Redefining Obesity?

To be honest Ana, it surprises me that they don't retaliate - they're probably thinking 'cantankerous, silly old sod'

Mind you, both of them would have been roughly about the same ages that I was on both occasions. I agree with you - I find the younger consultants are a lot more tactful and show more respect; the older ones can be a bit rude.

HollyDaze!

I do think you've been very lucky that the consultants you've challenged have taken it well - some of those I've come in contact with would have come back with a very scathing retort, although the younger ones don't seem to take themselves quite so seriously!

rosesarered yes, I really did. I'm generally polite to a fault but if I feel someone is being unfair or rude, and I'm not in the mood to put up with it, then I will tell them. I was raised with the mantra that no-one is superior or inferior to me, we are all cogs in the same machine - therefore, I tend not to feel in awe (or intimidated by the employment status) of other people. The last consultant I saw said much the same thing to me (but to be fair, since my hip damage, I have put weight on) but again, he was no lightweight himself - that retort was 'says you who can't pull your chair any closer to your desk'. My son warns me that I'll find myself at the bottom of every list going!

HollyDaze did you really say that to the consultant , it's hilarious.
All GP's seem to say that to everyone now as well.It's true that some people have more will-power than others, but we have to have self control sometimes, and not be indulgent.MargaretX your post is spot on.
Excercise will help, but eating less is more important.

Now there's a thought!

I was surprised - not living in the Uk - that obesity is considered a disabilty and obese people can park on disabilty parking spaces. This is not so in Germany. These spaces are only for people with amputations or with MS.

Being so fat must be miserable and having the feeling that you should be excercising makes it worse. There have been no research which proves that exercising can make you lose weight only that it relieves your pocket of money which wanders into the pockets of fitness studio owners.

I read that some become addicted to anything and others can control themselves. It seems there is a bit of the brain which has a controlling function and in some people this is underdeveloped.
Howevere if you look at Newsreels from the 50s then everyone was slim so it must be more avalable food and less activity that puts the weight on.

TriciaF

I didn't know that there was an organsiation for people who overeat - I'm glad there is though; anything that helps has to be a good thing.

From my post further up-thread: People with an addiction do not have control over what they are doing, taking or using. Their addiction may reach a point at which it is harmful. Addictions do not only include physical things we consume, such as drugs or alcohol, but may include virtually anything, such abstract things as gambling to seemingly harmless products, such as chocolate - in other words, addiction may refer to a substance dependence (e.g. drug addiction) or behavioral addiction (e.g. gambling addiction).

jinglbellsfrocks

There are size 14's, and then there are size 14's.

Ah, but at that time, I had an ironing board flat stomach to go with it

That was a joke!

I know

janeainsworth - I have been, our health service leaves something to be desired! But that particular chap was an on-Island NHS oncologist (and to be honest, it produced quite a smile on his face, he looked genuinely amused) and we got on fine afterwards.

If not an addiction some people believe it's a compulsion, the same thing?
There's an organisation called Overeaters Anonymous, for compulsive eaters, which uses the same 12 steps system as Alcoholics Anonymous etc.

But do you with tobacco?

It's too hard!

There was a series of TV programmes a year or so ago about the food industry.

They said that the idea of snacks in between meals first started in, I think, the late 30's with Kit Kat bars ("Have a break, have a Kit Kat") and was taken up by more and more manufacturers. I seem to remember that Milky Bars were marketed as "the sweet you can eat between meals" because of it's "fluffy" centre!

The marketing ploy of providing bigger servings for a little more money came from the USA when manufacturers realised that giving bigger portions didn't cost as much as the extra amount they charged, and therefore increased profits substantially. A good example of this is the "buckets" of popcorn and enormous drinks found in cinemas.

Like Gagagran suggests, it can't really be an addiction. If you stop eating chocolate, you want more but you don't get any physical reactions.

I will never be convinced that sugar, in appropriate quantity, is not a useful food.

That was a joke!

There are size 14's, and then there are size 14's.

Crikey! Were you a private patient, Holly?

Mishap - not just the nurses but some of the doctors as well.

At the age of 48, I was referred to an oncologist, he reminded me of a weeble. One of the first things he said was 'you could do with losing some weight' - I am 5ft 6" tall and size 14 I told him 'that's a rich comment coming from someone whose stomach comes through the door before his feet do'. I sometimes think they say the current line of rebuke without even thinking.

It s certainly true that you would not see any fat children in my school photos, whereas now there are many, from a very young age.

I sometimes watch TV documentaries on hospitals and am always intrigued that so many of the nurses are overweight: firstly you would think they would be health-conscious; and secondly they are on their feet all day. One Born Every Minute always shows the midwives stuffing cakes and chocolates between deliveries! - and some of those midwives look as though they are due to deliver!!

jess This is a quite interesting overview which I won't pretend to understand in its entirety
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2235907/

It does point out that research has been confined to laboratory animals, but highlights the difficulty of defining addiction, and prefers the term dependency, and also cites some anecdotal evidence from patients:
'Neural systems that evolved to motivate and reinforce foraging and food intake also underlie drug-seeking and self-administration. The fact that some of these drugs can cause addiction raises the logical possibility that some foods might also cause addiction. Many people claim that they feel compelled to eat sweet foods, similar in some ways to how an alcoholic might feel compelled to drink.'
and
'The concept of “sugar addiction” has been bandied about for many years. Clinical accounts of “sugar addiction” have been the topic of many best-selling books and the focus for popular diet programs (Appleton, 1996, DesMaisons, 2001, Katherine, 1996, Rufus, 2004). In these accounts, people describe symptoms of withdrawal when they deprive themselves of sugar-rich foods. They also describe food craving, particularly for carbohydrates, chocolate, and sugar, which can trigger relapse and impulsive eating. This leads to a vicious cycle of self-medication with sweet foods that may result in obesity or an eating disorder.'

I'm not sure however, that it reinforces the suggestion that obesity resulting from sugar or food dependency is a disability.

Gagagran

A quick google turned up the answer:

www.medicalnewstoday.com/info/addiction/

In a nutshell (from what I've read): The psychological/physical component is not an issue as it is with an addiction

It seems some of you may need to be a bit more tolerant of your fellow human beings

I agree Gaga

Is there a difference between addiction and habit? I can see that a heroin addiction is real but I am not convinced that a chocolate biscuit with your morning coffee every day can possibly be classed as an addiction. Surely it's just a habit?

janeainsworth I am sceptical - i think the idea if sugar addiction is over-rated.
In George Orwell's day poor people used to consumed a great quantity of sugar. It was a cheap source of calories for the very poor. However they did not get very fat because they burned off the calories. Orwell cites the miner's family (man, wife and 2 children) that budgeted for 8 pounds of sugar a week.
I think it is on a par with the "sex addiction" that makes a pretty penny for therapists in affluent areas of the USA. Or "addiction" to chocolate or new shoes.

ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/o/orwell/george/o79r/chapter6.html

I know what you meant Aka, and I agree with you. I think it is very possible for some people to become addicted to sweet and fatty foods. Or it could be that eating delicious tasting stuff is simply a too-good-to-resist way of escape from difficult life circumstances. Who knows?

Whether addiction can be classed as a disability is a difficult one.