August 30, 2019 — Almost 30 years ago, David Allison, Vincent Basile, and Harold Yuker were studying how to measure weight stigma. Among other things, they found belief in personal control over obesity is a key factor in bias against people with obesity. Likewise, disgust is a key factor. Together, these factors provide the basis for moralizing obesity. They […]
August 18, 2019 — Last week, the introduction of Kurbo by WW prompted a flutter of twittering about weight and health and childhood. Twitter exploded with strong opinions from people who didn’t need to know much about Kurbo to render judgment. In today’s guest post, our friend Sarah Bramblette offers a very personal perspective on having options in childhood. […]
August 8, 2019 — People do not like it when deep prejudices come under challenge. Folks in the UK are processing some despicable hate speech from a public figure, Michael Buerk. He casts the death of people with obesity as a good thing for saving money in the NHS. But a brief discussion on Good Morning Britain perfectly illustrates […]
August 3, 2019 — YWM2019 opened yesterday with powerful personal stories about coming to terms with obesity and advocating for change. The message from every corner of this meeting was clear. Please raise your voice. Because it’s your voice and your lived experience with obesity that will lead us all to better care and less stigma. In the opening […]
July 12, 2019 — Late yesterday, we received a jolt of good news. The Supreme Court for the State of Washington ruled that employers cannot discriminate against qualified job candidates on account of obesity. That’s right. We now have one more state where job discrimination on account of obesity is illegal. Job Offer Revoked Because of Six Pounds Twelve […]
July 10, 2019 — Regarding obesity as a disease is associated with lower weight bias among physicians. That’s the title of a new study in Stigma and Health. Before now, researchers have had experimental evidence. They’ve shown that positioning obesity as a disease could reduce weight stigma and bias. Now, in addition, this new study gives us real world […]
July 3, 2019 — The ugliest aspect of weight bias finds its purest expression in bullying. Bullies have an instinct for finding a person’s vulnerability and using it to tear a person down. They are intentional and relentless. Bullying gives them power over their victim. Because our culture has an unhealthy obsession with thinness, weight bias enables bullies. It […]
June 23, 2019 — Obesity presents many problems. But two of them rise to the top: access to care and bias. Yesterday, at the Harvard Blackburn obesity course, Caroline Apovian reminded us why. Too often, people with obesity endure a lifetime of derision and medical neglect. With facts and case histories, she painted a searing picture of the suffering […]
June 21, 2019 — It’s easy to lose sight of power dynamics in obesity. “Instruct the patient to lose weight.” For years, that was the standard prescription for dealing with obesity in primary care. It is worse than useless advice. People with obesity dread hearing a condescending lecture from health providers. That’s because power dynamics matter. We live in […]
May 14, 2019 — We’re making progress. Right? Explicit fat shaming is no longer cool. But then again, we see implicit weight bias on the rise. It’s subtle. It often comes in healthcare – “for your own good.” Yesterday, it smacked us in the face when we read this from a distinguished bariatric surgery program explaining about a new […]
