Bound to be controversial

Merkavar

So... Healthy at every size

I keep hearing and seeing people talk about being healthy while being fat, overweight or obese.

I can inderstand being healthy while a bit fat but it seems fat and health have a negative correlation.

So am I wrong in thinking that you can't be healthy while very over weight? It just seems logical to me that more fat equal less healthy.

But healthy at every size people seem to be common. Maybe my thinking is outdated.

So healthy at any size... Yay or nay?

SezxyStef

define healthy....

I do not think people who are overweight/obese can be healthy...

They are a whole list of aliments that come with being overweight/obese that are not present (unless genetic) in lower weight individuals.

But again...Healthy at every size...reverse it.

Do you think people who strive for underweight are healthy? Anorexics?

No one would ever say they were healthy but that is what this HAES movement is implying.

larali1980

Some people are bigger people, and that is OK. But fitness and a lower body fat percentage is important for overall health, I think.

TavistockToad

Merkavar wrote: »

So... Healthy at every size

I keep hearing and seeing people talk about being healthy while being fat, overweight or obese.

I can inderstand being healthy while a bit fat but it seems fat and health have a negative correlation.

So am I wrong in thinking that you can't be healthy while very over weight? It just seems logical to me that more fat equal less healthy.

But healthy at every size people seem to be common. Maybe my thinking is outdated.

So healthy at any size... Yay or nay?

nay. you can be healthy and still be overweight, but there comes a time when, as you say, fat and health have a negative correlation. exactly where that line is though, I'm not qualified to say!

999tigger

Its realtive. I'd agree with toad in that you can be overweight and healthy just as you can be normal weight and unhelathy, but as toad points out its where you draw the line. Its unlikely you cna be obese and healthy becayse the very nature of being obese puts you in a different risk group.

If you define what you mean by healthy then that gives you an objective test and everything else becomes clear.

RodaRose

Eating well, feeling good, being healthy, . . . all of that is dependent on many individual factors that we cannot know from looking at the person.

Merkavar

I guess healthy is a bit to subjective.

For one it could be running a half marathon and for another it could be not being in hospital.

bubaluboo

n=1 I know but if i stray to the top end of my BMI, my joints tell me and I seize. So for me, no I cannot be healthy at any size. However, say a rugby playing woman (sorry sweeping generalization) is likely to be larger (BMI wise) and much fitter than me. Everyone will have their own healthy range so you can't put a number on it but there has to be an upper and lower limit where the impact is detrimental for each person.

fidangul

If obesity is widely defined by BMI calculations. However, there are now concerns with that calculation. I've been reading up on it and the idea of hight and weight correlation doesn't necessarily equal to healthy or unhealthy.

I saw this one image where all the persons had the exact same BMI , that made them healthy (supposedly) but they all had very very very different body images. There was an extremely lean image, skinny image, beer belly image, fat image etc. how do you compare? A person who's been building up muscle can fall into obese range. A person with a small frame but excess fat can fall into a healthy range.

My children are tall for their age compared to their peers.bAnd they are considered overweight by the health visitor just because on the chart they go up above the line. If they dont have fat to lose what do they want me to do chop off a limb.

Very difficult to determine. I think that What is healthy or unhealthy is different for every individual. Genetics cannot be brought down to a short working out. But hey that's what we're told and that's what we follow.

professionalHobbyist

It is part of the thinking that gives every football team in youth league a trophy.

Everyone is a winner, even if you lost every game

It also feels like an extension of PC.

No it is not true or even remotely healthy.

Nonsense

999tigger

Both of you fail to take into account that BMI is just one measure of weight used for general populations. You misunderstand BMI. It is not and never claimed to be a definitive measure of health.

So no its not controversial and toad pointed out the relevant issue.

zyxst

ncboiler89

Merkavar wrote: »

I can inderstand being healthy while a bit fat but it seems fat and health have a negative correlation.

It does

Merkavar wrote: »

So am I wrong in thinking that you can't be healthy while very over weight? It just seems logical to me that more fat equal less healthy.

Healthy is subjective however in the context which I believe you are thinking I can see overweight and even obese people being healthy for a period of time. I was considered obese by bmi standards although no one the knows me in real life ever would have considered me that. Overweight yes but not obese. I was very healthy but I wasn't kidding myself by believing I would remain that way staying at the bmi I was at.

fidangul

I was considered obese by bmi standards although no one the knows me in real life ever would have considered me that. Overweight yes but not obese. I was very healthy but I wasn't kidding myself by believing I would remain that way staying at the bmi I was at.
[/quote]


Same here! No one can ever guess or say that I was obese.

msf74

Whilst you can be "healthy" whilst obese the statistical likelihood is greater that you won't be in comparison to being normal weight.

I think HAES movement really should be more about AAES - acceptance at any size.

stevencloser

You can be fat and healthy, the same as one can be a smoker and healthy. You might not have any of the associated health risks right now, and you might never get them, but the risk of getting them is much higher than for someone who is not fat (or not a smoker). Do you consider that healthy or not, that's up to you.

iamabeetle

You can be healthy and be overweight but it depends on your definition of health.

I'm 184kg. Medically, there is nothing wrong me. I don't have diabetes, cholesterol problems, heart problems etc... I'm lucky. I know if I kept my unhealthy lifestyle up I wouldn't be so lucky. I go to the gym 5 times a week and eat well.

My fitness levels are increasing every day and I could kick a lot of people's butt at the gym.

I feel healthier every day and I base this on the fact I know what it felt like to be u healthy for several years. I was 243kg at one point. That was not a good place but I have worked hard to get where I am and shall continue to do so

yarwell

Dr Christian Jessen says "no" when asked this - overweight leads to health deterioration in the long term.

professionalHobbyist

msf74 wrote: »

Whilst you can be "healthy" whilst obese the statistical likelihood is greater that you won't be in comparison to being normal weight.

I think HAES movement really should be more about AAES - acceptance at any size.

That is what it is all about!

BMI is no determinant of a persons worth or value as a person.

The concept of beauty being tied to worth runs deep and can be very destructive

SezxyStef

professionalHobbyist wrote: »

msf74 wrote: »

Whilst you can be "healthy" whilst obese the statistical likelihood is greater that you won't be in comparison to being normal weight.

I think HAES movement really should be more about AAES - acceptance at any size.

That is what it is all about!

BMI is no determinant of a persons worth or value as a person.

The concept of beauty being tied to worth runs deep and can be very destructive

no it's not...it's about saying it's fine to be any size when in fact it's not.

if you think this is true again let me say it has to apply to anorexics too then and doctors and family are no longer allowed to put them in special care for it...just let them be

TavistockToad

professionalHobbyist wrote: »

msf74 wrote: »

Whilst you can be "healthy" whilst obese the statistical likelihood is greater that you won't be in comparison to being normal weight.

I think HAES movement really should be more about AAES - acceptance at any size.

That is what it is all about!

BMI is no determinant of a persons worth or value as a person.

The concept of beauty being tied to worth runs deep and can be very destructive

BMI is not a determinant of a persons worth or value, but it is, when looking at populations, a determinant of health.

999tigger

Merkavar wrote: »

So... Healthy at every size

I keep hearing and seeing people talk about being healthy while being fat, overweight or obese.

I can inderstand being healthy while a bit fat but it seems fat and health have a negative correlation.

So am I wrong in thinking that you can't be healthy while very over weight? It just seems logical to me that more fat equal less healthy.

But healthy at every size people seem to be common. Maybe my thinking is outdated.

So healthy at any size... Yay or nay?

Why not start by defining what you mean by healthy?

You are getting confused with.
1. A heathy weight using BMI as a defining standard. BMI is just a general population measure, that is not perfect and uses only one measurement of weight. Its not bad, but its not perfect either.

2. Being considered to be healthy by a different definition, which covers more thna just how much you weigh. A wider definition would cover such things as physical health, how good shape you are in, biological health, free from disease etc. On this basis its possible to be the correct weight but have all sorts of diseases or be unfit or conversely slightly overweight, but be fit and free from diseases. It would also cover mental health.

3. It still remains a fact that all things being equal that being overweight and especially obese is by its nature unhealthy and puts you at risk of more complications immediately and in later life.

allaboutthecake

Try to look at the body from the inside-out....what does the blood look like? Full of triglycerides? How hard does the heart have to work? Is there layers of fat suffocating the organs? Are all the organs functioning properly? Is the electrolytes and hormones all under control? Is there a medical professional telling you to do something different about your lifestyle?

Unknown

This content has been removed.

Whitezombiegirl

I've seen obese women who are stronger and fitter than me at half their weight and body fat-so it's possible to be fat and healthy.

rosebette

I think people have to distinguish between "overweight" and "obese." There are many people who are slightly overweight who are just over the top level of normal BMI. In fact, many doctors now feel that older people (over 60) who are at around a 26 are healthier than those at the low end of normal. Also, some people who are "overweight" by the BMI charts actually have higher muscle mass and bone density than others. When someone is obese == that's a different story. I don't think someone can be in the obese category and not be subject to obesity related illnesses down the road. My husband was healthy high BMI overweight toward obese for many years, but once he hit 45, the diabetes set in.

dramaqueen45

shell1005 wrote: »

I do think it is relative. If HAES didn't go for fringe tactics, I could support their line of thinking. I could also support them if they also would at least admit that if someone who is obese loses weight that they would most likely become more healthy.

I do think there are a lot of assumptions about health about those who are overweight and not all those are always reality. I have always been very active even when I was overweight/obese. I do a walk for hunger every year which is a 20 mile walk. I have done it when 200+ lbs and done it at 150 lbs. I know many people at a normal body weight who are not able to finish it. I've never not finished it. However, I also accept and admit that when I did the walk this year at a more normal body weight that it was much easier on my body and the recovery time was a lot less. Why? Because I was lighter and healthier. HAES would confront that and say it wasn't true. It is true. I also accept that while I got regular check ups and blood works from my doctors when I was obese and they said I was in fine and good health that I was at increased risk for health problems in the future if I remained at the weight I was at. I do believe that someone can be overweight and be healthy, but I also believe it is a ticking time bomb.

Totally agree. I also believe that someone can be very unhealthy and appear to be normal weight or even underweight. I have known people with very high cholesterol (due to genetics) and were very thin. There are also people with genetic heart problems who are also normal weight. We tend to see overweight people and assume they deal with health issues, which may or may not be the case; and we tend to see thin people and assume that they are healthy and fit- again may or may not be true.

lisaabenjamin

I think if you're overweight/obese and maintain a healthy lifestyle (e.g. but not limited to: eating within your recommended calorie intake, getting the recommended vitamins and minerals from your diet, exercising for the recommended amount of time and intensity, etc)... then you won't be overweight for too much longer.

lisaabenjamin

Whitezombiegirl wrote: »

I've seen obese women who are stronger and fitter than me at half their weight and body fat-so it's possible to be fat and healthy.

I disagree that "stronger and fitter" = "healthy". Doing "healthy things" or even being good at healthy things doesn't mean you are healthy overall.

FloralBlossom

So I was once overweight. Not obese by any means but I was over weight and definitely not healthy. Every doctor I went to came in the room and told me I had to lose weight. With that being said I was also anorexic. I was really ill before I gained a lot of weight and was put into a hospital and I was recently put into a hospital in May due to complications from my eating disorder. My potassium level was so low they were shocked I hadn't gone into cardiac arrest. You're heart can give up on you if you're underweight or overweight. So no, I don't think you can be healthy at any weight. Now my BMI is in the 20-21 range and I'm actually medically healthy at this weight and size.

karyabc

Nah i think you are seeing things to black and white and there is a lot of shades of gray in it.

like for example ,Are u familiar with the term metabolically healthy obesity? The american society of endocrinologist have refer about it a lot

Normal bmi= healthy 100%? , as someone who works in a health enviroment you"ll be suprise how that doesnt always works that way.