To expect fat nurses to have some insight?.

[Vikingess]

Just had a routine health check today at my GP surgery. Two nurses - both considerably overweight - dispensing advice on diet. I
am not overweight -AIBU to expect health professionals to demonstrate the the standards they recommended or at least admit to falling short.

Comments like this just don't help.

Is that your own view or something you've made up for the sake of being contentious?

Being fat is unhealthy and it's time it was called out far more than it is. Doctors are told not to upset patients by drawing attention to their weight.
Right, just let them carry on until they turn up diabetic, with heart disease or worse.

Aww that’s lovely! I’m glad that my comment brought this memory to mind x

A hypocrite?? Wow you're just a charmer. Maybe you should seek private healthcare where you can pick and choose your no doubt perfect in all ways HCP. Because the NHS is surely not for you.

I must admit, I do love that phrase! The thought of you calling your cat a fatty boom boom has really made me smile😆

I feel really sad that my hard work for almost 30 years to help my patients would be deemed unworthy/unreliable/untrustworthy and considered a hypocrite/fat/lazy/stupid because of my weight which torments me enough every day.
How has society sunk so far.

Newsflash: fat people know that they are fat. We have eyes. Our fat faces didn’t swallow our eyeballs.

Visibly slim does not mean you follow a healthy diet and lifestyle, hence why the nurse is absolutely correct to be giving medical advice!

also why do you need your professional to be following the advice? How does it impact you? I’m not going to go home and say, “right I will smoke now and eat junk food so I can obese like that random nurse I saw once and maybe will never see again”!

Or our brains. Seriously "call it out" in what way??

So you don't exercise and eat mostly carbs

Surely you can see how not every health professional would feel comfortable acknowledging their weight?

Some may have an eating disorder (purging/non purging bulimia, binge eating disorder etc). Some may be dealing with grief, some may have mental health issues and some shock horror may just fucking love food.

I don’t see why they should have to acknowledge their weight to a patient when their role is to provide healthcare

I’m sure the irony isn’t lost on the fat nurses!

They probably feel mortified having to give out dietary advice and deeply embarrassed about their own size.

That doesn’t invalidate the advice- it just shows you how difficult it is to follow!

i think sadly it shows how challenging tackling obesity is, nhs staff are no less vulnerable to societal problems .....the need for bariatric beds, commodes, zimmer frames etc has increased massively in the past 20 years so its a real problem for staff working in manual handling roles. I likewise worked in nhs for many years and smoking was a real problem amongst nursing staff in particular,shift work and stressful jobs have a real impact on peoples choices. Not to mention alcohol and drug abuse! I always thought when you see first hand people dying horrible deaths from lifestyle inflicted illnesses it would change your mindset but sadly not!

Dietary advice isn't just for overweight people though is it? Everyone regardless of weight should understand a healthy diet and lifestyle. Slim people can suffer the effects of an unhealthy lifestyle even if it doesn't show on the outside. The nurses are humans beings, not robots. I'm a nurse and although not overweight, do not always follow the health guidelines to the letter just like almost everyone else. It has no bearing on how I do my job though. It would be quite unprofessional for me to announce my own shortcomings before I give a patient any health advice wouldn't it?

Yes, they are qualified to give the advise but they give the message that it is so unimportant I don't follow it myself. Obviously there might well be other issues, but it's the message it gives out.
There is a credibility issue with issuing advice when the person issuing it is not, on the face of it, following it.
Person running smoking cessation courses nipping out for a smoke, is that acceptable.
Alcohol dependency clinics run by hung over people. There is a credibility for the health professional around issuing health advice, rightly or wrongly.

A few quick questions about the OP’s diet and exercise would quickly establish whether she needed the (basic) NHS advice.

Totally agree OP - practice what you preach!

I'd far rather hear that from an overweight nurse (who'd I'd expect to be understanding) than a skinny malinky who is unlikely to understand.

But lots of people are probably more clued up on diet and lifestyle than the nurse. They are not qualified dieticians. It’s also not a one size fits all prescription. They are wasting valuable time and probably annoying people giving out basic one sizes fits all advice to people who probably don’t need it. The appointment could have been better spent on otherwise things

My hairdresser's hair is always scraped back & looks quite unflattering in her but she's a fantastic hairdresser & lovely person

I had GD a while back and had to go on a sort of course rang by the diabetes midwives.

They were very honest about the fact that they worked long days and when they were on their their break or at the end of a long shift they grabbed something quick and easy to eat - in their words 'cheap carbs'.

I quite liked their honesty and their understanding of the factors at play that make you choose less than healthy options.

Same. As someone overweight, I hate having the slim nurses at my GP practice talk to me about my weight. I imagine they are judging me as greedy and lazy because, let's be honest, people who have never struggled with their weight don't have much empathy or understanding for those who do. Mumsnet shows that nearly every day. Being shamed doesn't inspire anyone to lose weight.

My experience as an HCP is that the majority of people will get offended when given lifestyle advice regardless of whether you are the epitome of healthy living or a couch potato.

In what context were they offering dietary advice? If you have a condition that is caused or made worse by a poor diet then HCP'S have a duty of care to advise in that area. You can take the advice or ignore it. But to be offended seems odd considering the advice is for your benefit and something that could improve/prolong your life.

You have no right to their private health information, including their weight and any reasons for that.

You went to the appointment for a health check. You got a health check. That's it. Nobody needs to 'admit' anything to you, and the fact you're posting about them and their perceived 'falling short' speaks volumes.

But at least some of these are indeed true. A PT has to have personal experience with the exercise program they run with the client, and be able to demonstrate the correct form. There are credit checks for people before they are hired to work at bank, and you won't be able to get a job with credit issues.

How do you know those nurses don't have health conditions that make them put weight on?