David Foster faces backlash for praising Katharine McPhee's 'thin' post-baby body: 'Let's stop perpetuating this as a goal'
David Foster is facing backlash for praise of his wife Katharine McPhee.
The music producer, who welcomed a baby boy with McPhee in February, took to Instagram to share a photo of the American Idol alum looking svelte in a black bikini. He captioned the pic, “What baby!”
While McPhee responded with several shocked face emojis, some of Foster’s commenters weren’t so thrilled about the reaction.
“Postpartum women who don’t have access to a nanny so they can exercise, all the dietician guidance and personal training known to mankind shouldn’t have this as a goal,” one wrote. “She’s stunning but would be no matter what her postpartum body looked like. Let’s stop perpetuating this as a goal.”
Another added, “This is so cringe for so many reasons. Why are you putting your wife's body on display like a trophy and praising her for being thin after having a baby? Do you know what year it is and how out of touch you sound?”
Despite some commenters praising Foster for taking the time to shine a light on his wife, others took issue with the fact that Foster commented on McPhee’s body specifically — especially when she has been open about struggling with body image issues and eating disorders in the past.
“She’s had an eating disorder since before Idol,” one pointed out. “She’s struggled most of her life with it. She admitted to being scared she would fall back victim to it after the baby, and it honestly looks like she has. It breaks my heart.”
McPhee spoke out about being concerned that her pregnancy would trigger her eating disorder on Dr. Berlin’s Informed Pregnancy Podcast.
“I have felt really stable in my life in the last four or five years, and my weight has been sort of more consistent,” she said at the time. “But feeling like there was a relapse after getting pregnant was really shocking and upsetting and concerning for me.”
She also shared on the podcast how she scrutinized photos taken of her during her pregnancy, explaining, “I look back at these pictures and my husband was documenting, like, every day, because I’d be like, ‘Take a picture of me now. Am I showing?’ And I look back and I’m like, ‘Oh my god, why was I so hard on myself?’”
Ultimately, McPhee saw a psychiatrist who helped her battle the negative feelings associated with her changing body.
“I weathered it and I’m really grateful I’m at the end of it, that I feel this good,” she said. “I look in the mirror and I’m like, ‘Yeah, my legs, thighs, arms are a little bit thicker, but I’m OK with it.’ I’m really OK with it.”
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