Study finds fat acceptance blogs can improve health outcomes
mirandamayhem
Posts: 772
“Fat acceptance” blogs urging overweight people to shed negative feelings about their body image can lead to healthier diet and exercise choices, a study has found.
The fat acceptance movement, which seeks to foster a support network among overweight people, has inspired a plethora of blogs and web forums such as Corpulent, Fat Heffalump and The Rotund — an online community that’s become known as the “fatosphere”.
In a study published in the journal Qualitative Health Research, researchers from Monash University, the University of New England and the University of Canberra interviewed 44 fatosphere bloggers from Australia, the US and the UK about how their involvement in the movement had changed them.
“There’s been a lot of criticism of the movement that it promotes obesity and encourages people to give up on weight loss and makes their health worse,” said one of the researchers, Dr Samantha Thomas, a Senior Research Fellow at Monash University’s Department of Marketing.
“We saw there was a lot of opinion about the movement but very few people had actually studied it.”
Interviews with the respondents revealed many had experienced feelings of worthlessness, shame, crash diets, cycles of starvation and binge eating and laxative abuse before discovering the fatosphere.
“Having that support and feeling empowered, people slowly found that their health behaviours began to change dramatically. For example, many people suddenly felt confident to do swimming, something they would not have done before,” she said.
“People shifted their focus away from weight loss and more toward health. A lot of people started to take part in physical activity not as a way to lose weight but because they enjoyed it. Instead of pounding it out on the treadmill they start playing with their kids. It’s actually a massive shift in the way they looked at things.”
Shifting the focus away from restricting food and toward listening to the body’s needs could also lead to better food choices, said Dr Thomas.
“There are actually a lot of lessons for public health here,” she said.
“The term fat acceptance is really confronting for people. That’s why we have seen a lot of blame and criticism. Society tells us it’s not OK to be fat for a whole bunch of moral and medical reasons,” she said.
“This study shows that far from promoting obesity and promoting negative health behaviours, the movement is really positive for some people’s health.”
(Source: theconversation.edu.au)
http://re-cover-ed.tumblr.com/post/28601708840/study-finds-fat-acceptance-blogs-can-improve-health
Just thought this might interest some. I'm a big believer in Body Acceptance. It's taken me a long time to get to this point, but I am now losing weight, getting active, and enjoying it. Hating myself into submission never worked.
The fat acceptance movement, which seeks to foster a support network among overweight people, has inspired a plethora of blogs and web forums such as Corpulent, Fat Heffalump and The Rotund — an online community that’s become known as the “fatosphere”.
In a study published in the journal Qualitative Health Research, researchers from Monash University, the University of New England and the University of Canberra interviewed 44 fatosphere bloggers from Australia, the US and the UK about how their involvement in the movement had changed them.
“There’s been a lot of criticism of the movement that it promotes obesity and encourages people to give up on weight loss and makes their health worse,” said one of the researchers, Dr Samantha Thomas, a Senior Research Fellow at Monash University’s Department of Marketing.
“We saw there was a lot of opinion about the movement but very few people had actually studied it.”
Interviews with the respondents revealed many had experienced feelings of worthlessness, shame, crash diets, cycles of starvation and binge eating and laxative abuse before discovering the fatosphere.
“Having that support and feeling empowered, people slowly found that their health behaviours began to change dramatically. For example, many people suddenly felt confident to do swimming, something they would not have done before,” she said.
“People shifted their focus away from weight loss and more toward health. A lot of people started to take part in physical activity not as a way to lose weight but because they enjoyed it. Instead of pounding it out on the treadmill they start playing with their kids. It’s actually a massive shift in the way they looked at things.”
Shifting the focus away from restricting food and toward listening to the body’s needs could also lead to better food choices, said Dr Thomas.
“There are actually a lot of lessons for public health here,” she said.
“The term fat acceptance is really confronting for people. That’s why we have seen a lot of blame and criticism. Society tells us it’s not OK to be fat for a whole bunch of moral and medical reasons,” she said.
“This study shows that far from promoting obesity and promoting negative health behaviours, the movement is really positive for some people’s health.”
(Source: theconversation.edu.au)
http://re-cover-ed.tumblr.com/post/28601708840/study-finds-fat-acceptance-blogs-can-improve-health
Just thought this might interest some. I'm a big believer in Body Acceptance. It's taken me a long time to get to this point, but I am now losing weight, getting active, and enjoying it. Hating myself into submission never worked.
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It's SO true that being ashamed of being overweight keeps people from going out and enjoying life, from participating in healthy activities, and even from making healthy food choices. If I order a pizza to be delivered, I don't have to worry that people are looking at me and internally mocking me for reading nutrition labels at the supermarket, or being disgusted with me because I dare to buy something that seems unhealthy. (sorry, not giving up my 44 calorie Dove Chocolate Promises!) "Fat acceptance" isn't about saying it's totally ok and healthy to be fat, it's about saying that being fat doesn't make you a bad person. it doesn't mean you are unable to make good choices, it doesn't mean you are unworthy of happiness. and when you change the way you see yourself, you can find the strength to change your life.0
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I just disagree with the name "fat acceptance". If it were called "body acceptance" that would be different. But when you go around saying fat acceptance, to me that is asking people to think that being fat/obese is healthy and ok. It's not.
Note: I am solely addressing the NAME of this movement, not the movement itself since it's not something I've researched extensively.0 -
I know! And I loved the comment about someone going out swimming whereas they might not have had the courage. Accepting myself means I can go to the gym without feeling ripe for ridicule!0
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I just disagree with the name "fat acceptance". If it were called "body acceptance" that would be different. But when you go around saying fat acceptance, to me that is asking people to think that being fat/obese is healthy and ok. It's not.
Note: I am solely addressing the NAME of this movement, not the movement itself since it's not something I've researched extensively.
I know what you mean. There's so much association with the word. And it does cause a problem, because they don't get past the name. Even so called diet experts.0 -
Thanks for posting this. I'm a believer in health at every size.
And I agree that when I shift my focus from "WEIGHT LOSS!!!! I MUST LOSE WEIGHT!!!" to "HEALTH!!! I MUST GET HEALTHY!!!!" I make healthier decisions and weight loss tends to follow.
Some people are VERY healthy and technically overweight or even (gasp) obese. For me, when I make healthier choices, my body is smaller than it is now. But I don't assume that all bodies are just like mine.0 -
So by accepting themselves as fat and thats ok - they change and get fit instead? Seems like they just realized through talking about their problems that they DONT accept the state they are in and that they actually have the power to change it.0
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So by accepting themselves as fat and thats ok - they change and get fit instead? Seems like they just realized through talking about their problems that they DONT accept the state they are in and that they actually have the power to change it.
it's more about saying that we still have value as people, because many overweight people are made to feel the opposite. We feel judged everywhere we go and that takes a toll on our self-esteem. When you feel that way, it's hard not to believe what those people think, and it's easy to just give up. When we see ourselves as people with value, and potential, it's easier to find the strength to say "i want to be healthier. I want to treat myself better"0 -
So by accepting themselves as fat and thats ok - they change and get fit instead? Seems like they just realized through talking about their problems that they DONT accept the state they are in and that they actually have the power to change it.
it's more about saying that we still have value as people, because many overweight people are made to feel the opposite. We feel judged everywhere we go and that takes a toll on our self-esteem. When you feel that way, it's hard not to believe what those people think, and it's easy to just give up. When we see ourselves as people with value, and potential, it's easier to find the strength to say "i want to be healthier. I want to treat myself better"
Oh yeah word totally get it- i just dont see that as fat acceptance - i see that as personal worth deserving of a better life :flowerforyou:0 -
fat unacceptableness!0
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So by accepting themselves as fat and thats ok - they change and get fit instead? Seems like they just realized through talking about their problems that they DONT accept the state they are in and that they actually have the power to change it.
it's more about saying that we still have value as people, because many overweight people are made to feel the opposite. We feel judged everywhere we go and that takes a toll on our self-esteem. When you feel that way, it's hard not to believe what those people think, and it's easy to just give up. When we see ourselves as people with value, and potential, it's easier to find the strength to say "i want to be healthier. I want to treat myself better"
This! It's about realising that beneath the fat, you are still a person of worth, and MORE importantly you deserve to be in good health and happiness. Often, well maybe I speak for myself more, but self loathing and self disgust are what keeps us large. I'm not really nurturing myself when I overeat. It's a coping mechanism that I developed as a child to self soothe. It had a purpose, but it doesn't any more. In fact, my self loathing is such that even though I know I'm just adding on extra pounds with the bad food, I don't care because I feel so awful and hideous any way. So accepting myself as I am, and learning to appreciate who I am turns it around. I don't want to eat that unhealthy food, it's not helping me in any way. I want to get on my bike because I know I'll feel better for it, and because I've accepted myself, I'm not going to be paranoid about people staring at the fat cow cycling past.0 -
I take issue with the *name* of the movement but not its mission. I definitely don't "accept" being fat which is why I'm here and working my butt off in the first place. I think the term "acceptance" implies stagnation, immobility, immovability. According to the study the participants were none of these things.0
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fat unacceptableness!
Like someone else said and I agree, "Body Acceptance" is a preferred title for the movement.0 -
If you dont accept and love yourself you have zero motivation to do anything to help yourself. Realizing that your worth as a human being is not tied to your weight is a huge step forward for a lot of us. It certainly was for me, at which time I decided I am worth the time, effort and cost to help Me. Feeling like you are a fat, lazy nothing is NOT conducive to doing anything for yourself.0
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fat unacceptableness!
Like someone else said and I agree, "Body Acceptance" is a preferred title for the movement.
I like my word, it has more syllables and it worked for me :laugh:0 -
fat unacceptableness!
Like someone else said and I agree, "Body Acceptance" is a preferred title for the movement.
I like my word, it has more syllables and it worked for me :laugh:
:laugh:0 -
What the Op shared is absolutely the healthy, enjoyable and sustainable way to approach this. I agree. This is the healthy way. It doesn't matter what size a person is, big or small, this is a healthy way of looking at it and approaching it. And it's so true that what often holds people back is worry of how they will be looked at and treated. Finding that comfort and love for yourself to take those healthy steps and finding the enjoyment in it, as well as a motivation (health and feeling better) that can be rewarding before the physical changes. Sometimes it is better to take the focus off the outward looks and focus on health. Then the outward appearance can become like a fringe benefit of all the hard work and fun. It is an entire mental attitude of deciding to be active. This is helpful not just for people that are overweight, but for anyone that struggles with depression of any kind. Thanks for sharing. I hope it will be helpful to people!0
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This was a very interesting article! I definitely feel this way most days, low self-esteem and such. For me, it is a very hard habit to break when for so many years I feel like I was pushed down for being overweight. I have limited what I do because of what people might say if they saw me. Not logical at all.0
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What are the most popular ones? I'd be interested to check it out......
Most people don't want to talk about the underlying painful reasons they have gained weight which is why I think such blogs could be helpful.
On the other hand focusing on the negative can induce or reinforce negative thinking or a downward spiral and will not achieve positive results I guess.
So, my guess those blogs really depend on how they are used by the people participating.0 -
What are the most popular ones? I'd be interested to check it out......
Most people don't want to talk about the underlying painful reasons they have gained weight which is why I think such blogs could be helpful.
On the other hand focusing on the negative can induce or reinforce negative thinking or a downward spiral and will not achieve positive results I guess.
So, my guess those blogs really depend on how they are used by the people participating.
This is a pretty good one: http://danceswithfat.wordpress.com0 -
“Fat acceptance” blogs urging overweight people to shed negative feelings about their body image can lead to healthier diet and exercise choices, a study has found.
The fat acceptance movement, which seeks to foster a support network among overweight people, has inspired a plethora of blogs and web forums such as Corpulent, Fat Heffalump and The Rotund — an online community that’s become known as the “fatosphere”.
In a study published in the journal Qualitative Health Research, researchers from Monash University, the University of New England and the University of Canberra interviewed 44 fatosphere bloggers from Australia, the US and the UK about how their involvement in the movement had changed them.
“There’s been a lot of criticism of the movement that it promotes obesity and encourages people to give up on weight loss and makes their health worse,” said one of the researchers, Dr Samantha Thomas, a Senior Research Fellow at Monash University’s Department of Marketing.
“We saw there was a lot of opinion about the movement but very few people had actually studied it.”
Interviews with the respondents revealed many had experienced feelings of worthlessness, shame, crash diets, cycles of starvation and binge eating and laxative abuse before discovering the fatosphere.
“Having that support and feeling empowered, people slowly found that their health behaviours began to change dramatically. For example, many people suddenly felt confident to do swimming, something they would not have done before,” she said.
“People shifted their focus away from weight loss and more toward health. A lot of people started to take part in physical activity not as a way to lose weight but because they enjoyed it. Instead of pounding it out on the treadmill they start playing with their kids. It’s actually a massive shift in the way they looked at things.”
Shifting the focus away from restricting food and toward listening to the body’s needs could also lead to better food choices, said Dr Thomas.
“There are actually a lot of lessons for public health here,” she said.
“The term fat acceptance is really confronting for people. That’s why we have seen a lot of blame and criticism. Society tells us it’s not OK to be fat for a whole bunch of moral and medical reasons,” she said.
“This study shows that far from promoting obesity and promoting negative health behaviours, the movement is really positive for some people’s health.”
(Source: theconversation.edu.au)
http://re-cover-ed.tumblr.com/post/28601708840/study-finds-fat-acceptance-blogs-can-improve-health
Just thought this might interest some. I'm a big believer in Body Acceptance. It's taken me a long time to get to this point, but I am now losing weight, getting active, and enjoying it. Hating myself into submission never worked.
Thanks for taking time to share, looking forward to reading the article when I have a bit more time!:flowerforyou:
Nicely put! :happy: I too believe that self acceptance in any realm of our lives first will better get us to where we want to be. Whether it be weight loss, gain, or any other changes we are looking to make in life.:drinker: I find shame paralyzes me far more than it motivates me and keeps me stuck instead.It's SO true that being ashamed of being overweight keeps people from going out and enjoying life, from participating in healthy activities, and even from making healthy food choices. If I order a pizza to be delivered, I don't have to worry that people are looking at me and internally mocking me for reading nutrition labels at the supermarket, or being disgusted with me because I dare to buy something that seems unhealthy. (sorry, not giving up my 44 calorie Dove Chocolate Promises!) "Fat acceptance" isn't about saying it's totally ok and healthy to be fat, it's about saying that being fat doesn't make you a bad person. it doesn't mean you are unable to make good choices, it doesn't mean you are unworthy of happiness. and when you change the way you see yourself, you can find the strength to change your life.
:flowerforyou:This! It's about realising that beneath the fat, you are still a person of worth, and MORE importantly you deserve to be in good health and happiness. Often, well maybe I speak for myself more, but self loathing and self disgust are what keeps us large. I'm not really nurturing myself when I overeat. It's a coping mechanism that I developed as a child to self soothe. It had a purpose, but it doesn't any more. In fact, my self loathing is such that even though I know I'm just adding on extra pounds with the bad food, I don't care because I feel so awful and hideous any way. So accepting myself as I am, and learning to appreciate who I am turns it around. I don't want to eat that unhealthy food, it's not helping me in any way. I want to get on my bike because I know I'll feel better for it, and because I've accepted myself, I'm not going to be paranoid about people staring at the fat cow cycling past.
" It had a purpose, but it doesn't any more. " agree! 0 -
interviewed 44 fatosphere bloggers from Australia, the US and the UK about how their involvement in the movement had changed them.
well, if that ain't proof, I don't know what is0 -
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I don't believe in studies because I saw a CIA disclaimer0
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Thank you, OP, for sharing this! It truly was an interesting read.
I also agree with the common theme of the comments: about the terms used. Self acceptance really is the first part of taking the steps needed to better one's life, so far as being healthy is concerned.
I'm glad to see that there are resources out there that give people the power and motivation to do the things that they previously might have been afraid to do, or have given up on. Support means a great deal. That's why I like this site so much: without the support of others, I know I wouldn't have even bothered to try.0 -
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I know people are against the name, but it makes a lot of sense. Fat people are labeled as "fat" and, thus, are not accepted. The "fat" label is not easily escaped, even if one is only 10 pounds overweight. We live in a ridiculing society with many pushing their standard of living on someone else just because logic tells them they are the ones who are right. So, I think the name "fat acceptance" has more to do with the label. It's like saying, "okay they call us fat, but screw them I'm okay with who I am as a person even with that label."
Also, I feel there's a lot of good intention, but misunderstanding by those who use the "I'm against accepting the fat lifestyle but am okay with loving oneself." Stop and think about the oxymoron that can occur. If a person NEVER loses weight for one reason or another, would you judge that person because they couldn't get their act together? If the answer is still yes, then what does that actually imply? The same goes for those who struggle on the extreme opposite end with anorexia, bulimia or having medical conditions that prevent weight gain. If they never manage to control it, are they socially unacceptable for life?
So that's the belief here with "fat acceptance" I think. Not to remain fat if you don't want to, but to go out and enjoy life and love yourself regardless of if you ever lose the fat. Basically, what I mean is we don't typically shame skinny people for drinking thousands of calories and eating at buffets so fat people shouldn't be shamed for it either.0 -
That makes me a sad panda, that was a terrific article0 -
I don't believe in studies because I saw a CIA disclaimer
^This!!! Bwahaha0 -
There's a movement for body acceptance called 'HAES' or 'Health at Every Size.' I love that name because it focuses on health sustaining behaviors for everybody. Implicit in their message is 'fat acceptance', but not roll-over-and-die 'fat acceptance.' There's a focus on eating and exercising for health.0
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I have a family member that was always very small. She weighed around 105 pounds. But, she has some serious medical conditions (she has had some of these since she was a child). She had to go on prednisone and that in addition to other factors caused her weight to go up to over 200 pounds in a very short time. She is still the same person and still deserving of love and kindness. But, how will she ever lose the weight if she is afraid to go out and be seen? (also because of the short time frame that it happened, everyone thinks she is pregnant when they see her) That's just one example of why this is important. I am doing my best to support her, but I have never been in her shoes before. I know the best thing I can do is for her to know that my love for her will never change no matter what. The only solution is to make health a priority, that is the way that weight loss can happen in a safe way (not with diet pills or fad diets).0
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