Difference between revisions of "Fat Acceptance"

Revision as of 00:22, 1 March 2023

Obesity is at an all time high in most of the developed world, with an average rate of about one in five people in OECD countries, and nearly one in six children being at least overweight. These disturbingly high rates of obesity are a result of not only our increasingly sedentary lifestyles, but our caloric rich diets (which incidentally involve an abundance of animal products, however it's still possible to be an obese vegan).

Despite not only conventional wisdom but also the scientific consensus making it abundantly clear that being obese is VERY bad for your health, there exists a movement that disputes the importance of weight on health, who refer to themselves as "Health at Every Size." Pointing out that being obese is not healthful and is a lifestyle that ought to be discouraged instead of encouraged tends to lead to accusations of being "fatphobic" and "sizeist."

Obesity is a side effect of a wealthy society; Calorie dense foods are becoming cheaper and more available (largely due to subsidies), and more sedentary occupations and activities take precedent in the lives of millions. As it stands right now, as desperate as the issue is, it does not seem as though the problem will be going anywhere any time soon, despite massive campaigns from governments and voluntary organizations alike. If anything, it will likely become more of a problem in the coming years (as it is projected to be), given how the only real solution currently to it is to have people change their lifestyles (and as Vegan activists, we know how damn hard that is).

https://www.oecd.org/els/health-systems/Obesity-Update-2017.pdf

Is it bad to be obese?

Yeah pretty much. Whether or not someone is obese is determined by their Body Mass Index (BMI), which takes the weight of an individual respective to his or her height, which can be useful in determining the effect of someone's weight on their health. Higher BMIs mean more overweight, with the healthiness threshold disspiating after the level of 25. While there is some debate to have over what BMI level is ideal (roughly 22-23), anything outside the healthy range (18.5-24.9) is cause for concern.

Obesity has been linked with many health issues, mainly heart problems such as atherosclerosis, but also diabetes, certain cancers, and even mental health problems such as depression. As science denial would have it, when people see that the scientific consenses conflicts with their worldview or is just not pleasant for them personally, they casually dismiss it along with all the evidence and experts that clearly demonstrate otherwise. Of course, denying reality doesn't make it go away, and as with any science denialism this has profoundly large negative effects on society at large.

BMI

As discussed, BMI is a very useful heuristic to use within the context of a person's weight and its effect on health, but there is a large crowd of people who decry using BMI, claiming that it's not a valid metric.

With a few exceptions, such as in the case of athletes and bodybuilders, BMI is incredibly useful for the general population. When the term "obese" is used in the medical context, it refers to when there is so much body fat on a person that it poses a significant threat to their health, and is very often used as a simple and quick heuristic by medical professionals in that respect.

Even gaining weight while staying within healthy BMI range can mean an increase in certain health problems (gaining just 11-22 pounds alone triples risk compared to those who only gain five or so pounds), and accordingly, even higher weight gains were associated with higher disease risk.

https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/obesity-prevention-source/obesity-definition/obesity-definition-full-story/

Is it genetic?

Yes and no. Very few people are born obese and have no real way of changing their weight, however for the overwhelming majority of people, gaining weight is primarily a choice.

Genetics certainly are a factor that plays into it, as it can determine things such as metabolism, cravings, and hormones, which all play a role in determine whether or not someone will gain weight faster. However, that does not mean that people are destined to gain weight if the genetic factors aren't in their favor, much in the same way that having all the necessary ingredients for a cake won't promise that you'll bake a proper cake if you screw up some of the steps along the way.

"Genetics loads the gun, lifestyle pulls the trigger."

Humans are naturally inclined to blame external factors (and anything but themselves) when something bad happens to them whenever possible since it helps protect our egos (known as the self-serving bias), but this only serves to make us feel better and not do anything to solve the problem.

It's a disappointing fact of reality. Some people are born smarter, faster, more talented than others, and less likely to gain weight. If you were unfortunate enough to be born with more genetic factors that increase the chance of weight gain, you'll need to work harder than someone who can eat ten thousand calories a day and not gain an ounce. Is that unfair? Yeah, of course it is. Does reality care about what we want? Sadly, no.

Ultimately, claiming that obesity is genetic is used as a post-hoc cop-out by people who don't want to change, and if there's anything to take away from 90% of the articles on this wiki, people will do anything they can to not change anything about themselves, even if it's better for the world, or in this case, their health.

https://medcraveonline.com/JNHFE/genetics-loads-the-gun-lifestyle-pulls-the-trigger.html

Is it society's fault?

Eh, maybe.

When someone is at an age where they can reason and actually think about the world about them more, they are able to reason enough that they DO have choices in the matter.

Most people, regardless of intellect, do some sort of thinking about the state of the world and how it affects them, and they can be sensible enough to deduce that, while unhealthy lifestyle choices are promoted by certain companies with things such as fast food and leisure activities (watching the telly, movies, playing video games) being promoted over nutrition and exercise, whether or not they partake in those things is up to them.

People who do not ever consider that they don't have to always go along with what society at large does are either incredibly stupid or suspiciously uninquisitive. Most people do consider this however, but that doesn't mean they will do much about it.

How it affects others

While we generally would prefer that people didn't, if someone wants to screw over their own lives, whether it'd be their health, finances, or career path, as long as they aren't harming anyone else and understand the consequences, they ought to have every right to do so. If someone wants to shoot up heroin or huff gasoline, they should have every right to do so (as long as they're willing to foot their own medical treatments).

Many point to obesity and claim thats another thing that's just a personal choice, but this is not correct, mainly in how it affects our medical system. Being fat is not healthy, and when people go to the doctor to treat health issues caused by their weight, they will be perscribed treatments and medicines that are paid for via tax dollars.

A study conducted a few years back demonstrated that if people were to eat healthier diets (not including other healthy lifestyle choices, such as not smoking, using drugs and alcohol, exercising, sunscreen), that would save tens of billions in healthcare in the United States, money that can be used for other medical problems, and of course things such as social programs, infrastructure, and scientific research. Regardless of your position on socialized medicine, this is certainly an important factor to take into consideration.

We are not claiming that obese people should be persecuted or anything like that, what we're saying is that being obese DOES affect others; If obese people were to pay for their own healthcare then fine, but that is not what happens.

There's also a concern amongst the fat positive movement that they feel discriminated against in the workplace, for example, by being less likely to be hired based on their body weight. This is not done out of a discriminatory standpoint, but a financial one. If an employer chooses to hire a skinnier person over an obese one, that does not automatically mean it is done based on a personal hatred or vendetta against obese people; Obese people tend to be less productive on average and require more time to complete tasks, especially if the position in question is related to physical labor, though office related work still tends to be inhibited. Not to mention that since obese people tend to be sicker, they also are likely to more take days off from work. If you were in the position of the employer, these are things you would take into account.

Blame capitalism if you want, but them's the breaks. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5770108/

Health At Every Size (BMI)

Don't Weigh Me Cards

These might be too damn frustrating for the author of this article to address, however he will try his best.

OK, so, in case you aren't aware, there is a group spreading these cards around that people can take with them to the doctor's office that basically say they don't wanna be weighed. If you didn't know what they were, don't worry, I didn't know about them either until just a few days ago.

The cards make the following claims:

• Most health conditions can be addressed without knowing my weight.
• When you focus on my weight I get stressed (and that's not healthy)
• Weighing me every time I come in for an appointment and talking about my weight like it's a problem perpetuates weight stigma (a known and serious health risk)
• I pursue healthy behaviors regardless of my weight status

Wanna know what's more stressful than being weighed at the doctor's office? Dying of a fucking coronary at age 40 because you insisted on eating eight buckets of ice cream and washing it down with three gallons of Pepsi a day while binge-watching (insert current relevant TV show here).

Should fat people be shamed?

Being an asshole to someone obviously doesn't mean what youre saying incorrect, however it brings with it increased resistance from those being criticized.

When it comes to one on one conversations with obese people who refuse to acknowledge the problems with their condition, it's a good idea to be as civil and diplomatic as possible, since hostility tends to result in the backfire effect.

Can Vegans be Obese?

Given that the term "Vegan" is incredibly vague in dietary terms, the answer to this is the same tried and true "it depends."

If this were like 30-40 years ago, the answer "No" would be correct 99% of the time, but in the modern age with vegan cookies, donuts, ice creams, pies, chocolate, cakes, burgers, hot dogs, chicken nuggets, gravy, butter, bacon, etc., it is in fact incredibly easy to get fat on a vegan diet.

We of strongly course encourage all vegans to at the very least eat somewhat healthy in order to be good representatives of veganism (eat whole plants such as beans, veggies, and nuts on a semi-regular basis), and vegans do tend to be skinnier on average even compared to people who simply eat less meat, but there will always be those who eat nothing but Impossible Meats and Ben & Jerry's non-dairy Ice creams all day (seriously one of those things is like over 1300 calories, even though they are delicious) and do little in the way of physical activity.

However, vegans tend to be much more health conscious than the average person, likely due to the healthfulness of vegan diets being one of the main perks if done right, especially how cutting out animal products tends to force people to try whole plant foods they otherwise wouldn't eat. Consequentially, as mentioned before, vegans have slightly lower BMIs than the averages for those eating any other diet, with an average of roughly 23.6 (which is about ideal), and an average of roughly 28.8 for someone eating a standard meat diet (which is in the overweight range).

Whole plant foods contain nutrients such as fiber, and also an abundance of water, both of which are linked to preventing the gaining of weight. Also, foods such as nuts are found to have properties that boost metabolism, so despite their incredibly high caloric content, they'll help you lose more weight instead of gain.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2671114/