Is Obesity a Disease?

[Loki]

Obesity is a disease in the US. Should it be?



Last week, the American Medical Association voted to classify obesity as a disease. But is being fat the same thing as being sick?

The decision came at the annual meeting of the American Medical Association (AMA).

Though a committee of experts recommended against classifying obesity as a disease, the association's delegates voted to approve the change.

And at a stroke, a third of the US population became diseased.

The immediate repercussions of the vote are not clear - while insurance companies may now be more inclined to cover obesity prevention and treatments, they are under no obligation to do so.

AMA president Ardis Hoven says the new designation will increase the focus on obesity treatment and prevention, and in doing so help medical professionals deal with the increasingly complex health problems associated with being overweight or obese.

Though obesity has been a health issue in the public eye for decades, doctors are not always equipped or prepared to help patients treat and prevent obesity-related illnesses.

Hoven says the vote will encourage doctors to change that, and will provide more training and education for both doctors and patients.

"When we are sitting in the examining room and talking about things to prevent weight gain and promote weight loss, what this is going to enable us to do is put together tools and teaching and education around better ways to impact patient responsiveness around our concerns about their obesity," she says.

For Americans who went to bed feeling fine and woke up with a disease, the new designation is alarming.

"Pretty uniformly people are not real happy about it," says Lesely Kinzel, associate editor at the website XOJane.com and author of Two Whole Cakes: How to Stop Dieting and Learn to Love Your Body.

Soon after the announcement of the decision, the hashtag #IAmNotADisease became popular on Twitter for those wishing to express their dismay with the decision.

Kinzel says that many fat people already have trouble accessing proper healthcare, because their ailments are not taken seriously except as an extension of their weight.

"You might go to the doctor with a twisted ankle or a head cold and be told you need to lose weight, which doesn't help with the twisted ankle or the head cold," she says.

She worries this classification will only make the problem worse.

[Queen B]

No. Just close their fucking mouth and stop eating junk food. Easy.

[lamb]

I don't think it is a disease, but obesity can be influenced by diseases and lead to others. Food choice plays a tremendous role, but I've seen people that eat a healthy diet and still trouble losing weight. Based on the poor diet I ate growing up, I should have been obese. Instead I was underweight and people thought I was anorexic. I knew an actual anorexic who was obese, and struggled trying to lose fat.

This video makes some points about the differences between fat and skinny people. At the 44:22 marker they make a good point about fat cells. Once fat cells grow and duplicate, you cannot lose them, making weight loss and maintenance more difficult. At some point the video mentions genetic predispositions to overeating. There is also a virus which has been found to cause greater proneness to obesity. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adenovirus_serotype_36

[Loki]

Exercise is also extremely important, it's not only about food. People who drive cars all day long and never walk have an increased risk of becoming obese.

[lamb]

In the past year, I've been very inactive. I barely exercise and I'm thinner than I've been in years. Not sure how that happened. Still, being thin does not mean the heart is healthy.

[Loki]

In the past year, I've been very inactive. I barely exercise and I'm thinner than I've been in years. Not sure how that happened. Still, being thin does not mean the heart is healthy.

Some people just have it in their genes - they don't become fat or obese. You're one of the lucky ones it seems

[lamb]

My parents and grandparents were thin, so I think weight gain can be at least partially genetic, but also epigenetic..though today I blame high calorie foods for the biggest cause.

[Roy]

Exercise is also extremely important, it's not only about food. People who drive cars all day long and never walk have an increased risk of becoming obese.

I remember reading that obesity is associated with an abnormal bacterial flora. That's why it is so hard for these people to lose weight even if they eat healthy and go on a diet. We talk about obesity not just about being overweight which could be just temporary.

My parents and grandparents were thin, so I think weight gain can be at least partially genetic, but also epigenetic..though today I blame high calorie foods for the biggest cause.

From all my family only three people are obese and they're rather distantly related so I guess that either I eat healthy or I got good genes (or both).

[Vesuvian Sky]

No. Its a lack of disclipline and cultural, particularly in the states where convenience (fast food) almost has a sacred ritualistic meaning. Also why bother to work out/exercise when one can watch hours of pointless TV or simply resort to fad diets or pill.

[Roy]

No. Its a lack of disclipline and cultural, particularly in the states where convenience (fast food) almost has a sacred ritualistic meaning. Also why bother to work out/exercise when one can watch hours of pointless TV or simply resort to fad diet or pill.

Mexican got obese after fast-food became popular there.