Fatness: Now a disease!

[gambitia]

The American Medical Association has officially recognized obesity as a disease, a move that could induce physicians to pay more attention to the condition and spur more insurers to pay for treatments.

“Recognizing obesity as a disease will help change the way the medical community tackles this complex issue that affects approximately one in three

Comments

[shipperx]

I fear this may just pave the way for Big Pharma to make more money. I'd rather see them address the problems of industrialized farming methods, processed foods, and genetically modified food substances.

[tabaqui]

Cue doctors prescribing garbage 'weight loss' meds and over-prescribing gastric bypass surgery, and utterly ignoring all other health issues just because a patient's BMI hits a particular place on a worthless scale.

My sis-in-law went through this *for years*, she was so frustrated to be dismissed with 'lose weight' and pain meds, when all she really wanted was to be *diagnosed* with something so she could figure out how to get well.

[anjak_j]

If calling obesity a disease would lead to early and repeated education about food choices, doctors sending their patients to see dieticians to develop healthy eating plans, and the prescription of exercise programs suited to each individual's abilities, I'd be all for it.

However, we all know that it is more likely that doctors will shill for Big Pharma and their surgeon friends who do gastric bypass surgery.

Like many folk on here, I'm also concerned that this would lead to under-treatment of legitimate health issues, with doctors dismissing patients via the refrain "Lose Weight." I can see this being the cause of some pretty nasty ableism too.

[gambitia]

If calling obesity a disease would lead to early and repeated education about food choices, doctors sending their patients to see dieticians to develop healthy eating plans, and the prescription of exercise programs suited to each individual's abilities, I'd be all for it.

Even this is problematic. I'm burnt out atm, but I suggest you hop on over to fatnutritionist.com if you're interested. This post is a pretty good overview of the problems.

Basically, (a) no one is obligated to be healthy, (a2) much of health is genetic or otherwise outside of the patient's control, (b) we don't even have a standard definition for health, (c) we don't even have a solid understanding of nutrition, (c2) especially on an individual level, and (d) these are all high-level problems. We haven't even gotten into the much more difficult problems of how such things would actually be implemented.

[anjak_j]

Like any other disease or condition, it is of course the right of any individual not to seek or to refuse treatment, and I didn't say that everyone should be forced to do any of the things I listed. I didn't clarify 'for those who wish to' since I didn't think it would be necessary, given the rights of not seeking or refusing treatment are already defined and adhered to in medicine - well, at least by any doctor who wishes to keep their licence anyway.

[gambitia]

True. I've too often seen "We need to educate EVERYONE about health and ostracize the unhealthy!" which tends to be code for "ostracize the fatties".

[dw_10rosefan]

BMI is a joke. I don't need a scale to tell me how much I should weigh. I am happy to be who I am, and the size I am.

[romp]

I don't think this will improve the culture. If we cared about our collective health, we'd ban suburbs and cul-de-sacs, place services within a 15min walk of neighbourhoods, and subsidize fruits and vegetables.

Having universal health care would at least give gov't a reason to push for good health...