obesity as a disease a national epidemic

8/14/2019 Obesity as a Disease a National Epidemic

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The Lamar University Electronic Journal of Student ResearchFall 2008

Obesity as a Disease: A National Epidemic

Brigid A. Wilson, PhD Assistant Professor

Department of Health and Human PerformanceWhitlowe R. Green College of Education

Prairie View A&M UniversityMember of the Texas A&M University System

Prairie View, Texas

William Allan Kritsonis, PhDProfessor and Faculty Mentor

PhD Program in Educational LeadershipHall of Honor (2008 )

William H. Parker Leadership AcademyThe Whitlowe R. Green College of Education

Prairie View A&M UniversityMember of the Texas A&M University System

Prairie View, TexasVisiting Lecturer (2005)

Oxford Round TableUniversity of Oxford, Oxford, England

Distinguished Alumnus (2004 )College of Education and Professional Studies

Central Washington University

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ABSTRACT

The purpose of this article is to briefly discuss obesity as a disease and the prejudiceassociated with it. Obesity has accelerated at an alarming rate. Prejudice hasdeveloped from misguided assumptions. The article deals with obesity as a diseaseand the possible risks associate with it. ________________________________________________________________________


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Introduction

Obesitys inci dence has expediently risen at such an alarming rate over the last 2decades that the American government took legislative action in 2000 to counteract thediseases widespread detrimental consequences (Encinosa, Bernard, Steiner, & Chen,

2005). In 2000, the Internal Revenue Service declared that taxpayers could deduct thecost of weight-loss programs as medical expenses, including behavioral counseling,nutrition advisement, pharmacology, and surgery, if the expenses account for more than7% of an individu als adjusted gross income (Internal Revenue Service, 2005).Subsequently, the U.S. government officially declared obesity a disease in 2004(Gruman, 2004). Obesitys classification as a disease was monumental because itmandated that insurance companies had to pay for obesity-related medical visits,prescriptions, and surgeries (Hartwig & Wilkinson, 2004).

Purpose of the Article

The purpose of this article is to briefly discuss obesity as a disease and theprejudice associated with it. The article focuses on dealing with obesity as a disease andthe potential risks and prejudices that are associated with it. associated with it.

Governmental Actions

The governments actions have had a dramatic affect on the number of weight -loss treatments that Americans may choose to utilize. For example, the number of bariatric surgical procedures performed in the United States increased from 26,700 in2000 (Waraksa & Vinson, 2004) to over 140,000 in 2005, more than a five-fold increase(American Society for Bariatric Surgery, 2001) in just 5 years. The increased popularityof bariatric procedures is not only attributed to insurance coverage, but also to positivemedia publicity surrounding celebrities who have undergone the treatment (JohnsHopkins University, 2004), such as Al Roker, Carney Wilson, Sharon Osborne, andRoseanne Barr. Furthermore, bariatric surgeries have become popular because theyappear to be a quick and effective method to lose weight, with the average person losingapproximately 30 to 40 pounds in the year following surgery (Duke Medical Center,2006).

Popularity of Bariatric Surgery

Due to the rising popularity of bariatric surgery, it is imperative that scholarsstudy the surgical procedure from diverse perspectives. These perspectives includephysiological, psychological, and financial viewpoints. Examining Roux-en-Y GastricBypass surgery (RYGB), the most popular and effective form of bariatric surgery(Buchwald et al., 2004), from multiple perspectives might provide a broader, moreoverarching picture of how surgery affects all of these perspectives. When an individual


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undergoes bariatric surgery, that individual experiences multiple lifestyle changes thatneed to be contended with, because bariatric surgery is not an effortless, unproblematicmiracle cure for obesity (Park Nicollet Clinic, 2005).

Prejudice and the Obese

Prejudice, a subjective attitude of a particular group developed from preconceived, irrational convictions of anothers supposed distinctions from the group(Mish, 1991), is so prevalent against overweight and obese individuals that it is notsurprising that individuals will undertake major surgery and risk possible healthcomplications to lose excess weight (Farber, 2003).

Weightism or Fatism?

A specific term was coined for this damaging attitude towards the obese:weightism, also known as fatism (Winfield, 2002). Weightism refers to the detrimentalstereotypical beliefs many Americans possess towards overweight individuals in virtuallyevery aspect of life (Crocker & Garcia, 2004). Weightism propagates the beliefs thatobese individuals are weak-willed, ugly, unmotivated, emotionally troubled, unclean,immoral, self-indulgent, and incompetent (Schwartz & Brownell, 2004). Weightism inAmerica is extremely common, as obese individuals experience discrimination in almostall areas of life: education, employment, social life, family relationships, housing,healthcare, public accommodations, and media exposure (Wadden, Womble, et al.,2002). Wherever the individual travels, be it work, a physicians office, or the grocerystore, the obese individual encounters weightism.

Weightism is so prevalent and powerful that an obese individuals sense of self may suffer permanent damage leading to the persons sense of well -being becomingpermanently impaired (Winfield, 2002). Obese individuals may possess a negative senseof self due to their evaluation of self in relation to societal beliefs and values, andtherefore weightism exhibited by others can have tremendously detrimentalpsyc hological affects for the obese individual. The obese individuals fragile sense of self becomes further weakened and, thus, weight often becomes an obsession for the obeseindividual. Weight may develop into the only subject of concern, as other personalattributes, like talent, wealth, and intelligence are discounted (Farber, 2003).

Poor Body Image and Low Self-Esteem

Mental health specialists consider weight infatuation detrimental, as it leads topoor body image and low self-esteem (Fox, Taylor, & Jones, 2000). Poor body imageresults from an obese individuals perception of self not correlating with the idealAmerican body image (Schwartz & Brownell, 2004). Low self-esteem occurs becauseindividuals focus on self-perceived negative characteristics (obesity) rather than positive


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attributes (Crocker & Park, 2004). Low self-esteem also occurs because individuals areunsuccessful in losing a self-specified desired amount of weight and, therefore, feel asthough they are failures (Ginty, 2005).

Along with poor body image and low self-esteem, other documentedpsychological effects of weightism include diminished self-efficacy, augmented

depression, anxiety, and social withdrawal (Belluscio, 2005). Diminished self-efficacyoccurs because obese individuals lose confidence in their abilities (Bandura, 1997;Crocker & Garcia, 2004). Society bombards obese individuals with negativity andreinforces an already present belief in low self-worth (Puhl & Brownell, 2003).Moreover, depression occurs when obese individuals feel defeated by weightism becausethe prejudicial attitude affects both their personal and professional life (Rogge,Greenwald, & Golden, 2004). These individuals are left feeling that they cannot meetanyones standards, including their own (Marant o & Stenoien, 2000). Some obeseindividuals consider their disease as a greater detriment than deafness, dyslexia, orblindness (Wadden, Womble, et al., 2002).

Concluding Remarks

The purpose of this article is to brief article was to discuss obesity as a diseaseand the prejudice associated with it. Obesity has accelerated at an alarming rate.Prejudice has developed from misguided assumptions.

References

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http://www.asbs.org/html/patients/ rationale.html

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Buchwald, H., Avidor, Y., Braunwald, E., Jensen, M. D., Pories, W., Fahrbach, K., &Schoelles, K. (2004). Bariatric surgery: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

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Crocker, J., & Garcia, J. A. (2004). Self-esteem and the stigma of obesity. RetrievedJanuary 1, 2006, fromhttp://www.rcgd.isr.umich.edu/crockerlab/articles/2005_Crocker_Garcia_Self-Esteem_&_Stigma_of_Obesity.pdf
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Crocker, J., & Park, L. (2004). The costly pursuit of self-esteem. Psychological Bulletin,130 (3), 392 414.

Duke Medical Center. (2006). Weight loss surgery. Retrieved June 1, 2007, fromhttp://www.dukehealth.org/HealthLibrary/HealthArticles/weight_loss_surgery

Encinosa, W. E., Bernard, D. M., Steiner, C. A., & Chen, C. (2005). Use and costs of bariatric surgery and prescription weight-loss medications. Health Affairs, 24 (4),1039 1046.

Farber, S. K. (2003). Weight-loss surgery: A magic bullet? A realistic look at medicaland psychological risks. Retrieved January 1, 2005, from http://obesitysurgery-info.com/wlspysche.htm

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Park Nicollet Clinic. (2005). Emotional and psychological changes. Retrieved January16, 2006, from http://www.parknicollet.com/bariatrics/after-emotion-psych-changes.cfm

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(Eds.), Handbook of obesity treatment (pp. 144 169). New York: Guilford Press.Waraksa, S. & Vinson, J. (2004). Bariatric surgery on the rise: Managing the challenges.

Retrieved January 8, 2006, fromhttp://www.webmd.com/content/Article/14/1689_51239.htm?printing=true

Winfield, J.M. (2002). Weightism . Retrieved July 22, 2005, fromhttp://www.cofc.edu/~winfield/socy354/Group2002/Group3/et/Image2.htm

See: National FORUM Journals: www.nationalforum.com
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obesity as a disease a national epidemic

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