas esperava que fossem mais inclusivos. Em geral, as manequins portuguesas nem costumam ser muito magras.
Tendo a discordar, há algumas bastante magrinhas. Pelo menos, quando assisto aos desfiles na televisão, parecem-me demasiado magras… Claro que há execpções
yeah but you certainly should keep in mind that its a show about models, and (runway)modeling is a job that, like every other employment, requires something, in this case tall-and thinness. that doesn’t imply that bigger girl cannot be pretty- the title of she show was not ‘most beautiful girl in country x’ but ‘girl best suited for the job as a model’, after all.
This show is named “looking for the dream” or something like that (translated). I think that models have to be fit and toned but there is a level of skinniness that is unhealthy and not beautiful…
And therein lies the problem. Somehow most people think a models only job is to be beautiful – well actually that is not what most designers look for in theire models.
That’s why I think there is no need to want that runway model look. It is not supposed to be universally attractive nor should it become standard.
First these models should get attention for the campaign , hence they have to look “interesting” ( by being either very thin or “plus sized” or having strong facial features ) anything normal doesn’t garner that much press.
And Second the clothes have to look neutral – curves can divert attention from the clothes and the piece itself and disfigure the form of the dress/skirt/top etc.
At least that’s what I was always taught. Sure opinions differ on that but designers mostly don’t want theire models to look like the rest of the population. Would be too boring.
Yes, and I agree with you! But that show, for me it was incredible, because I know there are people that are naturaly thin, but they were looking for girls real real skinny, which wasn’t the most healthy message to young girls. I think the fashion industry needs kind of a revolution. ‘Cause scary skinny girls can distract the attention as curvier girls as well…
True, the message really is a bad one. And I agree as well that sending a walking skeleton down the runway disattracts as much. Sorry if I didn’t adress that as well
That’s okay, I got you
i agree. but even within that remit there is a cut off point. I saw an old school friend to day and was completely shocked. she looked so skinny and so awful. The clothes not the model should be the main attraction and yes curves can detract from that, but so can bones.
It sounds like you’ve got a good head on your shoulders Jess
Keep it up and maybe you can contact the show with your concerns?
She is very thin a petite, but no matter what body shape you have, I think you would always be uncomfortable with having it scrutinised. I feel it bad enough not even being famous, if I were it would be so much worse!
I agree with you, that’s true. I mean, I think that we should look the best way we can, but in a helthy way. But if I was famous, maybe I would be obsessed with my body image!
well…she’s right! nothing else to be said about that. we put way too much emphasis on external beauty, but it also feels like it’s too late to turn back at this point. most celebrities these days are famous only because of the way they look, not because they possess any unique talent, so we’ve breeded this culture that is obsessed with weight. What can we do to reverse that?
Then maybe she should protest by refusing to be on the cover and in a spread for a magazine? After all, she’s part of the problem, isn’t she? Wouldn’t the noble thing to do be refusing to be a cog in the wheel?
LOL! exactly! That magazine is all about looks and fashion and trends. Which is fine – I like that stuff. But her saying that in that magazine is pretty silly.
That’s an extreme moral standard to hold anyone to.
I might not agree with absolutely every opinion my boss has, but that doesn’t mean I quit my job. I’m certainly not going to ask Rachel to quit hers.
And hey, fashion magazines aren’t all about making you hate your body. I know that when I read a fashion magazine, it’s usually because I’m interested in fashion. After I’m done reading a fashion magazine, I usually feel way more jealous towards a celebrity’s wardrobe than I do towards that celebrity’s body.
She’s complaining about the very system which is paying her. If she doesn’t like it, then there are hundreds of different ways to earn a living.
Reading about some overpaid petulant actress bitch about body image while posing for the cover of a fashion magazine is a waste of everyone’s time. Once again, if she doesn’t like the system then she’s free to exit the scene. She so lacks insight that she can’t even see the double standard that she’s created.
It’s about taking responsibility for your own actions. She wants to paint herself as a victim, while at the same time playing in the same pool with the people who create this scene.
i don’t think rachel is painting herself as the victim. i mean you are going to have your good and bad moments being in the spotlight. that’s just the way it is and i don’t think she should change herself just for hollywood or society to accept her. it seems every time a celeb speaks about what they go through, especially with body image, people get mad at them because of what reason. i mean she is human and i think people need to stop putting celebs on pedestals, as if they’re gods when they are not. not all fashion magazines make young girls hate their bodies. it’s a fashion magazine that represents fashion. i don’t know but that’s my opinion.
exactly what i thought when i read it. i agree with the sentiment, but at the end of the day, being an actress is like living in a goldfish bowl, it isn’t just weight they scrutinise, its everything, work, love life, family. pressure is part of putting yourself out there. Its hard, truth is i don’t think i could do it. The reason most of the attention falls on her looks is because most people probably think of that as her primary (only?) asset. There are many amazing women out there who have built extremely successful careers and don’t conform to stereotypes of beauty. Queen Latifah, Cathy bates, Barabra streisand, Oprah, Toni Collette, Jo Brand, Frances Mcdormand, Chrissie Hynde to name a few. woman with talent and determination.
Finally! i’m glad she said something about that whole weight thing, though she’s kinda pushing it herself by the ‘i eat when i want to eat and what i want to eat’ comment.. i’m pretty sure she doesn’t do that. There are only a few people who can eat a lot and not gain! Her as actress, she must stay in shape and unless she’s one of the few people, she’s lying and trying to be a ‘good’ and ‘healthy’ role model.
Eating what you want when you want doesn’t necessarily mean eating junk or eating a ton.
Rachel sounds like the kind of person who uses exercise instead of food to relieve stress. She can eat “when she wants” because she only wants to eat when she’s genuinely hungry. She can eat what she wants because people who habitually eat healthy food also tend to crave healthy food.
I, for example, prefer sushi to pizza any day of the week. I’m not trying to eat healthy — I’d just honestly rather eat sushi.
My best friend is just as thin as Rachel. It’s not that she can eat piles of food without gaining. It’s that she doesn’t *want* to eat piles of food. Smaller portions satisfy her.
I’m sure the pressure is difficult to deal with as a female celebrity, but ultimately they all conform and the public buys it.If an actress refused to work out and said “hire me as I am and for my acting abilities,” she would never be hired because there are a million other women who will jump through the hoops to get the part. And the public is all over celebrities who have cellulite or a less than toned ass. They can’t stand the celebrities who aren’t perfect (none are) and they can’t stand the ones who say they aren’t perfect and they can’t stand the ones who act like they are perfect and they can’t stand the ones who try to be perfect (plastic surgery). Celebrities are products, made from public demands.
And I highly doubt she eats whatever she wants, that would absolutely result into obesity or malnutrition IMO. I mean if I ate for a week whatever I wanted it’d be pizza, lasagna, tacos, cheesecake, steak, Chinese food, hot wings, etc. Etc. I’d be sick haha
when someone says they eat what the want it doesn’t mean that they want to eat a mountain of junk food…for example i don’t like food, i eat big amounts of vegetables and am a vegetarian. it varies with everyone
i could say i eat what i want, i do, i just don’t eat processed junk.
I don’t see why she would be obese or malnourished if she ate what she wanted when she wanted. I believe she can eat what she wants when she wants because of her comment about exercise. I like to exercise and I usually go to the gym a lot and this gives me a lot of leeway in terms of the things I can eat. I have a sweet tooth and I enjoy cupcakes and other snacks but that does not mean I walk around craving them all the time or stuffing my face. If I’m in the mood for a snack I usually eat it but I also love fruits and veggies and many healthy foods. I know everyone’s metabolism and bodies are different but I can eat what I want when I want without adverse consequences.
Oops I meant to reply to Wonderwoman21′s comment before this one!
I eat what I want when I want and I’m not obese.
Because I only want to eat when I’m hungry and what I want to eat it healthy.
Well that’s you, check out what the average american woman craves. It’s not broccoli or spinach. I feel that when a celebrity claims she eats whatever she wants/whenever she wants she’s attempting to sound like the average jane, relate to her if you will. After all, average jane is her audience and pay check. She isn’t implying her “eating whatever” is gourmet sushi prepared by a japanese chef, she’s jumping on the boat of ‘oh I crave those brownies/pizza/carbs/whatever to and I have em! Self empowerment/self esteem” yadda yadda.
But Rachel isn’t necessarily the average American woman when it comes to what kind of food she prefers.
her statement will be misread by a lot of people as ‘i can stuff my face and still be skinny’. and i can’t quite believe that she doesn’t know that and is responding defensively because she is getting flack for being skinny.
I don’t get why you assume that all woman crave for junk food!? I do not like chocolate, brownies and burgers and believe me I’m not the only one!
I do eat whatever I want and I never gain, and FYI, I do love spinach and broccoli so just because you seem not to like them doesn’t mean everybody is like you!
Wow, that will make a huge difference in someone’s life…I had never heard of her until I saw Jumper, and all I could think through the movie was how unbelievable little she was. On a side note, something has always bugged me about her eyes.
Haha, as if. Nobody could eat whatever they wanted and get away with it, I don’t care how good your metabolism is. What you eat affects you even if it isn’t apparent right away.
not everyone WANTS to eat processed junk food
eating what you want doesn’t equal massive amounts of junkfood…..people need to realise this
No, that’s true, I don’t want to eat processed junk food either. Haven’t for 10+ yrs. But even with healthy stuff, you have to have some moderation. you could eat all you want and call it healthy and still gain weight because of the fat/calorie content. and too much of some nutrients can be bad for you, too.
I eat whatever I want, whenever I want. It’s just my body automatically keeps me in check. My body doesn’t crave junk food everyday. Only sometimes. And when I’m full, I’m full. I can’t overeat or else I have the urge to throw up. (No, I’m not bulimic or anything. But once my stomach is filled, it’s not going to get any bigger. The extra food won’t have any place to go. I’ve had this problem since I was a little kid.) So I get extremely uncomfortable when I eat more than I need to. That’s how I keep myself in check. I try to be as active as possible. I know there probably aren’t many like me but it isn’t impossible to eat whatever you want.
*It isn’t impossible to eat whatever you want and not gain much weight.
I get it, however, I’m personally used to eating certain things at certain times. I can’t imagine just grazing or grabbing whatever I want, because I’m v. strict with what I eat. I’m not fat, so it’s not as if you have to explain the mechanics of food to me, lol. It isn’t that I don’t trust my body, only that I’ve worked very hard for it. But even with healthy food, I watch portion sizes and calories because it’s good to have an outside guide to go by.
Jessica Simpson said the same thing. I think it’s a very good statement. Do it for you, not your fans, the camera people, etc. Sadly, that’s who most people do it for.
She is very petite….and i agree, there is no way she eats what she wants, when she wants. So many thin celebrities say that, and they are all full of s**t.
why? bs. i eat what i want without gaining. its possible that she does aswell.
I love how some people assume that eating whatever you want, whenever you want means eating every bad thing, every moment of the day.
I also love how she said ‘I eat what *I* wanna eat’ and everyone seems to know for a fact exactly what she wants to eat without ever having met her.
So true. I just don’t get it. :s
eating what you want doesnt mean eating lots of junk food…..
i myself eat what i want but i don’t like junk food or fast food…which means basically all my choices are healthy and in healthy amounts
…Says the woman who’s been photoshopped to death on the cover.
I completly agree with her! I’m thin too and I never dieted. Of course I don’t eat chips and cookies every half hour but who wants that? I think if you eat 3 times a day and don’t snack on junk food in between you can stay very slim.
I think that people that can’t stop eating junk food aka comfort food, actually do look for comfort, look to satisfy a need they can’t fulfill in their life or are still in a child like state of mind (“it makes me feel good, therefore I’ll keep on feeling good with this food”; “I like the immediate satisfaction”, “I don’t care about the consequences on the long run”) … It’s a psychological thing. So yes, I am agreeing with you. Just trying to come with a further explanation
that’s what i was referring to in my other comment upthread. A lot of people DO gravitate toward snacky, junky foods all the time, even if they are thin. My friend ate the worst food ever while growing up. Like, no veggies or fruit, all white flours, etc. She was thin, but had no muscle and was tired all the time. Because she was young and not putting on weight, she thought she was getting away with it. Now she’s gained weight and has a lot of health problems because of all of the crap she used to ingest. That was what I meant when I said it would eventually catch up to most people.
not saying her experience is everyone’s, but encouraging some to eat “what they want, when they want” might be the wrong message.
“not saying her experience is everyone’s, but encouraging some to eat “what they want, when they want” might be the wrong message.”
Where in God’s name is she saying that?!? She’s saying “I want to eat when I want to eat”… which means, I eat when I’m hungry, I do not skip meals to abide to some ideal.
It’s amazing how people interpret things and even insert their own words in there. It’s another psychological thing: it’s called projecting something from your unconscious onto others.
As for my comment, well, I’m not surprised you’re missing the point. I’m responding to Sarah who says “who wants to eat chips and cookies every half hour?” as in “normal people do not want that”. And I agree and come with a further explanation.
Exactly. Totally agree dude. Well Said.
Well, I don’t hate the attention body image gets, I’m frustrated by it… but it’s not long before I’ll start hating it. It leads to the same arguments over and over again, especially since there are women out there that expect others to be tolerant towards them and their bodies, but do nothing but bashing others that are different from them. Oh, and know-it-alls!
First I think she looks awesome although people don’t want to here this from celebrities because more than likely it isn’t true. To maintain my weight I have to workout 5-6 days a week with an hour of cardio everyday. I keep a food journal everyday of what I eat and my calorie intake and most days stay around 1500 calories a day with very mimimal fat or proceesed food. If I am craving a food I will just have a few bites of that and then be done with it. It is hard to believe that she could eat what ever she wants all the time. This is am example of me- I maintain my weight of 109 ( I,m 5’5) and I would be around 125 -130 maybe more if I just ate what ever I wanted all the time. I am not saying that these weights are heavy by all means only that they are for my small frame. So I agree it is hard to believe what Rachel is saying in her comment.
I eat whatever I want and I’m 87 (I’m 5’3) I just have a good metabolism and I don’t eat junk food everyday, that’s all. When you say “If I am craving a food I will just have a few bites of that and then be done with it’ that sounds very sad! You should allow yourself to eat things you like sometimes! 109 is very small!!
(another girl in the 80s, yay! lol.)
Your comment is quite mean!! It’s not my fault if I’ve got a tiny body! Same as my two sisters and my mom!
Mean? I weigh 85 and just meant it was cool to see someone else like me around here.
are you 87 pounds at 5 3? isn’t that underweight? and you commenting on someone who is 109 at 5 5? Irony…much? anyways ummm…..ya.
I’m not underweight! I eat perfectly fine and nobody ever told me I was underweight!! I just have a tiny body I guess!
But again it’s a family thing!
My two sisters are the same weight and height and they eat a ton of junk food!
I was commenting about the 109 at 5’5 just because she said she “If I am craving a food I will just have a few bites of that and then be done with it’ and I just thought she should eat whatever she wants because she’s far from being fat!
Mocking people because they’re fat is mean but I think that mocking people because they’re skinny is mean too!
I’m 5’5″. I weigh 125 pounds. It’s not at all “heavy for my small frame”. It’s still slim.
…At the same time, i don’t think she should be promoting eating whatever you want, whenever you want.
Can’t celebs find a healthy medium and promote that?
Like stop talking about all the big macs you have… it’s weird.
That is for people to interpret isn’t it ? I for one don’t always crave sweets and junk food. Often I’m just looking forward to having a fresh apple or some freshly plucked strawberries with yoghurt or something. There are lots of people who love vegtables and fish just as much as a burger once in a while.
But I agree that she should have worded it more carefully. It’s a little vague since she didn’t specify what exactly it is she eats when she wants to eat it.
lots of people?
none of my friends or family are obese, most aren’t even slightly overweight, and every single one of them craves unhealthy/fatty food a good proportion of the time. I love fruit, i make a great salad, most of my favourite meals are vegetarian, but i could live of cheese, pasta and chocolate. it would be lovely if we were all super healthy, but the stats say otherwise.
Didn’t she used to be about 10-15 pounds heavier during her first season on the oc? I remember her losing a lot of weight by the time the second season rolled around…
I agree!
Btw she looks hot
OH MY GOD!! I think you people are reading waaaay too much in between lines. She´s not saying that she´s stuffing her face with junk food, that she works out whenever she likes and that she stays skinny by doing that and she´s not either saying that the whole entertainment industry is superficial so she´s been an hypocrite for being on a magazine cover. She´s saying, YES I eat, YES I work out but why does this have to be the topic in every interview?? Like it´s not just her, every single celebrity get asked these type of questions ALL-THE-TIME and If you’re a young girl and pick up a mag to entertain yourself and everything you read is WEIGHT, EXERCISE, DIET, SIZES, etc the message you get is “You SHOULD worry about this things” GOOOOOOSSHH!
that is true, too. The craziest one is Hello magazine. They’ll find any way to shift the conversation to diets. Sometimes they’re not even subtle about it. They could be talking wallpaper samples in one question and the next asking how that celebrity stays so thin. It’s ridiculous!
because people are interested in it. you found this site, scrolled through, found this article, read all our comments and felt compelled to add your own voice to the argument. if it was of so little interest, you’d be like my boyfriend, and typing something else in the search engine.
Thats not neccesarily true. Yes, she found the site, the post, read the comments and added her own, but she never said it was of little interest. She said that people her are nitpicking at every single little thing and its not that deep. The people on this site take the quote and twist it and turn it around to the point where they make it seem like Rachel Bilson isnt allowed to say it. Nay was just reiterating what Rachel Bilson said about body image. Its important, but don’t make it your life. That whole “typing something else into the search engine” part was so unnecessary.
EXACTLY.
Go Rachel! Right message and she looks GREAT!!
Well said, Rachel
I like her. The O.C. is my favourite show 
It seems like everytime a celeb says a quote about body image, you people look at the person saying it and pick and pick at her weight about how she’s not allowed to say it. Just agree with the comment and keep it moving.
Will somebody please show me where she’s saying “I eat what I want, when I want”, cause apparently I’m on a different thread again and only keep on reading “I wanna eat when I wanna eat”?!?
Isn’t that “If I feel hungry, then yes, I’ll eat”?!?
People should really stop twisting things around…
Exactly! Maybe there’s a hidden post about Rachel`s comment on the site that we ignorants haven`t read yet… I’ll keep looking
Irina, I am pretty new here but after some cursory reads, i find a lot of posters do misinterpret what some of these celebs say. *Shrugs* All she was trying to say IMO is that she will not restrict herself from eating if she is hungry or feels like eating. Even if she said she ate whatever I want whenever I want, it still does not equate having an abnormal obsession with food and stuffing her face every hour. Again, like some apt posters have mentioned, not everyone craves mcdees (yuck) or sweets and pastries. People need to stop relaying their projections into the comments that are made by celebrities and just take the comment for what it is and keep it moving. lol. sheeesh.
Haha you said exactly what I said…. you just got more in depth with it. Lol thanks =) I didnt feel like writing all that.
I LOVE HER. I have always loved her style, looked up to her. But I didn’t realise she was so thoughtful and clever. Rachel is the best. What a good message.
she looks a bit like anna paquin in this picture
*first picture
Well said Rachel! I totally agree <3
Unfortunately everybody is so obsessed with weight…this is sad…we have not to be obese, but neither skinny…so these messages are what world needs to listen to…!