Does The Fat Acceptance Movement Glamorize An Unhealthy Lifestyle?

fallonthecity
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 11:39 am: [report]

How do you know it’s not Cheerios or Bran Flakes and a 6-inch veggie sub on wheat?  Glamorizing obesity would be just as harmful as glamorizing skeletal women, but I think the point should be to learn to ACCEPT fat people as people with flaws like everyone else, and not treat them as second-class to thinner folk.  Nobody should have to feel ugly.

Symian
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 11:45 am: [report]

I’m of the opinion that while people should be accepted for who they are, they should not glamourize unhealthy lifestyles.  Nobody would listen if these women were telling you that they were raging alcoholics and people should allow them the same respect as the rest of society.  But if they were telling people that it’s ok to have a drink or two here and there everyone would nod in agreement and go on with life.  Instead of preaching fat or skinny, why not evangelize a heathy lifestyle with balanced meals and exercise.

writergirl
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 11:55 am: [report]

Realistically….if they are exercising and eating a “healthy” diet—even if that diet includes white bread—then they wouldn’t weight what they do.  Not to be rude, but they are scarfing down a pound of M&M;‘s somewhere in their day.  And, I’m sorry, they aren’t fat—they are obese, and any doctor wouldn’t tell them otherwise.

I’m not skinny—not by a LONG shot—but I realize that fact and accept that I am never going to be skinny.  Accepting the fact that I will never look like Jennifer Aniston *is* what having a healthy body image is.  Not being happy at being obese.  There’s a difference.

Not everyone can be skinny—I get that.  Hell, I’ve lived it.  But no, I’m sorry, obesity is NOT healthy, no matter how you couch it.  They may have normal cholestorol and blood pressure now, but in the future they will develop health problems.  If they lost weight and DID get healhty—at least out of the obese range—then they WOULD actually be healthy.

joyy
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 12:03 pm: [report]

I agree with @fallonthecity - cereal in the morning and a sub for lunch doesn’t necessarily have to be unhealthy at all, so that’s a bit of a stretch.

Otherwise Amelia, spot on.

H. Blue
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 12:07 pm: [report]

I have a really hard time believing that a 319lb woman is “jogging.”  I just started jogging/running 6 months ago, and although I weigh a good deal less than Kirby, have had several injuries, probably because I’m still 50lb overweight. 

And yes, you can’t assume that they’re eating unhealthy cereals.  I often eat cereal for breakfast myself, either oatmeal, shredded wheat (not the frosted kind) or plain cheerios (without sugar added to any of those) and those are all good for you.  But there’s also no way to sustain that much weight without downing thousands of calories.

I agree that rather than teaching “fat acceptance” we should be focusing on other things instead-
1) being nicer to people who are different
2) being healthy
3) accepting that no, not everyone is going to look like Kate Moss; some people are larger framed, and it doesn’t make them lazy or stupid.

This article makes me sad because I was once a 5’2” 270-lb woman who was very very unhappy.  Some people would still call me fat now, but I am SO much happier than I was back then, and a lot healthier.  I think these women are probably not as happy as they say they are.

Shasta
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 12:09 pm: [report]

Let’s be honest. This isn’t about health, nor is it about self-acceptance.  This is about the self-delusion that   obese (not “fat”) is attractive, sexy and OK.

NO ONE would ever prefer to be 300 pounds. It’s not about health.  It’s about quality of life. 

If those 300-lb women love themselves how they are, I don’t care, but there is no way I buy this.  Oprah is an f-ing billionaire and she hated herself for getting back to 200 pounds.

And this isn’t about needing to lose 10, 20 or even 50 pounds, or being “curvy.”  Hell.  I’d love a few more curves on my boyish body.

Be obese.  Eat what you want.  Just don’t ask me to accept that it’s “beautiful.”

becktasm
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 12:37 pm: [report]

This is baloney. I am so sick of people constantly saying that fat-acceptance groups glamorize obesity and unhealthy living. No. They do not. EVERYONE KNOWS being overweight is bad for you, just like EVERYONE KNOWS that smoking is bad for you. I know I hate when strangers feign concern for me because of my smoking, so I’m sure these ladies must hate all the feigned concern they’re getting as well. Of the multitude of stereotypes applies to overweight women, “unhealthy” is one of the most notable, because it plays out like compassion when really it’s just plain old discrimination.

Look, the bottom line is that these women are HAPPY- happy with their lives and with the way they look. Their choices are THEIRS to make, not ours, and instead of acting like we care so god damn much about them and their failing health, maybe we should just respect that. Everyone has been guilty of having an unhealthy habit- drinking, smoking, over-eating, whatever- and just because theirs manifests itself in an obvious physical way, we feel we have the right to chastise and degrade them. It’s sick, and just another product of our culture of thinness.

You’re not attracted to it? Fine. I’m sure there are plenty of people who aren’t attracted to you either.

GreenAura
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 12:41 pm: [report]

I agree w/ writergirl.  There is no way that Kirby and Gregg are active and eat healthy, no matter what they say.  If they were maintaining active lifestyles and eating for nutritional purposes, they wouldn’t weigh what they do.  I also know women who are larger that maintain a healthy lifestyle, but I would never classify them as “fat”.  They are larger because of their bone structures and muscle build, but you can tell there is not a whole lot of fat on them because they are healthy.  Thats the difference between “larger” women and “fat” women.  And no, FAT should never be desirable, just as addiction shouldnt be.  Amelia, thank you for promoting “healthy is beautiful”!!!

becktasm
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 12:45 pm: [report]

Also: Hey, guess what-

http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp349/gonzo19861/sheeryff.jpg

THAT’S Gabrielle Gregg from Young Fat and Fabulous.

Yeah, she’s a real fatass. I feel totally vindicated in ridiculing her and her lifestyle.

Lynn
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 03:02 pm: [report]

I have to disagree with the people who say that she’s scarfing down a pound of M&Ms;.

I have PCOS, which can cause obesity. I’m lucky to not have that symptom myself, but in talking with other women who also have PCOS, I know that they watch their diet like a hawk, know more about nutrition than most people, and work out for sometimes several hours a day. And they are still “fat.” There are other medical problems that can cause obesity, even if that person is exercising and eating well.

But anyway, on to the actual article - I’m so glad you said all this. I think it all the time. I’m not saying that “fat” people can’t be drop-dead sexy, but the fact is that most (not all, but most) overweight people have health that suffers because of their weight. It doesn’t change MY life if they revel in their weight, just like it doesn’t change MY life if the guy next door quits smoking or not. But I think it’s a poor choice, health-wise, and I think it’s irresponsible to encourage other people to make that same unhealthy choice.

Amelia McDonell-Parry
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 03:11 pm: [report]

@becktasm I have absolutely nothing against people who are overweight. I do have problems, however, with a “movement” which makes the blanket statement “fat is beautiful” just as I would have a problem—in fact DO have a problem—with a movement (in reality, our culture) which makes the blanket statement “thin is beautiful.” This post wasn’t about individuals being fat—I completely agree that people should be free to do what their bodies what they’d like. This post was about a larger message being sent that I don’t think is necessarily well thought out.

wawmama
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 03:35 pm: [report]

I see the whole “fat is beautiful movement” as somewhat differently. Some times I see it as a way of supporting others who are consistantly being looked down on, others, as part of wishing people would stop judging because of size, like those who make statements of “what you must eat to be that size.”

I’m fat myself, and currently working my ass off to try to lose the weight. I also just had surgery to remove a cancerous tumor about a month ago. Guess what, people wouldn’t know 2 of those things just by looking at me.

stephoney22
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 05:17 pm: [report]

I also think that saying “fat is beautiful” is dangerous.  Your suggestion, “healthy is beautiful” is a good place to start.  Many people have body and self-esteem/confidence issues.  Heavy women and skinny women alike will judge each other for looking different if they themselves have a body image problem.  It starts with knowing the truth about what is really healthy mentally, psychologically, & emotionally.  Next, the physical must occur.  Being over 319 is very unhealthy.  Diet is a bad word for most people and I normally think it’s bullsh*t.  Either you are eating healthy or not.  AND if you want to lose weight, exercise is not an option!  If these chicas are actually jogging and doing Pilates as they say, they should be at least 50 lbs lighter in a year.  If not, they are NOT leading healthy lives.  I’m sorry but I can’t imagine they walk up two flights of stairs and don’t feel disappointed that they’re out of breath.  How happy would they actually feel after that?  I hope they stick to the exercise because if they don’t, it’s gonna be a completely different story years down the road…and a big disappointment to anyone who bought their book.

Karinna
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 05:17 pm: [report]

Ah, you know, I am a size 8 - 10, and have for most of my adult life waged an ongoing battle against 15 pounds.  But although I am technically within the healthy BMI range, I have found myself under fire—time and again—by boyfriends and family who say I would just be so pretty if I could only lose that extra weight.

So I believe there might be a need for people to accept that there are other sizes and a range of beauty that transcends the Hollywood standard size 0.  That said,  people also need to be aware of the health issues brought on by extremes at both sides of the weight spectrum, and a 300 pound woman should be as concerned about the effects on her body as should a 90 pound starving anorexic.

fallonthecity
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 06:13 pm: [report]

My take on “fat is beautiful” is not “fat should be the only beautiful; fat is awesome and we should all be fat!”  I haven’t read the book and I haven’t watched the show, but I don’t think these women are trying to say that more people should weigh as much as they do.  They just want to be just as good as all the skinny fools that give them dirty looks in restaurants.

becktasm was right—everybody knows that fat is not good for you.  Nobody is going to convince society that fat is the best way to be.  But it is important that society doesn’t equate obesity with ugliness.  My grandmother was overweight… and it happened because of a thyroid problem, not because she was an overeater.  I don’t know how many people I wanted to punch in the neck after all the snide comments and dirty looks she got every time I went out in public with her.  The point is, all fat people don’t get fat just because they’re lazy and eat a lot of junk food, and we can’t know from glancing at them which category they fall into.  Why should we say that someone is not beautiful just because they are unfortunate enough to have some chemical imbalance or other disorder?  There’s no reason that fat women can’t be beautiful.  Fat women are not as healthy as they could be.  But fat women should be able to be beautiful. 

And, can we please stop thinking that there is an “ideal size” for attracting men?  Please.  There are men who spring boners for size 2, 12, and size 20 women.  If you’re not attracted to them, well, maybe you should keep it to yourself.  Do you say, “I have nothing against the fact that you were in a horrific car accident caused by a drunk driver, but your face is f*cked up and you have burn scars, so don’t expect me to be attracted to you…”?

Talking this way about fat people is just as mean and just as degrading.

People are beautiful.  Healthy is awesome.

(Sorry for the novel…)

alpikann
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 09:16 pm: [report]

i’m a size 16/18. 

i’m vegetarian, never eat fast food, could be in better shape but i’m fairly strong and can run a full mile.  i recently had a cbc, i have extremely good cholesteral, lipids, all of it was great.  my blood pressure isn’t high, it’s normal.

i am not a naturally large framed woman.  i’m only 5’4”, i am a naturally muscular woman but my frame isn’t very large.  i gained a lot of weight on a medication in my teens and it wrecked my metabolism.  i would like to be healthier and i understand what a lower weight would be part of that. 

my physical capabilities are outside the realm of what my size 6 and 8 sister and mother can do but anyone looking at us would definitely not guess that i was the only one who could run a mile without stopping from being winded or do a split.  i wouldn’t be thought the one who can carry around a 6 year old up and down stairs multiple times or do leg lifts with her hanging on for a half hour straight.  i MUST be the one in the worst shape.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 09:39 pm: [report]

I will never accept fat people. Especially those under the age of 50.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 09:41 pm: [report]

I don’t have “skinny genes.” We all have to work to maintain physical fitness. There is simply no excuse for that #&@$%.

fallonthecity
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 09:43 pm: [report]

@canadiancutie, no excuse for what #&@$%?

becktasm
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 09:51 pm: [report]

@Amelia: Haha I just realized how totally c*nty I came off in my little rant. I do understand where you’re coming from- I’m sure people would be upset by a movement that stated “binge drinking is beautiful.” A blanket statement is normally a bad thing, but I think that the fat acceptance movement is in no way endorsing obesity. I think it’s just saying, “yes, we’re overweight, yes, we know, please stop telling us we’re ugly because of it.” And it seems to me that that’s a very positive thing in a culture where anything above a size 8 is deemed “fat”.

becktasm
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 09:52 pm: [report]

@canadiancutie: Glad to know you have the time and money to work out and eat a balanced (read: expensive) diet. Most people don’t.

duckie
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 09:57 pm: [report]

There is no cereal mass produced cereal that provides enough protein per serving, also bread is generally not totally healthy and neither is eating only 2 meals a day.  Taking care of our bodies is what’s important not being fat or thin. That will look different for different people but it will not 319lbs on a 5 foot something woman.  We need a mass movement that promotes healthy eating and exercise.

raqueleza
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 10:04 pm: [report]

Great post, Amelia!

It’s awesome these women are happy at the size they are. But obesity is an epidemic in this country; don’t people see that there is a correlation between the “fat acceptance” movement and the rate of obesity? We’re not suddenly paying attention to a substantial minority that has always been around; this population has largely arisen because of a specific lifestyle that is unhealthy—why is “accepting” every aspect of that alright?

I’m worried about the overweight 15-year-old who is lapping up this fat-acceptance stuff and saying “screw a healthy lifestyle” because a few obese women know how to dress themselves well. Then she becomes obese as an older teen and subsequently as an adult. I feel like this could be sending the wrong message to kids.

Also, as someone who was an obese teen, the fact that being fat was unhealthy and not okay was made VERY CLEAR to me—and that’s a big part of what made me get my ass into shape.

joyy
wrote on June 17 2009 @ 10:43 pm: [report]

@Becktasm - I agree with calling BS on canadiancutie’s remarks, but a balanced diet need not be expensive.  That’s just silly.  It does take time and effort, for sure, but a lot of money?  Not really.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 06:31 am: [report]

You call going for a jog around your block expensive? Do you own a pair or running shoes? If you can’t afford to buy a sub, buy the ingredients to make yourself a sandwich. And considering that McDonald’s profits are up during this recession, I would say people DO have the money to keep the fast food companies afloat, especially in the United States.

People have been making excuses for their widening asses for years. I simply do not buy that #&@$%. Hell, back in college I went on a DIET for financial reasons. It is CHEAPER to CONSUME LESS FOOD.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 06:34 am: [report]

I make 28k a year. I’m not exactly rich. And my hours are odd so that I basically work the whole day - I even had to go out of my way to find 28 hours grocery stores around me because the ones closest to my house close pretty early in relation to when I get off work. It does take effort and maneouvering, to be sure, but when they are making movie theatre seats four inches wider to accomodate the fact that backsides are so much bigger than they were in the 80s, people don’t need “fat acceptance,” they need TOUGH LOVE.

Sorry, people. I’m pretty obstinate on this issue. And I will be until lifespans are not declining because people can’t put down the fork.

Coincidentally, that’s a phrase I get from a male friend of mine, who lost 50 pounds. “How did you do it?” I asked him. “I put down the fork,” he responded.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 06:40 am: [report]

Anyway, I’m sure there will be a lot of animosity towards me after my comments. Fatass people are generally not comfortable having attention called to their fatasses in a negative way.

CatGoesNomNom
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 07:00 am: [report]

Well canadiancutie, there’s a difference between being a practitioner of tough love and being a straight up bitch. Tough love means forcing people to analyze the way they eat in an EFFECTIVE way, not slinging insults around, which is sure to make people dislike you and immediately shut out what you are saying. Oh and I’m a size 6, so no go on the fatass label. Though from your picture, if that’s you, it looks like you could stand to gain a few pounds.

duckie
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 07:03 am: [report]

canadiancutie- I can tell you that no one is going to lose weight by you shaming them into it. Its not healthy to be obese and you with pay a lot more in the end if you don’t prioritize eating healthy and exercise- but no one can make anyone else do it- they have to want to do it.  I think its more important to send the message that we need to be healthy and what being healthy entails.  Being over weight (or underweight) does not change your self-worth as a person, only your health.

fallonthecity
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 07:42 am: [report]

@canadiancutie: I’m really sorry you may have to sit in bigger theater seats.  It must be really hard for you. *eye roll*

The so-called “fat acceptance” movement exists in the first place because people like you call heavy folks “fatass.”  Why?  I don’t understand the need to snark and insult people for something that doesn’t affect you in any possible negative way (are bigger theater seats really that off-putting?).  Heavy people are the ones who have to live with their health, not you.  So, it’s one thing to think that this “fat acceptance” movement is BS because it doesn’t necessarily promote a healthy lifestyle, and another thing entirely to think you can generalize an entire group of people with an ugly name because they don’t fit into a mold of what YOU say they should be.  Should heavy people learn to be healthier?  Yes.  Are you justified in calling anybody “fatass”?  No.

la calme avant la tempête
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 08:11 am: [report]

Canadiancutie, I see where you are coming from in the sense that it frustrates me as well that - worldwide - we seem to be living in an ever unhealthier society. The numbers I find most startling are those of obese schoolchildren (skyrocketing!). Unhealthy parents are teaching their unhealthy habits to their kids and children who have learned bad eatinghabits and are growing up in a culture where healthy eating is not a priority, have so much more difficulties becoming a healthy adult. And in many cases will pass on their habits to their children ... It’s a vicious cicle. Not only is that a personal tragedy for the people involved but an - often forgotten about - huge weight on social security.

However, you rant and rage as if overweight people have harmed you personally. You can disapprove of a certain lifestyle without losing all sense of decorum. There is really no need for namecalling.
Besides, if you depress people about the way they look, they are rarely motivated to do something about it. Possitive communication is the way.

la calme avant la tempête
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 08:13 am: [report]

* cycle

danielleh1122
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 10:25 am: [report]

I find it interesting that people talk so much about how in our culture, only a size 0 is beautiful. While the images on television may be of thin women, most of the population thinks those women are too thin. Trust me- I’m a size 0, and I have been my whole life. My body is simply built that way. I work out and eat a healthy, balanced diet, but I don’t try to lose weight. I have never had a boyfriend that bragged that his girlfriend was a size 0- they have all tried to get me to gain weight. My coworkers make comments about how skinny I am on a daily basis. Newsflash- we all have different builds! Yes, people want thin, but sorry, being a size 0 doesn’t make you as popular as everyone seems to think. As for the fat acceptance thing, I don’t care what size people are, as long as they don’t complain about their size and then do nothing to fix it. However, an unhealthy lifestyle, whether obese or anorexic, should never be promoted. And like many other posters, I find it hard to believe that someone who weighs 319 pounds is healthy, just like it’s hard to believe that someone is 5’5” and 80 lbs is healthy. It works both ways.

duckie
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 11:06 am: [report]

good point danielleh1122- actually I was in a bootcamp this morning where some of the women were “so surprised” that this girl ate as much as she did because she was “so tiny”.  Comments like that are rude and judgmental.  Obvoiusly if you know and care about someone who is too thin/fat and know that they have an unhealthy lifestyle it would be appropriate to approach them privately.

neverwake
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 11:20 am: [report]

canadiancutie - with you all the way, sister!
There’s not really a lot of room to be PC on this issue: being fat is something you *can* control, and it’s not that rough to get to a healthy weight. There are VERY FEW people out there for whom we can use the genetics excuse, but the rest of the over 50% of Americans that are overweight can’t pin it on that. Just eat healthy (equal amounts of protein, carbs and fat), and get moving! Even obese people can benefit from doing something as easy as calisthenics, which doesn’t cost a dime. Squats, push-ups, lunges, jumping jacks.. all these would make the pounds melt off, you just have to make time for it. And yes, it is important enough to make time for.
And another thing: it DOES cost the rest of us money for you to be fat. What about health insurance? Many fat people need cholesterol and blood-pressure meds to feel somewhat healthy and make it through the day without a heart-attack. Or what about ER visits when that does happen? Who is absorbing all these costs of you (in the general sense) living your life? And other people definitely suffer when someone heavy sits next to you on a plane or bus and oozes into your seat.
This pro-fat movement is just like the pro-anorexia one. It’s full of silly people puffing themselves up with fake confidence that the way they choose to hurt themselves is okay, and even better than okay, it’s glamorous!

Shotputter
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 12:20 pm: [report]

I was a division 1 college athlete. I graduated 2 years ago and still maintain my fitness. I am also around 300lbs. So to say these people aren’t healthy is a negative assumption. I may never outrun someone who is thinner but i challenge you to a stress test against me. We all come in different shapes and sizes. I was born to be tall and strong not thin and shapely. Learning to accept who i am and what i do was very important to me being a happy person.

duckie
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 03:59 pm: [report]

You are right Shotputter- and on her blog I didn’t see any information indicating where she was super athletic or not.  That being said, it is a very small group of people that can maintain a high weight and still be fit/healthy.  At any rate, glamorizing fat is an unhealthy message.

Shotputter
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 05:25 pm: [report]

Thank you duckie. I just felt attacked by the comments before and felt that i had to say something.  I know not all of my full figured sisters can run a 5k but we still can be good people. everyone has their faults some peoples are just more visible than others.
I think we all need to be more accepting of others. They are not out recruiting people to eat and get big, but helping those who are have some sort of positive self image. i know if i felt bad about my weight id probably eat more.
Be who you are. love who you are. and always strive to improve.

toyen
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 06:18 pm: [report]

Hmm. I think we should all just worry less about how much other people weigh and what they consume and just accept each other more. We all know being too overweight isn’t healthy nor is being too skinny. But if these girls want to blog about being overweight and be empowered, well more power to them. The rest of us don’t have to read it. They’re doing far less damage than the junk food chains, the corn syrup industry, the pharmaceutical industry, and our schools for failing to teach basic principles of diet and exercise. 

But granted, it is possible to be in denial about your weight and body image, which can create a false sense of self-empowerment. But no one else can burst that bubble, and we can’t take anyone else’s journey for them. Finding what works for you and undoing the damage done by emotional eating takes time. Why can’t these gals love themselves in the meantime?

In know for one, losing weight is damn hard! After a boot camp and then simultaneously doing Weight Watchers and triathlon training for many hours a week, I gained a couple of pounds! It wasn’t until I ditched the b.c. pill and started intensive weight training and just ate moderately that the weight started coming off finally, and I started getting some kick-ass muscle definition. And I realized that what made me feel good about myself was feeling strong. The magic combo is different for each person though.

So I kind of resent that people see overweight people and assume they are inhaling M&Ms;or what-have-you. Even with diet and exercise it possible to just maintain a weight. To start dropping, you have to create a deficit and burn more calories than you consume. The only travesty is that they don’t teach simple stuff like that to us in our culture early on, and some of us don’t learn it for ourselves until we’re 25 or 50 lbs. heavier than we want to be.

Ok, getting off my soapbox.

P.S. Typo - your “lazy,”

lahnne
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 08:10 pm: [report]

@SL- I totally agree. This movement is far less potential for damage than the institutions (including parents, schools, hell, frito-lay) that should be promoting proper nutrition, exercise, what-have-you.

After a grueling two year recovery from “putting down the fork” (or rather, anorexia), I’m 140, large-frame 5’7” and a size 8-10. I’ve walked into stores—not even high-end boutiques, but places like Forever 21 or American Apparel—and been told that “they don’t usually stock much in my size.”  It’s really great for the self-esteem.  I think that, more than anything, what these girls are trying to get across is that despite the message that “being healthy is more important than being skinny,” most women still equate thinness to happiness: the “fat movement” just affirms that self acceptance and happiness can be found without “put down the fork” starvation or constant reminders that you don’t have a Megan Fox-body. Are you seriously SUFFERING from the fat guy sitting next to you? Is the size of movie seats really important to you? If so, maybe you should join the public health field and start educating people on how to make the pounds “melt” off. But yeah, Amelia. This could be dangerous to the easily-influenced… (And side note: being overweight is way different than being obese…)

toyen
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 09:00 pm: [report]

There I am pointing out typos and making ‘em

Well, I guess I struggle with overweight vs. obese. At one point a gyno certified me “obese” after calculating my BMI (at a shorter height by a half inch)! So it can be a pound or two in some cases. She then went on a tangent, about how Lance Armstrong had an obese BMI while training for the Tour de France thanks to all the muscle, to somehow assuage the sting of the word. Sigh. I definitely didn’t feel obese, but rather in the top shape of my life and strong and athletic, so I hate the word…

I guess all it really comes down to is being happy with where you’re at. And if you’re not, making steps to get there.

I read some of these ladies’ writings, and it’s interesting…

Britrz
wrote on June 18 2009 @ 09:40 pm: [report]

I know it has been mentioned previously, but I believe I am on the boat with the “healthy is beautiful” people.  I am a size 2-4, naturally, and have been called anorexic since I can remember (yet I can eat more than my 280 lbs. ex).  I am not healthy by any means, but just because I don’t have love handles, people assume that I am healthy.  I do not understand this assumption.  People are naturally different sizes, and just because someone is thin does not necessarily mean that they are healthy.  So why do people assume that because someone is 300 lbs. that they are unhealthy?  What we should do is concentrate on concept of health and not judge before we know.

Lynn
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 12:05 pm: [report]

@lahne - don’t feel bad about not fitting into AA or F21! I am a similar height/weight and I automatically pick up the biggest sizes I can at F21, and still don’t fit into a lot of it. If I search and search and search I can find some stretchy jeans in their biggest sizes, and even then they’re my BF-pleasin’ jeans because they’re skintight.

I don’t even go into AA, because I know that the XL is probably still going to be tight on me. That’s because AA and F21 are juniors sizes - they’re not misses’, they’re clothes for the teenage set. I don’t get upset at not fitting into their clothes any more than I get upset for not fitting into toddler clothes!

brandyalexander
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 12:25 pm: [report]

I hate AA.  I am a size 6 and I cannot squeeze into any of their jeans.
I think the smartest comments on here are about being healthy.  I know I have been “fat,” and it was because I was eating chocolate all day.  I have also been “skinny,” and well, it was because I was eating half a sandwich on “light” bread for lunch with a diet soda, then working out for four hours in the afternoon.  At both ends of the spectrum, I felt bad about myself.  When I was “fat,” people called me out on it.  When I was “skinny,” I was told I was too thin and must be anorexic.  I got defensive.  I’m somewhat in the middle now, and still have yet to feel good about my body, at any point, in my life.
I think that overweight people are shamed into hating their bodies by a society that fetishes anorexia.  Both anorexia and obesity are extremes.  But I see nothing with appreciating a little squishy, curvy fat where you have it.  Maybe these girls can be the poster-girls for a new aesthetic, without encouraging others to binge and get unhealthy.
This conversation has touched a nerve, for sure.

brandyalexander
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 12:39 pm: [report]

I meant “I see nothing wrong with…” (sorry!)

canadiancutie
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 06:34 pm: [report]

Britrz, in the VAST majority of cases, people with a BMI beween 19 & 25 are the healthiest and live the longest. Don’t take my word for it; Google studies on lifespan correlation with BMI. Obviously there are exceptions, but I really don’t think it’s unrealistic to strive for a BMI within that range. It’s a pretty broad range and pretty accessible for most people. Also, I think when people are active and eating well (within moderation, too much physical activity and too much restrictive eating will likely put you under or over) people’s bodies will naturally fall within this range.

I think even in your case, if you were to work out more, you would probably gain a little weight.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 06:46 pm: [report]

I also disagree with the way the only things glamourized in the media seem to be the extremes. Lord knows they won’t let you model anything if you’re just a “medium” rather than a plus size or underweight. The Kate Winslets, Jennifer Lopez’s, Beyonces, and Drew Barrymores of the world should really be getting the most glorification for their bodies for actually promoting a healthy body size. But that’s just my opinion.

elisabeth105
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 09:51 pm: [report]

I don’t think the Kate Moss’s of the world and the overly-skinny models should be glamourized, however obiesty and the world of problems that come with it, high blood presussre, high cholestrol, ect, should not be glamourized either. We have to find middle ground and find some moderation! No, women shouldn’t weigh 90 pounds but should they weigh 319? No, both of these just promote unhealthyness; women with curves, women OVER 90 pounds should be glamourized. The women that should get our attention, should be the healthy ones. No we don’t little girls thinking they HAVE to be skinny, but we don’t want them thinking thay should obese or fat either. We should promote health, not this.

duckie
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 09:55 pm: [report]

if you’ve read my previous posts you know I don’t agree with glamorizing fat, but I just wanted to point out that high cholesterol and even high blood pressure isn’t a problem only for people who are obese. You can LOOK HEALTHY and have either or both. It is also linked to amount of physical activity (cardio and weight bearing) and family history.

Mimi_Jones
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 01:33 am: [report]

No one should be encouraged to stay obese if there is a way to change it.  No one should make derrogatory remarks to an obese person if there is a way to not do it.  There is by the way…keep your opinion to yourse;f.

Not every overweight person suffers from a lack of self control or from over eating or lack of exercise.  With the obesity epidemic in this country, yes it is easy to see that this is MOSTLY the problem, but there are some people with serious medical conditions that lead to obesity.

I have a friend who has something like six major medical issues, two of them lead to obesity and since she is so overweight, “working out” is just not in the cards…per the doctors.  For the record, she became obese because of the medical problems not the other way around.

For the poster who said that anyone can do push-ups, squats, jumping jacks, etc., go right now, put on a 200 pound back pack and do those things.

Me, I’m 5’6 and 145-148 pounds.  “Fatass” away.

dearlizzie
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 08:37 am: [report]

5’ 6’ and 145 is average, not fat. And take heart, the size range most men prefer is US 8-12. http://is.gd/18nID

Despite years of smug propaganda equating a feeling of moral superiority from thinness to actual health,  studies of the last 5 years show that the overweight (25-29 BMI) survive injuries and many illnesses better than the thin and live on average 6-7 years longer.  Obesity leads to higher risks in contracting certain types of illness (cardiovascular, diabetes) but not higher risks of illness overall.

http://is.gd/18mKP    http://is.gd/18neA

canadiancutie
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 09:15 am: [report]

Mimi, you are a fairly healthy weight. No one is calling you a fatass but yourself, which points to your own psychological issues, no one else’s.

I’m sorry for your friend. That is unfortunate. Still, she is the exception, not the rule. And too many people claim to be the exception, when that is simply not the case.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 09:20 am: [report]

dearlizzie, I saw that study, and the people who are slightly overweight at age 40 likely were a normal weight throughout their youth and gained a few in middle age. I doubt someone with a BMI of, say, 25.1 maintained that weight from age 18-42. And the scientists themselves are suggesting people of a normal weight should not try and add extra body fat to their frame; that would be a bad idea. I think it’s somewhat normal to gain a few in older age, (hence why I said “under the age of 50” early on in the thread), but I still think it’s completely tragic that so many people in their 20’s and 30’s - and yep, even forties - are so high in weight. One study doesn’t completely overthrow the dozens which suggest trends that today’s youth will experience a shorter lifespan due to the increase in obesity.

However, I am not entirely surprised by the existence of this study and would predict plenty more similar ones in the near future; there is an emerging trend in the media to coddle the fat just because they are now such a huge segment of the population.

la calme avant la tempête
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 11:21 am: [report]

I have taken a look at the blogs mentioned here and have found little there that encourages people to be fat.

Young, Fat and Fabulous is a blog about fashion and cute ways to dress when you don’t fit in the regular sizerange. Nowhere does she suggest that it’s great to be fat. In her blog she details her struggles to find things that fit and gives tips on how to be creative and where to find things. That hardly screams, “whoopee this is so fun and easy” to me.

I haven’t quite figured out “The Rotund” yet. It’s definitely different from YFF in the sense that she takes a stand about being fat (YFF is just about fashion, no political rants). However, I don’t feel like she tries to encourage people to be fat, in fact she writes about how difficult it can be sometimes and how judged she feels by society. It’s more about selfworth and respect than anything else.

greenergoose
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 11:48 am: [report]

unfortunately, obesity does affect all of us who use the health care system. yes, i don’t care how people treat their bodies, until it drives up the cost of my health care - btw, i’m a healthy female who can’t even qualify for health care in my state or even afford it. obesity IS a problem in this country and it has nothing to do with body image as much as it has to do with how it predisposes people to all sorts of medical problems that overburden the system. BE HEALTHY, FOR GOD’S SAKE. there are millions of CHILDREN in this country without health care, and that is blatantly unfair (though obesity is not completely to blame in this case). I will accept fat over obesity ANY day, because, as it has been demonstrated through repeated comments, one can be ‘fat’ and healthy. obesity is not healthy and harms ALL OF US. just as drug addiction, alcoholism, and all that other fun stuff. it means more emergency visits, higher costs for care, etc…

also, anyone recall the discovery of the fat gene? that was supposed to justify that some people really are fat ‘naturally’ and can’t help it. but you know what they discovered with the gene? they discovered that even with moderate physical activity, people with the ‘fat gene’ didn’t get fat. anyone want to talk about that?

fallonthecity
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 12:13 pm: [report]

@greenergoose:  If you’re upset because fat people drive up the cost of health care, you’re probably also upset at the elderly, who consume most of our tax-generated health care dollars. 

What people do with their bodies in the USA (which is for the time being still a free country) is none of your business.  Why?  Because their bodies are theirs—not yours, not society’s.  The way I see it, if somebody’s working and paying those expensive insurance premiums, their body is nobody’s business but their own.

PinkRanger
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 02:23 pm: [report]

The fat acceptance movement isn’t glamourizing an unhealthy lifestyle. It’s pointing out that fat people are people. What a crazy notion!! You mean we actually should be nice to fat people?! Oh heavens no!!

Look, we all know that the media treats fat people as though they are hideously selfish and greedy social outcasts with no friends but their handy jar of miracle whip on hand. And I HOPE that all of us are mature enough to realize that that isn’t the case. The deep psychological issues relating to obesity are much more complex then “put down the fork fatass!”. Would you be ranting about how selfish and disgusting the clinically depressed are?  Eating habits are learned behavior, and yes, food has been proven to be addictive.

Health should be the goal, but dehumanizing the obese is counterproductive. That is what the fat-acceptance movement is about; not being seen as less of a person because your personal flaw is more obvious to the naked eye.

@canadiancutie: I’m sure you’re perfect right? totally void of any personal issues or shortcomings? of course you are. There is no excuse for calling people “fatasses”, are you 12 years old? I was with you and understood what you were trying to say until you started getting elitest about it. It’s obvious that you think you are sooooo much better than overweight people, and that is an attitude that is way more disgusting than a 300 lb woman.

Sorry.  You may feel animosity towards me now because I know people with bad attitudes don’t like being called out on their bad attitudes.

greenergoose
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 03:31 pm: [report]

@fallonthecity yes, the elderly are a problem. and we younger generations will be paying into social security we’ll never see. but you know, offing them isn’t going to be a popular public policy. <—-that was a joke.

but seriously, i wish we could solve this health care problem. like, why don’t we do more in preventative measures? i mean, with swine flu, what other people do with their bodies DOES affect all of us which is why the government is telling us to wash our hands and stay home when we’re sick. now do you think that kind of advising is out of line? personally, i don’t. helping people get away from obesity is something we all should be invested in. banning smoking from public venues is also something that i really support. it’s your body, fine. keep it to yourself. unfortunately, that’s not very realistic in our current health care system. people without insurance (because they can’t afford it) still use the system (emergency care etc), can’t pay, so hospitals raise the rates to cover all the ‘free’ care they give…then premiums go up. even people who work CAN"T AFFORD the premiums. do the math.

fallonthecity
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 06:29 pm: [report]

I agree that we should make health care more easily accessible.  However, in no way do I think it’s fat people’s fault that it isn’t more easily accessible.  The government’s SUGGESTION for me to stay home isn’t out of line, but if they tried to force me to stay home, it would be very out of line.  Free society, I’ll risk swine flu if I want to.  And I did.  And I survived, and it didn’t cost you any money.  And if I want to eat fried chicken, I will eat it to my heart’s content.

Of the few times I’ve been in an emergency room waiting area, I haven’t seen flocks of fat people.  I’ve seen flocks of old people, lots of children, and sometimes homeless folk, but mostly normal looking people who are just sick.  If you’re worried about health care, blame people with multiple children on Welfare, old folks, and immigrants, before you blame fat people… and I don’t think any of them are really the problem with health care.

And, I will do the math if you, you know, present some numbers.

greenergoose
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 06:32 pm: [report]

i said obese. i didn’t say fat. you said fat. i don’t think fat is a problem. obesity is a problem.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 05:35 am: [report]

Hmmm… reading some of these comments, I think I understand now why Americans are the fattest people in the free world. They GENUINELY don’t believe fatness is a problem. Moreover, they will give every excuse under the sun for why it’s OK to be fat.

Oh well. They’ll stay that way if that is their mentality. I think I’ll go have a tuna sandwich.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 05:44 am: [report]

PinkRanger, I have absolutely no personal animosity towards you. Why should I? Because we happen to disagree? I think obese people are doing horrible things to themselves and providing a horrible example to their children. You, apparently, don’t. That’s fine. That is absolutely your prerogative to think that what these people need is more acceptance.

neverwake
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 05:50 am: [report]

Regarding the comments about the elderly using up our health-care dollars: it is inevitable that we all will get old. Is it also the same that we all will become obese? You really can’t compare the two.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 05:51 am: [report]

I don’t buy that, “Obesity is a learned behavior… food is addictive… let’s feel bad for them” crap, because adults should have personal accountability. If we hold smokers accountable for their habit and tax them so high (not to mention the constant social disapproval and finger-wagging), why do we give a free pass to the obese? I mean, these people are teaching their kids as well that Wendy’s is a perfectly acceptable food choice for 5/7 days f the week. Obviously, I’m human, and would love to eat crap all day long, every day. In fact, as a kid, I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what I did. Common sense got the better of me as an adult though. I guess some of us aren’t so lucky.

fallonthecity
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 07:28 am: [report]

My point about the elderly is that if the biggest problem with obese people is that they omg cost us money, obese folks who contribute to the problem of rising health care costs are seriously a drop in the bucket, not even worth considering.  If any of you have any numbers on this and could link to them, that would be awesome.

Listen, I am not in any way arguing that obese people *should* be obese, rather that if people want to be obese, that’s their prerogative, and I’m still going to be polite to them in public just like I would be to anybody else, and not assume that I know what their life is like just because I can look at them and see that they are large.  And I think that’s the whole point of this whole fat acceptance thing.

(There, I said “obese” the whole time )

joyy
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 07:35 am: [report]

@canadiancutie - I generally approve of “tough love” approaches, but you obviously don’t understand much about the pathology of addiction.  Do you really think it’s your place to go on and on about how others should deal with their problems, especially if you have no experience in their shoes?  Of course you can boil it down to calories in, calories out (diet improvement and exercise), but you should probably stfu about something unless you’ve gone through it yourself.  Have you ever been obese?

I know how much effort it can take to drop my 5-10 lbs. of “winter weight” every year - the idea of magnifying that number and that effort by 3,5,10 makes it easy for me to put the challenges others face in persepective.

neverwake
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 07:46 am: [report]

Check the “medical costs” section: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obesity_in_the_United_States

So you say food is an addiction. I definitely agree that it can be psychologically addictive. But do you see “smoker’s acceptance” groups out there? That too is an addiction. You just don’t see that. Why is it okay for people to kill themselves with food but not with tobacco?

greenergoose
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 09:00 am: [report]

@fallonthecity-ok so, I took your request and decided to look into some numbers on obesity v. elderly and how it impacts the health care system. so far, i haven’t seen any studies comparing these two populations. but here are some interesting articles:

If you google “the impact of obesity in rising medical cost” you will get a link to download a very informative study (in pdf form). But i will summarize it:

Basically, obesity accounts for 12% rise in overall healthcare costs from 1987-2001. I imagine now, that percentage is higher. If you know statistics, that’s a huge rise for a “small” population. If you break it down to specific rise in spending for disease specific care, obesity accounts for a 27% rise in diabetes, 22% in hypertension, and a WHOPPING 41% in heart disease. again, these percentages are probably outdated and much higher today. 

thanks for prompting me to look up these stats because i am now more steadfast in my earlier position.

i know we live in the land of the free. but, i’m going to suggest something crazy here- WE ARE NOT FREE. we are under the mind control of advertising and part of the obesity problem is that so much money is poured into food advertising so that everywhere we go, we constantly see messages that tell us to super size it and get fast food because we’re too busy to stop and cook ourselves a meal. the junk food industry has made it exceptionally easy to get poor quality poor nutrition food and it’s much worse in low socio-economic populations because it’s considered “cheap” food even though it’s way more expensive in the long run. and guess who doesn’t have health care? the poor. but the poor STILL use the health care system, passing the increased costs up the chain. (the poor should have state provided health care IMHO) the history of obesity in this country shows that obesity rates really started to take off in the 70s. how is that possible? is it because people were more free to make certain food choices? no. it’s because food industries really began to sell to us and suddenly there was a McDs on every single corner. we are not free because we are constantly subjected to food messages on tv, magazines, the internet. point is, we can say that people are free to choose and to that i say yes. but, if advertising didn’t work…money would not be invested into it…we are choosing what advertising is telling us to. i don’t think that is very free. i think the junk food industry should be regulated as tobacco is. and that produce should be subsidized to be made more affordable for all economic classes. some states have considered raising the taxes on sugar drinks (all high fructose corn syrup) and using that extra money to fund healthcare for all children under 5. I think that’s a tremendous idea!

greenergoose
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 09:06 am: [report]

@neverwake-wow, just checked out your link and it is totally awesome! thanks, i didn’t even think to check wikipedia!

greenergoose
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 09:10 am: [report]

and from that wiki article:

apparently, obesity is the largest (no pun intended) single cause for discharge in the military. apparently 16% of active duty military are obese and the military spends 15 million on bariatric surgery. that’s a lot of money! i thought one was supposed to get fit in the army?

greenergoose
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 09:12 am: [report]

ok and one more direct quote for @fallonthecity:

Obesity has been cited as a contributing factor to approximately 100,000-400,000 deaths in the United States per year[9] and has increased health care use and expenditures[17][18][19][14], costing society an estimated $117 billion in direct (preventive, diagnostic, and treatment services related to weight) and indirect (absenteeism, loss of future earnings due to premature death) costs [20]. This exceeds health-care costs associated with smoking or problem drinking[19] and accounts for 6% to 12% of national health care expenditures in the US.

conclusion: obesity is a bigger (no pun intended) problem to society than smoking and drinking.

anhngu
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 09:29 am: [report]

I think all the comments are great…they reflect different point of view on the issue.  HOwever, I think we are confused: this is an issue about obesity, not fat.  Canadiancutie—i’m with you all the way.  People want to sugarcoat obesity but the medical opinions and numerous studies show that if you are obese, you are facing or will be facing serious medical issues. 

I’m also sick of people blaming their obesity on medical issues.  Unless you have a medical condition where you cannot walk at all, you cannot blame anyone but yourself.  My bf is 5’11 and 220lbs and has been struggling with a thyroid condition since childhood.  As a result of putting on just an additional 20lbs, his doctors told him that his blood pressure is up, he developed heart arrythmia and other medical problems.  He is working his a$%#$ off to lose the 20 lbs. 
So yeah…I’m ok with “fat” per se but obesity and the obesity acceptance movement is just out of hand.  Instead of dedicating time to promote how to dress cute, how to love yourself, how about spending that time working out or creating a healthier diet.  Sorry…there is just no excuse if you are obesed.

Perceptible
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 09:45 am: [report]

Amelia, this was a well-written and well-observed piece. The truth is, either extreme is unhealthy. Why does our culture need to focus on any extreme? Focusing on a healthy body + body image, whatever that is to you (and your Dr.) is where the focus should be.

No one who eats a healthy diet and gets enough exercise is anywhere near 300 pounds, unless they’re 7 feet tall.

We also live in a society where preparing your own foods is discouraged (by the media) and is more time consuming than our busy lives allow for. It is very difficult to purchase pre-prepared foods that are anywhere near the proper balance of nutrition, fat + calorie content, and other key factors. At the supermarket I see families who don’t even go INTO the produce aisle, filling their baskets instead with boxes, cans and frozen bags. And who has time to exercise when we’re so busy twittering, surfing, blogging, YouTube-ing, and updating our Facebook profiles?

It’s troubling to hear the number of people who have weight problems due to Thyroid issues (and I know many). However, a troubled Thyroid isn’t an excuse to be 100 lbs overweight, it typically causes you to store between 20 and 50 extra lbs on a healthy diet. Beyond that and it’s all about the cheeseburgers and couch time.

bbpickles
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 09:52 am: [report]

@fallonthecity-while getting older does cost taxpayers money that we may never see the benefit of when we are old, getting old is impossible to avoid!  Obesity can be avoided!  Walking around the block a couple times daily will keep obesity in check! Putting your chicken in the oven instead of the fry daddy will help too!
I do agree it’s none of my business what other people do with there bodies, but I can’t help looking at a 300lb person in a bikini or speedo!  I am sorry, yes they have feelings too, but it is their choice to walk around with guts hanging out knowing they are going to be looked at differently!

duckie
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 09:58 am: [report]

@ greenergoose- bravo.

Obesity is a problem and its not just the problem of the obese- we are all shouldering the costs.  I bet it would surprise people how many patients end up in the ICU because of complications of obesity- its really very sad.  I’ve seen people who have had both legs amputated because of unmanaged, obesity induced diabetes.

Another point I want to make regarding the “let them do/eat/not exercise if they want because they’re their own person= not my problem” is in my biomedical ethics class, we talked about the role of the physician/other healthcare provider in the treatment decision making process. One of the main goals is to preserve the patient’s autonomy. Now, autonomy means to make a decision for oneself, but it also implies self-governing decisions. So it is in unethical (from a medical professional standpoint) to say hey do whatever you want, be as unhealthy as you want to be.  It is important to go through all the possible risks and the magnitude of these risks with the patient, and to make a decision from there.

Also from this standpoint, it is unethical to advertise or promote junk foods and lifestyles that exclude exercise without giving all the potential risks involved (and it is especially unethical to promote this to children who are vulnerable people).  I mean people, and women more specifically, have to do weight-bearing activities throughout their lives in order to prevent osteoporosis- never mind the sedentary lifestyle leading to obesity and those complications. 

So it may seemingly be benign to talk about how to still dress cute if you are obese, but it is actually unethical if you omit all the obesity related problems, and it is unethical to receive capital gains.

Think about other potentially damaging things we put into our bodies: prescription drugs, tobacco products, alcohol and other recreational drugs; and potentially damaging things we do to our bodies: extreme sports, bungee jumping etc, tattoos and piercings, risky sexual behavior; Every person and every company that promotes/advertises for these things (and related products) have to clearly state the risks. Some things are even restricted my age limits or even outright illegal.  We are doing ourselves a disservice if we think obesity-linked lifestyle is any different.

PinkRanger
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 10:26 am: [report]

@canadiancutie:

http://article.wn.com/view/2009/06/03/Junk_food_is_addictive_study/

that is an australian study on the addictiveness of food. I decided not to link the multitude of american studies because you seem to think that we’re all being softies about it. Also, saying that food is addictive does NOT count out personal responsibility. Its just like any addiction, you start it yourself. but is that to say I should call junkies “#&@$%” and spit in their face? of course not. Also, junk food is something that is given to children. They get hooked as kids and never get out of it. Diet is learned behavior. It is. period. That has been proven over and over and I"m not even going to find a link because I’ve been through that over and over before. Are you a dietician? then we’ll talk. People learn their eating habits as small children, and become addicts as small children. I feel that proper nutritional education may alleviate this problem, but I would never go into a classroom and call a child a fatass and expect them to want to eat a salad.

@neverwake: I never said anything about tobacco. I do think people should be respectful of smokers as a matter of fact. Obviously I know it would be better for them to quit smoking, and I would encourage that, but I would never insult them or show them any less compassion than I would a non smoker. People think that when someone is obese that means that they are greedy and stupid and treat them as such.

Ever heard of compassion? I think obesity is a problem that should not be ignored. BUT I am completely against calling anyone a “fatass”. Canadiancutie You are the perfect example of why the fat acceptance movement happened. Because people wanted to be treated like people.No one wants to be insulted and dehumanized. I was raised right thanks.

Pleae, defend the term “fatass”. Defend your elitest attitude and agive me specific examples of why you are a better person than an obese individual just because you are thin. Is namecalling mature? Seriously I want to know your thought process, and why compassion for the obese makes your skin crawl. Do you not want to help them? or do you just want to complain about them and make sure everyone knows that they disgust you?

neverwake
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 10:52 am: [report]

@pinkranger
I checked out a few fat acceptance sites, and from what I could tell, one of the main goals was SELF-acceptance, and not giving into the depression that can come along with being obese. So this isn’t about compassion from us (the outsiders). It’s about them giving each other support in the lifestyle they’ve chosen. Which makes as much sense as smokers supporting each other, since both habits are equally deadly in the long run. And honestly, how can you give compassion to a life-long smoker who’s developed emphysema when it was obviously within their means to prevent it?

I can’t speak for anyone else, but I know that obese people bother me on many levels. It shows a lack of self-control on their part, laziness, and simply failing to take care of their bodies. (disclaimer: this does not apply to every obese person, but most) As others have said, this is their personal choice, to be morbidly overweight, so I fail to see what *I* can do to help them.

Because I spend a lot of my time working on making my body as healthy as I can (since this is the only one that I have!), when people can’t appreciate their own body, it offends me. I can’t be compassionate for someone who is letting the vessel that they live in just rot away. It’s not about how they look per se, although you could make a case that that offends the eyes! It’s basically the lack of compassion for their own bodies that gets my goat.

fallonthecity
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 11:40 am: [report]

@neverwake: why do YOU care about someone else’s body?  they own their body, not you.  It’s awesome that you take care of your body, and you should.  But someone else’s body shouldn’t be available for your judgment.

@greenergoose: I was on your page until you got to the part about using taxes as a way to get people to conform to some mandated diet under the guise of “health”—eesh.  Look, I totally believe in positive education, and if that wikipedia article y’all posted is right (which I’ll assume), then let’s start educating.  Kids get crappy health ed, just like they get crappy sex ed, and then they suffer for it later when people like @canadiancutie call them fatass (and when they get pregnant because nobody taught them how to safely and effectively prevent it).  I totally believe that we should encourage physical activity for the sake of fun & health, and develop healthy diets for the sake of energy & health.  I am *not* on the taxation-as-deterrent boat, where government decides what’s “good” and “bad” and makes us pay more for “bad” because government obviously know better (although maybe this would get HF corn syrup out of my sandwich bread, and make Pepsi keep the Throwback line for good)—and since people keep referring to cigarettes, the high taxes on cigarettes are unjustified too, except for using addiction to create profit for the government.  Um, thanks government, but GTFO of my body.

However, I can’t help but think a lot of this fat-is-bad-for-you, fat-costs-me-money is just serving as justification for a few of you to hate and dehumanize fat/obese people.  They are people, and they deserve some level of respect.  If you don’t know them well enough to know their lifestyle first hand (i.e., not assume: 300lbs!! they MUST be eating 4 bowls of lucky charms and 6 Big Macs every day, when they are not busy lazing about on the couch.), you should probably keep your opinion to yourself.  If they are a close friend and you want to help them, encourage them to be more healthy for the sake of health and happiness—don’t try to shame them into it.  Nothing will come of calling anybody “fatass” except meanness.  Who cares if their obesity offends your eye?  Maybe they hate looking at your haircut.  There is absolutely no justification for just plain old being mean—and that’s the truth, y’all.

neverwake
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 11:46 am: [report]

Spoken like a true fattie!

GreenAura
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 12:21 pm: [report]

@ neverwake: if laziness leads to obesity, then what does insulting other people lead to?  Misery?  Cynicism?  Maybe obesity ‘weighs’ on our health care system, but your misery and cynicism contribute to the generally foul disposition of our society.  I’m sure many people would rather be fat and happy than skinny and miserable.  What ever happened to happy, healthy mediums?

PinkRanger
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 12:32 pm: [report]

@neverwake: I understand what you are saying, but I feel there is never an excuse to treat someone as a lesser person. Ever. And if I was going to make an exception to that it definitely would be neither smokers nor the obese. But you do make a lot of aruguments that I agree with. I feel obesity is a dangerous epidemic and something should be done about it other than having slender people yell “put down the fork fatass!” *I know you didn’t say anything like that, but “spoken like a true fattie” is still degrading and all around rude in my book*

More than anything I’m just fired up by the throwing around of the term “fatass” in an indignant and self-righteous manner. Unacceptable. We are all grown here and should have better communication skills.

neverwake
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 12:33 pm: [report]

The thing is, I’m not a miserable person. You just said that insults cause misery, but to whom? The insulted because they know it’s true? I feel much better now that i am more fit and have the confidence to stand up for myself and my appearance independently; unlike the fat acceptance movement, which centers on the need for masses of people to accept something that nature clearly does not intend to permit.

GreenAura
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 12:48 pm: [report]

@ neverwake: Truly happy and confident people don’t go around insulting others. The insults only lead to your own misery and cynicism because you are focusing on the negative.  I am not saying that you are a miserable and cynical person (cause that would be insulting you) but your “spoken like a true fatty” comment was unnecessary and mean-spirited. And believe it or not, I am NOT on the fat acceptance bandwagon (I’m a total health nut) but I am also a believer in love for my fellow humans.

PinkRanger
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 12:52 pm: [report]

@greenaura: Love it!

neverwake
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:03 pm: [report]

Only said because the comment before mine reeks of “I have body issues and you aren’t allowed to judge me”. From experience I know that the people that are most vehement about a topic are clearly the most bothered by it; in this case, people that are/have been overweight.
Also, it was fattIE! :p (Not terribly insulting in my mind anyway, it’s a nick that I call all sorts of people)

fallonthecity
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:06 pm: [report]

@neverwake: Haha! Thanks, I guess—but I don’t and can’t claim to be a fattie.  I’m a little overweight at 5’9” and 175lbs, but I’m also pretty active and I eat well, so I don’t feel bad about it.  But now you’ve really got me wondering, what justifies the insults?  Even if you are causing misery to someone for pointing what’s “true”, why do you feel like that’s okay?

GreenAura
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:15 pm: [report]

“I have body issues and you aren’t allowed to judge me”... well, thats because you AREN’T allowed to judge.  You probably didn’t mean to be insulting, and you seem like an intelligent person.  So I’ll just drop it now! (But I just had to speak my peace for a minute, thanks for listening and responding neverwake!)

neverwake
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:17 pm: [report]

Well not that I was saying I AM allowed to judge, but I am allowed to make observations. Now I just had to go and look up the definition of ‘insult’! And from my searchings I found that it can be either accidental or purposeful (and mine must have been the latter), and usually is taken due to misinterpreting the intent of the ‘insulter’. I am not trying to insult anyone here, I just don’t think it’s okay to say being fat is a good thing (like was brought up in the original article)!

fallonthecity
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:28 pm: [report]

@neverwake: then, aren’t we all on the same page?  I don’t think a single person has insinuated that fat is a good thing—I think we all can agree that fat is unhealthy.  The point I’ve been trying to make is that fat people are still people, that they should not be fair game for cruelty just because they are obese.  Do you disagree?

PinkRanger
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:34 pm: [report]

@neverwake: since the latter that you mentioned was “purposeful” you are being contradictory. Please explain how “spoken like a true fattie” is either an acceptable phrase, or why you thought that it was ok to purposefully insult someone. I’m really confused by your contradictions in your last post.

neverwake
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:35 pm: [report]

I’m going to quote something from waaay before from shasta: “Be obese.  Eat what you want.  Just don’t ask me to accept that it’s “beautiful.” I think that does a good job of capturing how I feel about this!

neverwake
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:37 pm: [report]

I meant ‘the former’, and if you had read the rest of my post, it would have been abundantly clear my meaning.

fallonthecity
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:37 pm: [report]

Thinking someone is not beautiful, and going out of your way to insult them—two totally different things.  Namely, the latter is malicious.

I Go To 11
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:43 pm: [report]

OK, to help lighten the mood a bit, I found this article on mentalfloss.com today:
http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/26691

I’m a big fan of “everything in moderation”. To each his/her own, but I’m in agreement with the folks who say there should be a “healthy body” movement, regardless of what size that may take. There should also be a push to educate the poorer segments of the population on healthy eating habits, because it seems fast-food joints flood economically depressed areas in particular. (I know fast-food is prevalent just about everywhere, but it looks like they’re almost preying on the less fortunate.) A healthy diet isn’t necessarily expensive or time-consuming. Farmer’s markets are great ways to get fresh produce for a reasonable price, and they help the local economy, too! I know when I had my little one on WIC that during the summer, they’d give coupons to use at farmer’s markets; why not do that for everyone that falls below a certain income level, not just families with small children?

PinkRanger
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:49 pm: [report]

@neverwake: I did read your full post. And you didn’t make your meaning clear at all. how does “said like a true fattie” translate to “Its not ok to promote an unhealthy lifestyle”. It was clearly meant as an insult. Just admit it, apologize, and move on. I understand everything you are trying to say, and I agree with it all, except for the fact that you clearly think being insulting to obese people is ok, ie, you feel they are lesser people for being overweight.

neverwake
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 01:52 pm: [report]

Alrighty, I will admit my sin and apologize profusely! Do you feel better now?

greenergoose
wrote on June 22 2009 @ 03:59 pm: [report]

i wonder, does the fat acceptance movement reclaim derogatory words like “fattie” in the same way that the gay rights movement has reclaimed the word “queer?” if that’s the case, then isn’t neverwake’s comment sort of…not offensive? this is all about fat acceptance right? so what’s wrong with being called a fattie? we’re embracing fat now, right?? right??

sorry, i just HAD to play devils advocate.

it’s like when boys call each other girls as an insult. and i’m still asking, WHY is this still considered an insult after the women’s movement??

canadiancutie
wrote on June 23 2009 @ 07:01 am: [report]

PinkRanger, I sat there and wrote in the “Should I Dump My Newly Smoking Boyfriend” thread that smoking is both a disgusting and filthy habit, and no one batted an eye, including the smokers. If I were to say that watching an obese person prance beside the ocean looking like a beached whale or wolfing down any one of the menu items on http://www.thisiswhyyourefat.com is both filthy and disgusting, all hell would break loose. Do I have friends who are overweight or obese? Yes, of course I do. But as far as I’m concerned, they are ALSO practising a lifestyle choice that I disapprove of. If they are going to have such an (equally self-destructive habit), they need to develop a thicker skin, just like the smokers have.

I think the overweight are far too sensitive about it. I mean, you’re a perfect example. You’re taking it all personally that I think obesity has gotten out of hand and needs to be controlled. When really, my personal beliefs are not about you specifically.

canadiancutie
wrote on June 23 2009 @ 07:11 am: [report]

That phrase “put down the fork” seems to really bother you. But I just wanted to point out again that I actually got it from someone who had lost 50 pounds on his own way back in high school. He’d developed poor eating habits as a kid and later embraced portion control. It wasn’t so much about not eating foods he loved. It was about eating less of it in one sitting.

He’s maintained the weight loss since then (he’s now 24).

Riley
wrote on June 23 2009 @ 07:19 am: [report]

If you are obese, you have much more important issues to worry about than my acceptance.  The multitude of diseases and disorders linked to obesity, in both children and adults, should be your main concern.  Not whether strangers love you or not.

Frankly I couldn’t care less how much anyone else weighs.

neverwake
wrote on June 23 2009 @ 08:14 am: [report]

@greenergoose - you are awesome

I think it’s really your choice to take something as an insult. Not taking offense to a comment, even if the intent was to instigate conflict, is usually the best way to go. If someone says something inflammatory, and the response they get in return is “okay.. so what?”, they are most likely not going to continue with more harassment.

Canadianista
wrote on June 23 2009 @ 01:35 pm: [report]

Frankly, I can’t see “Fat is Beautiful” contributing to a growing obesity epidemic.  What it might accomplish, more realistically, is a transformation in the way that the obese see themselves.

If we compare it to the vast body of cruelty and condemnation that has been directed at the obese over the years - in the schoolyard, in the media, on Main Street and on boards like this one - it can’t begin to counterbalance the negative and ugly judgements and stereotypes that form a constant background noise to any discussion about obesity.

I think the burden of social shame and self-loathing that the obese typically carry around only makes it harder for them to care about themselves enough to make good decisions for themselves.  If this movement can eliminate or even just ease that burden a little, who knows what may result? Will the obese lose weight?  Dunno.  Is it anybody’s business but theirs?  Nope. Will the quality of their lives improve?  I am absolutely sure that it will.

I know that a lot of people pass judgement on the obese and defend themselves by claiming that they find either the sight of an overweight person on a beach or the discomfort of sitting beside an overweight person on a plane particularly offensive.  All that communicates to me is that the person who is passing judgement obviously has no sense of courtesy or kindness or, for that matter, common decency. 

Some people will spend their entire lives being crass and cruel and generally cretinous, and will never suspect that their lack of class could possibly be more disgusting to the rest of us than any “fatass” could ever be. Too bad for them, really.

Can’t entirely blame them, either.  After all, they can’t feel good about themselves if they don’t pick on somebody and they just can’t get away with targetting the disabled or immigrants or gays anymore. Not the way they used to.

greenergoose
wrote on June 23 2009 @ 01:46 pm: [report]

@canadianista: isn’t the “fat is beautiful” movement also an attempt to define fat as different from obese? clinically, obesity is considered a disease resulting from lifestyle choices and some genetic variables,  whereas the “fat is beautiful” movement is trying to educate us lay people that one can be fat AND fit. i wonder if it is commonly accepted in the fat acceptance movement that obesity cannot coexist with a fit lifestyle, the very kind these fat women are claiming to have? i think that has been the overall discussion in this comment section. am i wrong here?

develange
wrote on June 23 2009 @ 08:09 pm: [report]

It’s hard to feel sympathy for fat or obese people because I’ve never been fat or obese and can’t understand how you could let yourself get that big (medication/disease issues aside). I doubt that someone who is obese wants me to feel bad for her. So WTF am I supposed to do? Just keep my mouth shut and let people live their lives. Right?

The thing that kills me is the parents who let their kids become obese. Feeding them fried #&@$%, not encouraging them to be physically active. I remember hearing something about a mother possibly being charged for child abuse for letting her child become obese.

I do agree that people who are fat or obsese are PEOPLE. The whispering and staring and the “fatass” comments are cruel. People (hopefully) know what they look like, what’s the use in pointing it out?

Even though there is so much #&@$% out there about exercise, calories, carbs, blah blah, people still don’t get it. Or, people are exercising and eating right, but they aren’t losing weight. So WTF are they doing wrong?

There is so much emphasis on numbers, the weight on the scale, clothing sizes, etc. Health goes far beyond those numbers. . . people are way too obsessed.

BUT…sometimes the numbers do matter. A relatively short woman who is over 300 pounds. . . how the hell can her bones and heart handle all that weight?

Canadianista
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 01:43 pm: [report]

Hi Greenergoose -

“isn’t the “fat is beautiful” movement also an attempt to define fat as different from obese?”

Good point, and I’m not entirely sure - in that order.  Overweight and obese are two distinct things, but the distinction tends to be thin and fluid, especially in the popular media. 

Also, I don’t know that obesity can be properly characterised as a disease. I know there’s a lingering debate, but that debate seems to hinge on the positive or negative social and medical implications and consequences of the defintion rather than on any objective set of definitional criteria applied to the condition itself.  Which, in my opinion, is not useful.

Let’s just say that obesity is the physical consequence of a number of factors, which usually but don’t inevitably include disease and/or behaviour. 

But I will go out on a limb and suggest that the biggest boosters for the “fat is beautiful” movement are interested in changing popular perception (reception) of the obese (more than 20% above their ideal weight, adjusting for height, age, body type, and so on). Because someone who is merely overweight - a middle-aged woman who could stand to lose ten pounds - really has no burning need to change public attitudes.

People at the lower end of the obesity range can maintain a level of fitness, though.  It’s just not optimum fitness.  And it’s worth noting that, while excess weight typically puts people at higher risk for or accompanies a whole mess of problems - heart disease, high cholesterol, diabetes, arthritis, certain cancers - it does not inevitably and invariably do so. 

Either way, we’re all better off without the excess weight.  Problem is, what is often overlooked when we rattle off the list of factors that contribute to or accompany overweight and obesity - and which, when adjusted, can contribute to weight loss and improvement - is damaging cultural stigma and the negative influence of everybody from family members to anonymous bystanders.

One of the ugliest negative outcomes associated with obesity is depression and lack of self esteem - often chronic and crippling and ultimately self-perpetuating.  Whether, or to what extent, depression and low self esteem (even self-loathing) contribute to or are a consequence of obesity, what is indisputable is that they suck energy and hope from the individual. 

Going for a brisk walk or making a salad is an awfully simple operation for you or me, but for a person whose body is addicted to salts and dietary fats and whose mind and emotions are addicted to the comfort of routine and the chemical reactions provoked by those salts and fats, it requires a much greater effort and continued vigilance.  A depressed person is at a serious disadvantage to begin with.

I tend to see the obese person as imprisoned in a mirror. Two mirrors, actually. His own mirror and the social mirror.  Both mediums reflect an ugly and distorted version of the individual, forming and reinforcing the message that the he is defective, weak, inadequate, and ultimately guilty.  Through the individual’s personal delinquency and neglect vis-a-vis his appearance, health, social status, he has somehow committed an offense against himself, the people who observe him with blatant distaste and contempt, and against the social order itself.

That is a burden far heavier than any single overweight person. And, in my very humble opinion, far heavier than the fittest of us can comfortably shoulder.

So what I see in the “fat is beautiful” movement is an attempt to transform the self perception and surrounding social perception that combine to feed and pervert the overweight or obese person’s negative feelings.  I believe that transformation may form the first step to giving the overweight and obese the critical tools they must have before they can take on the difficult task of transforming their bodies and lives.

Then, too, the campaign may also be instrumental in transforming us.  As a culture, we do tend to be much more tolerant of cruelty and rudeness than we are of physical imperfections. 

And that is really depressing.

greenergoose
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 11:45 am: [report]

@canadianistat: Momma always said: you can’t change others before you change yourself. I think helping people to improve their self-perception is one of the best ways to change anyone’s life. Everyone suffers from insecurities in this world. Our culture or system is not set up to encourage self-discovery and self-awareness. Instead, we accept other people’s messages about who we are to be the truth about ourselves. As I said, everyone sufferes from insecurities, and we lash out at other people because we hate in them what we hate in ourselves. Example: a thin person may lash out at an obese person because that obese person represents the embodiment of an irrational fear for that thin person such as, “i am afraid of getting fat or eating too much or (in a straight woman’s case) being unattractive to my bf.” etc. But in this case, it’s not because that obese person is a bad person, it’s that the thin person hasn’t fully understood their own issues. my theory is when you do, you stop projecting on other people and are better able to feel compassion for others. I understand that enduring these kinds of insecurity-motivated attacks (to be very general) as an obese person can well be what drives you more to eating poorly and lethargy. Those attacks feel personal and I know people are going to hate me for this, but they’re not. They’re not about the obese person at all. They’re about the one who is perpetrating hate. Everyone experiences other people’s self-hating every day (have you ever worked with customers in retail?) and we can’t escape them without exceptional confidence in ourselves to understand that it’s not against us personally, it’s that we just happen to be there at that very moment to be on the receiving end. Some people are exceptionally skilled at separating their identities from the garbage that other people spew and are able to say,“you know? what you are saying about me is not true because i know myself and i don’t need you to affirm to me who i am. I can choose my own life.”

If this movement helps anyone with body issues to accept themselves and feel confident, I think it’s wonderful! I am happy for them. And after that, it will help them stop identifying as a “fat” person so that they may decide what kind of life they want to lead of their own choosing with the knowledge of the health risks involved with excess weight. They may find themselves saying, wow, I was eating all that time because I accepted from other people that I was fat. My aunt, overweight her entire life, never married or had a family. At 50, she realized she had accepted the idea that she was the fat one and was carrying on with maintaining that role even though it was seriously harming her health. She realized what she was doing and took charge of her life to not live the way others had dictated for her. She now walks 5 miles a day and she looks great! At 65, she can run circles around me!!

Southern Girl
wrote on August 11 2009 @ 09:02 am: [report]

I am really tired of people using medical disorders as excuse for being overweight. I have a thyroid disorder, and according to several doctors and my own personal experience, it contributes 20-30 lbs to your weight until you are on the correct medication. If you’re more than 30lbs overweight, it’s all your eating habits. It’s basic biology - calories in-calories expended = weight gain. I’m overweight, I know it’s not all the thyroid, part of it is eating junk and not exercising as much as I should. It’s not an excuse. I’m all for accepting people as they are whatever size they are, be it 2 or 20. But don’t tell me that it’s due to your thyroid, I know it’s not true.

Frederica Bimble
wrote on August 11 2009 @ 11:30 am: [report]

If you have to tell people you’re “happy” then you aren’t -no matter what your size.

joyousnerd
wrote on August 11 2009 @ 12:35 pm: [report]

Canadiancutie, I have to say, I appreciate your honesty.  So many people who feel it is their right to judge others based solely on their appearance claim to do it out of “concern”.  I admire your forthrightness in coming right out and admitting you hate fat people—oops, I mean, you’ll “never accept fat people”, never mind that you know nothing about them other than the shape of their body.  That’s brave, and bravery is admirable.  Bigoted, ignorant, and evil, but admirable, nonetheless.

joyousnerd
wrote on August 11 2009 @ 01:00 pm: [report]

Now that I’ve gotten that out of my system…

The fat acceptance movement is not about telling everyone that should be fat, or that fat is better than thin, or dictating to anyone what they should find attractive.  If you don’t think fat people are attractive, fine.  The problem arises when you then attempt to enforce your view of attractiveness on others—I think fat people are ugly, therefore everyone should agree, and if you find fat people attractive, you must be in some way deviant.  Replace the word fat with blond or tall or short, and the concept becomes obviously ludicrous.  One of the the basic tenets of the fat acceptance movement is that attraction is subjective, and whether or not you find someone attractive is in no way indicative of their value as a human being. 

People have inherent worth and deserve to be treated with respect, regardless of their appearance, skin color, hair color, height, education, sexual orientation, economic status, religion, marital status, body composition, or any other characteristic.  Is that really so hard?

When you examine the human body from a biochemical standpoint, you find that humans are chemically very complex and that while, in a lab under controlled conditions, 1 lb of fat = 3500 kilocalories, humans are not bunsen burners and the way different people use energy can vary tremendously.  Just look at the people around you—we all know people who eat tons of junk and are sedentary and stay thin, and I guarantee you that you know fat people who eat very well and exercise regularly and are still fat.  The reality of being human is that it is completely impossible to know what a person eats or how she lives or what her medical issues may or may not be just by looking at the size of her ass, and even if you could, how someone else chooses to live is their business, not yours.

duckie
wrote on August 11 2009 @ 01:23 pm: [report]

accepting difference in people is great…different shapes and sizes, but being tall isn’t a result of an unhealthy lifestyle.  Having blonde hair doesn’t put you at health risks.  Being 100+ lbs over weight shouldn’t be glamorized (any more than being underweight).  You can love some one like that, find them attractive, respect their intellect, but they shouldn’t be lauded for their unhealthy weight gain.

Latouff
wrote on August 11 2009 @ 01:38 pm: [report]

I’m glad the question came up because I think it’s an important one.  But, here’s the thing… if you read the majority of the comments on this post, you’ll see just how much fat is NOT accepted - or really even tolerated - by most people.  Fat people are just one of the many scapegoats of our society (others being people of color, the impoverished, so on and so forth).  Get an f’ing life, realize that you pay taxes to support a lot of different things that you may not agree with, and stop pointing the finger at fat people et al.

Claireific
wrote on August 11 2009 @ 04:07 pm: [report]

Well, isn’t this a hotly commented article?
All I have to say in regard to “tough love” and applying shame to encourage weight loss is that while I’ve been overweight my entire adult life, and everyone from my family to “friends” have harassed me into losing weight, I’m finally dropping pounds NOW because I’m with someone who loves me, no matter my size. For the first time, I feel loved even though I’m at a weight that some people would consider unlovable. And now that I have that love, that support and positive encouragement, I’m eating less, making better food choices, and working out 4 or 5 times a week. People use the term “tough love”, but really they’re just being hateful to an outsider group, and excusing their behavior by saying they’re trying to help the fat people. If someone DOES lose weight after being taunted for their appearance, odds are they’ll carry some psychological damage/chip on their shoulder long afterward.