Obesity debate

Question 1

What is an increasing global problem? Provide statistics to support this.

Answer 1

Body image and low self esteem. With the obesity epidemic on the horizon it’s no wonder why the body, specifically weight has come back into academic focus.

Dove- 20% of women feel body confident. (2016)
Burns- 45% of Males feel body confident. (2016)

Question 2

Who scrutinises the media and what for?

Answer 2

Oakley, Mulvey and Baudrillard- for the negative influence that the media not only has on the individual but also on society for the role that it plays in portraying westernised beauty standards and the idealised body.

Question 3

What does Oakley argue about the media?

Answer 3

It reflects societies approach to gender expectations and behaviours. However, the main message that we internalise is the westernised beauty standards that are constantly reproduced in the media.

Question 4

What does Gorton and Garde Hansen argue?

Answer 4

The body especially the female celebrity body is constantly being scrutinised for their attractiveness or appropriateness

Question 5

Mulvey agrees with Gorton and Garde Hansen and further argues what?

Answer 5

Their is more pressure on women in today’s society because as we live in a patriarchal society where men are in control of a lot of the major media networks they are reproducing and re instilling the message that women are sex objects which are there to please the male gaze.

Question 6

What does Marx argue about the message the media portrays?

Answer 6

That even as the message changes over time- what we see as beautiful etc., those who don’t try to conform the norms and values of society will start to feel alienated and the edge of society as we will start targeting them and singling them out.

Question 7

When and why did the Fat acceptance movement begin?

Answer 7

1969 as a feminist grounded movement aimed in combating the anti fat bias.

(Rothblum and Solovay, 2009)

Question 8

What is another aim of the fat acceptance movement according to Brown, 2015?

Answer 8

To bring awareness to the pervasive injustice that stems from the societal weight discrimination and to champion the civil rights of a larger person.

Question 9

According to who the fat acceptance movement developed a new more focused aim, what is it?

Answer 9

Donoghue and Clemitshaw, 2012- Now a political project aimed at rejecting the cultural devaluation of fat people and to challenge the assertions of the obesity epidemic discourse that fat is an important risk factor for disease.

Question 10

What else developed alongside the f.a.m?

Answer 10

The fatosphere.

Question 11

What is the fatosphere and what does it include?

Answer 11

A series of web based pages that aim to support those on a weight loss journey, it includes the #Fitspiration and #Thinspiration.

Question 12

How do people feel about accessing the fatosphere?

Answer 12

They see it as a vital coping mechanism in coping with the anti fat bias of society and a way to develop a sense of social solidarity.

Webb, 2017- They see flaunting your fat a key approach to developing a positive self identity and to reforming the culturally normative beauty standards.

Question 13

What does Gard and Wright-2005, argue about the obesity epidemic?

Answer 13

the information we currently have about obesity is like an incomplete jigsaw puzzle, we are constantly discovering new pieces of information that fit together.

Question 14

What does Lockett- 2003 and Fox- 2003 say about obesity?

Answer 14

Lockett- we are told our ballooning weight will lead to early death and is cost millions in healthcare costs.

Fox- Obesity is the number 1 healthcare issue with the potential to take 10 years off your life expectancy.

Question 15

What does Dr Satcher argue about obesity?

Answer 15

obesity is about to overtake tobacco as the number one cause of preventable deaths in the USA with around 300,000 ppy dying of obesity.

Question 16

Who are Bouchard and Blair and what do they argue?

Answer 16

a Geneticist and exercise physiologist- the solution to reverse the obesity epidemic is rather simple.

people need to eat regular healthy meals, avoid high calorific snacks, swap to water instead of fizzy or energy drinks, keep dietary fats to 30% and to engage in more sport or energy consuming leisure activities.

Question 17

What is the problem with Bouchard and Blairs solution?

Answer 17

Too simplistic- ignores the possibility of genetics having an affect on your weight, it cannot explain eating disorders, or people with high metabolism.

Question 18

So according to Bouchard and Blair who is at fault for being fat?

Answer 18

The individual.

Question 19

According to Gard and Wright a lot of health officials see the cause for the obesity epidemic being what?

Answer 19

a product of western living- life has become progressively hostile towards physical activity and dietary restraint.

so in otherwise western living makes you lazy, gluttonous and eventually fat.

Question 20

How do health officials such as doctors determine if your obese?

Answer 20

BMI- Body mass index. - Just an arbitrary figure used as a regulating normative factor.

Question 21

Whats the problem with BMI?

Answer 21

doesn’t account for age, gender or muscle density.

Question 22

Experts have singled out who as problematic and how have they described them?

Answer 22

Children- fatter than previous generations, less active, less athletically skilled, less interested in physical activity, less self disciplined and addicted to technology.

Question 23

Experts have even gone on to claim what?

Answer 23

childhood obesity is due to less and less time being devoted to physical education in schools so if more time was dedicated to it there would be less obese children.

Question 24

However, what is the issue with this claim experts have made?

Answer 24

Like many other assumptions that have been made for example the cause of the obesity epidemic being westernised lifestyle, there is no evidence to prove it.

no link has been established between school physical activity and long term health, body weight or physical activity levels of children.