Friday, 13 July 2012

The token outrage post.


As per my normal daily routine I was sifting through the CBC news site under the health section when I came across the article “Quitting smoking adds more weight than thought.” I skimmed through the article and because I had a bit of spare time started on to the comments. Comments left were of varying degrees of pro and con, but one comment…one comment leapt off the page grabbed me by the eyeballs and pulled me closer.

By the pseudonym “Mr. Lo Key” came the very articulate thought: “It’s a simple case of those with a lack of will power and self control, trading in one addiction (smoking) for another (over eating).

If you eat the proper amount relative to your activity level, you WILL not gain weight.

Remember one thing, obesity (like smoking) is a personal choice.

Putting aside the terrible comma splicing….ah….no words. I was not aware that smoking inherently took the place of over-eating as an addiction. I was equally unaware that obesity’s sole cause was due to over- eating! Thank you Mr. Lo Key, for shedding light on this terrible terrible issue. There is no doubt in my mind that you are obviously a dietary/ medical professional to come up with that level of wisdom.

Sorry, that was rather rude. You’ve just witnessed one of my biggest pet peeves. Someone anonymously spouting on about issues that they feel they are above. Of course lack of will power and self-control are the sole reasons people don’t quit smoking (heavy on the sarcasm). There is some good advice in there with the eating proper amounts relative to your activity level, I will give good ol’ Mr. Key that, however someone leading a sedentary lifestyle still has to consume a normal amount of calories! Instilling this “you can only eat if you’re active” mentality is terrible! Yes, proper nutrition is huge, balancing healthy foods with the occasional treat is key, and proper portion control is a great practice but that’s not to say you won’t gain weight!

The kicker, my favourite part, is “remember one thing, obesity (like smoking) is a personal choice…..

Are you new here?

In what convoluted back-alley thought process did that opinion come from? Obesity is NOT a black and white issue! Being “obese” does automatically equal health issues and not having the ability to control yourself around food! For many people (myself included), being a little vertically challenged and some persistent Italian genes have made it so I’m always going to sit in the BMI category of obese or overweight. I do portion control, I eat a varied healthy diet, I exercise daily; but I will always be under that label. For a lot of people that’s the case, they can be in amazing shape but the height to weight ratio slaps them under being overweight.

The Canadian national average size for women is a 16. There are plenty of women who fit that average who are in amazing shape, healthy as horses, fit as fiddles and all those other euphemisms.  I think it shows a poor level of understanding of what exactly constitutes healthy when comments like this are still out there. I think while weight plays a part we need to take it out of the limelight of healthy.

Article and comment can be viewed at the following link:

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