I am conflicted on this article. Shall we also be "jolly" in our pursuit of acceptance in a world that stigmatizes obesity? It's easy enough to say we should square our shoulders and face the world head on, but decades of experience has taught me that, no matter how accomplished we become, we are not taken seriously unless or until we get close to a healthy weight. And I have been "keeping my chin up" for too long waiting for the rest of the world to recognize that we are tough, talented and more resilient than MOST of the people around us, because we HAVE to be. So telling us to "get in there and be happy" fighting the good fight is almost condescending to those of us for whom just leaving the house might be the hardest challenge. Or have I misread the blog? Anyone else get a bad feeling from this one?

I've found that when I'm feeling happy about myself and my weight, the weight falls off. But when I'm feeling insecure and depressed I binge eat and gain tons. If I feel that people accept me and don't judge me on my size I don't feel the need to overeat. Ironic, isn't it.

I've found that when I'm feeling happy about myself and my weight, the weight falls off. But when I'm feeling insecure and depressed I binge eat and gain tons. If I feel that people accept me and don't judge me on my size I don't feel the need to overeat. Ironic, isn't it.

HBO has recently produced an excellent series of films about Obesity in this country. There are four 1-hour plus films that were broadcast last week plus several shorter films. All of this information is available at the website: http://theweightofthenation.hbo.com/

The information is also available on HBO on demand if you subscribe to HBO, but you don't need to subscribe to HBO to view the films online.

One of the shorter films deals with the stigma experienced by obese people and there are some resources for helping to educate others.

From Gilbert & Sullivan, Iolanthe:

Phyllis:  He's very pretty, but he's inclined to be stout.

Fairy Queen (the female "heavy"):   I see no objection to stoutness - in moderation.

(That line usually gets a laugh - but I could see myself using it.)

 

 

We are our own worst critiques.

I don't know that I can change my attitude towards obesity, even though I've experienced it personally.  My attitude, and that of others, forced me to make the changes to lose weight and feel healthy.  

 

My whole life was:   "you have such a pretty face, what happend to the rest of you?  Relatives thought this was helpful.  Today I am 57 yrs old, and still live with those words. and fighting the weight. Now I am a diabetic. With excercise and calorie count.com I just might win the battle this time.

I was once obese and I now have a tendency to look at others who are obese and think of them as lazy.   I have to remind myself that our weight is a very small part of who we are as people.  The mind and spirit compose most of who we are and what we do.  I have tried to train my mind to ask myself if they are happy with who they are instead of wondering how they can live with the extra weight.  I often remind myself that people who are lost in drug and alcohol abuse are often very thin people.  What we see on the outside is a very poor indicator of what a person is really like.

Original Post by: hobbbs

I am conflicted on this article. Shall we also be "jolly" in our pursuit of acceptance in a world that stigmatizes obesity? It's easy enough to say we should square our shoulders and face the world head on, but decades of experience has taught me that, no matter how accomplished we become, we are not taken seriously unless or until we get close to a healthy weight. And I have been "keeping my chin up" for too long waiting for the rest of the world to recognize that we are tough, talented and more resilient than MOST of the people around us, because we HAVE to be. So telling us to "get in there and be happy" fighting the good fight is almost condescending to those of us for whom just leaving the house might be the hardest challenge. Or have I misread the blog? Anyone else get a bad feeling from this one?

Yep hobbbs....me too.     God help the poor fatties if they don't put their very best foot forward at all times, in all ways....they're just asking for discrimination if they don't.    I mean really, how dare they go to the grocery store in sweats with no make up.  Don't they know that they're representing ALL fat people when they leave the house?

Kind of reminds me of some people's attitude toward rape....where if a woman happens to look cute, or is perceived to be dressed provocatively, she's just asking for it.  

 

 

The social stigma against the obese is certainly very real and very, very prevalent in our society today, and is something I've struggled with all my life.  I have PCOS and it does lead to obesity, but I wasn't diagnosed until I was well into my 20's.  I've been heavy all my life and I've struggled all my life with depression and social bias not only from those around me but, as the article pointed out, from those within my own family.  The constant observations about my weight have never encouraged me to lose it; they've only compounded my negative feelings whenever I tried to lose weight and failed, and also only exasperated my insecurities and negative feelings about myself.  I struggle to have a positive self image and have all my life--I have set thought patterns about myself that I know aren't good or healthy, but it's very hard to change something that has been set since childhood--and those thought patterns were set in a large part due to how I perceived others viewed me, and because of comments made to me about my weight growing up and from the views that the media has convinced us all that society has.

And sadly, the media isn't completely off about how people treat the obese.  Any time I read an article on the mainline news that deals with obesity, many of the bloggers are quick to ridicule the obese person that the article is about, making insensitive comments on their laziness, saying things such as "if they'd just get off the couch and quit eating the junk food, they would lose the weight" or even making comments that such a person doesn't deserve to be socially accepted.  When you look at the online dating sights, most of the people there are very quick to state they don't want large people; it's something I've experienced myself.  You put up a profile without a picture and get several interested individuals, but as soon as you put up a picture, you get none.

And because of that stigma I have struggled all my life to do things--I've always felt guilty when going to eat in a restaurant, feeling like people were staring and thinking that I must eat like a horse to be my size, even when that was not the case.  I'd like to try biking, but I've always struggled with the idea of the large person on the bike because that's a huge joke--just go into the greeting card section in any store, and you'll find plenty of joke cards with the huge fat woman on the bicycle.  There are many other activities that I've always struggled to do because of the looks and what people may think, as I had been convinced by the media.

The social stigma has definitely made it very hard for me to enjoy life no matter what I look like and that in turn has made it very difficult to lose the weight--it's a vicious cycle.  I think that's the point the article is trying to make--it's not right and not fair to discriminate against any one for any reason, nor is it helpful.  A person's size should not be held against them, no matter if they eventually lose the weight or if they remain large their entire life.  And while ridicule and social stigma might motivate some to determine to lose it, for many like myself, it only causes us to withdraw from society and remain in the shadows, unable to live our lives to the fullest, and that's a shame and certainly shouldn't be considered acceptable.  Everyone has their problems and struggles and deserves consideration and understanding, not condemnation.

I personally love the attitude that my current physician has.  I've always hated going to the doctor because they've always in the past really left me feeling guilty and upset with myself about my weight and my failure despite many tries to lose it.  But my new physician has never commented on my weight.  She was always upbeat and never harped on me about the negative but only encouraged the positive.  When I was finally able to shed 90 lbs, she was ecstatic and very encouraging, again remaining completely positive and praising even a little loss.  She never focused on the total amount I needed to lose, and I found the encouragement and positive extremely helpful to me in changing my own attitude.  I've become a glass half empty kind of person, and so even though I've lost a lot of weight, I have the tendency to look at how much I still have to go and beating myself up on the plateau I'm currently stuck on and feeling like I've failed, instead of looking at the positive and seeing how far I've came and what I have succeeded at.  My physician's encouragement and bright outlook and praise goes far to helping me re-orient my view and feel better about myself, and that in turn helps me to keep fighting and not give up.

I have been obese for 20 years.  While I am not happy about it, I have found that how I 'carry' myself has a lot to do with how others treat me.  When I was younger, my posture and attitude emitted a message of "Please don't hate me because I'm fat".  That seemed to invite people to stare, dismiss me, etc.  Like throwing chum in shark infested waters.   Once I started projecting a more confident exterior, people starting treating me better.  I'm sure they still have their condescending thoughts, but they usually keep them to themselves.  Stand and walk with a confident posture and assert yourself the same as you would if you were a 'normal' size.  You might have to 'fake it til you make it' at first, but I swear, you will notice a difference in how you are treated.  You will also feel better and realize that even though you are large, you are a person of value who expects to be treated with respect and dignity.  On those occasions when you're not treated well, speak your mind.  You deserve no less!

I've definitely experienced this when I was just at a BMI of 30 and only 35 lbs overweight. People were amazed when I was a "trooper" and not giving up while working out. I've grown up with my whole family being big. My brother automatically gets left overs pushed his way because he won't tell people no. For me the fight wasn't about telling food no, it was about telling people no. My fight to becoming healthy has been made harder because of all the negative comments I've gotten about my healthy eating habits. I'm amazed people can change and live a healthier life with all the negativity. I now don't use the word "diet" or "I can't have that" anymore because people assume that I'm just dying to have it. Yes there will always be this stereotype but we don't have to let ourselves fall into it, and I know I have and so has my brother because of the comments of other people.

Though I know the intentions were good, this blog rings of "If you can't beat them join them", which is why obesity is on a rapid rise in the first place.  It's really not as simple as this article makes it sound....like all obese people should be cheerful, suck it up, and prove you're not who " they" think you are.  Sorry, I know this is harsh, but like an alcoholic or drug addict, until you realize you have a food addiction and face your demons,(no matter what you do, binge, give up easily, blame others, you're still using food to soothe, punish yourself or others, whatever), you will always be obese or yo-yo diet the rest of your life.  Unless you have a true medical condition (that has actually been diagnosed!) that causes you to not be able to lose weight, it's only up to you.  You won't lose weight unless you get to the cause, and it's usually a mental reason stopping you.  I rarely read blogs on this site because I get disgusted with all the "I ate like a pig, but oh well, it was yummy!", and then wonders why the scale doesn't budge.  Or boasting about having a great day and their calories came from mostly Big Macs and ice cream.  Seriously?  Sure, obese people may not always be treated fairly, but there is often an air given off that they think they deserve to be treated with kid gloves or else they'll accuse others of using their fat against them......stop whining and feeling sorry for yourself and prove you are as strong as you claim to be and get healthy (notice I didn't say skinny!).  It's repeated here over and over, many realizing that when you feel good about yourself you lose weight....isn't it obvious that you need to figure out why you always feel so bad so often that you don't allow yourself to move on?  Keep blaming it on how others make you feel and you'll never reach your goals in life.  To make it sound so simple, to just be yourself and be happy and you'll change the view others have of obese people is just ludicrous.  Obese people who do genuinely like themselves and are happy don't seem to fall into this "picked on" category.  They still know they need to lose weight and know it's unhealthy, but they don't blame others for themselves being fat, and therefore, don't give off that "no one likes me because I'm fat" vibe!  Face your demons, what is keeping you fat.....deal with that and the weight will come off because you truly start to love yourself instead of holding virtual strangers, whose opinions shouldn't even matter, responsible for you being stuck in "everyone hates me because I'm fat" mode.  If everyone truly dislikes you, it probably has nothing to do with your weight!

No one has ever gotten sick or died from my "second-hand fat."

Come on now, does anyone really believe going out dancing is going to stop discrimination?  Who else but overweight people can people legally and in their minds morally pick on publicly anymore?  Mean is mean, some people like to make themselves feel better by making other's look "worse" than them. That has nothing to do with the overweight person, it's the one doing the bad action that needs to stop and change their thinking and since that thinking is based on fiction, how are you really going to overcome it? They enjoy having someone to make themselves feel better about their own pitiful lives and  believe what they want to believe.  I am overweight, someone I know actually came up to me and said it was good I was losing weight ( I am) but I had to wonder if he would have said to someone with acne " Good thing you are finally clearing up your skin condition" or someone with hair loss, "good thing you are finally getting a weave." I just figure consider the source,  know I can't make stupid/prejudiced  people less stupid/prejudiced, and move on.  Legally something should be done about job, housing etc. discrimination but that is a long time coming when figure types that are practically anorexic are the norm in film, advertising etc and considered by the ignorant masses(:)) as the way to be. The medical community helps that unrealistic body image fanaticism  along as well by claiming every illness has a direct link to being overweight.  Then why do skinny people  die lol? It's an easy out to blame the patient, don't find a cure or treatment. 

Personally I think everyone should just mind their own business and not judge other people on how they look.   You never know what goes on in someones life. 

I'm not even sure why this article is on a website dedicated to weight loss.

It has the the word "justification" written all over it. People simply do not get to be obese just by breathing the air. And to cop-out on that medical condition stuff is beneath contempt. Did I actually read the word "accident" in that article? So, I "accidently" had too much wine or I "accidently" ate too much ice cream? Really? C'mon.

I am over weight because I eat to much and don't get enough exercise. IMHO, this article is an insult to anyone fighting the battle of the bulge, so-to-speak.

Sorry.

That should read: I eat TOO much.

I'm a lousy typist, as well.

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. I think Elenor Rosevelt said that or something like it.

Bigots will always look for someone or something to bigot.

If you listen to the critics you can't hear the music.

That said. If we judge ourselves by other's rulers we will always come up short. Truly beautiful people are so beautiful on the inside that it radiates out. If I or you are unhappy with an aspect of ourselves, we should accept the challenge to change. When you REALLY want something, you will have it! What do you want?

I've always been a lot harder on myself than others have been on me. I have rarely had anyone make insulting comments to my face. Of course, there is always the occasional foot-in-mouth comment from the village idiot or the toxic co-worker.

I have no control over what others think or say about me behind my back. That's really none of my business anyway.

For me,the best solution to my weight problem was to lose it.  My physical, spiritual, and emotional well-being all require me to be honest about what I eat and how it affects me. It's like a stool with 3 legs.  If one of the legs is broken, the stool is simply not functional.

 

This is a wonderful blog written by a woman who is fighting for a Health at Every Size approach, and who battles size discrimination:  http://danceswithfat.wordpress.com/blog/

I find this article good motivation for those of us who try but are still overweight. 2 years ago I weighed 315 lbs. since then, I quit smoking, DRASTICALY changed my eating and dedicated myself to a ranger training / boot camp program that I attend everyday at noon. My weight did drop to 260 lbs which is significant. However, to someone who doesn't know my story, I might appear obese. I do what this article says. At times I still feel fat but I show up to my workout classes. I smile in pictures at weddings and picnics. For those who ask why this article is on this site, I feel that a big part of weight loss IS motivation, inspiration. Especially in stories like this that affirm the notion to NOT give up. As long as you try, as long as you have the mentality to do what is right when it comes to food choices, you are doing the best for you. Even if your weight is not where you'd like it to be.

I find since I lost weight I look at heavier folk and think 'Poor person, they look so uncomfortable in this heat carrying those extra kilos, I remember being that size and it is sooo uncomfortable'. Bizarrely when I was obese, I used to judge others far more critically...so I maybe I was looking at others and seeing what I didn't like about myself.

Workplaces, our families, the world in general . . . the ground is never level.  And obesity is just one hurdle.  There are few of us who have had a career or job and have not wondered why some are promoted in spite of poor job performance, and others with very good performance are overlooked or even dismissed.  There are many invalid reasons for why a person is overlooked . . . being a single parent, being from another part of the world, having a strange accent, not being related to the right people, not being from a prominent local family etc.  But I wish to address the idea of "speaking up".  

Speaking up can be a very hard thing to do if you are perceived as "the outsider".  The same words that get the insider praised as being courageous, insightful, and innovative will get the outsider judged as a whiner, a troublemaker, immature, and lacking skills as a team player.  Prejudice is a very deep and subtle thing.  Even our efforts to combat prejudice get interpreted far differently than they would coming from someone belonging to the desired "class".  

I am not saying we should not speak up.  But we should speak up with wisdom and discernment.  There is a time to speak up, and there are probably times when we should not speak up, or at least be careful how we speak up.  I feel some emotion as I write this, because, indeed, it seems unfair that some of us would have to be so careful, when others just fit in even when their words and actions are irresponsible and uncaring.  So, I am not saying don't speak up.  Speak up.   Time it wisely and say it wisely.  And, it is not as easy as it sounds!

Please---Obesity is overheating and it is costing our country astronomical amounts of money in health care costs---you can eat a fair amount of calories, exercise a little and not be obese---I see no reason to not be alarmed by obese people---they have a responsibility not only to themselves but the rest of us who end up paying their health bills through our insurance programs. And, obese people do have more health related illnesses and our kept going for years with medicines, hospitalizations and millions of other medical/surgical procedures, so they can on and continue their overheating. I realize non-obese people have health related costs, but it comes no where near the costs of keeping obese people alive. Our country needs to do more to help people manage their weight, but we do not need to accept it or help obese people accept it as well.

I think overall what it was saying was don't let your weight and what others say about it hold you back from enjoying life to the fullest.As well you dont know the story of what go people to be the way they are,but some are just shorter so 30 pounds to you could look like 50 or more on them.I mean theres reasons why people get big in general,but still shouldn't be treated bad for it.

"While excess calories is what leads to obesity"

That is probably not what leads to obesity. It's probably more likely that obese people are eating the wrong types of calories (no fault of their own because they've been fed mis-information from the government for years about a "healthy" food pyramid that is actually completed skewed by private interests). When you eat too much sugar, your body releases insulin and throws your body into a hormonal imbalance. It becomes almost impossible to lose weight and even harder to keep it off. There is a mis-conception about exercise as well. Exercise should fuel you. Our bodies are like wind-up toys and exercise is the wind-up mechanism. If you're going into a workout with the mind set that you should be burning anything....you are going into it set up for failure. But, if you give your body the right combination of fuel in the form of food, your body will re-adjust itself into a fat burning machine. Trust me, I'm talking from experience. It was the Atkins diet that really changed my life. It's now a lifestyle because it's sooo easy. I'm never hungry and I get to enjoy things like cream and butter without any guilt. The best part is that my cravings for unhealthy foods have vanished. I can't even believe that I haven't had chocolate in two days and I probably won't until it's handed to me..the craving for it is totally gone!

I don't understand why some of you are attacking this article. She is trying to be inspirational and say not to let your poor self image hold you back from being you. And as a person who has been through this we know she's right. I use to not go swimming, buffets, amusement parks, etc because you know (and it's sad) but everyone is going to judge you. I feel all she is saying is fight this feeling and be proud of who you are. Unfortuabely we live in a world that character is portionally judge on apperance. Now im not saying that a 350 pound man cannot hold his own to a 180 pound man but he will not be instantly judge by his poor health. And yes even going to the gym the first time when being heavy is freaking scary, but let that fuel you to change. Stop always looking for the negative in everything cause chances are, you're never going to see the positive in yourself. Damn I just made that up... You should write it down lol jk

@ goodspeak - I believe accident refers to an an actual physical accident, such as a car accident.  I had a car accident that almost killed me, resulting in abdominal surgery.  The muscles in that area aren't as strong, so I can do all the abdominal exercises I want and it won't help much with how that area looks, but I know I'm healthy and that's all that matters to me.

Original Post by: krystamarie123

I think overall what it was saying was don't let your weight and what others say about it hold you back from enjoying life to the fullest.As well you dont know the story of what go people to be the way they are,but some are just shorter so 30 pounds to you could look like 50 or more on them.I mean theres reasons why people get big in general,but still shouldn't be treated bad for it.

I totally agree.

Original Post by: Mhilsman

Please---Obesity is overheating and it is costing our country astronomical amounts of money in health care costs---you can eat a fair amount of calories, exercise a little and not be obese---I see no reason to not be alarmed by obese people---they have a responsibility not only to themselves but the rest of us who end up paying their health bills through our insurance programs. And, obese people do have more health related illnesses and our kept going for years with medicines, hospitalizations and millions of other medical/surgical procedures, so they can on and continue their overheating. I realize non-obese people have health related costs, but it comes no where near the costs of keeping obese people alive. Our country needs to do more to help people manage their weight, but we do not need to accept it or help obese people accept it as well.

Overheating or overeating?  Anyway, obesity is not as simple as just overeating.  I do agree with some of your other points though; we are all responsible for ourselves.

You could exchange the word "obese" with almost any group of people for this article.  Try smoker, race, sex, Teen, aged, etc and so on.  It is human survival mode to try to find a way to make yourself feel like you're better than the next guy/gal.  Sadly, society still has not evolved much past survival mode.

Live life.  Be the best that you can be (but not at the expense of others).  And most importantly, live by the Golden Rule.

We all have challenges in obtaining our 'ideal' weight.  Find a way to overcome them. 

Even as a thin person, I feel hurt and outraged every time I hear the "obesity pandemic" being discussed on the news, or people talking about how "fat" America has gotten, or especially when people specifically put others down for being overweight. Yes, we need to change our dietary and lifestyle habits, but weight should NOT be the focus. I just imagine how I would feel if I were overweight and had to constantly listen to people talking obesity, as if I were a problem. Sadly, I think this is how people WANT them to feel, because it's as if the aim of the healthier living movement is to bully overweight people into losing weight. Make them feel ashamed, as if they are only a contributor to a dreaded "pandemic," and then they'll conform to the normative standard of beauty.

I honestly believe that even when people claim to be so anti-fat for health reasons, it's only a cover-up for a shallower motive. In such an image-based society, where thinness (or at least a proportionately smaller waist for women) is considered the ideal, I think most people are just embarrassed when their society as a whole fails to meet those standards of beauty. They don't want to be a member of a group in which the collective image is (or is widely perceived to be) "fat." So they create a thinly veiled "health" movement to ridicule the obese into losing weight. It's the same concept as having a neighbor who fails to care for their home bringing down your property value. The other neighbors will band together to pressure the lazy neighbor into mowing their lawn. I see the same thing going on with the "obesity pandemic," but with the erroneous assumption that the obese person is neglecting to eat healthy/exercise/etc., when that may not be the case. Also the assumption that being overweight is somehow shameful, which it is not. Some people are simply predisposed to being overweight, and *maybe* if they practically killed themselves trying to achieve thinness they would, but would it be worth all the sacrifice? Besides, that would be THEIR decision to make, not anyone else's.

People will never admit to this, however. Instead of acknowledging their own shallowness, they're determined to create reasons that they believe are legitimate for their image-based fat discrimination. "I won't date an obese person. It's not because of how they look. If they can't take care of their body, how can they take care of a relationship?" How many times have you heard that? I'm sorry, but that is the biggest load of BS. I wouldn't hesitate to date a wonderful person who happened to be obese (and it wouldn't be "in spite of" their weight), but I could never date someone that superficial and that in denial about their motives.

Which brings me to my next point: all the people who discriminate against obesity have their OWN personal issues that they neglect. They're just lucky that their particular problems don't manifest in a physical way that other people can see. Before you shun someone for neglecting their physical health (or so you assume), look critically at your own mental/emotional health. (And if you're the type of person who makes negative assumptions about people based on their looks and then creates justification for your views with false information... you probably have a LOT of work to do).

This is a sad day when people discriminate against heavy people. Maybe you can say I have a bad attitude. I really don't care what anybody things about my fat body. If they don't like it don't look. My body my decision. 

No one should try and fit everyone into the same box. We all have different health issues like the article stated. 

I'm sure if I took alook into judgmental peoples lives I could find plenty wrong with them. Our lives should be about pleasing ourselves not others. I think that too many people are trying to control others so they don't have to look at their own problems. We should focus more on our relationships and if someone doesn't want to be your friend because I'm a plus size then they aren't worth the trouble. I'm for real people not FAKE.

 

Original Post by: mariecarm

You don’t ‘happen to be’ obese. It just not just happen. You are not born that way. You make yourself that way. That is not to say that one is totally lazy and a bad eater. This is beyond value judgement. It’s just stating a fact when one says one is obese. The fact is that if one regularly overeats, even a little, which is very easy, one could become obese over the years. And eating properly won’t resolve the situation. If one eats excellently but on an intake at maintenance level one shall remain obese. Unless a caloric deficit is created on may cry and wail and wallow in self-pity and blame others for the ‘stigma’ and the ‘prejudice’ but the fat won’t just melt away and disappear after it realizes that it’s not fair! Life is not fair! FACE IT!

It is true that weight stigma may lead you to overeat, avoid social situations, or feel depressed. That is truth, it’s not your fault. By redirecting the blame, you can free yourself from shame and move toward making decisions that are best for you.

This is the worst kind of lie you could tell people! No, it is not weight stigma that leads you to overeat, you overeat! It IS your fault! You feed yourself, no one else does! You free yourself from shame if you ASSUME your OWN responsibility and learn to take care of yourself no matter what others say or do. Only you take care of yourself and if you don’t no one will.

Soft treatment will not get any one any where. It is when one realises that only he / she has the power to change things that one progresses. Externalising the blame does nothing but let people keep on getting fatter while crying out that it’s not their fault. Everyone has a hard time at work, everyone thinks chocolate tastes good, everyone has a hard time on daily basis. It’s not a question of blame and guilt.

Everyone gets stigmatized in the world. It’s not just the obese. The skinny are too skinny. The obese call the skinny ‘ill’, ‘unhealthy’, ‘with no meat on their bones’, ‘skeletons’, 'anorexic', 'always on a diet', 'skinny ****'... anything else? The average are just average and no one considers them as anything special... the obese view them as skinny, the skinny view them as fat. The short are viewed as dwarves by tall people. The tall ones are giants to the small ones. The white look pale and sickly to the tan. The tan ones are discriminated. Face it! Everyone gets criticized! Everyone gets stigmatized in some way or another. So, what? Just have a good look at the mirror, a good look inside you, say ‘mea culpa’ and become an ADULT! At least obesity can be reversed by the person in question!!! Many other things people are discriminated about cannot be changed!

ok, a kid has no choice of the values thier parents instill in them or the food they are allowed to eat, or the amount of exercise they have in their lives. Fortunately as they mature hopefully they will put two and two together, and make the changes themselves. So they may not be born that way, but the cards can be stacked against them, with heredity and other factors.  It is sad that when people are mean and critical or mean spirited, that they don't grow a big mole on thier face each and every time, I am sure then they would learn about stigmitizing others and not leaping to conclusions.

About healthcare costs that 'we all share'  I have mine taken out of my check, I pay the co-pay, and may not use all I put into it , obese or not. I still pay for cancer caused by thin cigerette smokers who use cigerettes as a weight loss tool, or bariatric surgery for those who are not obese but just a little 'round' but because of  thier pride won't change thier lifestyle,  or how about the annerexic that goes through tons of counceling and emergency room care because they are starving to death.  Lets put things in perspective and stop the judging!!

 

 

 

Original Post by: eirraca

Original Post by: Mhilsman

Please---Obesity is overheating and it is costing our country astronomical amounts of money in health care costs---you can eat a fair amount of calories, exercise a little and not be obese---I see no reason to not be alarmed by obese people---they have a responsibility not only to themselves but the rest of us who end up paying their health bills through our insurance programs. And, obese people do have more health related illnesses and our kept going for years with medicines, hospitalizations and millions of other medical/surgical procedures, so they can on and continue their overheating. I realize non-obese people have health related costs, but it comes no where near the costs of keeping obese people alive. Our country needs to do more to help people manage their weight, but we do not need to accept it or help obese people accept it as well.

Overheating or overeating?  Anyway, obesity is not as simple as just overeating.  I do agree with some of your other points though; we are all responsible for ourselves.

Oh please when i go to the emergency room i see more skinny people then fat ones. You have nothing to back your claim. Your just another big mouth with the same old bull__it. Anyway you should be glad cuz the fat people will die off faster and you won't have to pay for them out of your pocket. Cuz they are too fat and their body will kill them so Stop worry dummy you should encourage fat people it will work to your benefit..

Original Post by: Rich45331

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. I think Elenor Rosevelt said that or something like it.

Bigots will always look for someone or something to bigot.

If you listen to the critics you can't hear the music.

That said. If we judge ourselves by other's rulers we will always come up short. Truly beautiful people are so beautiful on the inside that it radiates out. If I or you are unhappy with an aspect of ourselves, we should accept the challenge to change. When you REALLY want something, you will have it! What do you want?

 Very eloquent. Nice post, Thank you

Original Post by: wb71452

No one has ever gotten sick or died from my "second-hand fat."

LOL

Nothing succeeds like success.   And getting success requires taking action.  I just lost 20 lbs in 8 weeks.   Never lost a pound ever before in my entire life.   I guess I just never found a program this easy or cheap or,  well... effective.   Here's where I got it from:  simplyworks.myvi.net/challenge.  You can fill in the info for more info, or you can just order it right there and they ship it right to your house.  That's what I did.  I'm still amazed at how easy this was.  Can't guarentee that it will work that quick for everybody, but for me; this was the answer I'd been looking for.   (And I wound up saving more on my monthly food bill than it cost for these nutrients so I even came ahead money-wise!) 

 

Nothing succeeds like success.   And getting success requires taking action.  I just lost 20 lbs in 8 weeks.   Never lost a pound ever before in my entire life.   I guess I just never found a program this easy or cheap or,  well... effective.   Here's where I got it from:  simplyworks.myvi.net/challenge.  You can fill in the info for more info, or you can just order it right there and they ship it right to your house.  That's what I did.  I'm still amazed at how easy this was.  Can't guarentee that it will work that quick for everybody, but for me; this was the answer I'd been looking for.   (And I wound up saving more on my monthly food bill than it cost for these nutrients so I even came ahead money-wise!) 

 

And to all the people complaining about paying the medical bills of obese people. Why do you assume the obese person is anymore unhealthy in their habits than a thin person? I'm thin, but I don't exercise much and I eat a lot very unhealthy foods (I still live at home so I don't have much control over that, and I'm sure that's the case for a lot of obese people too). There are probably obese people who eat healthier than me and exercise regularly, but for whatever reason their body is resistant to losing weight. They're more at risk health-wise, but to blame them for costing you in medical bills is despicable. It's discrimination in its worst form.

It blows my mind that it's widely acceptable to put down a person because they're at more of a risk due to their weight. It's not acceptable to put down the mentally handicapped or people with cancer, so why obese people? Yes, you can control your habits, but that doesn't mean that they're entirely responsible for your weight. They're just PART of the equation. If eating habits were the sole reason for obesity, I'd be overweight, and even a greater majority of the population would be obese. So to shame obese people is to shove off all the blame of a widespread problem on a select number of people—the ones who happen to suffer the worst effects. That's just cruel. They're already paying more than anyone else for what society as a whole contributes to. Why add insult to injury?

If you're really concerned about obesity taking from your bank account, learn to see yourself, as a member of society, as part of the problem. Stop thinking that "they" are draining your bank account with their health problems. Instead of using obese people as a scapegoat, shift the focus from obesity to better overall health for everyone, regardless of weight. I promise you that will be 10x more effective. Why obsess over *one* symptom of an unhealthy lifestyle instead of treating the cause, and trying to improve overall health?

I was not born obese, but I don't ever remember a time I wasn't fighting my weight. I was never thin. We moved around a lot when I was in school and I was always the new fat kid. It does not help your weight when you are afraid to join in sports because you will be made fun of. I am short and later figured out I have PCOS which makes you tend to have abdominal fat. I am now at a healthy weight and I have figured out how to eat healthy. But it wasn't and isn't easy. I am a college educated health professional, still it has been a struggle. I have very bad genetics on both sides. I have never binged, never ate much sweet stuff, never ate a lot of cookies and candy. No matter what anybody says it is not a simple math equation. Your body is much more complicated than that. There are lost of emotional and physical reasons that people are over weight. Being made fun of and made to feel bad only adds fuel to the fire. And now that I have lost the weight, I get lots of comments about being too thin. Considering my BMI  is still 25 (technically I am still .5 lb overweight) that of course is not true. I will say that those remarks do not hurt my feelings, I actually thing it is funny. I know for a fact that I am in this struggle for the rest of my life. Due to my age and size I will never be able to eat over about 1700 calories (and that will be only with a lot of exercise). I know right now things could happen that would make it nearly impossible to maintain. I could have to go on steroids for example. I actually liked the article. I think this has been an interesting discussion. Makes me think of all the articles in nursing journals about experienced nurses being so hard on new nurses. I read one time that was due to the feelings of powerlessness in nursing. I hope that those of us who have felt that discrimination will at least be a little less judgmental of people we know nothing about, except for their size.

Original Post by: wb71452

No one has ever gotten sick or died from my "second-hand fat."

Nope.

However, obesity adds 190 billion dollars in unneeded medical bills per year that WE ALL have to pay for. So, you think you are just hurting yourself when you stuff your face until you get Type 2 Diabetes, but everyone else has to pay for your negligence and irresponsibility with high costs of healthcare.

I was thin for most of my life, but the past few years I have been overweight or obese.  I'm in relatively good shape; I go to the doctor regularly, and I exercise plenty.  And I understand there are people who are born with bigger frames or who have thyroid or metabolism disorders that make weight loss not an option, but by and large I agree with people who don't like this article because it flirts with the idea of justification, of blaming others.  I know why I have so much extra weight.  I try to eat healthy, but when I eat too much, I make poor food decisions.  I binge; I haven't in a while, but I used to binge almost everyday.  And then I felt bad about gaining fat and failing myself, so I binged some more.  And I'm trying to deal with that and embrace a healthy lifestyle.

 

However, for the most part, I don't think there should be a fat acceptance movement.  I don't think we should be openly mocked or criticized, and I don't think that others have the right to decide if a person at ANY weight is healthy or unhealthy.  However, a typical obese person WILL have health concerns that a typical thin person won't.  The majority of the obese population shouldn't be obese.  It doesn't make us bad or weak; however, we shouldn't pat ourselves on the back and tell other people to deal with it.  I know I am not healthy as I could be.  I can walk for miles, but I can barely jog a mile.  I cannot run fast.  I am putting undue strain on my joints.  My balance is not as sharp as it once was.  These weren't problems when I was thin.  My uncles are overweight, and they developed diabetes II.  They didn't have it when they were thinner, and when they manage to lose weight, their diabetes symptoms go away.  Then they gain the weight back, and presto!  Diabetes.

 

And saying that you see more thin people in an ER -- well, that's completely illogical.  First, there are more thin people walking around than obese, so there should be more thin people in the ER.  If 30% of the population is obese, but they only account for 40% of the ER room, they're still accounting for more than their share of the ER population.  Furthermore, an ER is often for accidents.  Anyone can fall down and break their arm.  Anyone can get in a car accident.  You could even make the argument that thin people are more accident-prone because they're the crazies who go rock-climbing or parasailing or some other dangerous exercise activities.  Finally, even if the ER was filled with exclusively thin people, it wouldn't matter.  The bulk of medical costs come from medicines and procedures.  An ER visit can be expensive, but it's the medications and medical attention required for cholesterol, diabetes, cardiovascular function, and all the other diseases that, yes, lots of thin people are afflicted with, but that MOST obese people suffer from, that make up the bulk of the bills that everyone has to pay for.  If 30% of the average population has a disease and 80% of the obese population has a disease, it isn't fair to make the everyone pay an equal share of that.  Plug in the numbers.  Say there are 120 people total.  There are 94 average people, and 28 of them have a disease that costs $5 to treat.  That leaves 24 obese people, of which 19 have that $5 disease.  Is it fair to say to the average people, "Okay, your insurance costs have to go up because we have to pay for this $5 disease"?  The medical costs incurred by the 20% of the obese population are over 2/3 that of the average population ($95 compared to $140).  They are accounting for a disproportionate amount of healthcare.  That's not discrimination; that's math.  Employers and health insurance companies are allowed to do it to smokers, too; if you smoke, you pay more in health insurance premiums, or you may be overlooked for a job if the boss is really looking to cut corners and there is a similar applicant who doesn't smoke and create extra costs.  Because smoking is bad for you body, just like obesity.

The difference between obesity and other forms of discrimination is that the obese can change.  Eat better, exercise more; you won't become catwalk model thin (would you really want to?), but you'll be healthier and wearing pants that don't have an elastic band.  You can't decide to change your race, or your sexual orientation, or your age or religion, or whether you have cancer or a mental handicap.  But you can make healthy decisions in your life and eventually you won't be obese anymore.  Discrimination solved.  And I think if all the people who are obese but shouldn't be lost the weight, the few left who honestly could not control it due to hormones or illness, would be better accepted, because average people wouldn't seemingly be surrounded by enormous people who do eat a lot and then say, "I have a gland problem" or who order 2 Big Macs and a diet Coke.

Many, MANY people are obese for the exact reason people assume they are. And in my experience medical conditions/disabilities came well after weight gain started. Some weight gain is caused from genetics and other from medications I agree but the fact is people sterio type obese people because the majority of them (if not all) that they know have horrible eating habits and low levels of activity....or consume many, Many calories through beverage. I'm sure this will piss plenty of people off and that's fine. After my third child I was overweight still am but after four more lbs. I wont be any more....I'll be on the high end of acceptable but...I'll be done with overweight at the very least. I have completely changed my eating and watch my friends and (extended) family just consume and consume. Soda, chips, gobs of cream and sugar in their coffee, salads dripping with ranch dressing, mounds of French fries, ordering three large pizzas for a family of four and killing them, cookies ice cream, triple the serving size of birthday cake.....it's crazy. Right now it's graduation time, and summer is coming. Everyone, will have the perfect oppertunity to watch ppl eat at BBQ's and diffrent gatherings. Take a look around you. I mean really LOOK. We all know how many calories is in just a hot dog with no bun....imagen eating THREE BBQ hotdogs with buns and all the sides and fixings and washing that down with soda or beer and then comes the cake. I agree there are people who have conditions but they ARE the exception not the rule. You start watching what people put on their plates.....then think about how they spend their time and you will see why the stigma is out there. I have tried numerous times to get people to look at the package of what they are eating....and they look and then shrug it off. I'm not trying to be mean. These are nice people, GOOD people and it hurts to know what strangers may think of them. Because, they are not nasty and they don't go home and eat everything in the fridge, they just like to freaking eat or they are depressed because they are fat or they get lonely and eat....but it's WHAT they are eating that causes the problem. And, outside of complaining about being fat I haven't noticed that they really actually care to alter their lifestyle enough to make a diffrence.

Original Post by: ostromkurt

Original Post by: wb71452

No one has ever gotten sick or died from my "second-hand fat."

Nope.

However, obesity adds 190 billion dollars in unneeded medical bills per year that WE ALL have to pay for. So, you think you are just hurting yourself when you stuff your face until you get Type 2 Diabetes, but everyone else has to pay for your negligence and irresponsibility with high costs of healthcare.

Wow, I think you are on the wrong website, chum. So much hatred and anger!

"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."-Dr.Seuss