The Truth About Diet: What It Really Means — And Why It Still Matters (Even If Food Isn’t Your HS Trigger)

The Truth About Diet: What It Really Means — And Why It Still Matters (Even If Food Isn’t Your HS Trigger)

When most people hear the word “diet,” one thing comes to mind:
 losing weight.

Calories. Restrictions. Meal plans.
Maybe even a little bit of shame mixed in.

But let me stop you right there, that’s not what the word was ever supposed to mean.

Especially if you’re living with a chronic condition like Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS), understanding the truth about diet matters way more than you think. And no, not because of weight loss.

Let’s really break this down.

Where the Word “Diet” Actually Comes From

The word diet goes all the way back to ancient Greece. It comes from the Greek word "diaita" (δίαιτα), which simply meant "way of life" or "daily regimen."

It wasn’t about counting calories or fitting into skinny jeans.
 It was literally just about how you lived day to day:

  • What you ate

  • How you moved

  • How you rested

  • How you took care of yourself overall.

In many ways, “diet” originally meant your full lifestyle, not just what’s on your plate.

How Diet Got Hijacked

Fast forward a few thousand years — things got twisted.
And it didn’t happen by accident.

In the early 1900s, as the film industry started booming in the U.S., Hollywood became the new trendsetter for beauty standards. Actresses with thin frames became the ideal. The message was subtle at first, but over time, thinness started to equal beauty, status, even morality.

Then came the rise of magazines and advertisements that played directly into this insecurity. Publications like Ladies Home Journal and Good Housekeeping pushed "reducing diets" as early as the 1920s and 30s. 

And where there’s insecurity, there’s always someone ready to sell you a solution.

By the 1950s and 60s, companies like Weight Watchers, SlimFast, and dozens more built an entire multi-billion-dollar weight loss industry.
The word diet slowly stopped meaning “way of life” and started meaning restriction, guilt, and weight loss.

And we’ve been stuck with that version ever since.

The Psychological Programming Behind It

Let’s call it what it is:
 Diet culture is psychological programming.

  • It rewires how we think about food.

  • It teaches us to fear certain foods.

  • It tells us we’re “good” or “bad” based on what we eat.

  • It makes us think health equals thinness.

All of that messaging is decades of marketing doing exactly what it was designed to do: sell products, shame bodies, and profit off insecurity.

So, What Does Diet Really Mean Today?

At its core, diet still just means:
The food you habitually eat as part of your lifestyle.

Not a 30-day cleanse.
Not a “before and after” photo op.
Not punishment for living your life.

It’s about what you're feeding your body consistently, because your body, hormones, and immune system are reacting to that every single day.

And This Matters Even More for HS Warriors

Now, let’s bring this back to HS, because this is where I see a lot of confusion inside the community.

I hear people say:
 "Food isn’t my HS trigger, so I don’t need to worry about my diet."

But here’s the truth:
 Even if food isn’t the thing that directly causes your flares, your diet still plays a role in how your body functions overall.

Food is literally information for your body.
 What you eat communicates with:

  • Your hormones

  • Your immune system

  • Your inflammation levels

  • Your gut health

  • Your skin barrier

  • Your energy

Even when food isn’t causing immediate flares, it’s either helping your body heal or adding more work for your already overworked system.

Especially with HS — which has both inflammatory and hormonal components — what you eat can influence how severe your flares become, how fast your body recovers, and how much inflammation you're dealing with long-term.

It’s Not About Perfection. It’s About Support.

I’m not here to tell you to follow some strict diet plan or fear every bite of food you take. That’s diet culture talking.

I’m here to remind you that:

  • Food is part of your healing toolbox.

  • Nutrition can help balance hormones naturally.

  • Certain foods can either fuel inflammation or fight it.

  • Small changes in your everyday choices can help your body function better — even when flares happen.

The Bottom Line

Your diet = your lifestyle.
 It was never meant to equal restriction, weight loss, or shame.

If you’re managing HS (or any chronic illness), don’t fall for the "diet doesn’t matter" myth.
It absolutely matters, not because of the scale, but because of how your body runs, heals, and manages inflammation day to day.

For Those Who Want To Go Even Deeper:

If this helped you rethink how you approach food & healing share it with someone who needs it. And keep exploring more holistic tools right here on the blog.

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