Obesity: No, it’s not Going to Kill You.
On a consistent basis, we’re fed lies by industries which abuse our trust, in turning a profit. Informed consumers are not lucrative ones. I’m here to educate you on a rather controversial topic, the deception of which I have fallen prey to for the majority of my life.
It was only in anorexia recovery that I truly bothered to dig deeper into the information fed to me by die(t) cult(ure) so as to prevent me from being victimised by this sick industry again. I am now free, and I want you to be free from the monopoly the ominous “they” have over your mind, as well.
I need to preface this article by saying that I am not obese. Most of what is written within this piece is purely research-based.
What is the Likelihood of Obesity Killing You?
You may have read headlines along the lines of, “Obesity bigger health crisis than hunger” or “Obesity on Track as №1 Killer”. However, what you may not have read is that this is actually not necessarily true. You may be surprised to learn that obesity is not as lethal as the “health and wellness” industry paints it to be — an industry which needs you to believe its narrative so as to profit.
“So, how deadly is obesity exactly?” you may ask.
Well, a biostatician — Katherine Flegal — conducted a meta-analysis of 140 studies which looked at risk of death for different BMIs — “normal” (18.5 to 25), “overweight” (25 to 30), obese class I (30–35), obese class II (35–40), obese class III and up (40+).
The conclusions demonstrate that in 87% of the studies, obesity class I people were at least as healthy as “normal” weight people. Meanwhile, 64% of those within classes II and III of obesity combined, were at least as healthy as “normal” weight people.
In 2/3 studies obese people had the same risk of death as those of a “normal” weight.
The only group of people who had a higher risk of death than “normal” weight people were people in obesity class II and up, who were under age 65. Only obesity class III poses any risk. However, just 6% of the US population has a BMI of obesity class III — a significant outlier. Even then, the risk ratio is only 1.3 (risk ratio of 1 is an equal risk of death).
For perspective, the ratio of risk for lung cancer for smokers, compared with non-smokers is over 30.
In fact, as discussed in a previous article of mine, being “overweight” is demonstrably healthier than being a “normal” weight. Research suggests that once sick, “overweight” and “obese” patients may have better odds at recovering — demonstrated in the cases of hypertension, heart failure, coronary heart disease; stroke; diabetes; kidney disease; chronic obstructive lung disease; rheumatoid arthritis; pneumonia; advanced lung and prostate cancer. Researchers have suggested that “overweight”/”obese” people may be protected from malnutrition and that specific hormonal patterns occurring within obesity may be beneficial.
Being “underweight” is far more deadly than obesity — the risk of death is higher than those of a “normal” weight, yet the die(t) cult(ure) encourages this as it means $$$$ for the industry. We are sold the narrative that skinny is necessarily healthy and obesity is necessarily unhealthy, yet research does not support this.
Healthcare & Obesity.
The link between health and obesity is far more complex than obesity in and of itself. There are far greater threats to the health of obese people than being classified as such. The issues which arise around healthcare for obese people only creates an environment in which they are frequently deprived of adequate healthcare.
You would think that doctors are immune to bias, but — just like every other human — they are not. Surveys have been conducted which serve as evidence.
Doctors and obesity researchers have described obese people as “awkward”; “unattractive”; “non-compliant”; “lazy”; “stupid”; “weak-willed”; “sloppy” and even “worthless”. An additional study demonstrated that some doctors may spend less time with obese patients, as well as provide worse care to obese patients, whom they have assumed to be a waste of time.
If you experienced this kind of attitude towards you, I’m quite certain you wouldn’t be thrilled at the prospect of interacting with those who acted as though they believed this about you.
The result of such discrimination results in obese patients often being reluctant to seek assistance, thus preventing essential care such as early intervention. Obese people are also less likely to be tested for cervical cancer; breast cancer; colorectal cancer and less likely to receive flu vaccines.
Further, this contributes to the fact that obese people are 50% more likely to change doctors 5 or more times than non-obese people which has further adverse affects on their health, such as waiting periods and lack of patient history passed between health professionals.
A lack of adequate healthcare is far more dangerous than obesity is.
Social Economic Status & Obesity.
Obesity is linked to low socio economic status (SES), which is a summation of wealth, status and education.
People with low SES have worse health than those with high SES. This may be attributed to the quality of health care; stress levels; access to proper shelter and access to nutrients. People with low SES also tend to live in more dangerous neighbourhoods, as well as being more likely exposed to environmental toxins.
Obesity and low SES often interact in an ongoing cycle in which low SES often produces obesity, resulting in discrimination, which perpetuates the cycle.
Stress & Obesity.
Stress is greater than a mere feeling. It is a chemical reaction. And it is a chemical reaction which frequently causes weight gain, in addition to health problems, such as cardiovascular disease; menstrual issues; sexual dysfunction; skin and hair problems; gastrointestinal issues, as well as mental health problems.
Studies demonstrate that discrimination leads to stress. This was explored in a study in which women were asked to give a speech as to why they would be good to date, either on video or audiotape. For the women who were videotaped, the more they weighed, the more their blood pressure increased whilst giving the speech. This did not occur during audiotaping.
This indicates that even minor episodes of discrimination in a lab; being reminded of past discrimination or possibility of future discrimination leads to a physiological stress response.
Weight-cycling & Obesity.
Weight-cycling — that is, frequently changing one’s weight — through, for instance, yo-yo dieting, may result in a higher risk of death.
Obese people are most likely to weight-cycle which may have resulted in obesity to begin with, as demonstrated in a previous article of mine.
Conflicts of Interests.
Narrative informs our worldview. It is responsible for what we believe and the actions we take — and it is frequently moulded by those we look up to; by those we trust. Thus, we often rely on the narratives created by experts in forming our worldview. However, we must acknowledge that all people are prone to manipulation.
You may have heard that the current generation of children have a lower life expectancy, as a result of obesity. This has been claimed by scientists who received ‘grants, monetary donations, donations of product, payment for consultation, contracts, honoraria etc’ from 148 companies — most of which were weight-loss and pharmaceutical companies (including Weight Watchers; Jenny Craig; Slim-Fast; the makers of weight loss drugs Xenical, Meridia, Redux; 4 companies which produced the dangerous combo diet drug fen-phen — which damages the heart — and the law firm which defended those companies in court).
The biostatician who summarised all the mortality studies and found that obesity will probably not kill you did not receive anything from those companies.
Thus, we can determine that ulterior motives may result in people supporting information which may not necessarily be accurate.
“But I’m Going on a Diet to be Healthy.”
If losing weight was healthy, you would assume that as you lost weight, health issues would then dissipate. However, studies do not support this. There is a particular study which is frequently cited — designed to analyse long-term, effects of weight loss in “overweight” and “obese” people (in relation to type 2 diabetes), as the participants managed to keep the weight off for a few years. However, The National Institute of Health ended the $15 million study 2 years early, due to “futility” — they could already determine that there would be a “low likelihood of finding a benefit”.
Essentially: You can’t claim to diet to be healthy (if you’re eating different foods for the sake of those nutrients, that is different to dieting). The reason you’re dieting is because you want to look a certain way. And if that’s true, your biology is against you anyway. It’s clear that your best chance to be at your lowest weight, long-term, is by not dieting at all.
What can we learn here?
In essence, you’ve been lied to about the “danger” of obesity. It is not necessarily obesity in and of itself which leads to compromised health, but the factors which are frequently associated with it. In order to address this problem — the problem of misinformation and discrimination against others — we all need to address our biases and critically analyse the information we take for granted as true. Start questioning what you believe to be the norm. The answers might just surprise you.
PRIMARY SOURCE for this article:
Secrets from the Eating Lab, by Traci Mann PhD.
Purchase from: https://www.bookdepository.com/Secrets-from-Eating-Lab-Traci-Mann/9780062329257.
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