Last week, actress Amber Riley took to her instagram to address those who felt the need to shame her because of her size. This is despite the fact that Riley is completely comfortable with her body. However, some critics have sought to continue to shame her for her size.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BFqHejcM_8J/
A little over a week ago, a high school graduate shared the good news of his impending college enrollment to Xavier University on a full ride scholarship as well as accumulating over $315,000 in scholarships.
While his post gained 78,000 likes and 31,000 retweets, one twitter user sought to focus on the young teen’s weight by suggesting he “get in shape” to further enjoy his success.
The twitter user was adamant in his belief that what he was doing was in the best interest of the grad’s health.
In a 2012 survey published in the European Heart Journal, researchers determined that being overweight doesn’t make you unhealthy. Participants in the study who were classified as overweight and obese were deemed no more at risk for cancer or heart disease as long as they were metabolically fit.
Furthermore, if you’re genuinely concerned for someone’s health in regards to their weight, research shows that fat shaming only further induces stress and affected individuals are more likely to remain or become obese as a result.
What are your thoughts?
10 Responses
Being fat is not an issue but being overweight IS and we must stop denying the danger there is to be overweight. Telling someone to get in shape when that person is overweight is not shaming but is the truth even if I strongly disagree with the fact of getting into someone else`s life when you don`t know that person. It`s just rude but the truth about this subject is that overweight people are expose to a real danger that is to have health issues. It is not a question of beauty, people who think it is are idiots, no it is rather a question of health. Furthermore, I think that you people of BGWLH should not link health issues with beauty standards…this link is dangerous and irrational. You have a big responsibility with your writing don`t give bad messages by mistaking a real issue around health with beauty standards because you participate to feed a false debate. It`s weird because I am French and I have never seen in our media and culture tools debate like this. If I say to my friend you should get in shape because she/he is overweight it is because I worry for her/his health and NOT because I want him/she to conform to some bullshit standards beauty. With this article confusing health and beauty you are actually saying “being overweight is fine” and I am okay with that statement ON A BEAUTY LEVEL BUT NOT WHEN TALKING ABOUT HEALTH. Nevertheless, by mixing health and beauty standards you are doing a very damaging thing as you are saying to those people “if someone tells you to get in shape well they are wrong because you are beautiful just as you are” BUT YOU ARE NOT ADDING “but if someone tells you that you should get in shape because they fear for your health they are right because being overweight CAN ACTUALLY KILL YOU”. To conclude, this article is really really bad!
Sometimes it may be genuine concern, sometimes it’s just ignorance and sometimes it’s purely out of malice.
There are people who criticize overweight people because they think that they’re helping them to improve their lives. There are people who criticize overweight people just because they think it’s fun and have a “I’m better than these people” complex.
At the end of the day, it’s not your place to force someone to adhere to your standards or ideals. If they’re happy, let them be. If they want to be slimmer, they’ll do it on their own. I keep seeing stories of overweight people who slimmed down and became more fit and active in the news(although they had to get gastric sleeve surgery to remove the excess skin left over from when they were overweight) and it made them happier. I’m proud of them and I can relate to their experience indirectly because I had to correct my back, knees and posture using yoga after years of back and knee pain. People criticized my posture for years but it only made it worse and I only realized the reality of my situation when I got fed up of the constant pain and rigidness. Then I set out to fix this on my own. I’m still working on it but when I look at pictures and videos of the present me vs the old me, I know how far I’ve come.
It all boils down to what makes a person happy and comfortable in their own skin. By the way, criticism can be one of the major factors that not only ruins a person’s happiness but also makes them worse for wear.
I’m personally overweight been that way since 11 yea I’m sure there are risks associated there are with everything but I notice that the more people “shame” me the less likely I am to lose weight, I used to get anxiety and end up eating more instead so the constant need of those who don’t even try to maintain thier weight but so happen to remain small does nothing for my awareness. I knew yesterday that I needed to lose weight I new last week and last month and last year but I can guarantee you that shaming will not fix it. And as we all know the change will have to begin with me. Don’t try to save me or mend me focus on your own flaws… that’s my take on the topic.
i think you’re in trouble if you cling to being overweight/obese/fat because people “shame” you.
Actually no where in my statement do I say that I cling to my weight because people shame me. I’m saying that shaming will not Reverse it and I am fully aware of my weight issues and that people’s need to remind me of that which I already know tends to inadvertently have the opposite effect than that which they intended. It’s a well known fact that overweight people tend to deal with the stress of weight criticism by eating more because it’s comforting not because we’re a rebellious lot trying to make a point to those who have something to say for all the wrong reasons
https://www.webmd.com/diet/20150105/study-debunks-notion-of-healthy-obesity
Being obese over the long run does increase health risks. While someone might be “healthy” while obese (good blood sugar levels,and blood pressure, ect.) overtime their health will decrease.
I tagged an article explaining a study about this.
This guy was kind of right tbh…. We’re trying to sugar coat being unhealthy to save people’s feelings. Well I can tell you right now, I would rather be hurt for a minute than dead before my time. Obviously not everyone is a toothpick, you can be curvy and healthy. That’s why the BMI scale doesn’t work so well for women of color who are naturally curvier. But fat on your lower half is ok (it’s linked to a lower risk of diabetes and other stuff) but sto,can fat is the real culprit.
Weight should NOT be associated with health UP TO A POINT! If someone is 700lb and can’t move by themselves, that’s not healthy. But if someone’s 200lbs (and tall) that’s fine.
These are the same people who clowned Jazmine Sullivan about dressing up as a blond Barbie for a party. They have nothing going on for themselves and do not want to see other people enjoying life. It makes them resentful, mad, and vicious. The graduate has the world before him and the fools making fun of him have wasted their life hating on everyone.
I do not condone fat shaming and feel as though the person who made the twitter remarks could have just focused on the young man’s accomplishment. However, the survey from the European Heart Journal also states, “Obviously, the more overweight and the more obese you are, the more likely you are to have a metabolic abnormality.”–(insulin resistance, diabetes, high cholesterol, high triglycerides, and high blood pressure)
Congrats on your successes young man and may you have a happy and prosperous life;)
It’s simple. Fat women aren’t allowed to be happy, they are suppose to constantly hang their head in shame. When fat women show confidence that’s seen as a threat, because people are programmed to believe those women shouldn’t. They don’t deserve love either, Because remember that Gabby scene from Empire? The fact that people still associate weight with health is ignorant. There have been many current studies to debunk that but no one cares because society just don’t like looking at fat people. If you’re not diligent about people eating unhealthy or smoking or anything else, then you have no room to talk.