Obesity and Media

We've all heard stories regarding media scrutiny or praise of celebrity and public figures' bodies especially in women. This can be detrimental to a person's body image. This image explains it all:



However, more and more, we are seeing a reverse in this trend. An embracing of overweight and obese leaders and role models along with a message that overweight and obese people should embrace their bodies.

We see it on the big screen:


Television Targeting children and teens:


News Media:

And, our political leaders:


Many talk shows, television programs, news reports, and films perpetuate a message that people should not be ashamed of their weight or bodies, and further, they should embrace them and show them off. Is it destructive to enable and condone overweightness and obesity especially in a nation (US) that has the highest rates of overweight and obese citizens? Should shows that have morality messages like Glee, ignore characters' weight issues and represent them as powerful divas or comedy kings and queens that embrace their larger size while castigating those who dare say that these characters need to lose weight?

Models, for instance, often must adhere to strict guidelines of body weight. They cannot be below the threshold of a healthy weight in many jurisdictions. Though, seldom will we see guidelines that prohibit overweight or obese (plus-size) models from walking the runway, despite the health risks associated with the condition.

Well, there is a fine line to be walked. First, the goal should not be to shame people, in the sense that tabloids and diet pill ads regularly do or to idolize underweight persons. The goal should be to point out that being overweight or obese is not 'okay' and to assume a supportive role in helping assume a healthier body rather than focusing on the sex appeal of being thin.


Health Risks of being overweight and obese:

Coronary heart disease
Type 2 diabetes
Cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
Hypertension (high blood pressure)
Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides)
Stroke
Liver and Gallbladder disease
Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
Osteoarthritis (a degeneration of cartilage and its underlying bone within a joint)
Gynecological problems (abnormal menses, infertility)

(CDC)

Sidenote: BMI is not always the best approach. BMI and Body Fat percentage together are a better way to gauge obesity.

With these conditions comes increased health care cost for all of society.

Again, this is not about which is worse, underweight or overweight, they are both detrimental to one's health.
The question is it, how, and to what extent, should the media deter overweight and obesity?

I think that the Media should use its powers responsibly, with all the clout and power it has over the American populace. It could be a great voice for good. Promoting public health in a rational fashion should be something the mass media should feel obligated to do. As long as we don't demonize or stigmatize being overweight or obese. (Anymore than we already do, lol)

I don't feel as though being obese is something that should be glorified, nor should it be something to be ashamed of. Though some rare cases of obesity are caused by diseases, the majority are from just bad diets and flat out laziness. I don't believe the media should have to hold their hand and tell them everything is going to be OK just because some of them have self-esteem issues. All that's doing is encouraging bad health. Same goes with the underweight people. If you can see your ribs, then I'm sorry but you have a health problem. I don't feel as though the media should have a role in this at all to be honest, don't try to glorify it or try to discourage it just let those people do their own thing.

I'm not sure the media is currently encouraging obesity. Wherever you look, there are bound to be more things promoting unachievable thinness than glorifying obesity. Either direction, though, is an unfortunate direction. The media should encourage people to be healthy and comfortable with their own body types, not set ridiculous standards of beauty nor promote unhealthiness.

Obesity is also fairly relative and kind of difficult to measure. For different body types, the point of being considered obese is drastically different. And the measurements we have for these types of things do not take many variables into account. I am considered overweight/borderline obese by these measurements. But what does that even mean? Nothing really. I'm more physically capable than many of my friends who are not even near overweight. I'm completely healthy. And I look damn good. Yet I am categorized as borderline obese and "plus-size"? Why is a size 12-16 that? What's happening is that as the general public sees thinner and sculpted as more beautiful, the view of what is plus-sized, overweight, and obese actually changes from a social viewpoint.

There's no reason to exclude obese or overweight people from the media or restrict how often they should be featured. As long as the idea of being obese is not glorified, then there really is no problem.

On a semi-related note, I would be more comfortable if the media started featuring more diversity among body types. The world is not split into fat and skinny or sexy and ugly. There is so much grey area to cover. Why not start being a bit more realistic about things? And perhaps not give every fat character on television a story arc involving weight acceptance. The messages of acceptance are sent much better by not beating the point into people's skulls with a sledgehammer and rather having characters simply be good characters.

Anna said most everything I was going to say. There is such a fine line between promoting good health and shaming people for their weight that I don't think the media is up to the task. I think it's up to people like us to learn and educate each other.

Oh, and let me also give an example of someone who, by body measurement standards, would be considered overweight: Christina Hendricks (who stars on Mad Men)



She looks perfectly healthy. "Overweight" should be something specific to each person.

I'm just laughing my ass off right now. Of course, the media's big bad agenda is to glorify obesity.
In TV, even if they have the occasional token fattie, said fattie is usually engaging in stereotypical "fattie" actions like overeating, being lazy and clumsy and hating their bodies. Because, we all know that if you're fat you eat way worse than everyone else and you never move.
I'm just sick and tired of people even talking about this. Fat people exist, we have the right to exist and exist comfortably and happily without fear of shame and ridicule.

I've been fat most my life and, luckily I always had a "I don't give a ****" mentality about people calling me fat. I am fat? Yes, I am fat and the sky is blue.
But I have seen body weight obsesssion terrorize a person I care deeply for. She went from 130 pounds to 90. She became bulimic, anorexic, self-loathing and obsessed with her body. And all anyone could ever say to her? "You look great, whatever you're doing, Keep it up."
So don't EVER think for a SECOND media has turned the tables and everything is either promoting self love or "glorifying obesity." It's not. It's just ****ing not.

When they show someone smoking on TV, does it promote lung cancer? When they show cartoons of kids eating candy, does it promote diabetes? The answer is no.

I have to agree with the above user - the media is most definitely not promoting obesity. But by not constantly taking the piss out of people such as that politician, they're doing the right thing. Yes, becoming morbidly obese has health issues which can lead to death / becoming a burden on the health service, your family etc. but if the media were constantly criticising fat people a) papers would become uncomfortable to read b) it'd just be a bit harsh really and c) we'd be complaining about it on here.
But that's only because they'd take it too far. I think you need some moderate criticism of becoming massively obese, but we also have to accept there are different body types too.

I got picked on as a little kid because of my weight. My dad wasn't able to cook at home because he never had time (between work, errands, four kids, laundry... Single parenting stuff) so we always ate out; think: Burger King, Macdonald's, Wendy's.

That started my weight issues, and being <10 at the time, can you really say that I "chose" to be overweight? What kind of kid thinks any further than the cool Pokeball toy that came with the BK and MD kid's meals? It's unrealistic to think that I, at age eight or nine, would be focusing on that. Even until age fifteen I don't think you can really say it's the kid's fault because their habits stem from their parents. Short: bad parenting. It starts becoming the child's responsibility / "fault" after maybe age eighteen, but after eighteen years that "lifestyle" is encoded and is very difficult to overcome.

Plus, I've had an underactive thryoid my entire life. I'm 20 now and my thyroid is still messed up (can't fix without surgery / life-long medication). You're supposed to be around 2-4, but I'm about 10 now lol and given that the thyroid pretty much controls and affects everything from development, puberty, bones, hormones, menstrual cycles and, yes, metabolism, it'll be a bit before I can overcome the "damage" that my thyroid (and the encoded eating lifestyle from childhood - that still goes on to this day) has caused my body / weight.

As someone else mentioned, I don't think that the media is up to the task. Everything flaunts super skinny = good, any reminisce of flab = OMFG GET OFF THE STREETS. It's awful. I know I'm overweight (though I hold it well, apparently), but there needs to be more education from a young age in school perhaps that drives good lifestyles into kids' heads, esp. if their lifestyles are already poor.

Doesn't help that the good stuff is bad for you either. What kid is going to take a carrot over chocolate? The parents play such a vital role :( and in adulthood / teenage"hood", the kids take the heat for it if they aren't picture-perfect thin.

Now what really sickens me is this "Doctor Oz" guy. His headline this week?

Dr. Oz's Secret Way To Lose 15lbs/Week - And It's Healthy!

Nothing like that can ever be "healthy"! 4lbs/week is already pushing it. 15lbs/week will just shock your body and you'll gain it all back quickly afterwards. It has to be a lifestyle change, not a quick-fix.

What's wrong with idealizing fitness? Living a healthy lifestyle is a good thing. I don't think the converse should be true, there's no reason to "shame" obese people, as you put it, but living a healthy lifestyle and being attractive as a result is something to be proud of.

Well, the example that Scarf used. The woman in the picture has a very high body fat percentage and is essentially in a corset. I wouldn't go as far to say she is an image of health. She is attractive though. That is the distinction, should the media perpetuate that women like her, that are attractive yet non-healthy bodies be lauded for their curves in the media?

That is the issue, we can be attractive and overweight and underweight. Though, we should not admire either group's body because both are unhealthy. In the US especially, it is often portrayed as, the average, curvy, or normal woman to be overweight. The average woman might look something like this:

Example from a Dove commercial:


Though, they look attractive, they are unhealthy. Their body fat is very high. Around 30%.

Again, weight, is not a good measure, weight and body fat in together are a better assessment of overweight and obese.

The vast majority of countries might have average bodies like the one in the middle:



The left is an example of underweight and the right is an example of overweight (not obese).
The middle is a healthy body fat percentage.

Beauty has nothing to do with this; I think they are all attractive. But the point is that the media often glorifies curvy or super-skinny women despite the fact that they are not ideal of health.

Again, focusing on women, since women are often the one's being lauded for or scrutinized for either end of unhealthy body fat.

I'm just going to jump in with a correction- the women in the first picture look just fine. They seem healthy and fit. How in the world to you know their body fat percentage from a picture? And anyway, the normal percentage of fat for women is apparently 21-30%. So 30% ain't really high, it's just on the high end of the average range. It really isn't just "weight + body fat" that gives you a good idea of what is overweight or obese. You absolutely must take into account body type, muscle mass and density, bone structure, and so many other factors.

The middle lady of the second picture looks like she's on the lower end of the average body fat range and pretty toned. The lady on the far right looks very slightly chubby, as befits someone on the middle-high end of the range. Overweight? Nah. Look at how she's built. That's just fine.

Now, these pictures feature someone who is 30-40lbs overweight from a medical standpoint and have not been relentlessly photoshopped.


Photos from the last six months, weighing 190-200lbs. According to my scale, about an average of 38% in body fat. Who knows how accurate that thing is though. Unhealthy? Not really, actually. I'm built to be heavier. I have no trouble with day-to-day activities, hiking, running, lifting, anything. I feel fine and look good. Why shouldn't a body be admired if it looks nice, even while being unhealthy? It's fine to find someone attractive for their shape. It just shouldn't be perpetuated that the unhealthiness is what makes them attractive. And concerning significantly overweight people, that still doesn't happen anyway.

The media's definition of overweight is so far off from the truth it's ridiculous. And the effects of that definition are definitely showing right now.

I've always felt that the BMI scale was horrendously broken. It only takes in account average or "ideal" builds, and if you fall on the high (or low) ends, have an uncommon body build, or just happen to lie in an extreme somewhere, you simply can't reasonably expect to stay within those parameters that easily. The problem gets compounded even more by the fact that we're surrounded by junk, and sometimes genetics, our upbringing, or some other legitimate reason exists for our excess weight. Sometimes yes, it's just that we're lazy. Not all of us have the time or resources available to change our habits easily, and they can be especially difficult to break if we were raised that way.

So in regards to the topic, I don't believe the media has been portraying obesity in any positive light. Not when they go out of their way to ensure everybody looks impossibly thin and/or fit. You don't see many obese people in the media. Sure there are some, but that's just because they're needed. Nobody's going to cast an obese person if the role didn't specifically call for it. A news anchor who is obese might be less uncommon, but I'm pretty sure they're still in the minority and have a legitimate medical reason for their size. In these cases; they can't be discriminated against, and so must be allowed to pursue their careers.

I've always felt that medical science just conveniently ignores the fact that some people are not in the "Average Range" of traits when it comes to the gene pool, relegating them to being "A very small minority." Worse is that when someone is legitimately that way some doctors still blindly insist on following that dusty old scale that's based on averages that are; terribly out of date, don't take into account the possibility of someone being on an extreme end of the scale, and don't take into account any legitimate external factors. I don't believe that media has ever Promoted obesity because they're too busy mirroring what the doctors say; which isn't a bad thing when an appropriate amount of empathy, tact and moderation is in play as well.

Yeah, even in my wellness class in college we were told to rely on other scales than just the BMI as it's flawed. Using a series of different scales such as fat to muscle ratio should work better.
Personally I hate it how the media makes encourage skinniness that is pretty much impossible for most, and unhealthy for those who are trying or do achieve it. Then theres the advertising of fatty foods...it seems like two worlds at times, one of being overly skinny, and another of fatty, sugar filled consumption. The reality is more in between, one of having some fat on you but one that should include healthy food.

I misread the original post. What do you mean "it's not okay to be obese?" Sure it is. It's unhealthy and certainly nothing to take pride in, but there's nothing "wrong" with it.

Being fit is something to be proud of, yes. But that doesn't mean it's not acceptable to live your life in whatever way you see fit, provided it has no significant harmful effects on others. Is it "not okay" to smoke or drink at home now? That's unhealthy and yet nobody gets upset about it.

Just stop trying to force your lifestyle on others. If you want to be proud of what you've attained personally, good for you, but that doesn't mean people who choose not to pursue that lifestyle are somehow "worse." However, as I said in my earlier post, I am a bit sick of this new movement which tries to "take pride" in obesity. What a silly concept.

I... really honestly don't think that obesity being conveyed as a good thing is at all an issue. As in, I've never once seen overweightness being praised as ideal or whatever. I don't know if it's just here but all I ever really see with regards to weight in media is people talking about how you need to go on a diet, how good these clothes look on skinny people, how the best-looking people are all really slim, etc.

On my end I don't see any glorification of obesity; indeed, it's the opposite - the media glorifies weight loss and most people don't have the sort of resources to do that weight loss properly which these people you see on TV do. That leads straight to malnutrition and, in more severe cases, eating disorders such as anorexia. While the first world is, unfortunately, moving towards more issues regarding obesity and whatnot, eating disorders on the opposite end of the scale due to people being presented so often with an 'ideal' body image are also on the up. Media just doesn't really like to acknowledge that; in that I've seen so many adverts about how obesity is on the rise, how more of us need to diet or eat healthier, how we need to stop eating particular foods, yet nothing offering support for people who take that too far and get themselves into an even worse situation than obesity.

Fenneking said:

Example from a Dove commercial:

Though, they look attractive, they are unhealthy. Their body fat is very high. Around 30%.

Again, weight, is not a good measure, weight and body fat in together are a better assessment of overweight and obese.

The vast majority of countries might have average bodies like the one in the middle:

The left is an example of underweight and the right is an example of overweight (not obese).
The middle is a healthy body fat percentage.

Click to expand...

I find it disgusting that you apparently require the figure in those second pictures to be considered a "healthy" weight. The things people would do to themselves to achieve such a weight can have serious health implications, and people might want to go beyond that too.. This totally exemplifies the problem with a 'perfect' weight or body image being portrayed in the media.

This isn't a dig at you btw, Fenneking. I just find it awful that... yeah.

If the woman in the middle is 5'4", she weighs probably around 110 pounds. According to BMI, she could weigh up to 140 before she's considered overweight. Her body shape would take a lot of effort for a woman - even in those already the healthy range to achieve. Before anybody calls me out on using BMI as a metric, consider that she has an average body shape and that women with 10 or even 5 pounds on her look visibly curvier. She looks like slightly under 25% body fat? still on the low end of average and not the most realistic goal to achieve.

BMI's a bit broken really. Muscle ways more than fat, therefore most Rugby / American Football players are quite overweight going on BMI alone.

The media is broken with everything. Everyone sends different messages according to whatever they want to market. Whether it be fashion and idols, or a full bodied diva.. the media always has its own agenda.

Even the dove campaign is a bit of BS.. "You're all beautiful no matter what you look like- UNLESS YOU HAVE BAD/ DRY SKIN, HERE USE DOVE PRODUCTS TO FIX IT!!!"

I'd like to point out that the BMI by itself is not a good measure of health. The same goes for body fat percentage. What matters is the composition of both measures. If someone has low body fat percentage and a higher bmi, it is indicative of more lean muscle mass, which is good. If someone has a low bmi and a high body fat percentage, this is perhaps the most dangerous. Meaning that the person has very little muscle and high levels of body fat.

Which is why the Biggest Loser that endorses endless cardio regiments and starvation diets usually results in contestants that for the most part gain back almost all of the weight and netting a loss in muscle mass.


The point of the thread is that the media misinforms viewers of health. The US has the highest obesity rate, when looking at BMI and Body fat percentage, in the world, next to Oman I believe. The media informs us not to smoke because it causes cardiovascular disease and cancer, among other ailments. Why not inform people who are obese, that they are obese an the risks that they run by maintaining a high body fat to bmi?

This is in the individual's best interest. The dove commercials I posted above show an example of what the normal, regular, healthy woman should look like, according to many media outlets. However, these women have high fat percentages 30-40%, and appear to have low lean muscle masses given the lack of definition.

The media has a responsibility as they do with smoking to inform viewers of the risks. Especially young viewers. As a nation with rising health costs, obese citizens affect others with their poor health decisions. Though, as one poster said earlier. The education is not there for making good health decisions; people are not even self-aware much of the time that they are unhealthy given the portrayal of the "average health" person as I described before.

Thus, the media as well as the education system should be used as tools to correct rising obesity rates, lower health expenditures, and improve individual awareness and health.

Correct rising obesity rates? Um how about making an attempt to correct the rising amount of eating disorders in general, both those that make you thin and those that make you fat? How about not focusing on one aspect of unhealthiness in our culture just because judgemental people don't like to see fat people?

And we've already gone over those pictures. The women you say are overweight are clearly healthy. The thinner women look rather unhealthier. That's also not what "normal" women look like according to most mass media. Do you want me to go find that gifset of celebrity before&after photoshops? That's the kind of stuff people are seeing. Not some healthy girls advertising soap.