‘Dance Moms’ Alum Paige Hyland Fires Back at ‘Diabolical’ Body Shamers

Paige Hyland has a message for her critics.

The Dance Moms alum, 25, posted a video on TikTok on Saturday, July 25, addressing the body-shaming comments she received after posting a photo of herself wearing a bathing suit earlier this month.

“Get ready with me while we talk about why it’s never OK to comment on someone’s body,” Hyland began. “It’s 2026, I thought we all knew this, but I guess we need a little refresher.”

“I posted this picture on Instagram, and honestly, the comments I got were actually diabolical. There were so many people saying I looked anorexic, I’m promoting unhappy eating habits and that, as an influencer, I shouldn’t be encouraging this behavior,” she continued. “But as an influencer, I feel like it’s my responsibility to stand up for people whose bodies naturally look like mine.”

Hyland — who appeared on the hit Lifetime series for three seasons — went on to explain that she hasn’t been on a weight-loss journey and has actually been trying to build more muscle in the gym. She also shut down claims that she suffers from an eating disorder or follows a restrictive diet, telling her followers that she’s “been tiny” her entire life and “eats everything.”

“I’m also seeing people confidently say that I’ve opened up about having an eating disorder, which is just not true,” Hyland went on to say. “I’ve never came out and said that because I’ve never had one, which I’m extremely grateful for.”

She continued, “But if I did have an eating disorder, imagine reading comments from thousands of people picking apart my body and diagnosing me when they have no idea what’s going on? That is not concern; that is public body-shaming disguised as concern, which is not cute.”

The former reality star also took a moment to share a stern reminder with her followers: “You are never entitled to comment on someone’s body just because you think you’re helping. Truth is, you have no idea what someone’s going through.”

“Someone could be recovering from an eating disorder, they could have a medical condition, they could be grieving, or they could just be naturally thin like me. You truly have no idea,” she added.

And the body shaming goes both ways, Hyland noted.

“While I’m confident in myself, I know there’s other girls who probably look like me that are reading the comments on my picture thinking there’s something wrong with their bodies,” Hyland shared. “That genuinely makes me sick to my stomach. Just like it’s wrong for shaming someone for being bigger, it’s also wrong for shaming them for being smaller.”

“Body positivity has to include all bodies, or else it’s not ‘body positivity.’ So before you go to comment on someone’s weight, whether it’s, ‘You look too skinny,’ ‘Eat a burger,’ whatever it is, just don’t,” she ended the clip. “Instead, maybe compliment their smile or tell them that you like their outfit. There’s so many other things you can do besides commenting on someone’s body.”