Is obesity a CHOICE?

Merithyn

I am getting a little tired from all this "coddling" we do in society today... everything is fine. Just accept everyone as is and be ok with it... give EVERYONE a trophy for participating... it's turning our kids into entitled brats and enabling our adults to just accept being unhealthy.

How about we just accept that our responsibility is to ourselves, and it is not our responsibility to tell others how to live their lives? This isn't giving everyone a trophy for participating. This is directly - and offensively - telling someone how to live their life. THAT is not acceptable.

AwesomelyAmber

YES, there are some people in society that CHOOSE to eat the way they eat so, in turn, CHOOSE to be Obese and stay the way they are. BUT, again, you dont know their situation nor do you know what they are going thru. Maybe instead of BULLYING someone, people could try to HELP them find a reason for their actions and things would start to change for them in ALL aspects of their lives!

I you! I agree... no one KNOWS another's life. And to add, it's NOONE'S right to tell a person they have never met what they think they ARE or SHOULD BE to other people....

TexasTroy

I love this so much,
just replace obese with smoker and you see how bad this really is. She avoids the point thats shes a bad roll model and claims giving someone health advice is bad.

ITS NOT MY FAULT I EAT TO MUCH YOU BULLY.

I get what your saying but how do we KNOW SHE EATS TO MUCH?? We dont!!! She could be working out every day, eating healthy and still be overweight....everyone should understand that just because someone is overweight, doesnt mean they are doing things completely wrong and that they are not healthy. And why is she considered a " role model"? Last time I checked my parents were my ONLY role model.

rchupka87

Here's my thought. Is she overweight? Yes, which she freely admitted in her response. Is this SINGLE aspect of her what defines her as a proper role model for young people? Because I see her differently. She has a great job, and has held that great job for many years. She is smart and well spoken. She has gone to college, and earned a degree. She is a wife and a mother. She is caring and compassionate. She is full of self worth, and stands up for what she believes in.

Now, I don't live in Wisconsin. I have never seen this news anchor before this story broke. I learned all of this about her in about 4 1/2 minutes. Whether she is overweight or not, I hope that my kids DO look to her as a role model. I hope that they grow up to be kind, compassionate people. I hope they grow up, and continue their educations, and get good jobs, and become productive members of society. I hope they get married and have families of their own. I hope that they are smart, and well spoken, and confident in themselves, and can handle sitiations like this with as much class and tact as she did.

I hope that my child would NEVER send an email to an absolute stranger, and tell them they are less than what they should be because of their weight. I hope that my child would never call someone fat, or judge someone based soley on their physical appearence.

Yes, he was correct in saying that she was overweight (or, what some of the other posters have kept saying, FACT). But what in the world gives him the right to say that to another person? Just because she is a TV personality, he can watch the show one time and feels he has the right to send her and email, tell her she is a horrible person, and call her fat? If I posted on my newsfeed that a complete stranger walked up to me and told me I was a bad role model to my kids because I am overweight - all of MY friends would be pissed. Because what that stranger doesn't know about me - is that while I am still overweight, I have LOST 75 pounds, the RIGHT way. I teach my kids to eat right, and to drink water, and to get off the couch and get outside and play. I run with my daughter, and play soccer with my son, and teach them about healthy eating habits. I try to teach them about being healthy, not about being skinny.

To me - SHE is the role model in this situation. HE IS NOT. In his email - he sent the message that an overweight person cannot be a role model. The message she sent in response - don't let anyone else determine your self-worth. I wish I would have learned this lesson years and years ago. I was bullied. I was called FAT. I was stood up for prom twice in highschool. I never had a date to a dance. I had food thrown at me in the cafeteria. I had notes written about me, and thrown at me in class. If only I knew then what I know now... my entire life would have been different.

Kudo's to her for sending this message - regardless of the number on her scale.

WendyTerry420

I became fat because I chose not care. So for me, it was a choice, and now I'm choosing differently.

HOWEVER, I know that for *some* people, medical conditions make it nearly impossible for them to control their weight. Some people are too thin or too fat because they are chronically ill. For those folks, it's no choice at all.

WendyTerry420

...being on TV in the public eye, is a type of 'role model' for our younger generation. What we see on TV becomes the accepted norm.

:noway:
To me, it is beyond pathetic that someone is seen as a role model simply for being on TV. How *kitten* sad that is! :sick:

ctalimenti

My friend has put on loads of weight due to the medication she needed to beat cancer - it is not always a choice. She hates her weight at the moment but the Dr's have said it will take over a year for her body to get back to normal and for her to be able to start losing the weight. People have been very cruel to her - strangers commenting on her food choices at the supermarket etc.

It's disgusting that people feel it's ok to bully people for being fat - it isn't always a choice. Please remember that.

PS she has beaten the cancer :bigsmile:

My sister has the same problem.... she is on 32 tablets a day some of them Steroids because she had a kidney transplant 25 years ago. She then developed Diabetes and Osteoporosis.. She used to be a size UK 8 she is now a UK 28. She hates her weight and lives on approx 1200 calories a day as directed by her dietitian, but her weight still goes up by about 1lb a year now which is a great improvement on what is was when she first started her medications. She attends hospital on a regular basis and they state it is simple.... she takes the meds and the weight problem and lives or stops the meds her weight will go down and she will be dead within 6 months....NO Brainer. !!!! It annoys the hell out of me to here people slagging off over weight people. Yes some of them choose to be that way others don't and unfortunately there is no way of telling them apart from the outside. I once heard a chap on the radio saying obese people no mater why they are like that should not be allowed to travel on any form of public transport, be that buses or airplanes.... if it had been left to him anyone over weight would have been shut away in a room out of the public eye. >>.RANT Over>>> !!! Grrrrrrr

^These! I did not choose to become overweight. My thyroid bottomed out after my first child and I ballooned. I have been under 200 exactly twice since then after being put on medication and exercizing. Now it is difficult for me to exercize but I try. Luckily most folks are used to seeing fat 54 year old women so I don't catch a lot of ****! When I want their opinion I'll ask them for it though. You don't see me asking.

NAH, I don't agree with how the steroids make you fat. I've been on them for 15 yrs; anywhere from 60mg on down. They don't make you fat per se, they do however make you eat tons of food. I was eventually able to regulate my intake once I learned what was going on. I'm also on a chemo drug. See food, must eat! Gotta stop that thinking.

lizzybethclaire

The part that really bothered me about his email was when he said that she was especially a bad role model for girls, reinforcing the idea that it is better for men to be overweight as opposed to women.

However, I will say that the freedom of speech kind of does give you the right to criticize. The entire idea of freedom of speech was so people could speak against the government without fear of being arrested. So did this man have the right to send this email? Yes. Is he an idiot? Yes. Am I bullying him by calling him an idiot? Yes.

Freedom of speech doesn't cover social mores. It's within my rights to approach strangers on the street and tell them they are hideous. That doesn't make it ok to do that.

Agree one hundred percent. We are not arguing his right to say what he say, we are just pointing out that he is a prick.

maab_connor

IDK if it's a choice to be obese. but it IS a choice to GIVE UP.

we're taught as children in public schools to over eat, to stuff our faces as fast as we can b/c that bell is about to ring. this is a learned pattern that follows us. food as emotion is another thing that MANY of us on here have to face, stare down, and work around.

HOWEVER... not every learned behaviour has to stay with is. we can choose to change.

being obese is easier. life is busy and hard enough w/o having to figure out a gym schedule and taking the time that you don't have to count calories. working insane hours and running the kids around and...and...and... leaving us with maybe 20 mins in the day to eat ALL TOGETHER... there's a reason they call it fast food.

but on the same note, isn't it faster to start your car and drive off without buckling up? without doing that last check in the mirror before you back out of your space? isn't it a time-saver NOT to go to the doctor for check ups? to put off having that mole checked? to just get up and move until the pain in your leg goes away again?

i think that there comes a time when saving time isn't as important as saving your life.

so while i don't believe that most ppl CHOOSE to be obese, i do believe that they CHOOSE (just as I did) not to CHANGE IT.

patsnyder89

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/why-we-are-so-rude-online.html

bmiller03

NAH, I don't agree with how the steroids make you fat. I've been on them for 15 yrs; anywhere from 60mg on down. They don't make you fat per se, they do however make you eat tons of food. I was eventually able to regulate my intake once I learned what was going on. I'm also on a chemo drug. See food, must eat! Gotta stop that thinking.

^^^^ Exactly. I am having the same experience.

bigw2

of course its a choice, unless someone has tied you to a chair and shoved food in your mouth, its 100% your fault if you are overweight

delilah47

Yes, we all want to be fat...

Jimaudit

Freedom of speech or not, no one has the right to criticize, judge or bully another person.

This^^^^

Whether or not she has a disease or disorder that causes her to be heavy....this type of communication is bullying plain and simple. She is not asking you to watch her show or comment on her weight or eye color or color of her hair or hairstyle so STFU!

In some cases, people have real disorders that cause them to turn to food. I am not saying it is right, but it is like smoking, drinking or doing drugs....it can be a comfort, a best friend, a stress reliever, a way to forget about whatever is driving you crazy....it is addictive! Ever bit into a slice of pie or a brownie, closed your eyes and thought this is the greatest thing in the world? Guess what, you are addicted!!

I have never been addicted to pot, smoking, alcohol or drugs.....but I AM addicted to food and working hard to remedy that. I do not stop everyone coming out of a liquor store or buying a pack of smokes and say "jeez do you know you are killing yourself with that". I have an addictive personality and am working daily to fix my addiction.

MelStren

Every one should be a healthy weight. No one should smoke. Motorcyclists should always wear helmets. Kids shouldn't run around barefoot in rocky ground. People should get colonoscopies regularly. There are all kinds of 'shoulds' about how we should be safer, healthier, smarter. But bottom line, making that choice or avoiding it, does not affect a persons worth or right to be treated with respect.

Well said!

fbmandy55

Someone here brought up a thyroid problem. I have hypothyroidism. I learned about it about 4 years ago. Yes, it can cause quite a bit of weight gain but all is not lost. I try to go lower carb (but well above the 100g to stay healthy) and higher protein. You CAN lose weight with a thyroid issue, it is just more challenging and most doctors will tell you that. I will agree with that. However, after learning of my issue, I continued to eat the way I was eating for the past 4 years and THAT is why I topped 213 lbs. I am down 23 lbs now. It can be done. It is a matter of finding what works for you and making the right choices. It isn't easy, but it is doable. I hope you can find something that works for you.

On another note, this thread was asking if being obese was a choice. It asked nothing about bullying. That is just hateful and there is no justification for it for ANY reason in my opinion.

Agree with you 100%. And am very anti-bullying.

BUT, I HATE when people use a medical condition as an excuse to be over weight. No matter your condition, you can lose weight. Many times, the person being unhealthy or overweight is the CAUSE of the medical condition, not the other way around. I have PCOS. Yes, it is harder for me to lose weight, but not impossible. I'm still down 3 pant sizes from when I started here though the weight has been up and down.

I have PCOS BECAUSE I ate too much and moved too little. And as my doctors said, the only thing that will cure your symptoms is to get your body back to an ideal weight. Besides a few exceptions, weight gain causes medical conditions, not the other way around.

MonkeyBars

I don't think people notice. Once day they're thin, next day "BOOM". What happened!
It takes someone to point it out.
I've told a number of friends they were fat! They denied it!
They've all followed the Kübler-Ross model.
The Five Stages of Grief, denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.
All of them have then lost "weight" & got "fitter".
All of them thanked me.
All them wondered why their other friends and family didn't point it out to them?
I want my friends to live healthy fit lives, one used to drink to much, I didn't step in, he died of renal failure at the ripe old age of 31. I should have said something.

markpmc

Although no-one would choose to be obese, you choose what you put in your mouth, which in my opinion is the same thing.

Ill read the whole thread, but this is my midset.

madblondebint

I chose to put weight on, I suffered from bulimia when I was younger, and putting weight on got people off my back, I could do what I wanted without arousing suspicion.
I just didn't stop when I was cured of bulimia, I chose to eat takeaways every night, fast food for breakfast & lunch, and plenty of beer to wash it all down. I enjoyed food, and it never bothered me being fat.
Now I choose to lose weight, no pressure from any external forces, I just want to do it for myself.
Everything is a choice, and we are in control of our own destinies.

billsica

Although no-one would choose to be obese, you choose what you put in your mouth, which in my opinion is the same thing.

That is not criticising anyone that is overweight; hell, I have the same problem or I wouldn't be here. But ultimately, anyone that loses weight makes the choice to start a healthy lifestyle.

Not true.This woman made the choice to becoem obese.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2117319/Mothers-bid-fattest-human-115-stone---shes-marrying-chef-help-her.html