Summary: The Titanic Obesity Problem

Our Titanic Obesity Problem
America has developed a serious epidemic over the last 30 years. The ever increasing trend of obesity amongst Americans has risen at a staggering rate since the early 1980s. This trend has also developed another serious issue of individuals being targets of weight-based bias and stigma. This kind of discrimination can lead to serious consequences that reduce the quality of life and can hinder weight loss. “When a person is stigmatized or discriminated against because of weight, he or she is more likely to experience depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and also is more likely to engage in unhealthy eating behavior, like binge eating, extreme dieting, or staying away from physical activity, which all come back to obesity,” says Rebecca Puhl, PhD, director of research at Yale University’s Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity . An individual deals with the stereotypes of being overweight or obese and is often viewed as lazy, less intelligent, not as likely to be in a relationship, not successful, or poor role models. The even more unfortunate part of this stereotype is where these individuals interact with them. Obese individuals face stereotypes at their workplace, educational institutions, healthcare, within the media, and interpersonal relationships. There is a very
serious problem with the stereotyping and discrimination of obese individuals in everyday life that for the most part goes unheard of.
Once we enter the adult world and participate in the workforce, one would think that being ridiculed was a thing of the past. However, it is more common than one would think and according to a study in the Journal of Obesity, the United States has seen a 66 percent increase in weight bias over the past decade, which is at a level of discrimination that is comparable to racial bias in the workplace. Obese individuals face different types of discrimination based on stereotypes such as being less likely be hired for a position, harsher discipline, may suffer wage penalties, wrongful termination, and less likely to be promoted. Today’s workforce for the most part is no different than high school in the sense that it is filled with cliques, judgmental people, and childish acts. Not every business is guilty of these acts, but as a majority there is a serious lack of professionalism and common courtesy. Employers at different levels try to do what they can with the typical policies but those are usually vague as to what is prohibited. While most forms of discrimination are banned, weight bias largely is not. In fact, Michigan is the only state where weight discrimination is specifically outlawed at work. But everywhere else, employers are off the hook if they have a legitimate business reason to deny an overweight employee a job . Basically, if you interview someone and do not like their physical appearance because they are overweight, you can make up some crap song and dance to deny them the position and face zero repercussions for it. To me, that is completely unacceptable and there needs to be more emphasis placed on legislation against these acts.
Imagine going to see your doctor for whatever reason and expect to be treated like anyone else that walked into the examination room that day. Only difference is that you are obese and there is a very likely chance that because of your weight, you may be subject to expressed judgment or negative attitudes. This is not just an assumption or from patients complaining because they felt mistreated because they received a dirty glare from a medical professional. More than 50 percent of physicians view obese patients as awkward, unattractive, and noncompliant, according to a study of 620 primary care physicians published in the journal Obesity Research. A 2007 Yale study found that doctor prejudice starts when a female patient is as little as 13 pounds overweight. Men get a pass from doctors until they are 75 pounds overweight, the study found . The consequences of these acts can be quite serious since these patients are more likely to avoid obtaining medical care because of the damaging experiences. In addition to avoiding medical care, heavier patients are also more likely to delay or cancel appointments. This type of action can have obvious serious effects on people that do require reoccurring medical care. Say a middle aged person refuses to obtain a routine exam for something or another and next thing you know it develops into a life threatening problem. That is more on the side of worst case scenario but it is something that is very likely to happen. Another part of the problem is medical professionals openly refusing to treat obese people and they can legally do so as long as that person is not disabled. Perhaps one of the last comparatively socially acceptable bases for discrimination, weight has not traditionally been treated as a protected category under civil rights laws . The fact that there is a majority of medical professionals that will openly admit to this or reject providing care is evidence enough that some sort of action must be taken yet you do not see gripping headlines on the daily news about this. I thought the purpose of a doctor was to care for those who are in need and provide their professional medical advice, but I must be mistaken. A person’s home is supposed to be their sanctuary where when all else is wrong with the world, the privacy of their own home is where they can get away from it all. The same goes for interpersonal relationships where your partner, family, or friends should be your rock to lean on in a time of pain. This is absolutely not the case in the realm of obese stigma and stereotyping. Unfortunately family members are some of the worst contributors to this ever growing problem. In a 2009 study participants were provided with a list of 22 different individuals and asked how often each individual had stigmatized them because of their weight. Family members were the most frequent source of weight stigma, reported by 72% of participants . The parents who are the two people who should be the least judgmental were actually the worst. Their intentions might be very well be good but come across as critical and biased because there is less of a filter with what is being said from people who know you. At times in a heated argument, it can be difficult to watch what is said but in interpersonal relationships those words hurt more than ones from strangers. In today’s time, Americans are watching television and surfing the internet more than ever and so this is where mass media plays a defining role in how people react. There is no question that there are people of all different shapes and sizes, people understand that but have a hard time accepting that. The media’s role in this is that they have created such strict definitions of what is considered beautiful or sexy through magazines and television that these standards are virtually unattainable by most people. These high standards lead to unmanaged expectations from people who become obsessed with being the ideal image that they do so at almost any cost. This was evident in the readings we did for the week four discussion post on the effects television had on the Fijians. The media has no regard for the destruction they are causing because they putting up profits and unfortunately that is the driving force in today’s age. Television is certainly not helping stereotypes by any means either; instead it is an enabler because of the focus on the negative qualities. Typically you will see an overweight person constantly eating or being portrayed as lazy and stupid. The worst of all is the amount of overweight jokes that are made versus other discriminatory jokes. By allowing these jokes to happen, it is assumed that it is socially acceptable when in all reality it is not. Mass media has become a crutch that people rely on and in turn pick up on the values portrayed and utilize them in everyday life.
But who is to blame for the increase of obesity stereotypes?
There are two groups at fault here; the individual person and society. Individual people need to realize how damaging their actions and words are. There needs be some accountability of individual actions. Society as a whole portrays images of unattainable beauty and stereotypes that enable individuals to create hostile environments. On a broader perspective, attitudes toward the overweight and obese have got to change. This may involve treating obesity stereotyping like racism or sexism or by making it illegal to discriminate against individuals based of weight in educational, employment, and medical
situations.

Works Cited
KING 5 Healthlink. (2011, December 08). Obese Americans face discrimination, even from medical community.
Lynch, H. F. (2013, May 01). Discrimination Against Obese Patients.
Puhl, R. M. (2009). The Stigma of Obesity: A Review and Update.
Sanburn, J. (2012, May 02). Why Being Overweight Could Earn You a Lower Salary.
Templeton, H. (n.d.). Can We Shake Weight-Based Stereotypes?