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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,
Weighing on Your Mind: The Psychological Impact / 81