Should we stop calling people 'overwieght'?

Discussion in 'Off Topic Area' started by Thelistmaker, May 30, 2012.

  1. Microlamia

    Microlamia Banned Banned

    Eek. I think I just agreed with Slipthejab! :D :D

    Seriously though - on the subject of fat as normal, I agree. There's a picture on Facebook doing the rounds comparing two women, one very harshly cut and one quite fat.

    You should see the comments...most are about how the fat one is 'normal' and 'how a healthy female is supposed to look'.

    Now, I do not want to get into fat shaming here. Not all fat people can help it. My 5'4 80kg friend runs marathons and she's still heavy.

    But seriously, this is normal now? You're not healthy, normal or a woman unless you are carrying 10kgs of fat you do not need? Sorry, that's abject silliness.
     
  2. Count Duckula

    Count Duckula Valued Member

    If it's is only 10 kgs, that is not really all that bad.

    The differnence between a flat belly woman and the same woman with 10 kgs more is not all that big. Yes, sure, there will be visible belly flab and bigger thighs. But in terms of body shape, the difference is not all that big. Especially on people with slightly more muscular body types who are not short. And for some women it is harder to stay lean than for others.

    But when we talk of the people who are fat, those 10 kgs are really not the problem, and those 10 kgs are not a major health risk. for many people identified as fat, the problem is the 20 kgs on top of those first 10 kgs.
     
  3. Oddsbodskins

    Oddsbodskins Troll hunter 2nd Class

    Just for a quick turn around, a very low body fat may not be an advantage in a survival situation, as you have less stored energy to rely on, especially in cases of illness, it's much harder to ensure adequate nutritional intake in people who have very low body fat.
     
  4. JayneDoe

    JayneDoe New Member

    You are actually absolutely correct :D. There have been lots of research showing how obesity even leads to slower healing. I have come across patients that were admitted to the hospital for minor things...usually things that can be managed at home, but some people prefer to admit to the hospital. The saddest part is to see some of the obese patients leave in a body bag when they were hospitalized for something relatively mild. Staying in a hospital when you don't need to be there, has it's own health risks such as hospital acquired infections. So unless someone truly needs it (like a major trauma as you mentioned) it is best to avoid unnecessary actions, plus being obese only makes it harder to recover from whatever you do encounter. Obesity reminds me of smoking...it tends to just make everything worse.
     
  5. Oddsbodskins

    Oddsbodskins Troll hunter 2nd Class

    I'd concur that a prolonged hospital stay should be avoided if at all possible, although in instances where obesity is likely to lead to complications of the presenting illness it may be indicated in order to effectively manage them (this is more abstract thinking then anything else, I've no specific examples in mind). Incidentally I personally prefer the term healthcare acquired infection, share the blame and all that, no reason to spare the care homes! :D
     
  6. Microlamia

    Microlamia Banned Banned

    Sorry, my bad for not being clear. The 10 kgs thing was a rough estimate of mine, could have been more than that.

    In any case, what I am not okay with is being told that unless you are showing this much fat, you're not normal or healthy. She may not be morbidly obese but she surely should not be held up as 'You should have this much fat to be healthy'.
     
  7. Oddsbodskins

    Oddsbodskins Troll hunter 2nd Class

    I think it's largely a reaction to the adulation of the clothes horse. People, arguably rightly, have reacted to the fact that the ideal female figure, as promoted throughout the cosmetics & fashion industries, is a skeletal stick figure. This isn't an entirely unreasonable reaction, although if particularly healthy, athletic individuals wind up being criticised then it demonstrates a lack of understanding on the part of the critic.
     
  8. Blade96

    Blade96 shotokan karateka

    omg. Call ripleys believe it or not! :D
     
  9. Microlamia

    Microlamia Banned Banned

    Hehehee...I think I'm gonna get all 4 of my eyelids pierced to compensate.

    (Note, this is a joke...eyelid rings are a really, really stupid idea.)
     
  10. shinbushi

    shinbushi Reaver

    WRONG. the stick is always a lot more powerful than the carrot. people will do a lot more to avoid pain than to seek pleasure. right now exercise and eating right is more painful for most people than the pleasure they get from fattening foods. now if being fat became so painful, more painful than the pain associated with diet and exercise. Things would change, or they just would not leave the house. IN both instances problem solved. The beauty of living in a wealthy beach city is all the awesome fit people. of course on weekends we do get the beached whales.
     
  11. Moi

    Moi Warriors live forever x

    Don't agree. The stick gets you the bare minimum. A carrot can provide you with above and beyond if it's offered right.
    Once the World relearns this the better it's going to be
     
    Last edited: Jun 6, 2012
  12. Oddsbodskins

    Oddsbodskins Troll hunter 2nd Class

    Concur, except for the relearning, I'm not convinced the world ever figured this out. People work best if they feel respected and appreciated on the whole, sometimes that's all the carrot you can offer, but it goes a long way.


    Also, stick don't help you see in the dark. Ahhhhmjus'sayin.
     
  13. Moi

    Moi Warriors live forever x

    Considering the thread, I'd try a huge piece of cake??
     
  14. Princess Haru

    Princess Haru Valued Member

    Some of them literally can't leave the house. How anyone gets this big I don't understand, not like it happens overnight, most people need to go out for food and work in order to pay for the food, or to claim benefits. If you go below a certain bodyweight and fat it's likely you'll end up in a psych ward but does the opposite happen?
     
  15. finite monkey

    finite monkey Thought Criminal

    So you think we should hit fat people with sticks...you savage!
     
  16. Fish Of Doom

    Fish Of Doom Will : Mind : Motion Supporter

    well, it WOULD be better than hitting them with carrots...
     
  17. slapjitsu

    slapjitsu Banned Banned

    I might be fat but at least am not retarded
     
  18. slapjitsu

    slapjitsu Banned Banned

    Head guards ladies and gents, wear the head guards
     
  19. finite monkey

    finite monkey Thought Criminal

    I require evidence
     
  20. adouglasmhor

    adouglasmhor Not an Objectivist


    Do you fall for a lot of urban myths?
     

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