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Thoughts on the “glamourizing/normalizing” obesity vs body positivity conversations
kiela64
Posts: 1,447 Member
in Debate Club
I occasionally fall down the internet rabbit hole on this stuff. There are so many concerns that our current society is glamorourizing and normalizing obesity. But there are also Fat Studies departments highlighting fat people as a marginalized community. I understand there are studies that show negative feedback and taunts or self loathing decrease the chances people succeed in change. Self love and respect usually helps. (No source, so if you have alternative perspectives I’m interested.)
What are your thoughts on this debate?
I find myself very torn because I agree with some of both. I don’t think people who are classified obese should be hidden from the medical realities. Obese isn’t a dirty word. It’s accurate. (Am still in that category myself). But I also think subways and airplanes should have accessibile seating and not shame obese passengers.
What are your thoughts on this debate?
I find myself very torn because I agree with some of both. I don’t think people who are classified obese should be hidden from the medical realities. Obese isn’t a dirty word. It’s accurate. (Am still in that category myself). But I also think subways and airplanes should have accessibile seating and not shame obese passengers.
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I am curious what society people live in where they think it glamorizes obesity? Despite obese and overweight people making up a large majority of the population, they still represent a fraction of all positive depections in media or entertainment. People who are a normal BMI or lower make up the vast majority of media representations. So much so that when there is any media that represents an obese person in a flattering way, people lose their minds over it. Because it's so rare and outside the norm of things.
As far as normalizing? Well being obese or overweight is what is normal, in the sense that the majority of people fall into one of those two categories. So in some ways, that makes sense that there would be a sense of normalcy to it. And it makes sense that businesses would want to make an effort to make these people feel accommodated, and not ostracized. But it's hard for me to believe we've truly normalized obesity when society and media is still so heavily pushing "be skinny" on us.
There seems to be a segment of society (and it always shows up in these coversations on these boards) that believes that if we make fat people feel as miserable about themselves as possible, they'll finally lose the weight. But these people tend to be suspiciously lacking mental health qualifications. As you mentioned, all the research shows that ostracizing people makes them less likely to lose weight, not more likely. So there's nothing for anyone to gain by creating a society that doesn't provide comfortable living to obese people.66 -
The diet industry is pretty big, multibillion-dollar. I've never seen ads for products that promise to make you fat, there are thousands of products and services promising to make people skinny. If society really was glamorizing obesity, everybody would want to become obese like the glamourous people.41
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Society is glamourizing victimhood. It is far easier to blame something other than yourself than to realize that you are the cause and solution to nearly all your problems.
There are two sides - Fantasy vs. Reality. False vs. Truth. I choose truth.
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I am against reengineering our society to accommodate deadly lifestyle habits. There are a number of triggers that place us in uncomfortable situations that should lead us to make different decisions. If your clothes become too tight to fit, you have a decision – you either buy bigger clothes or you change your nutrition and fitness habits. Regardless of what you choose, at least this forced you to acknowledge that you have a problem.
Reconfiguring public areas to accommodate people who have eaten themselves out of regular-sized furniture is not helping them, it is removing a consequence of their unhealthy condition and taking away another incentive to address their condition, which enables them to continue down the road to an early death.61 -
First, let's differentiate between body positivity and fat acceptance movements - they are different. Body positivism is more of a, "You have a body that is worthy in any shape and/or form" thing. So, short/tall, skinny/slim/chubby/overweight/muscular/lanky/mombod/dadbod/hairy/not hairy etc. Fat acceptance is a movement specifically aiming to get societal acceptance of fat bodies and to get people to stop judging literally everything fat people do with their lives or treating them like they are invisible. Nowhere do they say in either movement that YOU have to become obese to be accepted. But rather that fat people deserve to be treated with the same respect (read: basic human decency!) as people with smaller bodies. Heck, obese people are dying because health care practitioners are attributing non-obesity related conditions to obesity and just telling patients to lose weight. Our disregard as a society for overweight people is a real problem affecting real people.
IMO you have to separate the imperative to treat humans with respect and empathy from the food- and lifestyle- issues that are overarching a rising obesity rate. If more and more people are getting obese, how does it make sense to blame each of those individuals for their personal circumstances and choices? It does not.
I agree mainly with this.NorthCascades wrote: »The diet industry is pretty big, multibillion-dollar. I've never seen ads for products that promise to make you fat, there are thousands of products and services promising to make people skinny. If society really was glamorizing obesity, everybody would want to become obese like the glamourous people.
And on a personal note: when I finally made the changes in my life to eat better and get fit (and was no longer obese as a result) - it was because I LOVED myself exactly as I was and wanted to give myself the best first and foremost. No amount of fat shaming could have gotten me there.
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Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »I am against reengineering our society to accommodate deadly lifestyle habits. There are a number of triggers that place us in uncomfortable situations that should lead us to make different decisions. If your clothes become too tight to fit, you have a decision – you either buy bigger clothes or you change your nutrition and fitness habits. Regardless of what you choose, at least this forced you to acknowledge that you have a problem.
Reconfiguring public areas to accommodate people who have eaten themselves out of regular-sized furniture is not helping them, it is removing a consequence of their unhealthy condition and taking away another incentive to address their condition, which enables them to continue down the road to an early death.
A society without grace and compassion is not one to emulate. "Too bad, fatty" is not a motivational strategy to help people lose weight. "It's for their own good" is one of the main ways people try to justify bullying to themselves.79 -
Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »Reconfiguring public areas to accommodate people who have eaten themselves out of regular-sized furniture is not helping them, it is removing a consequence of their unhealthy condition and taking away another incentive to address their condition, which enables them to continue down the road to an early death.
I hate this argument. If there's one thing anyone on MFP knows, its that weight loss is painfully, agonizingly slow. And the 45 pounds I've dropped over these 5 long months have not changed my physical size/appearance hardly at all. I'm still wearing the same size pants.
So because I made some bad choices, received some bad advice, and/or suffered medical issues that caused massive weight gain before they were under control, I should be expunged from society for the 2 years its gonna take to drop it again? Do you want me to wear burlap sacks while I hide in my basement on the floor, unable to live my life or even sit in a chair?
Screw that. You don't care about me, you don't KNOW me. If I were to die tomorrow at age 31 you wouldn't care because we are strangers. So don't pretend like you care about my early death or that your "logic" comes from anywhere except a place of fat phobia and bullying.91 -
Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »I am against reengineering our society to accommodate deadly lifestyle habits. There are a number of triggers that place us in uncomfortable situations that should lead us to make different decisions. If your clothes become too tight to fit, you have a decision – you either buy bigger clothes or you change your nutrition and fitness habits. Regardless of what you choose, at least this forced you to acknowledge that you have a problem.
Reconfiguring public areas to accommodate people who have eaten themselves out of regular-sized furniture is not helping them, it is removing a consequence of their unhealthy condition and taking away another incentive to address their condition, which enables them to continue down the road to an early death.
A society without grace and compassion is not one to emulate. "Too bad, fatty" is not a motivational strategy to help people lose weight. "It's for their own good" is one of the main ways people try to justify bullying to themselves.
Physically reconfiguring the world to enable obese people to continue growing beyond the normal infrastructure is not graceful or compassionate, it is enabling sickness, misery, and death. Shoving a bigger chair beneath someone who outgrows their chair and walking away like you helped them is empty do-goodery that leaves the person who needs real help in a worse situation, freeing them to move along and outgrow the bigger chair - what then, an even bigger chair? This is much worse than bullying because it adds to the disability but gives the illusion of kindness.45 -
Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »I am against reengineering our society to accommodate deadly lifestyle habits. There are a number of triggers that place us in uncomfortable situations that should lead us to make different decisions. If your clothes become too tight to fit, you have a decision – you either buy bigger clothes or you change your nutrition and fitness habits. Regardless of what you choose, at least this forced you to acknowledge that you have a problem.
Reconfiguring public areas to accommodate people who have eaten themselves out of regular-sized furniture is not helping them, it is removing a consequence of their unhealthy condition and taking away another incentive to address their condition, which enables them to continue down the road to an early death.
A society without grace and compassion is not one to emulate. "Too bad, fatty" is not a motivational strategy to help people lose weight. "It's for their own good" is one of the main ways people try to justify bullying to themselves.
Physically reconfiguring the world to enable obese people to continue growing beyond the normal infrastructure is not graceful or compassionate, it is enabling sickness, misery, and death. Shoving a bigger chair beneath someone who outgrows their chair and walking away like you helped them is empty do-goodery that leaves the person who needs real help in a worse situation, freeing them to move along and outgrow the bigger chair - what then, an even bigger chair? This is much worse than bullying because it adds to the disability but gives the illusion of kindness.
No... it's not.38 -
Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »Reconfiguring public areas to accommodate people who have eaten themselves out of regular-sized furniture is not helping them, it is removing a consequence of their unhealthy condition and taking away another incentive to address their condition, which enables them to continue down the road to an early death.
I hate this argument. If there's one thing anyone on MFP knows, its that weight loss is painfully, agonizingly slow. And the 45 pounds I've dropped over these 5 long months have not changed my physical size/appearance hardly at all. I'm still wearing the same size pants.
So because I made some bad choices, received some bad advice, and/or suffered medical issues that caused massive weight gain before they were under control, I should be expunged from society for the 2 years its gonna take to drop it again? Do you want me to wear burlap sacks while I hide in my basement on the floor, unable to live my life or even sit in a chair?
Screw that. You don't care about me, you don't KNOW me. If I were to die tomorrow at age 31 you wouldn't care because we are strangers. So don't pretend like you care about my early death or that your "logic" comes from anywhere except a place of fat phobia and bullying.
Right, I don't know you, just as I don't know most of the other 7 billion+ people on Earth 🤷♂️. I'm not sure how that fact advances any sort of logical discussion on the matter.23 -
Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »Reconfiguring public areas to accommodate people who have eaten themselves out of regular-sized furniture is not helping them, it is removing a consequence of their unhealthy condition and taking away another incentive to address their condition, which enables them to continue down the road to an early death.
I hate this argument. If there's one thing anyone on MFP knows, its that weight loss is painfully, agonizingly slow. And the 45 pounds I've dropped over these 5 long months have not changed my physical size/appearance hardly at all. I'm still wearing the same size pants.
So because I made some bad choices, received some bad advice, and/or suffered medical issues that caused massive weight gain before they were under control, I should be expunged from society for the 2 years its gonna take to drop it again? Do you want me to wear burlap sacks while I hide in my basement on the floor, unable to live my life or even sit in a chair?
Screw that. You don't care about me, you don't KNOW me. If I were to die tomorrow at age 31 you wouldn't care because we are strangers. So don't pretend like you care about my early death or that your "logic" comes from anywhere except a place of fat phobia and bullying.
Right, I don't know you, just as I don't know most of the other 7 billion+ people on Earth 🤷♂️. I'm not sure how that fact advances any sort of logical discussion on the matter.
Well, considering you ignored every single one of my other points to also ignore the point that its illogical to pretend you care about the health of strangers, I'm assuming you aren't interested in advancing any conversation at all.
Typical bullying tactic, tbh.58 -
The only time that fat acceptance bothers me is when it tips the scale into actual untruthfulness. I recently read a bunch of posts from an influencer who runs marathons while being morbidly obese. That’s her brand. She claims she was skinnier at one point, didn’t like it and found it was too much work to stay thin, and now chooses to go about her business being happy, active, and obese. And I would applaud her for doing that, if she could actually run a marathon, but she can’t. She walks marathons, very slowly, and with pain. She has to find marathons which stay open indefinitely and then she makes the support crew wait for hours on her to finish. And then she posts triumphantly about “running” another marathon.
She’s not healthy and she can’t run a marathon, and she’s telling lies about that, and that’s not cool to me.
Because I have diabetes due to my past obesity, I’m aware that pretending obesity is just lovely and won’t hurt you isn’t a good idea. Obesity kills. Obese people - I was one - should absolutely be able to buy clothes, and sit in chairs, and go out in public without being mocked, but they should also be told the truth about the consequences of obesity.102 -
I don’t feel that anyone should be bullied or insulted or treated poorly for their weight but I do feel that since obesity has become so common that is seen as ok and normal to many and therefore many people don’t seem to care as much about staying at a healthy weight.
The exception is Hollywood/media where I feel there is still this push to be overly skinny and a normal weight person is seen as fat.23 -
rheddmobile wrote: »The only time that fat acceptance bothers me is when it tips the scale into actual untruthfulness. I recently read a bunch of posts from an influencer who runs marathons while being morbidly obese. That’s her brand. She claims she was skinnier at one point, didn’t like it and found it was too much work to stay thin, and now chooses to go about her business being happy, active, and obese. And I would applaud her for doing that, if she could actually run a marathon, but she can’t. She walks marathons, very slowly, and with pain. She has to find marathons which stay open indefinitely and then she makes the support crew wait for hours on her to finish. And then she posts triumphantly about “running” another marathon.
She’s not healthy and she can’t run a marathon, and she’s telling lies about that, and that’s not cool to me.
Because I have diabetes due to my past obesity, I’m aware that pretending obesity is just lovely and won’t hurt you isn’t a good idea. Obesity kills. Obese people - I was one - should absolutely be able to buy clothes, and sit in chairs, and go out in public without being mocked, but they should also be told the truth about the consequences of obesity.
There are always outliers in every group. Just because one fat chick is making a mockery of fat acceptance doesn't mean it's not still an important movement. No more than one jerk being gay means we should stop fighting for gay rights.
Obesity kills, but truly, very few fat people are not aware of that. Treating people like idiots is not a great start to the conversation.
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My thought on the subject is as follows: Watch a John Candy movie. See 'obesity' be glamorized.
John Candy was not a movie star because he was obese. He was movie star because he was a damned good comic. He died young because he was obese.
If the Academy, not of motion pictures but of ivory towers, can understand the difference between talent and sickness, call me surprised.9 -
Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »Reconfiguring public areas to accommodate people who have eaten themselves out of regular-sized furniture is not helping them, it is removing a consequence of their unhealthy condition and taking away another incentive to address their condition, which enables them to continue down the road to an early death.
I hate this argument. If there's one thing anyone on MFP knows, its that weight loss is painfully, agonizingly slow. And the 45 pounds I've dropped over these 5 long months have not changed my physical size/appearance hardly at all. I'm still wearing the same size pants.
So because I made some bad choices, received some bad advice, and/or suffered medical issues that caused massive weight gain before they were under control, I should be expunged from society for the 2 years its gonna take to drop it again? Do you want me to wear burlap sacks while I hide in my basement on the floor, unable to live my life or even sit in a chair?
Screw that. You don't care about me, you don't KNOW me. If I were to die tomorrow at age 31 you wouldn't care because we are strangers. So don't pretend like you care about my early death or that your "logic" comes from anywhere except a place of fat phobia and bullying.
Right, I don't know you, just as I don't know most of the other 7 billion+ people on Earth 🤷♂️. I'm not sure how that fact advances any sort of logical discussion on the matter.
Logic also dictates that human failings and unpredictability must also be discussed. The depth of nuance that would (should?) bring to this discussion would flow far beyond the topic. But for now:
It's far simpler and more effective to simply give people room for choice and dignity in their lives. Even though many may make poor choices at times, or display an astounding lack of dignity.
edit: I believe we're all capable of that from time to time.15 -
rheddmobile wrote: »The only time that fat acceptance bothers me is when it tips the scale into actual untruthfulness. I recently read a bunch of posts from an influencer who runs marathons while being morbidly obese. That’s her brand. She claims she was skinnier at one point, didn’t like it and found it was too much work to stay thin, and now chooses to go about her business being happy, active, and obese. And I would applaud her for doing that, if she could actually run a marathon, but she can’t. She walks marathons, very slowly, and with pain. She has to find marathons which stay open indefinitely and then she makes the support crew wait for hours on her to finish. And then she posts triumphantly about “running” another marathon.
She’s not healthy and she can’t run a marathon, and she’s telling lies about that, and that’s not cool to me.
Because I have diabetes due to my past obesity, I’m aware that pretending obesity is just lovely and won’t hurt you isn’t a good idea. Obesity kills. Obese people - I was one - should absolutely be able to buy clothes, and sit in chairs, and go out in public without being mocked, but they should also be told the truth about the consequences of obesity.
There are always outliers in every group. Just because one fat chick is making a mockery of fat acceptance doesn't mean it's not still an important movement. No more than one jerk being gay means we should stop fighting for gay rights.
Obesity kills, but truly, very few fat people are not aware of that. Treating people like idiots is not a great start to the conversation.
Please don’t put words into my mouth. I said nothing at all about the majority of the movement, simply about where I find the dividing line to be. And I didn’t call anyone an idiot, that’s your word.
My example is a real person who you can easily find by googling any of the terms I’ve mentioned, and presumably she expects people to believe her when she says that she is healthy. She has a huge following. Are all her followers idiots?27 -
rheddmobile wrote: »The only time that fat acceptance bothers me is when it tips the scale into actual untruthfulness. I recently read a bunch of posts from an influencer who runs marathons while being morbidly obese. That’s her brand. She claims she was skinnier at one point, didn’t like it and found it was too much work to stay thin, and now chooses to go about her business being happy, active, and obese. And I would applaud her for doing that, if she could actually run a marathon, but she can’t. She walks marathons, very slowly, and with pain. She has to find marathons which stay open indefinitely and then she makes the support crew wait for hours on her to finish. And then she posts triumphantly about “running” another marathon.
She’s not healthy and she can’t run a marathon, and she’s telling lies about that, and that’s not cool to me.
Because I have diabetes due to my past obesity, I’m aware that pretending obesity is just lovely and won’t hurt you isn’t a good idea. Obesity kills. Obese people - I was one - should absolutely be able to buy clothes, and sit in chairs, and go out in public without being mocked, but they should also be told the truth about the consequences of obesity.
I think this is a great example. I am all for creating an accessible option for obese people. A plane chair, etc. Peoples lives don’t stop because they’re obese. And as was well pointed out above, people don’t stop being obese immediately after doing all the right things.
But trying to pretend being obese isn’t a health issue, isn’t legitimately a problem, is a problem to me. Having been obese for a while, yeah I’m impressed by someone who can walk the length of a marathon— but I’m not impressed by the lies about what’s possible at an obese weight.
I find many people don’t have that line, and it’s either someone is totally into fat acceptance to the point of denying reality. Or acknowledging the problems but also going into shaming/bullying behaviour. It’s hard to clarify the stance of “treat people with dignity but don’t sugar coat reality”.17 -
I'm with Terytha that pretty much everyone who is obese knows it is not healthy. Some may choose to ignore that or actively try to deny it, but not because the message that obesity is bad for us isn't out there. Nor do I think anyone besides the extreme fringe (and honestly, why give so much attention to the extreme fringe) would say that it's wrong for health professional to tell people that obesity comes with health risks -- of course they should tell patients that. It really feels almost like a strawman to me, and certainly no one here is suggesting that we should deny the risks of being fat.12
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JeromeBarry1 wrote: »My thought on the subject is as follows: Watch a John Candy movie. See 'obesity' be glamorized.
John Candy was not a movie star because he was obese. He was movie star because he was a damned good comic. He died young because he was obese.
If the Academy, not of motion pictures but of ivory towers, can understand the difference between talent and sickness, call me surprised.
Considering no autopsy was performed after John Candy’s death and the fact that he was a heavy smoker and drinker, not to mention the fact that he had a history of cocaine usage, I’m not sure you have any authority attributing his death solely to obesity.
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Thoughts on the “glamourizing/normalizing” obesity vs body positivity conversations
I occasionally fall down the internet rabbit hole on this stuff. There are so many concerns that our current society is glamorourizing and normalizing obesity. But there are also Fat Studies departments highlighting fat people as a marginalized community
I'll admit that I haven't read the thread yet so that's on me. That said, a few things - body positivity is about significantly more things that just obesity or being over weight. Significantly more things. Racism, colorism, disability, various facial and other body related features, stature, etc. There's a lot more to it than just weight.
That said, where are you finding fat studies departments? I googled and found courses in fat studies s well as at least one book on it, but not actual university/college departments. The courses were housed in, among other departments, women's studies, sociology, and nutrition. There's also at least one article about the dwindling of such classes.
Do I think it's worth studying? Of course I do, I don't know why I wouldn't. Even if for some reason I didn't think something was worth the money and time for someone to research, who am I (or anyone else) to decide that something (anything) isn't relevant to research. That doesn't mean that I'm going to take those courses, read the (academic) articles, or necessarily care - but I also could care less about the specific aspect of chemistry that a friend of mine got a Fulbright to study (as a faculty member).8 -
Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »Bry_Fitness70 wrote: »I am against reengineering our society to accommodate deadly lifestyle habits. There are a number of triggers that place us in uncomfortable situations that should lead us to make different decisions. If your clothes become too tight to fit, you have a decision – you either buy bigger clothes or you change your nutrition and fitness habits. Regardless of what you choose, at least this forced you to acknowledge that you have a problem.
Reconfiguring public areas to accommodate people who have eaten themselves out of regular-sized furniture is not helping them, it is removing a consequence of their unhealthy condition and taking away another incentive to address their condition, which enables them to continue down the road to an early death.
A society without grace and compassion is not one to emulate. "Too bad, fatty" is not a motivational strategy to help people lose weight. "It's for their own good" is one of the main ways people try to justify bullying to themselves.
Physically reconfiguring the world to enable obese people to continue growing beyond the normal infrastructure is not graceful or compassionate, it is enabling sickness, misery, and death.
So is allowing the sale of cigarettes and vaping products. One could also say that about how horrible the US is at helping people overcome addictions and the ways in which the US has put up barriers to healthcare.23 -
I'm middle aged and still waiting for the day I meet this mythical obese person who truly believes they are perfectly healthy at that weight.
Are there folks currently in denial? Of course there are, that's human nature. Are there people who try to become an "influencer" by promoting that they are obese and don't need to lose weight for their health? Of course there are, everyone's looking for their hook, it doesn't mean they or their followers really believe it.
I don't know any obese or even overweight people who DONT wish they could just wake up in the morning having lost the weight. I don't see any movement in our society towards "glamorizing" obesity.26 -
rheddmobile wrote: »The only time that fat acceptance bothers me is when it tips the scale into actual untruthfulness. I recently read a bunch of posts from an influencer who runs marathons while being morbidly obese. That’s her brand. She claims she was skinnier at one point, didn’t like it and found it was too much work to stay thin, and now chooses to go about her business being happy, active, and obese. And I would applaud her for doing that, if she could actually run a marathon, but she can’t. She walks marathons, very slowly, and with pain. She has to find marathons which stay open indefinitely and then she makes the support crew wait for hours on her to finish. And then she posts triumphantly about “running” another marathon.
She’s not healthy and she can’t run a marathon, and she’s telling lies about that, and that’s not cool to me.
Because I have diabetes due to my past obesity, I’m aware that pretending obesity is just lovely and won’t hurt you isn’t a good idea. Obesity kills. Obese people - I was one - should absolutely be able to buy clothes, and sit in chairs, and go out in public without being mocked, but they should also be told the truth about the consequences of obesity.
To be fair, cheating in marathons "is a thing." I don't understand it, but she's not the only one, and if she's walking the whole 26.2 miles that puts her ahead of a lot of people claiming to have finished. Not that I'm condoning lying.9 -
I think too much attention is given to the topic of hypothetically obese/overweight people and how they feel about their bodies and whether they're doing anything about it.
It can become a dumping ground for people with eating disorders who over-identify with grand narratives, driven by low self esteem and untreated mental health issues.
The attention and concern is shaping decisions that are being made by the Government, for everyone. It is misguided decision to drag everyone into the plight of decreasing obesity/overweight statistics to promote a "health conscious society".
It's promoting a disordered society for people who are not obese/overweight and whom it doesn't concern. The blatant advertising of calorie values on food where it's in your face.
You don't have a choice but to look at it, they won't even separate it or put it on a website. It shows a lack of concern and empathy for people who are negatively impacted by having the calorie content of food displayed.1 -
weatherwoman94 wrote: »I think too much attention is given to the topic of hypothetically obese/overweight people and how they feel about their bodies and whether they're doing anything about it.
It can become a dumping ground for people with eating disorders who over-identify with grand narratives, driven by low self esteem and untreated mental health issues.
The attention and concern is shaping decisions that are being made by the Government, for everyone. It is misguided decision to drag everyone into the plight of decreasing obesity/overweight statistics to promote a "health conscious society".
It's promoting a disordered society for people who are not obese/overweight and whom it doesn't concern. The blatant advertising of calorie values on food where it's in your face.
You don't have a choice but to look at it, they won't even separate it or put it on a website. It shows a lack of concern and empathy for people who are negatively impacted by having the calorie content of food displayed.
How is a person "negatively impacted" by having the calorie information of a meal available at the point of service? Can you explain what the harm is concisely?32 -
What do you folks thing about the glamorizing and normalizing of speeding? Talk about dangerous behavior, right? Wait, we can only shame fat people and pretend it's because we care?40
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I wish I could click like more than once.NorthCascades wrote: »What do you folks thing about the glamorizing and normalizing of speeding? Talk about dangerous behavior, right? Wait, we can only shame fat people and pretend it's because we care?
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My mother suffered from anorexia that put her in the hospital and had long-term consequences on her physical health. To say nothing of the obvious indication of suffering on the mental health level.
It's remarkable to me to see how people freak out about the "societal health costs" of obesity when there's a trend to show a few plus-size models, yet for decades the same people were okay with the physical and mental "societal health costs" of promoting a body ideal approaching the look of anorexia. That isn't healthier, yet it was accepted as an ideal to strive for.
Something puritanical about it I think. You have to work/suffer to be dangerously skinny, so that makes it "admirable" whereas you can be self-indulgent and become dangerously fat, so that's bad and you're a bad person who should be shamed.44 -
There's a quote that I can't quite remember that puts it better, but it tends to be that people form there ideals and opinions after there intrinsic gut instinct. A lot of people in society have been taught that being towards underweight is the ideal, and being seen as overweight is a personal flaw. This leads to a knee jerk reaction in those people to use overweight as a dirty word, a classic insult of childhood bullies (or adult ones in some cases).
However, as there's been a push for more understanding of what it's like being an overweight person, people have come to realise that there treatment and demonisation of overweight people makes them what we call in the buissness 'a bit of a jerk'. And people don't really want to be seen as mean, so the back pedal looks something like:
'I'm worried about your health!' - 'It glorifys bad life choices' etc etc, you've probably heard a lot of them.
In actual fact, they don't want to face the reality that they themselves have been a part of pushing - that their treatment of overweight people is unfair, cruel and undeserved.
In terms of responding to a lot of the critisism that 'body positivity' I would say this. It's the ability to be able to say 'hey, I shouldn't hate myself for the way my body looks - My worth is not intrinsically tied to my outward appearence'.
And that body positivity disconnects health and physical appearance. Because people can be healthy as they can be, be outside of the average weight due to medical conditions, and should still love themselves. People can look average weight and be unhealthy, and they should love themselves. People can want to change there appearance and still love themselves just as they are. Love yourself!
Because at the end of the day the people that don't want you to love yourself because of the way that you look, don't have your interest at heart, and they certainly don't care about your health. They just don't want to be seen as mean when they make fun of people.18
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