If you are obese, you would have heard this….
- Dr.P.Praveen Raj
- Feb 07,2020
- 05:00 am
“Why can’t you eat less and exercise more you will shed all your weight!”
“He’s so fat he is not fit to play any games for the class”
“Look at her, she can’t even take care of herself, this is an important project there is no way she will be up for it”
“Just look at her, as if she will find anything here that can actually fit her body size!”
Why this discriminatory talks behind your back or straight upfront?
In one word… it’s ignorance!
One fact that we all failed to realise and understand is that a person’s body weight is not totally under their voluntary control. The weight of a particular person is determined by many factors and a person’s ability to voluntarily control weight forms a small but important factor in determining their weight. It has to be remembered that no one wants to be obese. In general obese individuals are perceived as lazy, poor in willpower, and more often as overeaters. Obesity for what we know now is a disease of metabolism, it is a disease where there is excessive fat accumulation because there is deregulation or discoordination between the calorie intake and calorie expenditure of the body. Once we realise this, we will better understand and be helpful towards people suffering with obesity.
Well now that you know, are you aware what this stigma does…?
Deemed a dull student, barred from sporting events, bullied CHILDHOOD DEPRESSION, ANGER, FEAR
Unemployment, low pay grade, underutilised talent FINANCIAL FALLBACK, DEEP DEPRESSION, FRUSTRATION. Few friends, minimal social life COMFORT EATING, SUBSTANCE ABUSE, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES.
This is the worst place to take the fall! Cos it comes from the people you love .Young adults are pressurised at home to lose weight so that they are able to get a good match partner.
Over time this might lead to them rejecting the concept of marriage altogether. A middle-aged woman post-pregnancy gaining weight might be pressurised to shed the post-pregnancy weight but in the process of trying and failing so many times might end up getting very depressed. An elderly housewife being constantly judged because of her weight might end up closing herself to the outside world and just stay within the four walls of her house where she feels safe and where nobody is there around to judge her.
For those of you who really want to help …
Stop your free advice your judgement looking them differently
IT IS NOT THEIR FAULT THAT THEY ARE OBESE.
Obesity has to be looked upon as a disease of metabolism rather than just ‘plus size’ person, because the effects of obesity and its associated diseases call for greater immediate attention rather than waiting. The sooner we come to realise this, sooner we all can act together in the fight against obesity to make healthier individuals, healthier families, healthier communities and eventually a healthier country.