I’ve been accused in the past of having “a problem with fat people”. But instead of being anti-fat, I’m simply pro-health.
Again, we live in a time where people love to be offended and hate to be told they’re wrong. A time where people report mean tweets to the police. People only like to be told that they’re right, no matter how poorly educated they are (I was educated in state schools for the record).
So, this little nugget of news caught my eye last night and I was shocked and appalled; but not surprised:
Plus-size model Tess Holliday took the next big step in reforming the fashion industry’s standards of beauty.
“I really f*****g hope not!” was my first thought. So let’s break this down before I’m accused of ‘fat shaming’ and being ‘anti-women’.
Firstly, she has a relatively slender face, good hair, good makeup and superb lighting as well as some quite gorgeous body art. This, and this alone is why she’s so beautiful, IMHO.
This ideal of the female body is equally dangerous than the image of size-0. When obesity related heart disease is a bigger killer in the west than cancer, is this the image we want portraying to our wildly susceptible young people?
I’m all for curves and swerves. I think women are gorgeous whatever their size and shape (objectively speaking as a gay man) and no one should have to conform to a particular way of looking. But…
This woman and many other ‘plus-sized’ beauties who almost always seem to have thin faces; not sure how that works – luck? – are portraying a vastly unhealthy body image.
So here are the facts:
- If your body mass index (BMI) is more than 30 (that our subject’s clearly is) then this severely affects your chances of conception. Not only this, but the health implications to you and your baby can be very severe. Between 15-20% of pregnant women now fall into this category.
- Obesity and obesity related illnesses are costing the NHS between £6-£8 billion! That’s almost 10% of the NHS 2015/16 budget.
- Cardiovascular problems, risk of heart disease and heart attack are increased 100-fold. You’re literally a ticking time-bomb and about to drop dead.
- Regardless of thyroid problems, genetics and any other weight related illness (mental health problems are the exception here – that’s a whole different kettle of fried fish) are all irrelevant with following fact.
- If you burn more calories than you put in, you will loose weight. This is scientific fact and there’s no way around it. If you can’t exercise or simply don’t like it; eat less!
None of the above is ‘fat shaming’ although I hate that phrase. It’s not attacking or an anti-feminist statement. I was raised by a true baby-booming feminist and I will defend the rights and liberties of women until the day I die; but being am extreme, great big, 30++BMI, wobbling tub bucket overweight (apparently the former was too offensive for some and deflected the point) is not feminism.
It’s dangerous, it’s unhealthy and it gives the wrong message. I don’t see how this could even be an argument? We live in a Britain that covers up smoking counters in shops, but defends images like this. I seriously just don’t get it.
Feature photo source: http://unitrending.co.uk/hot/plus-size-model-is-changing-the-industry-with-her-first-major-photo-shoot
