This essay should be titled "The danger of confusing correlation and causation." I'm sorry that the author has so much internalized fatphobia, but that's no excuse for misinformation. Here's an excellent article about how being fat does NOT cause health risks: https://weightandhealthcare.substack.com/p/doesnt-being-higher-weight-create TLDR "Until we can account for the possible impacts of the research issues and confounding variables, the correlation between weight and health has to be held in serious question."
There ARE heath risks to being overweight, but that doesn't mean that the overweight person is responsible for being overweight in the first place. There is still a lot that isn't known about weight gain, but what we do know is that 98% of people who lose a significant amount of weight gain it all back within 5 years. That's why you don't see a lot of "Biggest Loser" reunion shows.
Danielle, I have been an avid listener and reader of yours for years and find this take off the mark. I am a 66 year old woman who has had a tortured relationship with weight my entire life. My mother, who I loved very much, was weight obsessed and because she loved me felt she should lead me in this matter. For my 13 birthday I received my own scales for my bathroom. Daily weighing was what we did etc. At 13 I was 5'2' and 110 pounds. I could go on. You might have read the sermon the Baptist minister gave on women's weight and your man. He gave this sermon with quite the paunch. I heard this throughout my life. ENOUGH! I am a nurse and totally agree with all the problems excess weight causes. There is a culture of disordered eating passed down from mother to daughter in this country. I am a new grandmother to a beautiful baby girl and was quite pleased to hear my daughter say no weight talk! She wants to concentrate on healthy eating and being active with her. She also does not want to talk about good or bad foods. I say that is the way to go. Encourage women to live their lives and not tell themselves when I lose weight then I will.....go to the beach, go to the gym, put myself out there.
Someone with little to no science education tries to speak of human anatomy and physiology and falls flat on her face. Who cares what a JOURNALIST thinks the obesity epidemic? They're not subject matter experts. Just another idiot on the internet spouting nonsense on a subject they can't even begin to understand. And people wonder why women are accused of being vacuous and superficial. Let's stop listening to the uneducated. Weight gain is happening across many species, including lab rats which are the most controlled animal in creation and which no one gets attached to and gives extra treats. If Danielle was a scientist she would know this, but she doesn't because she isn't.
Excellent piece. What saddens me the most about this obesity epidemic and attempt to make it normal is obese kids. Most of the time when I see an overweight kid, the parent is too. It's true that there are medical/ medicine reasons for being overweight, but the majority problem imo is the availability of cheap processed foods and junk food. And it's getting worse. Food manufacturers seem to be promoting this fattening of kids through their products lately: oatmeal with candied cereal, "Fruity Pebbles" syrup and pancake mix, etc. It's almost as if they want us fatter by promoting foods like this.
And I say this as someone who grew up relatively poor, raised only by my dad, and spent a good chunk of my childhood dining out at fast food restaurants because my dad didn't want a fight about what to have for supper. It took a lot of dedication and making good food choices to lose weight and keep it off
There's no such thing as good or bad food. Food does not have any morality :)
Food manufacturers aren't trying to make people fat; they always and only want money. There's high-fructose corn syrup in many foods because corn has been heavily subsidized for decades. It's a lot easier to blame individuals for food choices than it is to hold corporations and politicians accountable and demand change.
If fat-shaming worked, everyone would be thin.
If losing weight was as easy as calories in, calories out, everyone would be thin.
This essay should be titled "The danger of confusing correlation and causation." I'm sorry that the author has so much internalized fatphobia, but that's no excuse for misinformation. Here's an excellent article about how being fat does NOT cause health risks: https://weightandhealthcare.substack.com/p/doesnt-being-higher-weight-create TLDR "Until we can account for the possible impacts of the research issues and confounding variables, the correlation between weight and health has to be held in serious question."
There ARE heath risks to being overweight, but that doesn't mean that the overweight person is responsible for being overweight in the first place. There is still a lot that isn't known about weight gain, but what we do know is that 98% of people who lose a significant amount of weight gain it all back within 5 years. That's why you don't see a lot of "Biggest Loser" reunion shows.
Danielle, I have been an avid listener and reader of yours for years and find this take off the mark. I am a 66 year old woman who has had a tortured relationship with weight my entire life. My mother, who I loved very much, was weight obsessed and because she loved me felt she should lead me in this matter. For my 13 birthday I received my own scales for my bathroom. Daily weighing was what we did etc. At 13 I was 5'2' and 110 pounds. I could go on. You might have read the sermon the Baptist minister gave on women's weight and your man. He gave this sermon with quite the paunch. I heard this throughout my life. ENOUGH! I am a nurse and totally agree with all the problems excess weight causes. There is a culture of disordered eating passed down from mother to daughter in this country. I am a new grandmother to a beautiful baby girl and was quite pleased to hear my daughter say no weight talk! She wants to concentrate on healthy eating and being active with her. She also does not want to talk about good or bad foods. I say that is the way to go. Encourage women to live their lives and not tell themselves when I lose weight then I will.....go to the beach, go to the gym, put myself out there.
Thanks Kennie for this thoughtful take. Danielle will reply in next newsletter. Appreciate hearing your point of view!
Do you have any injuries?
Someone with little to no science education tries to speak of human anatomy and physiology and falls flat on her face. Who cares what a JOURNALIST thinks the obesity epidemic? They're not subject matter experts. Just another idiot on the internet spouting nonsense on a subject they can't even begin to understand. And people wonder why women are accused of being vacuous and superficial. Let's stop listening to the uneducated. Weight gain is happening across many species, including lab rats which are the most controlled animal in creation and which no one gets attached to and gives extra treats. If Danielle was a scientist she would know this, but she doesn't because she isn't.
Excellent piece. What saddens me the most about this obesity epidemic and attempt to make it normal is obese kids. Most of the time when I see an overweight kid, the parent is too. It's true that there are medical/ medicine reasons for being overweight, but the majority problem imo is the availability of cheap processed foods and junk food. And it's getting worse. Food manufacturers seem to be promoting this fattening of kids through their products lately: oatmeal with candied cereal, "Fruity Pebbles" syrup and pancake mix, etc. It's almost as if they want us fatter by promoting foods like this.
And I say this as someone who grew up relatively poor, raised only by my dad, and spent a good chunk of my childhood dining out at fast food restaurants because my dad didn't want a fight about what to have for supper. It took a lot of dedication and making good food choices to lose weight and keep it off
There's no such thing as good or bad food. Food does not have any morality :)
Food manufacturers aren't trying to make people fat; they always and only want money. There's high-fructose corn syrup in many foods because corn has been heavily subsidized for decades. It's a lot easier to blame individuals for food choices than it is to hold corporations and politicians accountable and demand change.