'I have obesity'

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2

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  • greentart
    greentart Posts: 411 Member
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    I am fat. Technically standing, I am obese. It's not due to any disease besides my laziness, my eating habits, my lack of exercise. ME. It's all ME. I may be pre-dispositioned to it. My family is bigger, but then again, I learned my eating habits and laziness from them SOOO....
    Yes, some people have issues and diseases, and obesity is the SYMPTOM of such things. But obesity being a disease by itself? I don't buy it. I think it's nothing more than an excuse and another way for the drug companies to make more money.

    I do NOT have a disease. I was lazy. I ate horrible food. I allowed my depression to reign free over me, however, that is a symptom, not the cause. Calling it a disease is putting the blame somewhere other than it needs to be, which is on the shoulders of those who are obese. Calling it a disease is an excuse and nothing more.

    EDIT: If this was tongue in cheek, then bravo! However, my opinion still stands in general.
  • USMCnetty90
    USMCnetty90 Posts: 277 Member
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    i think he's writing it a little tongue in cheek, and describing the whole "once a smoker always a smoker" mentality that he feels he has towards obesity.



    i agree wholeheartedly
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,454 Member
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    I think he is using 'I have obesity' as a metaphor to mean he has a natural tendency to eat so much that he will get very fat if he doesn't remain vigilant. Some people would have to make a conscious effort to gain that much weight, some could do it without any effort.

    That being said we all have our own weaknesses/quirks/handicaps and it's up to us to understand and deal with them for ourselves. (Which he has done, instead of whining about being helpless to control what goes into his mouth, so good for him.)

    That's what I thought he was saying too. I don't know why people are being so derogatory. He's not using it as an "excuse", but as a way of understanding. He's lost 225 pounds, which is pretty impressive!
  • ryry_
    ryry_ Posts: 4,966 Member
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    Someone please create a "I got me the obesity...ain't nobody got time for that" gif
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    I'm not usually one to criticize someone's opinions but that is absolutely moronic and asinine

    Edited - if written in complete sarcasm, BRAVO very well done. But some people would latch onto his argument and say, "yes! that's me!"

    and others will completely bash him and call him moronic and asinine.
  • BoomstickChick
    BoomstickChick Posts: 428 Member
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    How does someone HAVE obesity? They are obese. It's not a disease...

    yes it is...AMA just decided that it is now.


    That is absolutely idiotic.
  • wannabfit34
    wannabfit34 Posts: 23 Member
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    I actually follow the guy on Facebook it is more of a sarcastic article about the recent addition of obesity as a disease. He is a good follow most of his posts are actually about how he got large and how he changed.
  • lipglossjunky73
    lipglossjunky73 Posts: 497 Member
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    OMG I love Anti Jared - I follow him on facebook - he kicks *kitten* and posts the funniest stuff! Yes, he writes very sarcastically and tongue in cheek!!!
  • bradtheman86
    bradtheman86 Posts: 3
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    It's amusing how most of the people who were against obesity becoming a disease are obese/overweight themselves.

    In my office we have a lady that's a bit heavy ( 270-300 pounds) and she was one of the people against obesity being defined as a disease one of those people who says stuff like " losing weight is easy calories in calories out". Well that's true about the calories in calories out but if it's so easy why are so many people obese?
  • kristinL16
    kristinL16 Posts: 401 Member
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    My initial thoughts on the definition of obesity being a disease is "What a load of BS." But then someone else (who thought it was a good thing) explained that the change in definition would mean that there would be more medical/psychological help for people who are obese. Overall, I think that is a good thing although I could see some possible drawbacks as well.
  • KarlaH9801
    KarlaH9801 Posts: 362 Member
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    In for vacinations
    yup. Lol. We need a lifesyle movement, a helpful way.
  • buggings
    buggings Posts: 18
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    Sometimes I feel like people these days look for over complicated ways to explain the most simplest of things such as this.. Obesity is not a disease, it is a state in my opinion. You become obese via poor lifestyle decisions.
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,454 Member
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    I don't know if I'd call it a disease either. I think it can be a sign of something else wrong, a predisposing factor for some things, but the obesity ITSELF isn't the problem unless it's disabling. But I can understand saying "I have obesity" in the sense of "I have a tendency to put on weight" or a tendency to overeat. I know for myself, I didn't have that tendency for most of my life and now that I do it does feel like something is wrong. If I'd known that my body had changed and I "had obesity" I might have found it easier to deal with. Not everybody has this tendency and if you know that you do, you can adjust accordingly.

    I think I probably read it wrongly if the guy was trying to be sarcastic, but I thought it made sense that he said he "had obesity" even when he was slim. He still had that tendency to put on weight and unless he dieted he was going to gain. That might be a useful way of thinking of it for people who have lost the weight. Even if we get to goal, we still "have obesity", that tendency to gain.
  • kristinL16
    kristinL16 Posts: 401 Member
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    I would love to hear more of an explanation from the experts regarding their rationale for classifying obesity as a disease. Could be just so that it has a higher classification of diagnosis, which means that insurance would cover treatment for the obesity itself, not just for the health issues it causes down the road. I am a mental health professional and hope that this will help us provide services to people who want therapy and other forms of mental health treatment for the purpose of losing weight and figuring out what is behind the overeating. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavior Therapy are both very helpful in helping people address the emotional and cognitive aspects of overeating or making poor lifestyle choices. To my knowledge, at present insurance would not cover these services unless there are other mental health issues. Hopefully that will change if obesity has a different classification.

    That being said, I do think that more explanation is necessary. I would hate for people to misunderstand and take it to mean that they can't do anything about it or that it is something out of their control. I have heard many people use this rationale for alcoholism and drug abuse. Yes, people say it is a disease. Some people are more prone to developing drinking problems or becoming addicted to drugs. But it isn't something that just happened to you without you making choices to get you there.

    I don't see it as someone "having obesity" in the same way that someone has a genetic disease. The way I look at it is that obesity has previously been seen as only a lifestyle problem but we know that it really goes hand in hand with many other health problems. Rather than focus on the specific symptoms that accompany obesity (high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and so on) we can look at the underlying factor and hopefully prevent the other problems in the first place as well as improve the effectiveness of treatment for those problems. Looking at the whole system of the body and lifestyle rather than each individual part.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    The way I took it, it's more that it's an ongoing battle, which is why so many overweight or obese people gain the weight back even after they've lost it.
  • startheory
    startheory Posts: 63
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    It is not a disease. It is an addiction to food.
  • 4pawsmom
    4pawsmom Posts: 20 Member
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    IMHO, here is the answer to why obesity has been declared a disease: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/06/27/us-arena-obesity-idUSBRE85Q1AA20120627

    It's all about the money...
  • owieprone
    owieprone Posts: 217 Member
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    omg i have obesity! i did not know i was diseased!

    Thank the gods, now i can go to the doctor and get a medication for my obesity and i will be cured!

    erm... yes i have obesity cos i'm a lazy git who eats too much anything in one go! Abit like reverse anorexia, oh wait, that's binge eating and is already recognised as an eating disorder.

    i'm just too proud to get professional help for it and instead help myself by also being addicted to exercise. works pretty well.
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,454 Member
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    It is not a disease. It is an addiction to food.

    Not always. Food addiction can cause obesity, but you can be obese without food addiction.
  • myofibril
    myofibril Posts: 4,500 Member
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    It is a disease in that it is an impairment of normal physiological function affecting all or part of the body.

    People can argue (rather poorly) over the causes of the impairment but that does not take away from the cascade of medical impairments associated with obesity.

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