Fat Pagan Pride

[pt_tangles]

I know I shouldn't have, but I have been reading the blow-up about the 'Pagan Obesity Problem' and the equally hyperbolic responses that claim that any mention of obesity causing health problems is body shaming and that obesity isn't really a health problem, it's a discrimination problem and if everyone would 'mind your business', then everything would be magical and puppies would shoot out of rainbow unicorn asses.

Uh, yeah.  Calling absolute bullshit on that one.  You are never going to convince me (no matter how many interwebz links you find) that being morbidly obese is healthy.  Your skeleton was not meant to carry 400+ lbs for 70+ years.  There have been multiple studies that show that things like cholesterol aren't weight related, they are gene and diet related.  That's old news.  But that isn't the only measure that decides if a person is healthy.

Also, if I read one more Fat Pride article that says, "I tried starving myself on an 800 calorie a day diet and exercise around the clock, and I didn't lose any weight', I think I will scream.  How can you live in such a tiny bubble that you don't know that starvation diets cause you to gain weight rather than lose it.  Your body is programmed to store fat to save your life in the case that food sources become scarce.  The minimum daily caloric intake for women is about 1200 calories a day (I know this because my journalling app kept yelling at me when I was too sick to eat much of anything for about a week - also, I looked it up).

And you know what?  Assuming that everyone who thinks that obesity is unhealthy is trying to shame you is not Fat Pride.  It's not any kind of pride.  It's a defence mechanism built upon years of hurt feelings.  Spitting venom at the 'norms' or whatever you want to call the 'others who aren't your kind of other', is not the way to deal with hurts.  It's not activism.  It's not pride.  

I'd say that it's about time that both extremes of this issue 'get over themselves'.

Comments

[serpentrose]

It's hard not to be prickly when you frequently deal with people treating you like crap because you don't fit their narrow view of what you ought to be. With weight it's made worse because most people don't have a reasonable idea of what being in good shape really means. Sometimes doctors will refuse to accept that a large person's health problems might not be related to her weight.

There needs to be, in my reasoned opinion, less focus on weight (which is more about appearance than health most of the time) and more focus on being healthier overall.

I've lost a significant amount of weight simply by making a point of eating healthier and getting off my ass more.

[pt_tangles]

Oh, I hear you. I've never been a stick figure, and I don't expect that I ever will be. And I totally agree that people need to focus on being healthy, and to stop seeing weight as a always the cause of ill health and start thinking that it may be a symptom of ill health.

After I learned about my own gluten intolerance, I was shocked to learn about how many people out there may have food intolerances that significantly effect their quality of life, but because the symptoms are so random and spread out, they may never realize it. And medical tests are of little to no help because of how the reactions can present themselves.

It really makes a great case for eating organic and cooking from scratch. And I know that in the states it is WAY worse than it is here because you don't seem to have laws enforcing what companies put in your food (or if you do, then it doesn't seem to be doing very much).

[pj]

I think the difference here is we have a much greater amount of labeling laws rather than ingredient laws. Which really we should have both.

[pt_tangles]

Probably. Last August our gov't passed another law that requires companies to list wheat/gluten as an allergen. So you know when just about anything is manufactured in a plant that also processes wheat products.

It makes a huge difference. But I do remember when I was in the states last (which granted was a long time ago), nearly everything I looked at has high fructose corn syrup listed in the ingredients.

[pt_tangles]

I wasn't done with that comment :/ - anyway, I checked the same products in Canadian grocery stores and that ingredient specifically was not in them.

I think that part of the driving force behind our labelling laws is that an unhealthy populace is a financial burden on the gov't. For the states, unhealthy people make the drug/insurance companies and doctors money. When the gov't has to pay for health care, they have a vested interest in keeping you healthy.

[pj]

Well, with the national health insurance act that may very well change here, too, which would be wonderful. :-)

As for HFSC - corn as a crop is a HUGE business here and getting rid of that is problematic in hundreds of ways.

[pt_tangles]

I hope so too. It seems ridiculous in a dozen different ways to keep your people sickly. Even if it makes money in the short run, having an unhealthy populace cannot be good for the long term.

[pj]

An even bigger issue is here in the states people get awfully twitchy when they feel the government is telling them what to do when it comes to eating. There is no quick fix. Plus obesity is not just in the states, so it is a global mind shift, also, in countries wealthy enough to not worry about starving.

[pj]

That's where the labeling laws have come in handy. HFCS is listed for those who wish to avoid it. Gluten has been on the label for a long time and in the last five(?) years (I am certain of the last 3 years) voluntary labeling of "gluten/wheat free" has appeared all over the place and stating when a product is manufactured in a place where gluten exists.

My uncertainty arises in regards to time because I only started paying attention when a coven mate appeared who is gluten allergic.

[pt_tangles]

Gluten free is becoming a fad diet here, so the advertisement of 'gluten free' is popping up everywhere. I tend to look on it the same way as the 'fat free gummy candy' of the 90s. Gluten free potato chips doesn't make them healthy.

It's so weird for me to think of 2009 as 3 years ago. I still think of 2006 as 3 or 4 years ago.

[pj]

The first time I saw "gluten free" on a bag of potato chips I laughed out loud in the grocery aisle. First - no shit, it is potatoes, salt, and oil. Second - nice marketing ploy. I bet it works, too!

My favorite munchie is Nut*Thins crackers for satisfying crunch, flavour, and lesser calories. My gluten free friend has opened up my snack habits in a good way.

[serpentrose]

I've been skinny and I've been fat. I don't know what my weight peaked at because at the time I never weighed myself. The healthiest I've ever felt was at a time when I was overweight. (Probably still am, but since my bathroom scale died I don't weigh myself anymore.)

I'd really hate it if I discovered I had a serious food intolerance, one of the reasons I like living here in Toronto (Canada) is the variety of foods available.

It's also easier to eat plenty of fruits and vegetables when you can get to a greengrocer and back in under ten minutes, under five if you know exactly what you want and there isn't a lineup.

The amount of stuff I cook from scratch has increased over time, with a big boost when money was tight enough that I had to make every penny count. I've discovered that I love to cook, and I love to eat. I just make sure to eat mostly healthy foods and stop when I'm full.

[pt_tangles]

Oh, I'm SO jealous! I've heard Toronto has great farmers markets. Since I've moved to Calgary, the selection has become a lot slimmer than when I lived in BC. Lots of cheap beef and pork here, tho. But I miss the fresh berries by the bucketful ;)