Is being Obese an illness?

[agel]

Yes or No
Im really not trying to start an argument. I want to understand what people actually think/know/believe about this.

I am obese and am trying to gain some sort of control over my eating through therapy at the moment. I’ve tried diets and exercising that do work but long term I don’t seem to be able to change my lifestyle enough to keep the weight off. I hate living like this and how people treat me differently because of my size. My family don’t understand at all. My partner is not understanding and it’s seriously affecting our relationship in many ways. It seems unfair because I don’t feel I have much control over this. It’s actually very lonely being in this situation. I rarely mention the topic of my health or weight to others because pardon the pun it’s always the elephant in the room! But you can almost hear what people are thinking. I hate the judgemental looks and comments. I rarely go out now because of anxiety and panic attacks brought on by this situation.

That doesn't help to give feedback on a meal by meal basis though!

Oh come on
Its not hard to look up portion sizes, is it?
Every single obese person I know consumes huge portions, probably double or triple what a slim person can eat

Its not a no signal issue, they are consuming too much food to try to manage their emotions.
You cant switch off sadness, anger,guilt etc
So it carries on

yes - but are you not understanding, that I know I'm fat, I exercise, I know what to eat, but I don't have any feedback - my choices are weigh every item I eat - which simply isn't sustainable, or fast, and just see-saw back and forth (whilst still obviously paying a fair bit of attention to what I'm eating so that I don't end up fat and malnourished!)

What I'm saying is, on Mounjaro, I don't need to do any of that, because my body tells me I'm full, and to stop eating - it's very easy, vs. unsustainably demanding.

Have you heard of those people who feel no pain? So they have to spend their lives being super careful because it's so easy to injure yourself when your body isn't telling you something hurts?

Or my son's dyspraxic - he seems to have nothing to tell him when he's too hot/cold/tired - so he'll let his lips turn blue, or give himself a migraine because he keeps working when he should stop for a little while.

You're on the whole binging thing again - but like I said, it only takes a small overshoot each day to be obese.

Nothing to do with emotions (despite people like you telling me it is my whole life). I have obviously tracked my food, and done the weighing etc. when on one diet or another. I am 5' tall - I can gain weight on 1600cals/day. I have to drop below 1000 (or do prodigious amounts of exercise) to lose weight reliably.

It's not hard to look up portion sizes. It is hard to have to weigh every single thing you're proposing to put into your mouth. Much harder than having your body say 'OK, you're full now, stop eating'

I suggest you stop engaging. You are clearly a greedy fatty idiot with no self control. People who haven't experience that lack of feedback and that push to keep going just can't, or won't understand and I find it best just not to try, most don't want to learn and just want to feel morally superior.

Yeah, you're right. I'm just stupid and lazy - my cats are brighter than me, because they at least manage to stay slim.

Do you really think the majority of the population got themselves overweight / obese because they use food to manage their emotions? That's such a ridiculous idea. Especially given the stigma and lack of empathy in the attitude society has towards larger people. It's not a situation people willingly try and get into when there are so many options for emotion regulation.
Where are these disproportionate amounts of sadness, anger, and guilt coming from? I'm not disputing the idea that this is some people but to say this is the main reason for obesity is wild. Overweight people eat more because their stomach is larger and it takes more to feel satiated.

Did people have a lack of feedback before the obesity epidemic?

Labelling it and treating fat people like shit for decades hasn’t exactly helped the problem has it?

I’ve been morbidly obese off and on since I was about 8, initially due to drugs I was on. This set the pattern into adult years. I did manage to lose weight a few times, but never lost the pain and bloated appearance I always had. Like I said upthread that went within about 3 or 4 days of my first GLP1 injection.

Decades of research into weight loss has shown that long term dieting and calorie restriction do not work. The vast majority gain it back and more. Those who have never been morbidly obese tend to feel comfort knowing these people are choosing to eat badly and just have no self control. But they have no interest into what drives this and the outcomes of most obese people (a return back to obesity and all the health problems associated with that). The few who manage to lose and maintain are held up as an example to prove that anyone can do it, they’re just not trying hard enough, just like the outliers from shitty backgrounds manage to pull themselves up by the bootstraps and create incredible businesses, whilst the lazy fuckers living in slums just don’t work enough, even though the odds are so against them that most people with a smidge of empathy can see that the odds are massively stacked against them.

I have had over a year or eating to a strict calorie deficit, eating cleanly, logging everything. I lost a stone. I was morbidly obese with about 10 stone to lose at that point. I went to my gp, showed my food logs, was simply told I wasn’t logging everything I put in my mouth. And this is the treatment we get, the gaslighting. It’s one thing ignorant people on a parenting forum having these views, but imagine going to your dr with evidence that there’s a problem and being told you’re lying? I suppose that’s par for the course for women anyway, obesity adds a whole new dimension to it all. And this is why for some GLPs are proving to be life changing, and for me anyway proves that obesity for many is a disease that needs to be treated, not just by telling people to eat a salad - been there done that, been gaslighted about it many times.

I think it’s a MH issue, which is an illness/disease. It’s often caused by food addiction, which like other addictions, has its roots in trauma.

How many times do you need to hear these things until you understand. The obesity epidemic has occurred after an accumulation of years since the sharp uptick in UPFs and hyperpalatable foods / the intention to market addictive high calorie foods. It 👏is 👏not 👏 rocket 👏 science.
Your seeming intention to blame individuals instead of notice what society itself and large corporations are doing suggests a real lack of you having looked into this topic in any real depth.

Not entirely most people can look at their parents and know it can be inherited. For women it’s perfectly normal to add on extra fat to help feed a growing fetus. It’s also hormonal and can be caused by disorders such as PCOS. Having said that lots have been achieved with ozempic etc

Here is a list of factors contributing to the obesity epidemic just to clear things up:

Reduced everyday physical activity - Desk work, driving and labour-saving technology reduce daily energy expenditure.
Larger portions and eating out - Restaurant and takeaway meals can contain substantial calories, even when not classified as UPFs.
Socioeconomic inequality - Financial pressure, time scarcity, food access and neighbourhood environments influence dietary choices.
Poor sleep - Insufficient sleep can affect appetite, food preferences and energy regulation.
Chronic stress - Can influence eating behaviour, sleep and activity, although responses differ between individuals.
Genetic susceptibility - Some people experience stronger hunger, weaker satiety or greater biological susceptibility to weight gain.
Medication and medical conditions - Certain medications and conditions can increase appetite, alter metabolism or restrict activity.
Ageing and hormonal changes - Changes in muscle mass, activity and hormonal regulation can affect weight over time.

People don’t like taking personal responsibility for what they put in their mouth. It’s never their fault. It’s the fault of the government or the food industry. Nearly everyone knows UPF isn’t healthy.

I've added a post detailing the causes of the obesity epidemic. We have chat gpt now. We really don't need to be slinging this nonsense misinformation anymore. (I know it makes errors but it's far closer to the truth than some of the theories here)

No, I responded as the OP was pretty smug in her own comment, arguably the berating for being unable to control eating, using smoking as the comparator, came from her. And besides this whole thread is literally about obesity so it would be strange not to talk about that.

Lack of accountability.

Those who have never been morbidly obese tend to feel comfort knowing these people are choosing to eat badly and just have no self control.

This is the biggest myth out there
I have zero intetest in how big or small anyone else is
Why would I feel comfort?
To what end?
This is the issue, if you are obsessed with eating , you think everyone else is

Wow. You have absolutely no idea.

If you have zero interest in how big or small anyone is then what are doing on a thread about obesity? Call me crazy, but it seems like you might be telling fibs.

@RosaNovella I am glad that you don't think that way and that you have zero interest in how big or small anyone else is. However, I have seen that sort of moralising attitude a lot online and sometimes in real life, where people like to make themselves feel better by pointing out their (perceived) moral superiority or better strength of character over obese people. Particularly morbidly obese people.

Weight loss injections may "only" treat the effects not the cause of obesity but I am inordinately glad that they do, given that I am now no longer morbidly obese! I have the luxury of thinking about why I was obese now that I can successfully not be.

Saw the thread and was interested

Yes so you've completely contradicted yourself.

Absolutely
I agree its tough and a cycle , the worse you feel about yourself, the more dofficult it is
BUT there has to be a combined approach

@RosaNovella combining what with what? Why? From my point of view I don't think there's anything I need to combine with the weight loss injections that I am using.