Translating an Explosion of Weight Stigma Research into Action

Yesterday at Concordia University, we wrapped up two days of an international weight bias summit aimed at setting priorities for translating an explosion of weight stigma research into action for ending weight stigma.

Observations of Progress

Rebecca Puhl spoke in a webinar with more than 250 people from all over the world. She reflected on the tension she feels between frustration with the persistence of stigma and the tremendous progress she has seen:

“There has been a lot of progress. When I started in this field, the idea of an international summit would have been impossible because there weren’t enough people. There weren’t enough people even for a local summit. Or a carpool. If we look at the amount of research that has happened since then, it is remarkable.

“Certainly we need more research in non-Western countries. But the amount of research even from people in this room is so impressive. We know so much more than we did when I started out.

“We see that this is a topic that is much more in the public consciousness now. I remember early in my career when I was starting to do some radio interviews on weight stigma. The radio hosts would often use the interview time to make fat jokes. Really disparaging comments about body weight. Very intentionally. The issue simply was not taken seriously.

“That is not the case now. This is a topic that national news outlets are talking about, a topic that is prevalent in discourse on social media and multiple media platforms. I see a lot of progress.”

Moving Beyond Awareness

Ximena Ramos Salas, Chair of Bias 180, opened the webinar with a sweeping overview of the current understanding of weight stigma interventions. Building on that review, she reflected on what it will take to end weight stigma:

“To eliminate weight stigma in society, it must be a public health priority with a whole systems approach. Not just individual interventions.

“We need to move away from a weight-centric approach to healthcare, to focus on improving health and well-being, as opposed to an excessive focus on weight loss and body size. Training on this needs to start early with healthcare professionals – not at the end.”

There is much more to come from these two days of the summit. Look for proceedings to be published soon. But for now, you can watch the global webinar here and download the slides from Ramos Salas here.

Lisa Schaffer, Rebecca Puhl, and Stuart Flint, still image from a global webinar: Ending Weight Stigma / 4th Space at Concordia University

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October 26, 2024