How You Can Help Fight Weight Stigma

Photo by Matese Fields on Unsplash

In my previous article about thin privilege, I discussed weight stigma.  Weight stigma is extremely prevalent all across America and in almost every aspect of your life that you can think of. Weight stigma is the judgment of a person's worth, respectability, trustworthiness, work ethic, health, etc. based solely on that person's size. It happens in peoples home, the work place, the grocery store, restaurants, gyms and basically anywhere where a person can be visually seen.

I do not suffer from weight stigma.  I am passing for thin, so many people do not comment on my grocery cart, on my smoking habit, and when I tell people I feel sick virtually no one attributes it to my weight. For thousands of others, this is not the case.

Growing up a lot of my closest friends were larger than me, and even now a lot of my close friends are larger than me. These are people who had broken toes and were told by their doctor that they didn't have a broken toe (despite no x-ray or other test being given to actually determine that cause) but that they just needed to lose weight. Many of my friends have suffered from long-term back, or knee pain that their doctors associated with their weight (shamefully, I used to think that too).

Stories like this are NOT uncommon to any stretch of the mind. This article talks about a woman's sister whose cancer could have been caught sooner if her doctors had pushed their weight stigma aside and actually did doctor stuff. Even in the dietetic world weight stigma abounds, which I've always found strange because the dietetic career deals a lot with people that are typically larger than the "normal" body type.

Before I continue with my tips and suggestions for helping to combat weight stigma that you may encounter or see in your day to day life I have a few disclaimers.  Weight stigma is convoluted. Many people have this ingrained in them from a young age, and perpetuate it for many different reasons, potentially surrounding their own disordered behaviors, beliefs, etc. This means that a lot of people do not want to discuss weight stigma or the fact that it is wrong. Many, many people will argue their "right" to do this to people, and they will justify their actions left and right. You do NOT have to combat every weight stigma instance that you come across. If you do not feel comfortable, safe, or you feel that you could be putting yourself in danger of being fired, harmed, or harassed do NOT engage.  Your safety is the first priority. Now, on to the good stuff:

1) Call out people on their bullshit. If people make comments about peoples weight, comment on what they are eating, or make fun of somebody for their size, food choices, etc. Call them out on it. Remind them that it is not their business what you or any one else is eating, and that weight is a piss poor indicator of health.

2) Call yourself out on your bullshit. Have you ever looked at someone and mentally said "gross" because of their size? Have you ever watched a fat person eat and think "they really shouldn't be eating that"? Do you find yourself telling your friends and loved ones that they should really lose weight out of concern? Learn to stop that and to start "bouncing" your thoughts. When you catch yourself having these thoughts, bounce back with a (gentle) reprimand to yourself.  When you think "gross", bounce back with "Why do I think that larger bodies are gross? Why am I acting like other people should dress however I find pleasing?" Challenging yourself in a gentle manner will help you to unpack your own biases.

3) If you have children, or are around children often really, seriously, do NOT comment on their weight, size, "chubbiness", etc.  This will never end well, and just because they are younger than you does NOT give you the right to comment on their size, or what's on their plate. Instead, give positive feedback on what they can do, whether it's running, jumping, drawing, make believe, or even just brushing their own hair in the morning. Make sure they have good wholesome snack choices as options for when they are hungry and do not make "concerned" comments about a child's body size.

>> Children are very impressionable. They will pick up on what you say about yourself, and others. So watch your mouth.  They will take that and turn it on themselves, and no body wants that.  If you would like to learn more about how to go about passing on healthy habits to your children go here for more info.

How do you combat your own weight stigma or others? Share in the comments below!