Fat Shaming Saves Lives

[Revoltingest]

I wonder how he would pair up with Andre the Giant?

Shorter & stronger than Andre.
Shaw said he dropped some weight to be more agile.
I think he's down to 420# for the latest WSM competition.

 

[Twilight Hue]

Fat shaming is a deplorable practice. The fat person doesn't need reminding that they are fat, and likely got that way thru desperate dieting. Others may have PCOS/insulin resistance/metabolic disorder. You don't know.

I agree.


I also think it's nobodys business as well when it comes down to it. People don't react well to busybodies who want to interfere with somebody else's affairs unless that person seeks help or assistance.

Education is and always will be the best venue to point out what is healthy or not for someone.

 

[BSM1]

I try to be healthy,
... but I also appreciate Buddha's laid-back, carefree attitude as well.

This is a beautiful big belly, is it not? It makes me happy just seeing it.
Decide what you are going to worry about, and what gives you a full life? That is fine for different people to embrace different ways of living.

This is not "The Buddha". This is a Boddhisattva.

 

[Jumi]

People do realize that "fat shaming" is a cause of people not being able to lose weight, since a lot of overeating is fueled by negative self-image. Pointing out it being unhealthy isn't the best either, unless you can provide feasible alternatives and support, and not just some silly armchair health advice people always are ready to offer.

 

[Father Heathen]

There are ways to encourage people to eat a healthy diet and exercise without resorting to insults and humiliation.

No one would ever suggest that "**** shaming" saves lives by preventing STDs and unwanted pregnancy, would they?

 

[Father Heathen]

This is not "The Buddha". This is a Boddhisattva.

He's Budai, a buddhist monk. He's allegedly historical, but most of the stories surrounding him are purely mythological.

 

[Quagmire]

I'm looking at the New Thread list, and I see this thread "Fat Shaming Saves Lives," and right above it, another thread entitled "Eating Your Best Friends." It seems an odd coincidence.

RF's Recent Post page is the universal epicenter of odd coincidences. https://www.religiousforums.com/threads/thread-titles-that-talk-to-other-thread-titles.182441/

 

[SomeRandom]

Apparently it's now considered "bullying" to point out someone's morbid obesity and draw attention to the fact that they need to lose weight. I don't understand this. Now, of course I'm not in favor of any type of public humiliation or "shaming" people for being overweight. Yet, there seems to be a double standard about which health choices are fair game to call out, and which are not. For instance, if someone smokes, and someone encourages them to stop smoking, or points out that smoking is a disgusting and unhealthy habit, they are praised as being a good person looking out for a friend and trying to discourage them from making poor health choices. Yet somehow, telling someone that they are fat and need to lose weight is considered to be a terrible thing to do. However, there is no difference between obesity and other risk behaviors like smoking, binge drinking, or even driving without a seatbelt. Obesity, like these behaviors, is a choice. Last time I checked, you don't just get to weighing 300 pounds by accident. You made the choice to compulsively shovel in food and stay sedentary, and you're putting your own health at risk by doing so. Pointing out to an obese person that their weight reveals poor choices and a lack of self-control can motivate them to lose weight, and ultimately save their life. I'd say that's definitely worth the small, temporary price of embarrassment and self-consciousness. Of course, there's a right and a wrong way to do this, and I'm absolutely not in favor of calling people hurtful names because of their obesity. But, a bit of mild, friendly ridiculing can be the catalyst for an obese person to take steps to change their health for the better, just as one would approach a friend with a bad habit of chain-smoking.

Perhaps the difference is why the addictions exist in the first place? Smokers are addicted to the nicotine.
Obesity can be a result of "eating one's feelings." So to shame them is to merely drive them into their habit. With a smoker it's different because they're simply seeking the hit, as it were. Thus shaming them might be a more successful strategy.
Of course this will inevitably vary among different people. But one can encourage healthy eating practices without shaming. Though it should probably come after making a "fatty" gain some more self respect and boost their self confidence.

 

[Stevicus]

I think there's efforts to make fat people a protected class.

That would be interesting. I've heard of cases where an obese person would have to take up two seats on an airliner because one seat is too small. Some believe that they should only be charged for one seat even though they're taking up two. But I had a discussion with someone on an airline forum who believed that since obesity was behaviorally caused, they should not get that consideration.

I mentioned that I'm on the tall side and often felt scrunched in with my long legs. And being tall is not a result of behavior; it's not their fault they're tall. So, I thought tall people should get first class seating with more legroom, without having to pay extra for it.

On a somewhat related side note, I sometimes go to those "big and tall" stores to look for clothes, although when I see the selection, the clothes for "tall" seem few and far between compared to the selection available for "big."

 

[Revoltingest]

This is one time when The Onion will really shed light
on something, ie, the usefulness (not) of fat shaming.
https://www.theonion.com/in-the-know-should-we-be-shaming-obese-children-more-1819594652

 

[idea]

I can't not be big. I'm a 6'8" 378 lbs guy. Even if I get to my goal of 285 I'll still get messed with. It will never end. I have accepted that.

I'll forever have to buy two plane tickets, be forced to be the designated driver, duck through most doors, it's a reality I have accepted along with all the stupid questions people will ask me. How tall are you, did you play basketball? Thank god for your height bla bla, It's expensive up here, most of it's a curse, AND tall people don't get to live long.

6'8", wow!
I have a really tall daughter - skinny, but tall. It can be especially hard for women who are supposed to be small...

 

[idea]

This is not "The Buddha". This is a Boddhisattva.

or perhaps it was Phra Sangkajai - my bad, sorry about that.

 

[Stevicus]

This is one time when The Onion will really shed light
on something, ie, the usefulness (not) of fat shaming.
https://www.theonion.com/in-the-know-should-we-be-shaming-obese-children-more-1819594652

I suppose if the shaming is done by Oompa-Loompas, it might have promising results.

 

[ADigitalArtist]

I've lost nearly 85lbs in my weight loss journey. It certainly wasn't strangers making depreciating comments about health and body image that motivated me to get started. It was friends and family always supporting my inclusion to healthy activities and me deciding I wanted to be able to keep up with them.

Fat shaming doesn't save lives, it just drives those further into depression and bad habits.
And there's psychological studies to prove it.
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/fat-shaming-makes-things-worse