Do you think fat people "ought" to lose weight?

candistyx
candistyx Posts: 547 Member
edited September 30 in Chit-Chat
If someone is fat, and doesn't have health problems because of being fat, do you think they "should" lose weight? Would you in any way look down on them or reject them if they chose to live with their weight instead of struggling to change it?

Why or why not?
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Replies

  • PJilly
    PJilly Posts: 22,191 Member
    If someone is fat, and doesn't have health problems because of being fat, do you think they "should" lose weight? Would you in any way look down on them or reject them if they chose to live with their weight instead of struggling to change it?

    Why or why not?
    There are all kinds of things all of us "should" do to better ourselves, so in that respect, I think someone who is carrying too much fat would be better off if they lost it, whether or not they're experiencing health problems. But do I look down on someone or reject them if they choose to live with their weight? Absolutely not. There is so much that makes up who a person is, and I am much more interested in content of character than someone's physical appearance.
  • McKayMachina
    McKayMachina Posts: 2,670 Member
    No way. If a person is genuinely happy (no self-delusion), then fat oughtn't matter. Morbid obesity...maybe not so much...just because a lot comes with that which affects others.
  • FearAnLoathing
    FearAnLoathing Posts: 4,852 Member
    If someone is happy they way they are more power to them
  • missxchelly
    missxchelly Posts: 180
    That's a personal choice. Not a choice that should be made dependent on what other people may think of them.
  • bluefox9er
    bluefox9er Posts: 2,917 Member
    If someone is fat, and doesn't have health problems because of being fat, do you think they "should" lose weight? Would you in any way look down on them or reject them if they chose to live with their weight instead of struggling to change it?

    Why or why not?

    before I call anyone '' fat'', I take a long hard look at myself first. losing weight is a personal choice. i don't wander around hotel foyers thinking someone should wear a blue suit instead of a black one.
  • jbucci1186
    jbucci1186 Posts: 440 Member
    their choice
  • Qarol
    Qarol Posts: 6,171 Member
    You really don't know what kind of health problems the weight can cause. They may not be experiencing any symptoms now, but that weight is causing problems.

    Either way, I don't much care what other people do about their bodies. I've only got enough energy to care about my own.
  • candistyx
    candistyx Posts: 547 Member
    is it possible to be overweight and not have ANY health problems because of it? I think even if they don't have any now, they will later.

    either way, i view it like smoking cigarettes- their choice.
    Yes, even obese. An obese person who is fit is at lower risk for obesity related diseases than a sedentary thin person.

    And I am obese and perfectly capable of moving around (and completely "proportional") so I don't buy it if anyone says that an obese person would be too limited by their fat mass to exercise to fitness because its totally untrue. Maybe a 500lb person is so limited, most people under 250... completely capable of exercise imo, unless they also have other problems.
  • Seajolly
    Seajolly Posts: 1,435 Member
    Hmmm... Never really thought about it before because I've never really known an overweight or obese person who didn't have any sort of health risk associated with their weight. Even if someone doesn't have any health problems currently, being overweight increases their risk for many things: type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke, metabolic syndrome, certain types of cancer, sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, pregnancy complications in women, etc. So to me, it's better to try to lose weight just to avoid those increased risk factors.
  • horsepullerlovesme
    horsepullerlovesme Posts: 228 Member
    i think it is ur choice. nobody should judge u for what ur decision is. they should respect it. but my personal decision is that i want to be sexy and being fat for me is not sexy. i feel gross. so i would chose to lose my fat. :flowerforyou:
  • 2bFitNTrim
    2bFitNTrim Posts: 1,209 Member
    I don't pick and choose my friends & loved ones based on how they look, and wouldn't reject someone because of it. However, just because someone is overweight and does not have health problems now doesn't mean they won't in the future. I love my husband very, very much. He is obese and had been for years, without health problems until a few years ago he was diagnosed w/diabetes, and since then, he has deteriorated. He has failed to follow doctor's orders to lose weight & he is paying a big price for it (and the family too!). He has been hospitalized 5x this year for heart issues.

    No, I don't reject people who are obese/overweight. Beauty is skin deep. But I don't know if you can be very overweight without suffering some kind of health problem down the road.

    Just my 2 cents worth. :flowerforyou:
  • elmobabie84
    elmobabie84 Posts: 112
    If someone is fat, and doesn't have health problems because of being fat, do you think they "should" lose weight? Would you in any way look down on them or reject them if they chose to live with their weight instead of struggling to change it?

    Why or why not?
    i think it should be up to that person as to whether or not they choose to lose weight. i'm overweight and comfortable with it. but i chose to lose weight because i was starting to get back problems and knee problems. and one day i want to have kids :bigsmile:

    i wouldnt nor could i look down or reject someone if they chose to live with their weight intead of attemting to get "healthy" in the terms of society. if they think they are healthy then there is no changing how they think.
  • hikeout470
    hikeout470 Posts: 628 Member
    Yes, because it reflects a lack of caring for ones self, and this will eventually cause health problems. In turn it will hurt their family member(s) who are in the position to care for that person. They will carry the constant burden of worrying about them when they get older. Waiting for the heart attack, stroke, fall down the wooden stair case that they insist on living with, whatever.

    Having this experience in my family, I can say this causes tremendous worry and heartache. I feel it is the most selfish form of acting out that a person can do.
  • CodyD18
    CodyD18 Posts: 161 Member
    If they are truly happy then sure. I'm not really sure how someone can be fat and healthy. Even if they're young and it doesn't effect them it will eventually catch up to them.

    It also depends on how "fat" they are I guess. Either way, they can do what they want. You can't force someone to want to lose weight.
  • candistyx
    candistyx Posts: 547 Member
    Hmmm... Never really thought about it before because I've never really known an overweight or obese person who didn't have any sort of health risk associated with their weight. Even if someone doesn't have any health problems currently, being overweight increases their risk for many things: type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke, metabolic syndrome, certain types of cancer, sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, pregnancy complications in women, etc. So to me, it's better to try to lose weight just to avoid those increased risk factors.
    Being overweight is decreased risk of mortality than normal weight (obese is a different matter).
  • myofibril
    myofibril Posts: 4,500 Member
    No, it's a personal choice and should be respected.

    Neither is it "wrong" for people to remain fat. Wrong denotes a moral judgment. Weight, diet, training, nutrition and so on is not a moral issue. Any attempt to make it so should be strongly resisted. Some people will try their upmost to make it so though.

    However, if people moan at me about how unhappy they are to be fat whilst stuffing multiple servings of cake down their cake hole and say how unfair it is that they are overweight then they shouldn't be surprised if I tell them to move the hell along. I have a low tolerance for the "life is so unfair" routine. Try being born in Rwanda through no choice of your own. Now THAT sucks...
  • Seajolly
    Seajolly Posts: 1,435 Member
    Being overweight is decreased risk of mortality than normal weight (obese is a different matter).

    Can you please share articles and studies done on this? I have never heard this.
  • candistyx
    candistyx Posts: 547 Member
    I feel it is the most selfish form of acting out that a person can do.

    So ...methamphetamine abuse, anorexia, having unprotected sex with strangers, dangerous driving, cutting - all these things PALE in the face of the great evil that is being 200lbs? Really?
  • mamacremers
    mamacremers Posts: 183 Member
    My husband is exactly this way, he's genetically inclined to have low blood sugar, low cholesterol and low blood pressure. He's in the category that's past obese, aboug 330, 6'4". He doesn't NEED to lose weight to be healthier, but I think he should because it would be so much easier for him to function. I think it's easier (for me anyway) to do things with the weight off, like walking at the zoo, mowing, going for walks - all those things are a chore for him. But now, I think his body is finally getting affected. His acid reflux is getting out of control and I've heard that weight is a contributor. When we were talking about it, he was like "don't you have reflux sometimes? and I said no." I know that sometimes a person is just acidy and weight doesn't have anything to do it, but sometimes weight is the cause.

    I don't look down on him or reject him. I know he wants to lose, he sees what I've done and wants to do it too. He just "isn't ready" to commit to it yet. Once he says he is, I'm going to help him every way I can.

    Sometimes I have a personal problem seeing people that are super heavy. thinking, how can they do that to themselves. Then I mentally slap myself in the face and think that I don't know their story and how they came to be how they are. I think it's terrible for me to think that way and even though I sometimes have a problem with those thoughts, I keep myself in check.

    and that's me being COMPLETELY honest...
  • 12by311
    12by311 Posts: 1,716 Member
    If someone is fat, and doesn't have health problems because of being fat, do you think they "should" lose weight? Would you in any way look down on them or reject them if they chose to live with their weight instead of struggling to change it?

    Why or why not?

    I truly do not care.

    I do not have any obese family members, however, if I did, even if they didn't have health problems at the time I would be worrying that it would come later in life if they didn't change their eating habits.

    On the flip side, I have family members that fall within a healthy weight range and eat crap all the time and are perfectly healthy now, yet I have worried and talked to them about what they are eating and how it may effect them one day.

    So...it's more about the types of food a person eats than weight for me.
  • Jeneba
    Jeneba Posts: 699 Member
    You are one COURAGEOUS woman to post this topic! I love that you are active and fit - a lot of this is cultural: coming from the world of West African dance & drum, I can tell you that some of the BEST dancers are Large Women - because when they move even a centimeter in space, the motion of their bodies has an eloquence that smaller bodies can't even aspire to. And NO ONE would EVER DARE to call these people "unfit!"
  • candistyx
    candistyx Posts: 547 Member
    Being overweight is decreased risk of mortality than normal weight (obese is a different matter).

    Can you please share articles and studies done on this? I have never heard this.
    http://sjp.sagepub.com/content/33/6/478.abstract This one actually says that the mortality and morbidity is the same for all BMI groups (in women) EXCEPT in those with a history of cardiovascular disease (where the traditional concept fits).

    http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/87934.php
    Scientists from the CDC had already reported back in 2000 using data from national surveys, that risk of death from all causes was significantly lower in overweight people compared to normal weight, and significantly higher in the underweight and obese. The purpose of this new study was to get more insights into the findings, using specific mortality data with longer follow up for deaths among US adults during the year 2004.
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
    I just don't like the word 'ought'. :tongue:

    I've never really thought about whether or not an overweight person should lose weight unless they asked me. It would be better for their health. But I really don't care. Why would someone care? :huh:
  • ibbray04
    ibbray04 Posts: 227 Member

    And I am obese and perfectly capable of moving around (and completely "proportional") so I don't buy it if anyone says that an obese person would be too limited by their fat mass to exercise to fitness because its totally untrue. Maybe a 500lb person is so limited, most people under 250... completely capable of exercise imo, unless they also have other problems.

    You say that, but yet on your profile, under reasons to lose weight you posted: "3. So I can participate in active daily tasks without excessive fatigue."... That's a bit contradictory.

    Either way, I think it's the person choice.
  • joyfulthanks
    joyfulthanks Posts: 155
    It depends on the relationship, I suppose. If I'm someone on the street with no connection to an obese person, then it's none of my business.

    But if I'm the husband/wife, son, or daughter of a person who is choosing a lifestyle that will have a dramatic impact on my life when the inevitable health consequences of obesity eventually come calling, then yes, I think I have a right to want them to lose weight. We can even have an effect on people we don't know, since everyone's health care costs are increasing as a result of the high cost of obesity-related illness.

    So I think unless folks are going to live in a bubble and don't plan to have any loved ones who will need to care for them, and plan to pay for all their health care costs out of their own pockets without using health insurance (either public or private), then maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to think about they way their choices will affect others beyond themselves.

    And I'm saying this right now to myself as much as to anyone else.
  • Jennwith2ns
    Jennwith2ns Posts: 296 Member
    No, I don't care what other people choose to do and I only look down on those that judge others. I cannot STAND judgmental people.
  • candistyx
    candistyx Posts: 547 Member


    You say that, but yet on your profile, under reasons to lose weight you posted: "3. So I can participate in active daily tasks without excessive fatigue."... That's a bit contradictory.

    Either way, I think it's the person choice.
    I found 2 weeks after engaging in moderate exercise I was capable of this :P
  • sarahferran
    sarahferran Posts: 6
    I truly believe that people come in all shapes and sizes:) All walks of life:) At 17 years old I was a happy 250lbs:) I had it in all the right places and i never had any problems:) Then i started to get symptoms of heart issues. Palpatations and high blood pressure. At the age of 18 i was 311lbs. The Dr told me that i had High tryglicerides and high blood pressure:( He said that if i didnt loose weight i would be in for serious health problems later. I was put on meds for both problems. At 20 years old i was 370 and diagnosed with type two diabetes. I didnt know what to do. So i gave up. My eating got out of control. I could barely walk:( I had a beautiful little boy who i could not play with:( At 21 years old on the day of my R NY Gastric bypass surgery i was 484lbs. I figured i had nothing to lose. I tell you this at 255lbs and 25 yeas old. All the health problems are Gone:) I live a healthy active lifestyle. People "ought" To do what is best for them in the long run:) And that isnt the same for everyone. I think that if a person is overweight but happy with no health concerns and have no desire to change than that is great:) I also think that there comes a time in every overweight persons life when they truly are open to change and challenge themselves to be different. As far as judging or looking down...That is not my job:) I am a people person and love to talk and be friends. If they are 120lbs or 600lbs:) I hope this helps:)
  • candistyx
    candistyx Posts: 547 Member
    Another fun article:

    http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/31/Supplement_2/S278.full
    Obesity is a well-established risk factor for many chronic disorders such as cardiovascular disease (CVD), type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers, as well as for increased all-cause mortality risk (1–3). It is therefore paradoxical that weight loss, whether only observational or even intentional (in some observational studies) is also associated with an increased mortality risk (4–10). This has now been documented from four Nordic countries (7–10) in recent epidemiological studies based on population-based cohorts followed over time, after an initial assessment of weight loss compared with weight stability or weight increase during the first few years of follow-up. Therefore, a clinical controversy exists.

    It is just not as simple as "less fat == more health".
  • Seajolly
    Seajolly Posts: 1,435 Member
    http://sjp.sagepub.com/content/33/6/478.abstract This one actually says that the mortality and morbidity is the same for all BMI groups (in women) EXCEPT in those with a history of cardiovascular disease (where the traditional concept fits).

    http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/87934.php
    Scientists from the CDC had already reported back in 2000 using data from national surveys, that risk of death from all causes was significantly lower in overweight people compared to normal weight, and significantly higher in the underweight and obese. The purpose of this new study was to get more insights into the findings, using specific mortality data with longer follow up for deaths among US adults during the year 2004.

    Thanks for that! Interesting findings, but in the first one, the study was done in rural Sweden. Didn't see any other contributing factors to the findings such as diet, climate, etc. Is this a very cold climate for most of the year? Does an extra layer of fat help prolong life because it helps keep the people warmer and more likely to survive the cold winters incase of food shortages? Really need more information before I can understand the outcome of that study.

    In the second link, it makes a lot of sense that being modestly overweight would provide "the body with essential nutritional reserves during recovery from illness and major operations". So I totally understand that. That is a very good point.
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