Should we stop calling people 'overweight'?
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I don't see a problem with using the terms "overweight" and "obese", so long as the measurements used to come to such conclusions aren't arbitrary and the person they're directed at is obviously overweight or obese due to excess amounts of fat. I.e. a doctor shouldn't tell someone they're overweight or obese because their BMI is quite high due to a lot of muscle mass as opposed to a lot of fat.
I think most people who have been called overweight or obese by a doctor know deep down that it is true, even if they're trying to deny it - people should be confronted by the fact that they are overweight or obese. I don't understand the political correctness surrounding those terms; yes it hurts when someone tells you that you're overweight, but you probably already know that yourself anyways.
Though, having said that, some allowances should be made for children - it's no use telling a child that they're fat/overweight/obese and then proceeding to do nothing to help them overcome that problem; children aren't really equipped to lose the weight themselves.
I agree with this^^
Let's be delicate but honest where children are concerned.....As for adults, lets face it, if your overweight, obese, morbidly obese. You most likely know this already.
I would not take a Dr seriously that said to me: Smiley, your pleasantly plump and there's just more of you to love. Now let's see what we can do abotu it........At some point being PC is just too much.0 -
We shouldn't be sugarcoating things (pun intended), the first step to solving a problem is recognising the problem.0
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I would not take a Dr seriously that said to me: Smiley, your pleasantly plump and there's just more of you to love. Now let's see what we can do abotu it........At some point being PC is just too much.
Love this ^^ !!0 -
I think it indicates an important risk factor that should be noticed, the same way you include genetic disposition, race, smoking, drinking, etc.
That said, as a ridiculously healthy overweight person I do not think my insurance premiums should go up. I work REALLY hard to be healthy and have a spectacularly hard time losing weight. However, in the civilian world, if I want to get certain things done they will cost me more because I am fat and it makes me sad. I know so many people who don't qualify as overweight who don't put any work into their health and eat horrible quantities of horrible foods, drink, smoke, and can barely walk up the stairs.
Sucks.
not being mean but what does "ridiculously healthy overweight person " mean? good blood pressure? good cholesterol? my understanding is that being over weight causes more stress on the body which makes it work harder which makes it and its systems not last as long therefore an overweight person is more likely to need medical help at some point earlier than a person not over weight. How can anyone be ridiculously healthy if they are over weight?0 -
I'm very much against doctor censorship. It's a shame we have to tap-dance as a public, but when doctors can't be straight with their patients, health is at risk.0
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No! It is what it is. I wholeheartedly refused to sugar-coat it so it can be more "acceptable". That's ludicrous.
"Oh, no, you're not overweight or obese..!" Then they may subconsciously feel it's okay to shovel down a plate of bacon cheese fries? I don't f**king think so.
Truth hurts.. But people need to accept it and make the change.
Changing terminology isn't going to solve the problem. It's only going to make it worse.0 -
lolohmygod.
Political correctness gone way too effing far. Next we'll all be talking newspeak.
"You are un-thin"0 -
Hell no. I'm a nurse and I don't believe in being dishonest with my patients. Then people will want to sue when their family member dies of a related disease caused by the weight bc they weren't educated.0
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I'm pretty sure it's all the fat that causes the negative body image and self-esteem, not the word used to describe it. We could call it "flibbitysnark" and I'd still know that you meant I look like I just ate the guy standing next to me. :laugh:0
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We are living in a world where people can't say anything to anyone for fear of "hurting their feelings." It's kind of pathetic, I mean, when did we become such pansies?
No, we should not stop calling people overweight. That's what they are. That's the nicer way of calling a spade a spade without getting "mean." I mean, what else would you call people?0 -
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No point in sugercoating the truth. It doesn't help anyone.0
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not being mean but what does "ridiculously healthy overweight person " mean? good blood pressure? good cholesterol? my understanding is that being over weight causes more stress on the body which makes it work harder which makes it and its systems not last as long therefore an overweight person is more likely to need medical help at some point earlier than a person not over weight. How can anyone be ridiculously healthy if they are over weight?
Great bloodwork all around, great blood pressure, resting heartrate of under 60. No smoking, no drinking, limited crappy eating, high lean body mass, great bone density, great flexibility/range of motion. Being overweight is your body's way of storing extra nutrients, it's quite efficient at it if you live an active and healthy lifestyle. That's why normal weight people who are inactive are unhealthy as well and suffer from obesity related diseases. I have family who are older, and similarly fat and healthy so it's not just my youth. There are also lots of studies on it, the problem is it's just not as common to find people who are overweight who enjoy being active and healthful. Most people like to drink, smoke, eat junk, and sit on the couch. When you're fat and you do that, you just get an extra dose of suck.0 -
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Um, no.
Keep calling people what they are.0 -
Absolutely - most people (incl me) are offended by what they know to be true but don't want to face up to nor hear.0 -
No.0
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Its just more sissfying of the world,seriously people we are turning into a world of crybabies that can not even handle the cirtisim of strangers0
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As a fat person. I think I need to hear the word fat once in a while... just to remind me that, you know... I'm fat.0
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"Fitness Challenged" would be a good term....0
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Hey, "overweight" and "obese" are better than "fatso", which is usually the preferred word among school children. At least that's what I used to hear. Now THAT is a self-esteem killer!
I do not think physicians should avoid using the "overweight" and "obese". Those are the clinical terms and it shouldn't be sugar-coated. I think more harmful for self-esteem is the negative way in which overweight people are portrayed by the media. Just as I was reading these posts, one of the local newstations in my area started airing a story regarding whether your co-workers are making you fat. To illustrate their story, they showed footage of close-ups of prominent parts of anatomy (you can guess which ones) of random overweight people just walking down the street. Now I'm familiar enough with where that newstation is located and the surrounding area because I used to work nearby, so I know that these are just innocent people going about their business. Part of me still clenches up in panic, wondering if my *kitten* was ever featured in a shot by this TV station.0 -
Lol, some people need to get their feelings hurt to realize what position they are really in! I swear there are so many out there that really don't think they are overweight because they compare themselves to obese people!
It's one thing to maliciously degrade someone's self esteem with blatant disrespectful overweight and obese comments. It's another if you're being honest to help them.
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Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
I don't care about doctors using those terms as long as they are accurate and not based on BMI alone. I also expect that a doctor be specific about what kinds of health risks i would no longer be at risk of if i lost weight and how much weight that should be. The amount that i pay for a 20 minute checkup i expect more than "you are perfectly healthy by every test i have done, however based on the most crude calculation possible, and without asking a single question about your diet or exercise habits, you should lose weight because it will reduce your risk if getting unspecified illnesses."
This exactly. I do think though that more care needs to be taken about language choices when dealing with children, especially in a classroom setting where there is a going to be a range of ages/physical development/body types. The bell curve is not only applicable to academics! At least in primary classes, the focus should surely be on healthy eating and an active lifestyle rather than classifying/stigmatising individuals? If there is a serious concern, it should be privately addressed with the parents, not by publicly labeling the child him or her self.0 -
Just a thought, but maybe instead of avoiding anything that might offend someone and hurt their fragile little egos, we teach people to be able to handle criticism in a healthy manner?
I was bullied as a kid - a very skinny kid with jack o'lantern teeth and coke bottle glasses who wore hand-me-downs - and it sucked, but... it made me a stronger person. It made me realize two things: If someone said something that hurt my feelings, it was either because there was something that I felt was wrong with me and I wanted to change, or that the people saying those things were just mean stupid people... and what did I care what mean stupid people thought about me?!0 -
I'd rather have my ego crushed than be overweight. (as an adult)
I thought I was a typical American up at 250 lbs. Nope. I was a fat piece of crap on his way to heart attack city. Don't sugar coat it, its just going to taste better.
Words may hurt, but I bet that artery blockage is going to be a lot worse. now if someone called my kid a name, I'd more than likely end up with an assault charge.0 -
Just a thought, but maybe instead of avoiding anything that might offend someone and hurt their fragile little egos, we teach people to be able to handle criticism in a healthy manner?
I was bullied as a kid - a very skinny kid with jack o'lantern teeth and coke bottle glasses who wore hand-me-downs - and it sucked, but... it made me a stronger person. It made me realize two things: If someone said something that hurt my feelings, it was either because there was something that I felt was wrong with me and I wanted to change, or that the people saying those things were just mean stupid people... and what did I care what mean stupid people thought about me?!
Good for you, I worry too much about what people think of me. More so my friends and family than people I don't know. Pleased it's made you stonger :drinker:0 -
Its called SELF-esteem cause it's your own SELF's responsibility and having no one damage it is not your human right.
Strengthening it is your personal responsibility.
Especially if you have children and people who look up to you. If everyone avoids telling you the truth so they dont hurt your feelers, then humans are going to walk around vulnerable, expecting everyone else to always protect them instead of actually investing in their own resilience and sense of self as their armor against unhealthy influences.
Having a doctor tell you that you have allowed yourself to fall so far from the healthy mark that you've become obese and put your organs in danger and shortened your lifespan (or at least the length of your existence with a good quality of life) is not a toxic influence that your sense of self needs to deflect at all costs.
THATS WHEN YOURE SUPPOSED TO OPEN YOUR EYES AND LISTEN or cover your ears and prove just how selfish you are.
But its got jack to do with self-esteem.
Your self-esteem = your problem. No one can give it to you, build it for you, expand it, demand it, crush it, pump it up or solidify it for you.
Everyone out there is a influence, an action or an event. You react.
Get a stronger body and a stronger spirit and quit whining about what words people use. Prove youre no coddled little over-sensitive baby.0 -
Crazy talk! The most important thing in life is not offending anyone's delicate sensibilities, ever. Truth be damned!Just a thought, but maybe instead of avoiding anything that might offend someone and hurt their fragile little egos, we teach people to be able to handle criticism in a healthy manner?
This idea seems insane to me. Every single adjective on the planet will eventually be deemed "insensitive" or "politically incorrect" ... and then we'll come up with new ones and the cycle will start again. We're never going to run out of ways to exercise meanness, and it's almost comical that some keep trying.
As far as children go, why wouldn't doctors be addressing the parents instead, anyway? If it's a 16-year-old kid, he or she is already aware of their obesity, and if they have been so poorly equipped as to take offense when a doctor points it out in concern over his/her health, well, the word "overweight" is hardly, then, the problem.
I am overweight. I wouldn't put it on a t-shirt or anything, but it's currently a fact. Being unable to acknowledge facts about oneself is pretty seriously unhealthy, don't you think?0 -
So, we stop calling them overweight or obese and what? Replace it with Fat across the board? Or Festively Plump to be nicer about it? When it comes from a medical professional, you should have the good sense to realise they're just doing their job.
People need to learn to deal with the real world; not everything said about you that isn't positively flowing with rainbows and unicorns is necessarily criticism or a personal attack and is sometimes just the truth. Younger people especially are growing up to be far too sensitive to negativity because it's gradually being phased out of every aspect of their life. You can't even fail at school any more, even if you never turn up. It's ridiculous.0 -
Sorry, my post above was not an angry rant (despite the brief caps)... it was me pleading with the many people who go through life thinking its time to remove everything offensive from the planet so as to avoid anyone having self-esteem issues.0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRGBoO9tmAk
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