Last night, the local daily newspaper hosted a live chat session as part of a kick-off for a new weight-loss program hosted by a local sporting goods/running store. I went into the chat intending just to lurk, but after reading all of the advice from the nutritionist, nurse, dietitian, and doctor, I just had to say something. And what I said was:
Are any of you advocates for the Health at Every Size approach? I would be interested to hear your thoughts on this.
The social worker/health and lifestyle counselor responded, “I am absolutely an advocate that we should all be working toward health, regardless of weight. We can all be working toward physical fitness and proper nutrition.” Hooray! Good answer.
But then the doctor responded: “BigFitDeal, the Obesity Action Coalition is a very good patient group that supports care for obese individuals. It is helpful to be as fit as you can be at any size, but we also need to not stigmatize individuals with obesity.” I’m not quite sure about the use of the word “but” here (seems like “and” would have been more appropriate), but anyway…
He then helpfully provided a link to the website. The site seems to have some good information on it, but I was pretty taken aback that he equates HAES solely with obesity. So then I said:
That site’s tagline is about “helping individuals affected by obesity.” My understanding is that the HAES approach is for people of all sizes, and is about embracing healthy habits as opposed to making weight loss the sole focus.
And the social worker said, “BigFitDeal. We should all be embracing healthy habits regardless of weight. The sole focus should not be on weight, but on building a healthy lifestyle. If we are are appropriately physically active and are eating in a healthy manner, the weight should ‘take care of itself.'”
Fascinating! I have been physically active and eating in a healthy manner for YEARS now, and my weight, in fact, has not “taken care of itself,” because using all typical indicators (BMI, weight, waist measurement), I should be dead any minute now.
And then the male doctor chimed in with: “Hi BFD, I think there is a balance because some people have a high body weight but may not have any metabolic or cardiovascular complications with their weight. In that case, being healthy from a holistic sense is a great goal. At the same time, there are people with obesity that is causing metabolic and mechanical problems with their bodies. These people should also be seek and have weight management services paid for just like any other chronic disease.”
I could have countered with, “But thin people have cardiovascular complications and mechanical problems, too.” I could have asked them what they have to say about the fact that 95% of people who diet to lose weight gain it back – and more. I could have challenged the claim that BMI is an indicator of health status (and boy, that one really makes my blood boil). But as I scrolled through the questions – about carbs, protein, how to lose belly fat and increase metabolism, “ideal weight,” etc. – I just couldn’t take it any more.
Instead of creating a weight loss-focused program called – wait for it – “Ton of Fun,” I wish they’d started a program about embracing health and wellness at every size. Even sadder to me is that they have a staff of “experts” feeding into our national obsession with weight loss over all else.
Hopefully, as I had logged into the event with my BFD Twitter handle, maybe one or two of the participants with get curious and look me up. If you’re here, hello and welcome! I hope you’ll stay awhile.
