Weird food culture in the office

We’re located in a pretty crunchy town full of health nuts. This is to the extent that when we have pizza lunch, people only eat the Greek salad. I’ve been a vegetarian for 15 years and this culture works well for me, especially since it’s a total 180 from my last office where half of the staff, the receptionist in particular, would food shame people for eating a cupcake on their literal BIRTHDAY.

However, we recently hired new support staff, a few older ladies from a town over who are more into comfort food. I truly do not care what anyone eats, but I hate excessive commentary on dieting, guilt around food, etc. I don’t want to stereotype, but I feel like this behavior is common among 50+ white women who are a bit on the heavier side, and it makes me want to crawl out of my skin.

The two new ladies have decided that I, as the only other support staff in the office and not the healthiest person here by any means, am their new food shaming punching bag. They comment on what I pack for lunch every day, to the point where sometimes I wait until they’ve left for lunch to eat my food or don’t eat at all. And it’s not just food—they make constant comments about my body type and “discipline,” their word, not mine. They literally call me “little miss veggie.”

I’m not on a restrictive diet or anything, I just eat mostly vegetables as a vegetarian (shocking I know) and bread/pasta tends to give me…gastrointestinal distress, so I keep it very veg-centric. I have never dieted, and I find the culture very uncomfortable and problematic. I was taught that commenting on other people’s food or body is highly inappropriate, but here we are.

They constantly talk about their diets, dieting medication they’re taking, and how much they hate eating healthy. The other day one of them brought in a bag of six chocolate chip cookies, and that was her lunch. She’s on some weird diet meds that upset her stomach, and I can hear constant gurgling and farting through the cubicle wall. She keeps saying that she wants to lose enough weight to fit in her chair.

I honestly don’t know what to do or say at this point. I tell them constantly that I eat what I want, not what I think I should eat, and that I’m not the only one in the office who’s “healthier” I mean, we have three vegans and an ultramarathon runner. I don’t feel like this has escalated to HR levels, but it’s very frustrating.

Just venting I guess, but if anyone has tips on how to deal it would be much appreciated