9781422288450

Psychosocial Issues

So far in this book we’ve discussed many physical costs of being overweight, but what about the psy- chological impact? The emotional scars some kids carry into adulthood are just as debilitating as any physical disease. Americans, although the heaviest people on earth, are also some of the

most image conscious. Our television programs, movies, magazines, and advertisements are plastered with pictures of incredibly thin, tall, toned, tan, flawless bodies. We’ve set beauty standards so high that practically no one can achieve them. Clearly, being overweight in image-crazed America is a tremendous source of frustration, dissatisfaction, and yes, even depression. The fact is that our society does view excess weight negatively and judgmentally. Discrimination—from school to the workplace, from clothing to the travel industry—is every- where. It’s wrong, but all too real. For years professionals and laypeople alike assumed that people who were overweight or obese were lazy, stupid, undisciplined, and gluttonous . Although many people now real- ize this is not the case, American society in gen- eral still has a very negative attitude toward people carrying excess weight. More often than not, those who struggle with weight internalize society’s views. This results in self-disdain,

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