Social stigma of obesity

Social stigma of obesity is broadly defined as bias or discriminatory behaviors targeted at overweight and obese individuals because of their weight and a high body fat percentage.[1][2] Such social stigmas can span one's entire life, as long as excess weight is present, starting from a young age and lasting into adulthood.[3] Studies also indicate overweight and obese individuals experience higher levels of stigma compared to other people.[4]

In addition, they marry less often, experience fewer educational and career opportunities, and on average earn a lesser income than normal weight individuals.[3] Although public support regarding disability services, civil rights, and anti-workplace discrimination laws for obese individuals have gained support across the years, overweight and obese individuals still experience discrimination, which may have detrimental implications in relation to both physiological[5] and psychological health. These issues are compounded by the significant negative physiological effects that are already associated with obesity,[6] which some have proposed may be caused by stress from the social stigma of obesity, rather than from obesity per se.[5]

Anti-fat bias refers to prejudicial assumptions that are based on an assessment of a person as being overweight or obese. It is also known as "fat shaming" or "fatphobia". Anti-fat bias can be found in many facets of society,[7] and fat activists commonly cite examples of mass media and popular culture that pervade this phenomenon.[8][9]

  1. ^ Puhl, Rebecca M.; Brownell, Kelly D. (2003-11-01). "Psychosocial origins of obesity stigma: toward changing a powerful and pervasive bias". Obesity Reviews. 4 (4): 213–227. doi:10.1046/j.1467-789X.2003.00122.x. ISSN 1467-789X. PMID 14649372. S2CID 31481832.
  2. ^ Puhl, Rebecca M.; Heuer, Chelsea A. (2009-05-01). "The Stigma of Obesity: A Review and Update". Obesity. 17 (5): 941–964. doi:10.1038/oby.2008.636. ISSN 1930-739X. PMID 19165161. S2CID 152352.
  3. ^ a b "Dicke sind faul und dumm" (in German). Süddeutsche Zeitung. August 11, 2008. Retrieved March 8, 2011.
  4. ^ Puhl, Rebecca M.; Heuer, Chelsea A. (June 2010). "Obesity Stigma: Important Considerations for Public Health". American Journal of Public Health. 100 (6): 1019–1028. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2009.159491. ISSN 0090-0036. PMC 2866597. PMID 20075322.
  5. ^ a b Muennig, P (2008). "The body politic: the relationship between stigma and obesity-associated disease". BMC Public Health. 8: 128. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-8-128. PMC 2386473. PMID 18426601.
  6. ^ "The Health Effects of Overweight and Obesity". Center for Disease Control. August 11, 2011. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference PuhlBrownell was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Ahern, A. L.; Bennett, K. M.; Hetherington, M. M. (2008). "Internalization of the Ultra-Thin Ideal: Positive Implicit Associations with Underweight Fashion Models are Associated with Drive for Thinness in Young Women". Eating Disorders. 16 (4): 294–307. doi:10.1080/10640260802115852. PMID 18568920. S2CID 2473526.
  9. ^ Hawkins, N.; Richards, P. S.; Granley, H. M. C.; Stein, D. M. (2004). "The Impact of Exposure to the Thin-Ideal Media Image on Women". Eating Disorders. 12 (1): 35–50. doi:10.1080/10640260490267751. PMID 16864303. S2CID 28802161.

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