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Fat Acceptance Movement
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I SEE everyday what being obese does to people.
I don't think anyone here is denying the health risks that go along with obesity, especially morbid obesity (and many of us are not primarily talking about morbid obesity, which I agree often has a mental health component).I am 126 lbs, and people that weigh triple me come in every day wanting ME to lift them up, push them in wheelchairs, keep them from falling and it is killing my back.
Yeah, I can see that would be a problem and put you in a bad position, and I think there should be ways to handle that at your job that would not put you in danger. Yet you seem to be interpreting this as malevolent intent by the morbidly obese. Maybe you'd dealt with people who were jerks, but I tend to feel sorry for them too, as I can imagine that being a humiliating situation and them feeling complete shame and blaming themselves for being sick and for being a burden. For someone who gets to that state I think more is typically going on, such as mental health issues or a kind of eating addiction.
And of course as a medical professional you should tell people the risks (or their doctors should).This is an addiction folks.
Okay, let's say it is in some of these cases. I don't think the answer to addiction is shame. Nor is it saying it's okay to harm yourself, of course, but I see the positive elements of these movements as giving people things that can do that will improve their health, start addressing some of the mental health issues, and ultimately lead to weight loss. Saying "okay, you think dieting isn't working for you and have messed up relationship with food -- lets work on getting active and healthier eating as a different approach to fitness" seems to me a positive thing. As I read it, no one is saying that there aren't extremists in the movement with negative attitudes or who are using it as an excuse not to change or to bemoan their supposed fate, but I don't see that as the only thing.I don't like paying the price in increased insurance costs because of all the health problems we are eating ourselves into.
I don't like paying higher health costs for lots of things others do that I disapprove of, and I know I've done things that risked higher costs (even though it didn't result in any). It seems like (as RobD said), this is one selected issue where people seem to think it's okay to resent and dislike others when that's not done with the other cases.Shaming - never. Honest kind confrontation - absolutely.
But I think the main point here is simply not shaming.
Policy discussions? Yes. Honest kind confrontation by a health professional or loved one? Sure. Is it possible to do that with a stranger or someone who you don't know that well? No, it's not.6 -
Boy I'm really gonna lay it out here and get prepared for the flaming. I am a nurse, and I SEE everyday what being obese does to people. I am 126 lbs, and people that weigh triple me come in every day wanting ME to lift them up, push them in wheelchairs, keep them from falling and it is killing my back. I now refuse to lift these huge people. Yesterday I had to roll a 450 lb man out to his car in a wheelchair. Damn. Then he wanted me to help him get up out of the chair. I admit it - I resent it. One of the first things they ask for is food. This is an addiction folks. It is KILLING people. I don't like paying the price in increased insurance costs because of all the health problems we are eating ourselves into. I will not accept this cost to me or my life, and I find it very sad that there is a movement to accept this at all. Shaming - never. Honest kind confrontation - absolutely. Look up NAFLD. It's a leading cause of death and rarely heard of in the general population - ALL from obesity. Gonna get off my soap box now and take cover
Thanks for all your hard work. We had cpr training at work and I had to roll over a peeson close to twice my weight in the twining. Not an easy task. Can't imagone the issues when emergency responders have to get a large individual out of a wrecked vehicle that is down in a snow covered ditch to an ambulance0 -
Packerjohn wrote: »Boy I'm really gonna lay it out here and get prepared for the flaming. I am a nurse, and I SEE everyday what being obese does to people. I am 126 lbs, and people that weigh triple me come in every day wanting ME to lift them up, push them in wheelchairs, keep them from falling and it is killing my back. I now refuse to lift these huge people. Yesterday I had to roll a 450 lb man out to his car in a wheelchair. Damn. Then he wanted me to help him get up out of the chair. I admit it - I resent it. One of the first things they ask for is food. This is an addiction folks. It is KILLING people. I don't like paying the price in increased insurance costs because of all the health problems we are eating ourselves into. I will not accept this cost to me or my life, and I find it very sad that there is a movement to accept this at all. Shaming - never. Honest kind confrontation - absolutely. Look up NAFLD. It's a leading cause of death and rarely heard of in the general population - ALL from obesity. Gonna get off my soap box now and take cover
Thanks for all your hard work. We had cpr training at work and I had to roll over a peeson close to twice my weight in the twining. Not an easy task. Can't imagone the issues when emergency responders have to get a large individual out of a wrecked vehicle that is down in a snow covered ditch to an ambulance
Or out of a fire.1 -
GaleHawkins wrote: »SapiensPisces wrote: »As an adult, I am very happy that I was fat shamed. I would have totally fallen for some fat acceptance crap telling me being fat was okay.
While this worked well for you, it does the exact opposite for a majority of "fat" people. The consensus is that fat shaming tends to make people feel hopeless and just give up instead of inspiring them to change.
I'm glad that you got healthy though! It's a tremendous accomplishment.
Not being fat is not an accomplishment.
Of course it is. If you were were fat and you lost weight, that by definition is an accomplishment. It doesn't mean you have to praise or laud the person however, that's up to you.
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/accomplishment
Well, the comment was directed towards me and I say it wasn't an accomplishment. Not being fat does not take work or effort. You just need to eat less. You don't need to exercise. You don't need special foods. You don't need a special diet. You just need to take in fewer calories. It does not need to be overly complicated and not being fat should be expected of every person in our society.
Do you understand once one is obese it may take more than just eating less of the same macro that enabled obesity to develop? A guy that was at a good weight say at 180 pounds may NOT medically be the same guy after gaining to 280 then losing back down to 180.
Not really. I just ate less, and am now not obese. I still eat at a maintenance level (Well, slightly above, trying to bulk now).2 -
snowflake930 wrote: »My question to those who say people should take responsibility for themselves, is, "what business is it of yours?"
Why does it matter to you what someone else does or doesn't do? How does it concern you?
Like others have said above, "mind your own business".
Kind of ironic that this is a web site mostly about getting healthier. Try a little compassion for people that have not found this site, or can not make it work for them. Walk a mile in their shoes. Cuz I have been there, done that, lost a lot of weight and have kept it off for over 2 years, thanks to MFP, my fitbit, and a lot of compassionate, helpful people here.
Look up how much obesity costs in healthcare dollars.
Research the effect on not just mortality but possibly more importantly, morbidity. That is to say - decreased quality of life. It all effects society in so many ways just like any other disease. Disability alone that is created by obesity draws a whole heck of a lot of money from Social Security/Disability.
It clogs up the hospitals and first responders also.
IT IS 100% PREVENTABLE in every single case just as it is cigarette smoking. Think of the huge campaigns that were totally accepted by society on anti-tobacco. I'm all for an anti-obesity campaign alike.
I also busted my *kitten* to lose almost 100 lbs and I did it on my own because of some deep-rooted self-drive. No medication, no surgery. The way that taught me to never get obese again and I accept that I have that power to choose. But it was preventable in the first place if I understood and respected the principle of Calorie input/output.14 -
mommarnurse wrote: »snowflake930 wrote: »My question to those who say people should take responsibility for themselves, is, "what business is it of yours?"
Why does it matter to you what someone else does or doesn't do? How does it concern you?
Like others have said above, "mind your own business".
Kind of ironic that this is a web site mostly about getting healthier. Try a little compassion for people that have not found this site, or can not make it work for them. Walk a mile in their shoes. Cuz I have been there, done that, lost a lot of weight and have kept it off for over 2 years, thanks to MFP, my fitbit, and a lot of compassionate, helpful people here.
Look up how much obesity costs in healthcare dollars.
Research the effect on not just mortality but possibly more importantly, morbidity. That is to say - decreased quality of life. It all effects society in so many ways just like any other disease. Disability alone that is created by obesity draws a whole heck of a lot of money from Social Security/Disability.
It clogs up the hospitals and first responders also.
IT IS 100% PREVENTABLE in every single case just as it is cigarette smoking. Think of the huge campaigns that were totally accepted by society on anti-tobacco. I'm all for an anti-obesity campaign alike.
I also busted my *kitten* to lose almost 100 lbs and I did it on my own because of some deep-rooted self-drive. No medication, no surgery. The way that taught me to never get obese again and I accept that I have that power to choose. But it was preventable in the first place if I understood and respected the principle of Calorie input/output.
Not everybody is like you. This might be hard for you to understand since it doesn't apply to you personally: For some of us, becoming overweight was not preventable. Keep that in mind. Unless you personally know that the person you are judging was able to prevent becoming overweight, don't judge.6 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »mommarnurse wrote: »snowflake930 wrote: »My question to those who say people should take responsibility for themselves, is, "what business is it of yours?"
Why does it matter to you what someone else does or doesn't do? How does it concern you?
Like others have said above, "mind your own business".
Kind of ironic that this is a web site mostly about getting healthier. Try a little compassion for people that have not found this site, or can not make it work for them. Walk a mile in their shoes. Cuz I have been there, done that, lost a lot of weight and have kept it off for over 2 years, thanks to MFP, my fitbit, and a lot of compassionate, helpful people here.
Look up how much obesity costs in healthcare dollars.
Research the effect on not just mortality but possibly more importantly, morbidity. That is to say - decreased quality of life. It all effects society in so many ways just like any other disease. Disability alone that is created by obesity draws a whole heck of a lot of money from Social Security/Disability.
It clogs up the hospitals and first responders also.
IT IS 100% PREVENTABLE in every single case just as it is cigarette smoking. Think of the huge campaigns that were totally accepted by society on anti-tobacco. I'm all for an anti-obesity campaign alike.
I also busted my *kitten* to lose almost 100 lbs and I did it on my own because of some deep-rooted self-drive. No medication, no surgery. The way that taught me to never get obese again and I accept that I have that power to choose. But it was preventable in the first place if I understood and respected the principle of Calorie input/output.
Not everybody is like you. This might be hard for you to understand since it doesn't apply to you personally: For some of us, becoming overweight was not preventable. Keep that in mind. Unless you personally know that the person you are judging was able to prevent becoming overweight, don't judge.
Wait.
Time out.
How is becoming overweight not preventable? I can't even think of an extreme example...and I'm usually very creative at coming up with extreme examples.9 -
jofjltncb6 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »mommarnurse wrote: »snowflake930 wrote: »My question to those who say people should take responsibility for themselves, is, "what business is it of yours?"
Why does it matter to you what someone else does or doesn't do? How does it concern you?
Like others have said above, "mind your own business".
Kind of ironic that this is a web site mostly about getting healthier. Try a little compassion for people that have not found this site, or can not make it work for them. Walk a mile in their shoes. Cuz I have been there, done that, lost a lot of weight and have kept it off for over 2 years, thanks to MFP, my fitbit, and a lot of compassionate, helpful people here.
Look up how much obesity costs in healthcare dollars.
Research the effect on not just mortality but possibly more importantly, morbidity. That is to say - decreased quality of life. It all effects society in so many ways just like any other disease. Disability alone that is created by obesity draws a whole heck of a lot of money from Social Security/Disability.
It clogs up the hospitals and first responders also.
IT IS 100% PREVENTABLE in every single case just as it is cigarette smoking. Think of the huge campaigns that were totally accepted by society on anti-tobacco. I'm all for an anti-obesity campaign alike.
I also busted my *kitten* to lose almost 100 lbs and I did it on my own because of some deep-rooted self-drive. No medication, no surgery. The way that taught me to never get obese again and I accept that I have that power to choose. But it was preventable in the first place if I understood and respected the principle of Calorie input/output.
Not everybody is like you. This might be hard for you to understand since it doesn't apply to you personally: For some of us, becoming overweight was not preventable. Keep that in mind. Unless you personally know that the person you are judging was able to prevent becoming overweight, don't judge.
Wait.
Time out.
How is becoming overweight not preventable? I can't even think of an extreme example...and I'm usually very creative at coming up with extreme examples.
Prader-Willi syndrome?
Although they usually die as juveniles I think.0 -
Am I the only person who was morbidly obese and didn't stress out the cost of health care? Maybe because I don't go to the doctor unless I'm actually sick and even then it's pretty desperate. Hells, I feel guilty going in for my annual swab job.7
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Am I the only person who was morbidly obese and didn't stress out the cost of health care? Maybe because I don't go to the doctor unless I'm actually sick and even then it's pretty desperate. Hells, I feel guilty going in for my annual swab job.
No, I don't think you are. I think a lot of people are purposefully overestimating for the sake of argument and justification. Does being obese increase your risk of disease? Yes, absolutely. But I think it is equally wrong to assume that the obese all are uninsured or not paying for their own medical expenses. Are there some? Of course, and no one is saying otherwise.2 -
mommarnurse wrote: »snowflake930 wrote: »My question to those who say people should take responsibility for themselves, is, "what business is it of yours?"
Why does it matter to you what someone else does or doesn't do? How does it concern you?
Like others have said above, "mind your own business".
Kind of ironic that this is a web site mostly about getting healthier. Try a little compassion for people that have not found this site, or can not make it work for them. Walk a mile in their shoes. Cuz I have been there, done that, lost a lot of weight and have kept it off for over 2 years, thanks to MFP, my fitbit, and a lot of compassionate, helpful people here.
Look up how much obesity costs in healthcare dollars.
Research the effect on not just mortality but possibly more importantly, morbidity. That is to say - decreased quality of life. It all effects society in so many ways just like any other disease. Disability alone that is created by obesity draws a whole heck of a lot of money from Social Security/Disability.
It clogs up the hospitals and first responders also.
IT IS 100% PREVENTABLE in every single case just as it is cigarette smoking. Think of the huge campaigns that were totally accepted by society on anti-tobacco. I'm all for an anti-obesity campaign alike.
I also busted my *kitten* to lose almost 100 lbs and I did it on my own because of some deep-rooted self-drive. No medication, no surgery. The way that taught me to never get obese again and I accept that I have that power to choose. But it was preventable in the first place if I understood and respected the principle of Calorie input/output.
Amen. Being overweight is a choice as is the decision not to be. With every forkful of food we choose one or the other outcome.5 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »mommarnurse wrote: »snowflake930 wrote: »My question to those who say people should take responsibility for themselves, is, "what business is it of yours?"
Why does it matter to you what someone else does or doesn't do? How does it concern you?
Like others have said above, "mind your own business".
Kind of ironic that this is a web site mostly about getting healthier. Try a little compassion for people that have not found this site, or can not make it work for them. Walk a mile in their shoes. Cuz I have been there, done that, lost a lot of weight and have kept it off for over 2 years, thanks to MFP, my fitbit, and a lot of compassionate, helpful people here.
Look up how much obesity costs in healthcare dollars.
Research the effect on not just mortality but possibly more importantly, morbidity. That is to say - decreased quality of life. It all effects society in so many ways just like any other disease. Disability alone that is created by obesity draws a whole heck of a lot of money from Social Security/Disability.
It clogs up the hospitals and first responders also.
IT IS 100% PREVENTABLE in every single case just as it is cigarette smoking. Think of the huge campaigns that were totally accepted by society on anti-tobacco. I'm all for an anti-obesity campaign alike.
I also busted my *kitten* to lose almost 100 lbs and I did it on my own because of some deep-rooted self-drive. No medication, no surgery. The way that taught me to never get obese again and I accept that I have that power to choose. But it was preventable in the first place if I understood and respected the principle of Calorie input/output.
Not everybody is like you. This might be hard for you to understand since it doesn't apply to you personally: For some of us, becoming overweight was not preventable. Keep that in mind. Unless you personally know that the person you are judging was able to prevent becoming overweight, don't judge.
Becoming overweight might not have been preventable (Think childhood obesity) by the individual, but staying that way as an adult is.8 -
jofjltncb6 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »mommarnurse wrote: »snowflake930 wrote: »My question to those who say people should take responsibility for themselves, is, "what business is it of yours?"
Why does it matter to you what someone else does or doesn't do? How does it concern you?
Like others have said above, "mind your own business".
Kind of ironic that this is a web site mostly about getting healthier. Try a little compassion for people that have not found this site, or can not make it work for them. Walk a mile in their shoes. Cuz I have been there, done that, lost a lot of weight and have kept it off for over 2 years, thanks to MFP, my fitbit, and a lot of compassionate, helpful people here.
Look up how much obesity costs in healthcare dollars.
Research the effect on not just mortality but possibly more importantly, morbidity. That is to say - decreased quality of life. It all effects society in so many ways just like any other disease. Disability alone that is created by obesity draws a whole heck of a lot of money from Social Security/Disability.
It clogs up the hospitals and first responders also.
IT IS 100% PREVENTABLE in every single case just as it is cigarette smoking. Think of the huge campaigns that were totally accepted by society on anti-tobacco. I'm all for an anti-obesity campaign alike.
I also busted my *kitten* to lose almost 100 lbs and I did it on my own because of some deep-rooted self-drive. No medication, no surgery. The way that taught me to never get obese again and I accept that I have that power to choose. But it was preventable in the first place if I understood and respected the principle of Calorie input/output.
Not everybody is like you. This might be hard for you to understand since it doesn't apply to you personally: For some of us, becoming overweight was not preventable. Keep that in mind. Unless you personally know that the person you are judging was able to prevent becoming overweight, don't judge.
Wait.
Time out.
How is becoming overweight not preventable? I can't even think of an extreme example...and I'm usually very creative at coming up with extreme examples.
When I was 9 years old, less than 1 month before I turned 10, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. At that time, treatment methods were not as advanced as they are today. At the time, I was underweight about 10 lbs. to where I should have been based on height. As a new type 1, the CDE put together a plan based on the exchange diet (each meal was consistent for the same number of each food type - grains, dairy, fruit, etc.). Every day for each meal and snacks, I had the same number of each exchange type. So if I had 2 fruit exchanges for dinner, for example, that was true every single dinner of every single day. Most new type 1's gain weight because once diagnosed and treated, they stop losing weight rapidly from DKA and regain some of the weight lost from that issue. In my case, I also gained weight because of the diet plan I was put on. In the first month, I gained 20 lbs. The rate of gain slowed down, but I had doubled my weight in the first year and continued to gain weight, just at a slower pace over time up until about age 20.
In today's world, the treatment is different, including diet plans. There are no stringent diet plans and nobody is put on a static insulin dose at a set time. We now calculate insulin to match what we eat rather than eating the same things at the same times every single day and taking the same amount of insulin at the same times. We have flexibility now.
I couldn't help becoming fat. Now that treatment methods have changed enough to allow me the flexibility to lose weight. 10-15 years ago, I could not help being fat. It is very easy to pretend that everyone can avoid being fat, but what is easy isn't automatically right. Technically, I could have avoided getting fat by taking bigger medical risks and not following medical professional's directions. I also might not have lived to tell about it... not a good compromise.5 -
Am I the only person who was morbidly obese and didn't stress out the cost of health care? Maybe because I don't go to the doctor unless I'm actually sick and even then it's pretty desperate. Hells, I feel guilty going in for my annual swab job.
You're one of the few then. However, as age progresses, that won't continue. How long do you think knees last with double their design load?3 -
Many of us were obese for a time and didn't cost extra. Like zyxst, I actually underused my health care and was a net payer-in to the system. As for society as a whole, numerous people not fat are costing the system tons as they age. My mother has never been obese other than for a brief period (she's struggled with her weight and yoyo dieted a lot), and yet she currently has some health issues (just bad luck) that are costing a fortune. She has Medicare, so we are all paying.
I find it odd that some people who were overweight or obese (as I was) are acting sanctimonious about people who currently are. Maybe those people will also lose weight. If someone had decided to resent and hate me because of all the extra money I was (hypothetically) causing them, they would have been wrong, because I did not. Yes, I had factors that made it more risky that I would in the future vs. being thinner, but I lost the weight (and people resenting me and treating me as a bad person for having become fat would have made it less likely that I would successful lose, IMO). I was luckily not subjected to that.
My feeling about people who are fat as I once was is that they could lose the weight, yeah, but that they may well have challenges to doing so that I am not fully aware of, that they may get to the point of being ready, and that I might have helpful things to share if they are interested, but that me deciding to preach to them or educate them without them expressing interest in my views would be unhelpful and rude and more about some issue of my own than really wanting to help.
I feel the same way about smokers, except that not having smoked I can't help all that much, and people with certain other unhealthy behaviors.6 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »jofjltncb6 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »mommarnurse wrote: »snowflake930 wrote: »My question to those who say people should take responsibility for themselves, is, "what business is it of yours?"
Why does it matter to you what someone else does or doesn't do? How does it concern you?
Like others have said above, "mind your own business".
Kind of ironic that this is a web site mostly about getting healthier. Try a little compassion for people that have not found this site, or can not make it work for them. Walk a mile in their shoes. Cuz I have been there, done that, lost a lot of weight and have kept it off for over 2 years, thanks to MFP, my fitbit, and a lot of compassionate, helpful people here.
Look up how much obesity costs in healthcare dollars.
Research the effect on not just mortality but possibly more importantly, morbidity. That is to say - decreased quality of life. It all effects society in so many ways just like any other disease. Disability alone that is created by obesity draws a whole heck of a lot of money from Social Security/Disability.
It clogs up the hospitals and first responders also.
IT IS 100% PREVENTABLE in every single case just as it is cigarette smoking. Think of the huge campaigns that were totally accepted by society on anti-tobacco. I'm all for an anti-obesity campaign alike.
I also busted my *kitten* to lose almost 100 lbs and I did it on my own because of some deep-rooted self-drive. No medication, no surgery. The way that taught me to never get obese again and I accept that I have that power to choose. But it was preventable in the first place if I understood and respected the principle of Calorie input/output.
Not everybody is like you. This might be hard for you to understand since it doesn't apply to you personally: For some of us, becoming overweight was not preventable. Keep that in mind. Unless you personally know that the person you are judging was able to prevent becoming overweight, don't judge.
Wait.
Time out.
How is becoming overweight not preventable? I can't even think of an extreme example...and I'm usually very creative at coming up with extreme examples.
When I was 9 years old, less than 1 month before I turned 10, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. At that time, treatment methods were not as advanced as they are today. At the time, I was underweight about 10 lbs. to where I should have been based on height. As a new type 1, the CDE put together a plan based on the exchange diet (each meal was consistent for the same number of each food type - grains, dairy, fruit, etc.). Every day for each meal and snacks, I had the same number of each exchange type. So if I had 2 fruit exchanges for dinner, for example, that was true every single dinner of every single day. Most new type 1's gain weight because once diagnosed and treated, they stop losing weight rapidly from DKA and regain some of the weight lost from that issue. In my case, I also gained weight because of the diet plan I was put on. In the first month, I gained 20 lbs. The rate of gain slowed down, but I had doubled my weight in the first year and continued to gain weight, just at a slower pace over time up until about age 20.
In today's world, the treatment is different, including diet plans. There are no stringent diet plans and nobody is put on a static insulin dose at a set time. We now calculate insulin to match what we eat rather than eating the same things at the same times every single day and taking the same amount of insulin at the same times. We have flexibility now.
I couldn't help becoming fat. Now that treatment methods have changed enough to allow me the flexibility to lose weight. 10-15 years ago, I could not help being fat. It is very easy to pretend that everyone can avoid being fat, but what is easy isn't automatically right. Technically, I could have avoided getting fat by taking bigger medical risks and not following medical professional's directions. I also might not have lived to tell about it... not a good compromise.
Just to raise your anecdote with one from me, my maternal grandfather was also diagnosed with T1 as a child. He was never overweight, and for most of his life, was very healthy and active and managed it well. Ultimately, it did kill him. He died when he was in his late 60s from mismanaging it and he had lost his legs. He was not overweight when he died, if anything, he was underweight. I was 12 when he passed away and I am now 44. Being diagnosed as a child with T1 diabetes is not a mandatory ticket to obesity at all.4 -
coreyreichle wrote: »Am I the only person who was morbidly obese and didn't stress out the cost of health care? Maybe because I don't go to the doctor unless I'm actually sick and even then it's pretty desperate. Hells, I feel guilty going in for my annual swab job.
You're one of the few then. However, as age progresses, that won't continue. How long do you think knees last with double their design load?
It's that most people are arguing that fat people are costing them so much money paying for the fat person's health care which seems to be this stereotype that fat people will always have mobility issues because they're fat. I had no physical problems due to me being fat. Curious if I was the "special snowflake".0 -
MommyL2015 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »jofjltncb6 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »mommarnurse wrote: »snowflake930 wrote: »My question to those who say people should take responsibility for themselves, is, "what business is it of yours?"
Why does it matter to you what someone else does or doesn't do? How does it concern you?
Like others have said above, "mind your own business".
Kind of ironic that this is a web site mostly about getting healthier. Try a little compassion for people that have not found this site, or can not make it work for them. Walk a mile in their shoes. Cuz I have been there, done that, lost a lot of weight and have kept it off for over 2 years, thanks to MFP, my fitbit, and a lot of compassionate, helpful people here.
Look up how much obesity costs in healthcare dollars.
Research the effect on not just mortality but possibly more importantly, morbidity. That is to say - decreased quality of life. It all effects society in so many ways just like any other disease. Disability alone that is created by obesity draws a whole heck of a lot of money from Social Security/Disability.
It clogs up the hospitals and first responders also.
IT IS 100% PREVENTABLE in every single case just as it is cigarette smoking. Think of the huge campaigns that were totally accepted by society on anti-tobacco. I'm all for an anti-obesity campaign alike.
I also busted my *kitten* to lose almost 100 lbs and I did it on my own because of some deep-rooted self-drive. No medication, no surgery. The way that taught me to never get obese again and I accept that I have that power to choose. But it was preventable in the first place if I understood and respected the principle of Calorie input/output.
Not everybody is like you. This might be hard for you to understand since it doesn't apply to you personally: For some of us, becoming overweight was not preventable. Keep that in mind. Unless you personally know that the person you are judging was able to prevent becoming overweight, don't judge.
Wait.
Time out.
How is becoming overweight not preventable? I can't even think of an extreme example...and I'm usually very creative at coming up with extreme examples.
When I was 9 years old, less than 1 month before I turned 10, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. At that time, treatment methods were not as advanced as they are today. At the time, I was underweight about 10 lbs. to where I should have been based on height. As a new type 1, the CDE put together a plan based on the exchange diet (each meal was consistent for the same number of each food type - grains, dairy, fruit, etc.). Every day for each meal and snacks, I had the same number of each exchange type. So if I had 2 fruit exchanges for dinner, for example, that was true every single dinner of every single day. Most new type 1's gain weight because once diagnosed and treated, they stop losing weight rapidly from DKA and regain some of the weight lost from that issue. In my case, I also gained weight because of the diet plan I was put on. In the first month, I gained 20 lbs. The rate of gain slowed down, but I had doubled my weight in the first year and continued to gain weight, just at a slower pace over time up until about age 20.
In today's world, the treatment is different, including diet plans. There are no stringent diet plans and nobody is put on a static insulin dose at a set time. We now calculate insulin to match what we eat rather than eating the same things at the same times every single day and taking the same amount of insulin at the same times. We have flexibility now.
I couldn't help becoming fat. Now that treatment methods have changed enough to allow me the flexibility to lose weight. 10-15 years ago, I could not help being fat. It is very easy to pretend that everyone can avoid being fat, but what is easy isn't automatically right. Technically, I could have avoided getting fat by taking bigger medical risks and not following medical professional's directions. I also might not have lived to tell about it... not a good compromise.
Just to raise your anecdote with one from me, my maternal grandfather was also diagnosed with T1 as a child. He was never overweight, and for most of his life, was very healthy and active and managed it well. Ultimately, it did kill him. He died when he was in his late 60s from mismanaging it and he had lost his legs. He was not overweight when he died, if anything, he was underweight. I was 12 when he passed away and I am now 44. Being diagnosed as a child with T1 diabetes is not a mandatory ticket to obesity at all.
Good for him and bravo to you for remembering whether your grandfather was overweight as a child and into his adult life. I honestly don't even remember what any of my grandparents looked like when they were my age because I wasn't even born until they were much older (in fact, one of my grandparents died before I was even born).
In my case, I didn't double my weight in a year because I had no self-control and wanted to be fat. You can pretend all you want that I intentionally made myself fat and that I had all kinds of control over it, but that doesn't make it true. I followed medical advice, which kept me alive, but resulted in rapid weight gain. It's been a really difficult struggle to figure out how to lose weight and even now that I'm losing, it is at a snail's pace. It frustrates me to be looked at as though one day I woke up and decided to be fat... like it was my goal to be fat, so I made a plan and achieved that goal. That isn't the case at all. I'm not happy that I'm fat, it wasn't my goal to put on weight so quickly. It was my goal to stay alive, and the unfortunate reality is that I gained weight.
So when I'm in a public place and people want to look at me and pretend that I am fat because I consciously chose to be fat, it gets under my skin. Those who know the real history understand and don't judge. Everyone else is just making an incorrect assumption.12 -
My mom told me stories about him and showed me pictures. I barely remember him, except that he was pretty crotchety after he lost his legs. And I never said you intentionally did anything to yourself, I simply stated that T1 diabetes is not a mandatory obesity sentence, which is true.3
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MommyL2015 wrote: »My mom told me stories about him and showed me pictures. I barely remember him, except that he was pretty crotchety after he lost his legs. And I never said you intentionally did anything to yourself, I simply stated that T1 diabetes is not a mandatory obesity sentence, which is true.
For me, weight gain was uncontrollable. It was pretty common at the time for Type 1's to gain weight, though my case was more serious than most.0
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