Essay On Weight Discrimination

Society today has distorted what a healthy physique actually looks like. It tells you, if you don’t have muscles bulging from under your skin then you are out of shape. And that if you are overweight you are just ugly. Another false concept is that if you are overweight you’re lazy or not self disciplined (Bordo 2). There are so many factors that have to be accounted for when evaluating someone’s weight. To assume that someone is lazy or weak because they are overweight, is ignorant. Many people are deceived into thinking that obesity is terrible like a sin. In her article Susan Bordo gives an example of a study taken where children chose obesity to be more uncomfortable or embarrassing than dismembered hands or facial deformities when shown

Words were used to describe positive associations or negative associations. The test was based on how people view fat or thin people subconsciously or consciously. Compared to the more personal test regarding racial profiling, this test’s results were not as poignant or one-sided. The general populace in statistics did score that thin people gave a higher positive reaction. However, moderate positive reactions were nearly equal. The absolute neutral position where one feels equal toward either size was high and showed that being fat is becoming more acceptable. The lower end preference of fat over thin was low but it was prevalent enough to record. The test findings were about on par with how society views fat and thin people. With the advent of obesity, tolerance for the obese is becoming acceptable. It is unclear whether this is because this is an emerging social norm due to the rise in obesity or if it is an indication that mainstream media is promoting full-size and plus-size models and outfits that flatter fat people. Regardless, the tests show an increasing tolerance for fat

Obesity has caused our nation an abundant loss in productivity in businesses due to mental or physical issues causing an obstacle to efficiency while active in the work place. The total loss production time is at 11.7 billion dollars per year. According to Shell Oil Company, 11.2 million dollars were lost because of absenteeism related to obesity. Annual productivity loss is between 3.38 and 6.38 billion dollars. When obese, there is a major increase in disability payments and disability insurance premium costs. This produces higher fiscal costs to the federal government. Obesity alone charges our country and businesses billions and billions of dollars each year just from being absent from work or being present, yet not productive

Nazione, S. (2015). Slimming down medical provider weight bias in an obese nation. Medical Education, 49(10), 954-955. https://doi-org.ezproxy3.lhl.uab.edu/10.1111/medu.12793

Obesity can lead to diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, even some cancers and potentially death. These are all very serious medical issues that need to be addressed. The psychological change would be effects on self-esteem, depression and even face professional and social discrimination. Overweight people may not be hired just based on their weight. If an employer has another candidate for the position that isn’t overweight, that person is more likely to be chosen over an obese person. Obese people can meet the requirements, but due to weight, the individual may not be chosen because the potential employer may think if they can’t control their eating, then they can’t control other behaviors. Society may judge an obese person as messy or not organized but anyone could be messy and disorganized. There are many stereotypes of obese individuals which is part of why depression is common among obese people. Depression is much more than just sadness. A depressed individual may feel tired, worthless, hopeless, and unimportant. Obese people may suffer from insomnia or excessive sleep, and can have recurrent thoughts of suicide or death. Depression greatly affects the individual’s self-esteem and stress levels. Fortunately depression is treatable with antidepressants and therapy. Children may have bullies at school, or even at home, that pick on

Equal opportunity employment policy). Most importantly, stop making it politically incorrect to suggest that an obese person is in fact obese. As long as the government continues to allow these people to be a drain on society nothing will change. If a person wants to be considered for a job that a fit person can do better, then he/ she needs do what it takes to be able to compete at that level. Furthermore, a company should not be forced to change their methods because an obese person will not change theirs. It has been shown that although being overweight may be due to genetics the condition of obesity is brought on by the persons’ own life style choices. Think about it; should a person that has put in the extra effort to be in shape be over looked for a job simply due to the fact that and obese person can claim discrimination? I know it is not fair but, that is what is happening with these laws set to protect

Based on background information, a central hypothesis was developed that obesity is an ongoing, gendered and embodied cultural process that has harmful consequences for the obese individual (e.g. Harjunen, 2002&2003). The various social implications of obesity will be explored via interviews (with obese people or former obese people) conducted and the surveys taken of people in the Boston area.

Life deals us with different obstacles we must overcome. Some are psychological, some are physical, the worse are the ones that spiral out of control. The article focuses on the people that suffer from obesity. Written by Gina Kolata for the New York Times, titled Why Do Obese Patients Get Worse Care? Many Doctors Don’t See Past the Fat. I will analyze Human behavior theories and perspective, and what can be done to prevent such stigma towards the obese.

In this modern world everyone is striving for happiness and personal fulfillment. To be happy with one’s life, one must first have the strength to conquer one’s own weaknesses. The overweight and obese are finding the pursuit of happiness rather difficult in this current age to obtain personal satisfaction. As obesity becomes a growing epidemic, resistance to such has also arisen. Fad diets and ‘easy solutions’ litter the media creating stigmas and agendas against obesity. The health effects of being overweight can lead to a large number of health problems including type-2 diabetes, heart disease, heightened blood pressure and cholesterol levels [1]. Although health is extremely important, people often forget that obese people are humans too. As anthropologists, we can investigate the way in which obesity is affecting people within our society, as well as the thought processes of individuals and society in general. In this text we will answer the question ‘what is the stigma against the overweight and how is it created?’ By studying and contrasting multiple ethnographic texts and studies we will explore the answer to this question, drawing on real world examples and accounts from real people. On a larger scale we will study the ‘fat acceptance’ movement as well as investigate how cyber-communities are challenging discrimination.

Today’s societal norms and popular culture instills the idea that being health conscious and exercising is necessary. Most Americans idealize the “perfect” body and will do anything to achieve this image. We, as an American public, are attracted to members of society who present themselves in a fit and healthy manner. Accordingly, there are many studies proving that active lifestyles will even increase work productivity, which can in turn create job promotions. However, what about workers who are not characterized as slender or in shape? Are they at a disadvantage compared to their colleagues? In class lecture, we discussed what archetypes and myths are and their relevance within cultures. Archetypes are defined as widely recurring actions, objects, or events with a powerful meaning. Myths are composed of these archetypes along with other powerful signs that are ingrained in society because they are constantly retold. Myths can impact our biases and standards unconsciously, as we become accustomed to these widespread narratives in our communities. Within many industries, the myth of weight discrimination in the workplace prohibits many employees from advancing in their careers. Based on my personal experience, the video, lecture, and book, the myth of workplace discrimination towards overweight individuals exists and is furthered because popular culture overemphasizes the ideal body type.

Overweight patients may be greeted in society with negative attitudes and targeted biases due to their size. Many obese individuals suffer from verbal ridicule, stereotyping, and even discrimination. These negative societal attitudes reflect thoughts that an overweight individual is completely to blame for their weight instead of there being an understanding that there are many health and lifestyle factors that can impact obesity. There can be judgment as school for obese children, job discrimination in the workplace, and even disapproval in the healthcare system that leads the overweight population have negative self-esteem, depression, anxiety, and other sociological factors.

Obesity may have its most immediate consequences in psychological and social realms, where stigmatization of obese people has been recognized since a long time. A study showed that young boys described obese body types as being indicative of negative personality characteristics (such as; cheating, lazy, sloppy, lying, naughty, mean, ugly, dirty or stupid), and in younger children the degree of negative stereotyping increased with age, while among adolescents, girls may be more affected than boys, although both genders report some negative experiences (Puhl, 2012). The prejudice and discrimination against obese individuals does not appear to have softened, although obesity has now become far more common worldwide. Some of the negative consequences

Portly people may also have difficulty in the workplace. Heavy people may be considered a risk due to obesity related disease. Roehling and Reese (2002) believe that fat people have been perceived by employers as a burden when it comes to providing health care insurance. Some companies have chastised employees for their

In Jennifer A. Coleman’s Discrimination at Large, Coleman displays perseverance and the ability to overcome obstacles presented to her being overweight. Coleman starts by explains that she understands that people with fat appearance is “unexamined bigotry” (176). She wanted to have a good body shape like most people does. Therefore, she is proving that she is able to become fit by swimming, cycling, jogging, and ate low

Obesity also affects hiring, evaluations, expectations, and individual’s salaries (Judge & Cable, 2011; Pingitore, Dugoni, Tindale, & Spring, 1994; Shapiro, King, & Quinones, 2007), this produces its own set of issues for businesses, individuals, and society; it creates a multitude of issues for social psychologists, occupational therapists, and psychoanalytic counselors to work with.