Fat Acceptance

mcrowe1016

Just taking a quick poll of opinions on the Fat Acceptance movement.

While I don't think that anyone should be discriminated against based on size, I also don't believe that living at an unhealthy weight should be considered ok.

I was reading the website and found this quote
"Scientific studies show that the majority of people cannot achieve long-term sustainable weight loss. Under no circumstance is discrimination based on size or weight of one's body ever acceptable." (http://www.naafaonline.com/dev2/education/faq.html)

The first sentence hit a nerve with me.

What are your opinions about the Fat Acceptance movement?

Rocbola

For me, it's like smoking acceptance. I have been fat about half of my life, and i firmly believe that being fat is a CHOICE, just like walking around with the health consequences of smoking cigarettes is a choice. I was never forced to eat any of the pizzas or cheeseburgers that i ate to get me fat.

fiveohmike

I dont agree with it at all. Its just lack of responsibility in ones life (there are certain conditions that cause it).

For me. I know exactly why I am fat. 10 years of drinking and partying. Once I rectified that and got my life in order I started to lose weight.

I believe the fat acceptance movement will hurt our future children if they think its ok to be fat. Long term sustainable weight loss is 100% possible, but requires discipline. You dont have to starve yourself on a 1200 calorie diet. You can eat 2k calories a day and lose weight, maintain weight ect, you just dont want to do it with McD's.

I dont have respect for fat people (myself included a couple of years ago) that complain about being fat and do nothing about it.

People who do something about it, and are trying to make the change are the ones I respect.

This whole movement towards equality is kind of absurd as no one in this world is truly equal. There is always someone who is fatter than you, skinnier than you , prettier then you, uglier than you and smarter than you or dumber than you.

The Fat Acceptance movement is just dumbing down the country even further, to make everyone "equal"

piinchi

A person is more than their weight. They have thoughts, feelings, desires, and emotions just like a skinny person. To me, "fat acceptance" isn't saying being fat is healthy, or ideal, or idolized. Its accepting that the adjective "fat" isn't the sole defining characteristic of a person. Fat people deal with a lot of assumptions made about them - they're lazy, dumb, slow, low-class. You see a person, and judge them immediately, simply because of their weight. That is unfair, and dehumanizing. We all have an inner life that lives on regardless of how our exterior appears.

Fat people know they're fat. They're not blind. To me, fat acceptance is recognizing the person within the person, and treating them with the same humanity we should treat all others. Be kind, as everyone is carrying within them a struggle.

Awkward30

I'm torn between my strong belief that everyone should be comfortable in their own skin and love themselves as they are and my equally firm belief that people should try to be healthy. Not necessarily a BMI determined weight, but an active person who makes an effort to eat more fruits and veggies and less packaged stuff.

Nobody should be discriminated against, but they also shouldn't use excuses to become complacent with an unhealthy life.

small_ninja

I almost see it as encouraging people to live at an unhealthy weight :ohwell:

I know why I'm overweight - a lifetime of bad eating habits, and that's on me (though maybe you can assign a tiny bit of blame on my parents) - and it's up to me to take responsibility for it and then do something about it.

Also, some discrimination is kind of necessary - i.e. insurance premiums; it makes sense to charge overweight people higher premiums because they're more likely to run into health related problems.

focus4fitness

A person is more than their weight. They have thoughts, feelings, desires, and emotions just like a skinny person. To me, "fat acceptance" isn't saying being fat is healthy, or ideal, or idolized. Its accepting that the adjective "fat" isn't the sole defining characteristic of a person. Fat people deal with a lot of assumptions made about them - they're lazy, dumb, slow, low-class. You see a person, and judge them immediately, simply because of their weight. That is unfair, and dehumanizing. We all have an inner life that lives on regardless of how our exterior appears.

Fat people know they're fat. They're not blind. To me, fat acceptance is recognizing the person within the person, and treating them with the same humanity we should treat all others. Be kind, as everyone is carrying within them a struggle.

ITA well said.

jerknoir

Everyone, please step back and repeat after me.

Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy. Not all fat people are unhealthy.

Continue repeating until you get it through your head.

SweetSammie

A person is more than their weight. They have thoughts, feelings, desires, and emotions just like a skinny person. To me, "fat acceptance" isn't saying being fat is healthy, or ideal, or idolized. Its accepting that the adjective "fat" isn't the sole defining characteristic of a person. Fat people deal with a lot of assumptions made about them - they're lazy, dumb, slow, low-class. You see a person, and judge them immediately, simply because of their weight. That is unfair, and dehumanizing. We all have an inner life that lives on regardless of how our exterior appears.

Fat people know they're fat. They're not blind. To me, fat acceptance is recognizing the person within the person, and treating them with the same humanity we should treat all others. Be kind, as everyone is carrying within them a struggle.

I agree.
It is MY CHOICE to lose weight right now. If I didn't, I'm still the same person.
I know that obesity has many negative health correlations, but some people engage in other behaviors which have equally negative health correlations with no external evidence of that.

My parents eat the same way. My mom is obese, my dad is not (looks quite fit for a man in his mid-fifties). He has high blood pressure, she does not. He has a bad back (slipped disc) and knees (sports). She does not. He does very little physically. She had to pass a fairly intensive physical test to get her job (running up and down stairs carrying weighted boxes, lifting, bending (and does this for her job).
Maybe they're the exception... but there ARE exceptions. To judge someone purely on their external appearance if faulty, whether you are judging their health, intelligence level, income level, level of education, or any other INTERNAL factor.

In my opinion fat people are some of the few people it is politically correct to mock.

ployjoy

Fat people know they're fat. They're not blind. To me, fat acceptance is recognizing the person within the person, and treating them with the same humanity we should treat all others. Be kind, as everyone is carrying within them a struggle.

Aptly put. Body acceptance is something that most should overall strive to achieve. It does not imply listlessness in one's current condition, but rather the negating of collective cultural assumptions (be it weight related, or otherwise). I know many people that strangers would hastily judge as "fat", but these are people who could probably outrun and outlift them!

abberbabber

A person is more than their weight. They have thoughts, feelings, desires, and emotions just like a skinny person. To me, "fat acceptance" isn't saying being fat is healthy, or ideal, or idolized. Its accepting that the adjective "fat" isn't the sole defining characteristic of a person. Fat people deal with a lot of assumptions made about them - they're lazy, dumb, slow, low-class. You see a person, and judge them immediately, simply because of their weight. That is unfair, and dehumanizing. We all have an inner life that lives on regardless of how our exterior appears.

Fat people know they're fat. They're not blind. To me, fat acceptance is recognizing the person within the person, and treating them with the same humanity we should treat all others. Be kind, as everyone is carrying within them a struggle.

QFT

Pinky67

For me, it's like smoking acceptance. I have been fat about half of my life, and i firmly believe that being fat is a CHOICE, just like walking around with the health consequences of smoking cigarettes is a choice. I was never forced to eat any of the pizzas or cheeseburgers that i ate to get me fat.

^^^^Agreed!

Lea_8D

A person is more than their weight. They have thoughts, feelings, desires, and emotions just like a skinny person. To me, "fat acceptance" isn't saying being fat is healthy, or ideal, or idolized. Its accepting that the adjective "fat" isn't the sole defining characteristic of a person. Fat people deal with a lot of assumptions made about them - they're lazy, dumb, slow, low-class. You see a person, and judge them immediately, simply because of their weight. That is unfair, and dehumanizing. We all have an inner life that lives on regardless of how our exterior appears.

Fat people know they're fat. They're not blind. To me, fat acceptance is recognizing the person within the person, and treating them with the same humanity we should treat all others. Be kind, as everyone is carrying within them a struggle.

^^The voice of reason and compassion.

fiveohmike

I think people are not reading the site.

Its saying society should change for obese and super obese people.

Should a transit company have to build bigger buses for people that weight 300lbs plus?
Should airlines have to make seats bigger for 300lbs +

Also they are saying people cannot control themselves so regulations should be imposed to force people to accept everything

Its a crock of ****. I am not saying discriminating against fat people should be tolerated, but forcing society to accommodate them is not the way to go about it.

Its just another way to dumb down america any way you slice it. There cannot be a gap between people economically or physically so the government and special interests groups will try and close that gap by putting an upper limit on what someone can do/think.

StarkLark

"Scientific studies show that the majority of people cannot achieve long-term sustainable weight loss. Under no circumstance is discrimination based on size or weight of one's body ever acceptable."

If that's what the studies show, then perhaps it's true. Judging by the number of overweight people, I tend to believe the studies. When I read this I translate it in my head as "When it comes to changing lifelong habits, people as a whole are weak. You are a person and you have weaknesses, so don't discriminate."

But it's not quite that simple. As someone who is morbidly obese (yeah I just dropped the MB-bomb :ohwell: ), I can honestly say that when I see someone who is in the same condition as myself I think "There is something fundamentally wrong with that person". It's a snap judgement and it does not take into account anything other than my own gut reaction. This realization of my own judgment of people who were exactly like me is one of my motivating factors for getting healthy.

In the end I try and balance this like I do many things. Accept the snap judgement as a part of my own psyche and do my best to see through it and evaluate a person on more than just their appearance.

/officially rambling at this point

piinchi

I think people are not reading the site.

Its saying society should change for obese and super obese people.

Should a transit company have to build bigger buses for people that weight 300lbs plus?
Should airlines have to make seats bigger for 300lbs +

Also they are saying people cannot control themselves so regulations should be imposed to force people to accept everything

Its a crock of ****. I am not saying discriminating against fat people should be tolerated, but forcing society to accommodate them is not the way to go about it.

Its just another way to dumb down america any way you slice it. There cannot be a gap between people economically or physically so the government and special interests groups will try and close that gap by putting an upper limit on what someone can do/think.

Hey, if an airline is going to make their seats bigger (for the same price... I'm dreaming) I'm all for it!

Being against over-regulation is one thing, but it goes both ways. Do we adjust buses to accommodate the reality of the consumers who pay to use that service? Or do we make it illegal to sell sodas larger than X ounces, as they are proposing in NYC? No matter which end of the spectrum the actions fall, being kind to people of all sizes is a small gesture to make the world more comfortable for everyone. We're all on this site because we want to improve ourselves, and most of us want to lose weight. We're (mostly) very supportive in this MFP community - I believe others outside of it deserve that as well.

And I'm serious about the plane seats. I fly a LOT. They cram us all in there like sardines. No wonder people keep flipping out on planes!

piinchi

"Scientific studies show that the majority of people cannot achieve long-term sustainable weight loss. Under no circumstance is discrimination based on size or weight of one's body ever acceptable."

If that's what the studies show, then perhaps it's true. Judging by the number of overweight people, I tend to believe the studies. When I read this I translate it in my head as "When it comes to changing lifelong habits, people as a whole are weak. You are a person and you have weaknesses, so don't discriminate."

But it's not quite that simple. As someone who is morbidly obese (yeah I just dropped the MB-bomb :ohwell: ), I can honestly say that when I see someone who is in the same condition as myself I think "There is something fundamentally wrong with that person". It's a snap judgement and it does not take into account anything other than my own gut reaction. This realization of my own judgment of people who were exactly like me is one of my motivating factors for getting healthy.

In the end I try and balance this like I do many things. Accept the snap judgement as a part of my own psyche and do my best to see through it and evaluate a person on more than just their appearance.

/officially rambling at this point

Quasi-off topic, but... Congratulations on your awesome weight-loss success!! Dude - awesome!

MoreBean13

I was watching one of the HBO "weight of the nation" short films today, on Weight Stigma. One of the experts made the comment that we as a nation need to attack the problem (of nationwide rising obesity) without attacking the person. I thought that was really insightful.

They also had people describing some of the ways they've been stigmatized, and some of the examples were horrifying. One that stuck out to me was a woman that said she has had people take groceries out of her cart at the store and tell her that she doesn't need to be eating that (whatever they perceived as junk), which made me think of the grocery cart peeping thread I read earlier. I've never experienced weight stigmatization, but it offends me as a person.

I however don't necessarily accept obesity either- I see it as a nationwide health crisis that needs to be solved, but I don't think that individuals should feel attacked or unwelcome in society because of their weight.

StarkLark

I think people are not reading the site.

No, I didn't. I was a bit off topic in my previous post!

Its saying society should change for obese and super obese people.

Should a transit company have to build bigger buses for people that weight 300lbs plus?
Should airlines have to make seats bigger for 300lbs +

Also they are saying people cannot control themselves so regulations should be imposed to force people to accept everything

Its a crock of ****. I am not saying discriminating against fat people should be tolerated, but forcing society to accommodate them is not the way to go about it.

Its just another way to dumb down america any way you slice it. There cannot be a gap between people economically or physically so the government and special interests groups will try and close that gap by putting an upper limit on what someone can do/think.

Although I can't view the link now because it looks like the server is down, I agree 100%. If "fat acceptance" means the list above then it sounds like poison to me.

fiveohmike

I think people are not reading the site.

Its saying society should change for obese and super obese people.

Should a transit company have to build bigger buses for people that weight 300lbs plus?
Should airlines have to make seats bigger for 300lbs +

Also they are saying people cannot control themselves so regulations should be imposed to force people to accept everything

Its a crock of ****. I am not saying discriminating against fat people should be tolerated, but forcing society to accommodate them is not the way to go about it.

Its just another way to dumb down america any way you slice it. There cannot be a gap between people economically or physically so the government and special interests groups will try and close that gap by putting an upper limit on what someone can do/think.

Hey, if an airline is going to make their seats bigger (for the same price... I'm dreaming) I'm all for it!

Being against over-regulation is one thing, but it goes both ways. Do we adjust buses to accommodate the reality of the consumers who pay to use that service? Or do we make it illegal to sell sodas larger than X ounces, as they are proposing in NYC? No matter which end of the spectrum the actions fall, being kind to people of all sizes is a small gesture to make the world more comfortable for everyone. We're all on this site because we want to improve ourselves, and most of us want to lose weight. We're (mostly) very supportive in this MFP community - I believe others outside of it deserve that as well.

And I'm serious about the plane seats. I fly a LOT. They cram us all in there like sardines. No wonder people keep flipping out on planes!

I agree, I dont treat super fat people any differently in reality. Do I snap judge? You bet, when I see a 300lb plus person horking down a 1/2 gallon ice cream container (myself included when i was 300+)....however if I see the same person out walking around, I think to myself...good for them!

If bus companies are losing money because bigger people cannot fit into them, they will for sure change the buses. No need to regulate.

But the government trying to regulating how people think/feel is just absurd.

carld256

I have to disagree on one point, obesity is not like smoking at all. You don't have to smoke to live, but you have to eat. And your eating patterns, attitude towards food, and tendency toward obesity are all set when you're young when you simply have no control over it. If you're an overweight child you've got a lifetime of fighting against obesity ahead of you.

Now, regarding this movement: I'm still a fat person myself, having just dropped from an obese BMI to an overweight BMI, And having faced size discrimination myself, I fully believe that a person is not their weight.

However, I don't give much credence to the fat acceptance movement. It would be one thing if the movement, from what I know of it, was encouraging its members to work toward a healthy weight, but they're not. The message that I've heard from them is that fat people are fine just the way they are, and **** anyone who doesn't like it.

I chose not to like it.