Obesity And Its Effects On Society

Prejudice against fat people is a common thing today because the media tend to advocate incorrect ideas about them. Fat people are seen as losers throughout movies and tv shows. As stated by Ann Marie Paulin, “Fat people are assumed to be lazy, stupid, ugly, lacking in self esteem and pride, devoid of self control...” (245). These assumptions are cultivated by the media to make fat people feel ashamed of themselves. Some people might argue that this is

You know what’s so beautiful about imperfection? It creates a space for everyone to share their uniqueness to our world. In the article, Hello, I Am Fat by author Lindy West discusses the issues of being treated poorly and wrongfully shamed for one’s body appearance. Spreading negatively, shame, or hatred towards individuals who are “fat” can truly affect a person’s life including yours. West felt obligated to explain the importance behind fat acceptance in today’s society to her current boss, Dan. Who believes he’s constructing a better work environment and helping individuals by sharing his rather “tame” statements to the public. Society is often times our worst critic by making us believe that body image and personal health will evaluate a person’s success.

“What does it feel like to be a fat person in a cultural context in which fat is reviled?” (Lupton, 2013, p. 67).

“I don’t hate you because you’re fat. You’re fat because I hate you,” an iconic “Mean Girls” quote briefly illustrates how fat is often portrayed in society. Movies and television series have a tendency to exclude overweight actors/actresses or use them as a center of ridicule. In doing so, it sends a misguided message to children, teens and adults who now feel the pressure of inadequacy. People have begun to examine the effects of body shaming in America. In the article “Fear of Fatness,” Peggy Orenstein, an award-winning writer, claims that the image of the ideal woman is rather impossible to achieve, and even those who may obtain it, still find flaws within themselves. Orenstein presents the idea that body fat is viewed as a negative

It’s estimated that nearly 1/3 of people suffer from obesity in North America. Rather than being a part of the solution, the media has a portrayal of what one should and should not look like, what is beautiful and what is not, typically possessing unrealistic standards and showing those that are overweight, as weak-willed individuals, who generally are blue collared individuals. This paper shall discuss obese individuals and how they are portrayed on television or on online streaming programming. Secondly, this paper shall discuss why this group has such a negative portrayal. Third, this paper will discuss what social pressures and production forces shape these portrayals. Finally, this paper will incorporate a media theory and explain what effects it has on the audiences and how obese individuals are typically treated in society.

Today in the United States, obesity is the one of the leading causes of death in adults and children. Obesity also leads to several chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one-third (34.9% or 78.6 million) of U.S. adults are obese (“Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity”). This is such a scary fact to know that more than a third of American’s are obese. Obesity itself may impact our society or better yet make our society dystopian. The word “Dystopia” according to the article “Dystopias: Definition and Characteristics” is defined as, “A futuristic, imagined universe in which oppressive societal control, and illusion of a

The topic of obesity in America is not a new one. In fact, the reality of obesity and its effects on America and its population has been mounting by the decade. Currently, more than 1/3 of adults in America are obese. This translates to 34.9% or 78.6 million people. Unfortunately, this number doesn’t even account for the youth of America (CDC, 2014). To call this an epidemic could almost be considered an understatement.

But one of the most common controversial topics is related to body image. There are many media outlets that say that people should aim to be skinny, but then they also say the people should aim to be curvy. The media constantly contradicts itself by pitting curvy models and ideals, against skinny models and ideals. The fact is that one is not more desirable than the other, “there was a fashionable ideal (skinny) and a sexy one (curvy)” (Kimball). This message is inconsistent because it has two “ideals”. When one ideal starts to become more prominent in the media than the other, the public takes action to bring back focus to the other. Social media dictates the world of body image with such viral messages such as #curvepower and #Iamperfect. People try to support the one they find the most desirable, but the fact is they are both desirable in different ways. In some people’s eyes the media creates, “blurred boundaries between skinny and sexy” (Kimball). For some people skinny is sexy. Everyone has a different idea of perfection, some men prefer skinny and some prefer curvy. The media uses doublethink by invariably supporting two vastly different body types as being perfect and

Obesity is a very serious threat to the health of Americans and people all across the world. A plethora of studies have been done to confirm the adverse effects of obesity on an individual 's health. Obesity rates have been skyrocketing in the past 30 years. The year 2000 marked the first time in human history that the percentage of obesity in the human population rose over 50% (Obesity: A Cultural and Biocultural Perspective). Obesity, as well as childhood obesity, is more prevalent than ever. There has been little done by the American people and the U.S. government to reverse this trend. My research has shown that the problem of obesity is a much larger problem than most people believe it to be. Many Americans underestimate the

Issues of dieting, fat, and slenderness are hot topics in our culture. Bordo addresses them from a postmodern, but historical, feminist perspective. In this essay, she attempts to explain the appeal of slenderness in our society; and also, how the ideology of normal our society holds can be mentally and physically damaging for many people.

In “What’s Wrong with Fat-Shaming?” by Lesley Kinzel and “Solve America’s Obesity Problem with Shame,” by Chris Friend share two different ideas about shaming against obesity. Body-shaming happens to everyone at some point in their lifetime, it sometimes includes inappropriate negative statements and attitudes towards a person weight or size. Fat-shaming is a term made by obese people to avoid their responsibility in taking care of their body. These people make themselves victims in society by pretending they are being discriminating like an ethnic group.

Obesity refers to the condition of having an extra amount of body fat. Obesity is caused by eating too much and moving too little. When an individual’s amount of body fat becomes too high, they are at a greater risk of being affected with life changing diseases such as heart failure, hypertension, type II diabetes, cancer, gallbladder disease, osteoarthritis, and others. This shows that people should become more physically active and attempt to make healthier choices because their life depends on the decisions, they make.

Some labels that the society provides for larger people are still fairly hurtful. Being called obese or morbidly obese can be harsh, particularly when it’s regarding to children. According to the pediatric specialist thoughts against identifying children as obese and morbidly obese can cause humiliation, fear, and a lot more awful feelings and thoughts (4). Besides using terms like obesity and fat, people should use excess weight or weight could be used in its place to prevent additional humiliation (2). With all the weight perception, our society has created this whole atmosphere of disgrace where bigger people are embarrassed about their size. When big people try to live a healthy lifestyle by going to gym and running isn’t as easy for them to attend public places because this world is inimical and occasionally hostile (2). When it comes to the health care settings of weight discrimination can be a cycle according to the Weight Bias: Nature, Consequences, and

Obesity has become an epidemic in our over indulgent North American society. In addition to body image issues, obesity causes significant health issues. Society often views obesity to be a disease when it is actually a sign of a disorder, genetic or environmental. The percentage of our population that is growing overweight is increasing every year, and can become a very serious issue if it is not dealt with urgently. Problems relating to self-confidence, self-consciousness, and isolation can occur as a result.

Body-Shaming is known as criticizing or humiliating someone by making impolite comments on an individual's body shape or size. Body-shaming is a subject that has been recently brought to light with the use of social media; many celebrities have talked about body-shaming along with quite a few other individuals who have even went out to do social experiments. Generations and generations have passed and as the years go by, the problems only seems to get worse. Comments like “you should put more meat on your bones” and “you should go on a diet” are both equally demeaning and overused. It shouldn’t matter what someone’s body size or shape is to anyone as long as that person is happy and content with himself or herself. Almost everyone has