... To surmise that 'naturally skinny' goes hand in with either eating or digestive disorders

[5ChildrenAndIt]

The last counter-example in my circle of friends has just been diagnosed as Coeliac.

I now know no one who is vogue-slim without either food trauma in their past or under medical treatment for digestion or immune disorders.

I'm a bit unsettled by it tbh! Do skinny, healthy and happy people even exist?

[angelos02]

I self regulate without evening having to think about it

yy to this.

[Annbag]

Im a normal weight (note normal not skinny!) and have been like this all my life. I'm sick of people suggesting I must have an eating disorder! After my pregnancy I lost the weight fast, didn't do anything special, just the way it was, and got roundly criticised for that.

I've always ate healthily, and don't do loads of exercise but walk a lot every day.

It does worry me that many in society are so critical of slim people within the normal range and that its socially acceptable to do so.

[LizzieMint]

I have a couple of naturally slim friends, one very tiny indeed (size 6). None of them have eating disorders or digestive disorders. What they mostly seem have in common is that they fidget and they don't overeat. You never see them sitting still, they're always doing something. My DS is very very skinny and he's another fidgeter.

[sherbetpips]

to be honest most slim people I know simply eat healthily and exercise, they are of slim build as well. they just dont eat the crap the rest of us do!

[TalkinPeace]

OP
A friend of mine models for Storm. I've known her all her life.
She is 5'11" and a size 8 - so v v v thin
BUT
she does rock climbing and yoga and cycling
and eats like a horse - but only vegetarian food

[worm77daisy]

I am 36, I am the same weight as when I was 17 and a size 8. I have never had any issues with food am quite healthy but by no means very, I do hardly any exercise. But I am a very busy person who never sits down I can't bear to watch tv as it seems such a waste of time so I do think this is where most of my calories are burnt. My mum is exactly the same and so is my sister.

I am allergic to oranges they give me spots though!

[RubberBulletKisses]

I'm 32, 5'5" and always been a size 6-8 except for when I was pregnant. Dropped the baby weight within 8 weeks with no effort and now weigh less than I did pre-pregnancy. I eat whatever the fuck I like (I like a nice salad as much as I do a McDonalds) and don't exercise. When I consciously tried to gain weight once I failed spectacularly, just couldn't physically consume enough calories without feeling sick. No intolerances or eating disorders, though I was fussy until my mid 20's (but that mostly meant I lived on chips and kitkats).

So yes, YABU. And I get seriously sick of being accused of having an ED by people jealous of me. HTH

[Suzannewithaplan]

it is 'natural' to be obese in an obeseogenic culture

[slug]

The women in my family are one of two genetic types. One set are naturally very slim, the others (of which I am one) are large and rounded. The same tendency affects the men as well. The larger group tend to be far sportier and, we all have similar diets.

much as I dislike the fact that I'm bigger than some of my sisters I acknowledge that genetics has a huge part to play in it.

[BigPawsBrown]

The notion that you can't be naturally slim and happy is ludicrous. Can you have huge boobs and be happy? Blue eyes and be happy?

[Boobz]

I am now a size 8, but it has taken daily exercise (Insanity), and a very low carb diet to get to this. I wouldn't say I have an eating disorder, but I do think about what to eat/not eat quite a lot of the time.

So I would like to be naturally thin, but for me, it takes A LOT of effort. But I am quite vain so it's worth it for me (and tbh I love exercising so that doesn't actually feel like "effort").

[Inthedarkaboutfashion]

I think the high metabolism thing is largely a myth. I think a very very tiny number of people have either naturally fast or slow metabolisms. I think most slim people who don't have medical conditions or eating disorders are slim because they don't consume more calories than their body burns off on daily basis. There are lots of slim people who are slim because they eat the correct number of net calories.

[Wishtoremainunknown]

I think that's a thing as well - no really thinking about it.

If in hungry I eat. If not I don't bother. I don't eat breakfast but I think I eat more throughout the day. Like a mid morning snack or snack before dinner.

If I want a cake I have one. But I don't often think about wanting one IYSWIM.

Tonight I'm going to have a mcdonalds because I haven't had a takeaway in a couple of weeks and it's my takeaway if choice. But normally I'd have something like pasta or roast chicken. Or maybe stir fry as my tea.

[CantEvenKeepAnOrchidAlive]

I used to be one until I fell pregnant at 26 and put on 3 stone!

From a young age I was a bean pole, same height as my mum by 13, 5'9 by 16. No shape to me, no breasts, noticeable ribs. I ate healthy, small portions but then I ate very slow at that age and became full before finishing a meal. Went in to my 20's very similar but with boobs and hips, hovered around 9st to 9.5 size 8-10. Lowest weight was 8.5st which even I recognised as too low so increased my diet to put the half stone back on. Happy, healthy, no medical issues, active.

People would try and diagnose me with something though. I was accused of being bulimic, anorexic, having an overactive thyroid. Women would suggest I was too skinny to be fertile and that I would struggle to have kids, suggestions of going to the doctors, did I suffer with depression, did I hate the way I looked. Was constantly referred to as the skinny one, she's all skin and bones her, needs to eat more, looks unhealthy. And this would mainly be from women. I very infrequently had men comment on my size.

To be honest, I ignored most of it, became used to it. But sometimes I just wanted to stand there and shout its not my fucking fault! Genetics played a big part, both grandparents are slim and have never seen anyone in my family look overweight.

Sure, I'm no 'skinny minny' anymore. My weight is around 10.5st so relatively slim in size 10-12. I'd love to get back to 9.5st though. I felt happiest at that weight.

[ThereIsACarInTheKitchen]

Depends on what you mean by "skinny". These days it seems to be used more and more to mean "not overweight" or "a healthy weight".

People always call me "skinny" and are always trying to get me to eat more yet my BMI is 21.7 so in the healthy weight range and not underweight at all.

[Wishtoremainunknown]

So many women - and it was always women said I clearly must have something wrong with me. You know at one point I actually beloved there must be as so many people said it.

Even the nurse at my GP practice wouldn't shut up until I told her I'd been tested for everything (I had) and I was in fact completely healthy. Just thin. Shocking.

[nilbyname]

I have always been an 8, except after 2 c-sections in 3 years where I was a 10-12 and pushing 40 so it was a watch what I eat, and hit the gym.
But now back to a size 8, eating what I like (but really healthy as a rule) and kept the gym habit up. It's good for me!

[thedevilinside]

Let's not equate skinny with being healthy though. fat people can be healthy if they eat well and exercise, study after study has shown that. I am not talking about obesity, just moderately overweight. Obviously, skinny people can be healthy too, but not if they have got that way through excessive dieting or exercise.

[Wishtoremainunknown]

Believed it*

[Inthedarkaboutfashion]

I'm just wondering what the reaction would be if somebody started a thread suggesting that all 'naturally fat people' have eating disorders or medical conditions. Threads like that have usually gone very badly and lots of people argue that they eat very little despite being overweight and that people need to stop judging them.

[kali110]

Yabu.my xp and friend are both extremely skinny.
It really upsets my friend. She eats loads of food but never puts weights on. She has no ed.
Till i got to 20i was a size 6-8 and had no eating disorder.

[GoldiandtheBears]

A lot of naturally skinny people I know were small / premature babies. I have no idea if there is any truth in the link but it is interesting.

[Wishtoremainunknown]

Ha I was delivered early as I was so big !

[UnrelatedToElephants]

Not "vogue" skinny - ie size zero - because in my opinion that's not achievable on a "normal" diet.

Size 6/8 yes - and I am one of them.

[Wishtoremainunknown]

Well I'm right here saying yes size zero is indeed possibly on a normal diet.