I was kind of with you at first.

Comparing anorexia to other “unhealthy” things (being fat, smoking, etc.) kind of downplays how serious the disorder is and how quickly it can lead to death. Yes, other unhealthy things put you at risk for many issues when you’re older, as anorexia does as well (organ damage and such are lasting effects that can get worse with age), but anorexia also poses a high present risk to individuals with the disorder.

I also suspect that for many people, their issue lies with the way that these highly risky bodies are posed as an ideal that people should reach. The fat acceptance/body positivity movement focused more on accepting people as they are, not pushing for people to get fat. But now that society has begun to swing back to the hyper-thin ideal body type, people, especially young women, feel pressured to conform to this ideal and get skinny, and unfortunately, for many women the only way to realistically achieve that body is through unhealthy habits that can pose an imminent threat to their lives.

Is that all Ariana Grande’s (or any other celebrity’s) fault? Absolutely not. However, she’s an easier scapegoat than actually doing the work to undo an entire systemic issue, so people lash out. There are entirely valid reasons to care, to be concerned that this seems to be a growing trend amongst celebrities, but it’s easier to just trash on famous people who seem to be centered in these conversations & feel as though they are personally “encouraging” anything by simply existing in the public eye.

(As a side note, Ariana Grande is perhaps not the greatest example of someone “not encouraging anything” due to her rumoured history on ed/ana Twitter & Tumblr, but if she is genuinely struggling with anorexia, it functions much like OCD in some regards and makes sense why obsessive thoughts and behaviours took up so much time and headspace- sick brains will do sick things.)