Because I have been struggling with my weight, I noticed a news piece in NY Times about Fat stigma. Fat stigma has of course existed in the fashion industry forever, where even the so called plus size models are pretty much normal (but gorgeous) people to anyone outside of the industry.
Fat stigma is now becoming the norm all over the world, even in traditionally "fat" cultures and places such as Hawaii and Samoa. Skinniness is becoming the desirable state and overweight people are seen in negative light. All over the world they are viewed as lazy, poor, unintelligent and are being passed over for promotions and salary increases.
The public health announcements and advertizing campaigns admonishing against being overweight due to the many health risks are contributing to fat stigma. There is also a lot of discussion of increasing the health insurance premiums for obese people, or denying care until they can lose weight. The latest state to join the movement is Arizona, where Governor Jan Brewer is about to make a similar proposal. And why do I care? Because unless I can get my weight under control, I may soon be one of the stigmatized fat people. And anyone who's been there, trying to lose weight, knows how complex and difficult and hard that process is...There are also many obese people that are so because of illness. To deny care, or increase insurance premiums for them would be irresponsible, in my view. What do you think? Where do you draw the line?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I am also struggling with weight. Have gained more pounds than desirable in the last year.
ReplyDeleteMy problem is that I love cooking and baking, and of course eating what I make. That makes it more difficult.
Each Monday I make a promise to be good and healthy and try to eat more green and raw.
Baby fat is the hardest to loose and a whole process. Be patient and don't despair!
Have a great day!
I love eating too! And I stopped baking because I was eating too many of my own products. My vice is snacking though.. I am an emotional eater, and lately the stress has been through the roof. I am trying quick bouts of deep breathing, throughout the day, to recognize the stress level, and to separate the feeling from the action, i.e. eating. It is a long process though... Diets do not work, I am convinced that it's all in the head! Good luck to healthy eating - green and raw is great way to go!
ReplyDelete