Love Your Body Day is Wednesday, October 19, 2011. This day has been set aside by the NOW Foundation as a day to focus on loving our bodies, rather than buying into the media hype created to sell products by convincing us that there's something wrong with our bodies.

The "Let's Talk About It" project, part of the NOW Foundation's Love Your Body Campaign, encourages women to speak up and speak out about body image -- on camera. This unique video campaign provides a space for women and girls to talk about struggles and success with body image.

So on October 19, do something especially loving for your body, then share what you did with others. Go to the website and see if there's a project you might like to get involved with: http://loveyourbody.nowfoundation.org

Above all, remember that every body is a good body and we are all entitled to Equality at Every Size! 

by Peggy Howell

NAAFA asks that you take a few moments and fill out the online survey linked below, which asks, "What does it mean to live in a nation where one out of every three people is obese?"

Living Large: Obesity in America is a special series on NPR from American Public Media that features articles about being fat in America. The survey allows you to share your story "if obesity has touched your life."

This is a great opportunity for us to get our message directly in their faces. The questions can be answered in ways that they may not expect. For example, question one asks, "What conversations do you have - or avoid having - about weight?" To which I answered: I have conversations that refer to the evidence that proves that diets don't work. That 95% of dieters regain the weight they have lost plus more within 3-5 years. I talk about the fact that WLS is a seriously dangerous, life threatening surgery, not to be entered into lightly.  

When they ask if there is "Anything else you'd like to tell us about this topic," I shared about HAES with a link to Linda Bacon's website (http://www.lindabacon.org) and about how they could help without harming fat children with a link to the NAAFA Child Advocacy Toolkit (www.naafa.org).

So have fun and fill out the survey your way. Here's the link: http://www.publicinsightnetwork.org/form/apm/0d2dd143dca7/what-does-it-mean-to-live-in-a-nation-where-one-out-of-every-three-people-is-obese 

NAAFAns Carole Cullum, Kathy Brehm, and Peggy Howell get into the prom spirit

by Peggy Howell

Earlier this year NAAFA received a call from a lovely lady named Cara at the Long Island Volunteer Center in Hempstead, NY. She volunteered for the center's Prom Boutique in the spring of 2011 and found that, sadly, there were no large-sized prom dresses. All the big girls had to be turned away.

For those of you not familiar with projects like LIVC's Prom Boutique, these projects are dedicated to helping high school girls from low income families attend their senior prom with self confidence and in style by providing free dresses and accessories.

This coming year will be the 18th for the LIVC Prom Boutique, and Cara told me that she "only intended to volunteer for prom boutique one year because my sis was doing it and that meant some time with her," shared Cara. "But I'm still volunteering! I grew to really appreciate the director (she cares nothing about 'glory' ...it's all about giving) and the other women involved. More than that, I never realized what it meant to the girls who found a dress they normally couldn't buy."

Cara turned to NAAFA for help finding dresses for the big girls. "We would like ALL the girls to have that experience. IT'S ONLY FAIR. Thank goodness for organizations like NAAFA and for people like you."

Although collections generally start in the spring, the Director and volunteers are happy to receive gently used, clean formals, party dresses, and accessories that are appropriate for plus-sized high school seniors. Please send your donations to: Long Island Volunteer Center, 58 Hilton Ave., Hempstead, NY 11550

Then I got a message from a BBW group in Houston, TX announcing that this year they are supporting the "Fairy Godmother Project", a project similar to LIVC's Prom Boutique. So I decided that in this article I would encourage everyone to see if there is a similar project in your home town. A quick web search revealed that there are projects like this all over the country. I was so impressed by the messages on their websites.

One in particular struck my heart. The group in San Francisco known as The Princess Project posts: "In addition to helping high school teens attend their prom with style and confidence, The Princess Project is driven by seven core values." (I'm only going to share one.)

"We celebrate bodies of all sizes and avoid using body imagery in our marketing and outreach. Body-oriented graphics and artwork--like torso silhouettes, dress outlines or generic, stock prom photos--inadvertently convey an idealized body size, style and look. By instead using images of the girls we serve and royalty-related imagery like tiaras and crowns, we celebrate the beauty and diversity of girls everywhere, in every size."

Then I came upon this treasure, a website with links to free prom dress projects around the country, sorted by state: http://donatemydress.org/donate.html

I didn't attend my senior prom, and I'll bet there are a lot of you out there who didn't either. Please go through your closets and pick out a pretty gown or two that you don't plan to wear to the convention again, have it cleaned and donate it so that a young fat girl can go to her prom in style!

In the midst of our nation's frenzy to fight fat, there is an alarming increase in bias against fat patients among healthcare providers. NAAFA is working to change that discriminatory attitude by introducing our 2011 Guidelines for healthcare providers who treat fat patients.

NAAFA has stepped up to help healthcare providers by teaching them how to better understand and treat fat patients. We believe that the information in these guidelines will help them create a safer, more welcoming environment for their patient's office visits as well as a more understanding attitude, which can lead to more open conversation about health choices. NAAFA believes in equality at every size.

NAAFA's Guidelines for healthcare providers who treat fat patients is available as a free download from our website at www.naafa.org Look for the link under "Quicklinks". 

by Cinder Ernst

Hello, NAAFA readers. I am excited to be with you via this newsletter column It's Your Body. Each month I will highlight a useful fitness tip you can try right away.

This month's exercise is "The Butt Buster" and it couldn't be easier. Sit toward the edge of your chair with upright posture and squeeze your butt cheeks together. Go ahead, try it now. You will look and feel a bit like a percolator. Geez, some of you may be too young to know what a percolator is, oh well. The first time you try it, just do 10. When you try something new, it's good to do just a little so you can see if your body is OK with the movement. If nothing hurts later, you will know it's okay. No pain, no pain.

I always recommend doing one small step at a time. This month try 10 butt busters each day for week one, try 20 each day for week 2 and so on. This way you build up slowly and it doesn't take more than a minute or two. If it seems like too much to try them all in a row then try some in the AM, some in the PM, and some in your car. You can even try them when you are mad at your boss. :-)

Although butt busters are fun and kind of funny, they are very useful. One of the best ways to support your knees and lower back is to have strong butt muscles (also known as glutes). Strong glutes will help you get up and down from a chair and up and down steps. We start with a butt buster and who knows what might be possible?

I would love and appreciate your feedback. Has this been useful? What would make it better? What are your biggest challenges when it comes to exercise? What would be helpful to know? Please send your comments and concerns to me at coach@cinderernst.com, so I can best support you. If you have a question or problem, ask me. You might even help someone else with that same question. Here's to Your Premium Health, no weight loss required. 

book by Amy Erdman Farrell
reviewed by Bill Weitze

People who know a bit about size discrimination sometimes seem to think that there was a golden age in the 19th and early 20th century during which fat folks were accepted and even celebrated, pointing to people such as Lillian Russell and President William Taft. Even so, there was a prevalence of fat stigma even then, as readers of this book soon find out.

Fat Shame is a scholarly but very readable book about how fatness has been stigmatized throughout U.S. history. Ms. Farrell presents images and text to show that fatness has been associated with loss of control and loss of status even before the perceived start of dieting crazes in the 1920s.

For example, she points to popular accounts of the woman named Sarah Baartman, nicknamed the "Hottentot Venus" by Europeans. Brought to Europe from South Africa in 1810, her large body, especially her protruding buttocks, were seen as a marker of primitive humans. She was exhibited in London and Paris against her will, and was put forth as proof of the inferiority of anyone not thin and white.

Another instance of how the fat image was used is in the women's suffrage movement, ironically, on both sides. Both pro- and anti-suffragists used cartoons of fat women to show how foolish the other side was. Ms. Farrell continues through the 20th century to today, explaining how even the 2008 presidential election had an undercurrent of fat stigma.

This book is a new classic in the growing field of Fat Studies, and I recommend it for your bookshelf.

by Bill and Terri Weitze

[Find more news at http://naafa.org]

 

May 2011: According to a report by Marketdata Enterprises, Inc., weight loss revenues in the U.S. were $60.9 billion in 2010, a slight increase from 2009. This is despite the fact that 80% of dieters were not enrolled in a diet program.

http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/2045046/us_weight_loss_ market_worth_609_billion

 

June 30, 2011: Holley Mangold is a 21-year-old, 323-pound female weightlifter who is favored for the 2012 US Olympic team, as well as kid sister to New York Jets center Nick Mangold. The article linked below describes her as "in perfect physical shape" and we agree. [Note: See our Spring 2008 Roundup, second 9/4/2007 entry, for more on Holley.]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/30/female-weightlifter-holley-mangold_n_887285.html

http://www.naafaonline.com/newsletterstuff/oldnewsletterstuff/Spring%202008%20NAAFA%20Newsletter.html#LETTER.BLOCK21

 

July 8, 2011: New research shows that people who are told not to be prejudiced tend to show more prejudice than those who did not receive controlling cues. Coauthor Lisa LeGault suggests that people prefer choosing to be non-prejudiced rather than having it forced on them.

http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/ironic-effects-of-anti-prejudice-messages.html

http://www.michaelinzlicht.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/downloads/2011/05/Legault-Inzlicht-Gutsell-in-press3.pdf

 

August 9, 2011: National Geographic looks at the Health at Every Size® lifestyle, its goals, and why it succeeds in creating better health where diets fail. Talking with Linda Bacon and looking at supporting research, the article discusses why weight loss does not necessarily lead to health.

http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/news/health-every-size

 

August 17, 2011: Oregon's Public Employee Benefit Board moves ahead with implementing a Health Engagement Model (HEM) in an effort to reduce costs. Employees who wish to participate must complete an assessment, commit to making recommended changes (including weight management classes), and follow through with that commitment. The employees will not be required to achieve specific results (such as weight goals) but merely show they are trying. Employees who choose not to participate will pay a surcharge.

http://www.seiu503.org/2011/08/hem

http://www.thelundreport.org/resource/pebb_moves_forward_with_ new_health_engagement_model

http://pebb.das.state.or.us/DAS/PEBB/news/QAHealthEngagementModel.shtml

 

August 24, 2011: Researchers at UC Davis are saying being fat alone does not mean you will develop type 2 diabetes, but that metabolic syndrome (which has high blood pressure and cholesterol as well as abdominal fatness as symptoms) rather than the fat itself is the danger.

http://www.endocrineweb.com/news/obesity/6938-new-study-explains-why-only-some-obese-people-get-type-2-diabetes

http://jcem.endojournals.org/content/early/2011/08/17/jc.2011-1577.abstract

 

August 29, 2011: This LA Times article asks whether it is ever appropriate to remove a child from his/her home because of obesity. Dr. Norman Fost feels fat children should only be removed in the case of a dire emergency which threatens the life of the child. Attorney David Orentlicher points out that well-meaning people intend the action to only be taken in extreme cases but that the actual implementation tends to be arbitrary. To us, the assumption that any disease that a fat child gets is caused by fatness is the root cause of these failed interventions.

http://www.latimes.com/health/la-he-childhood-obesity-custody-20110829,0,3696579.story

 

August 29, 2011: An analysis of observational studies shows that eating chocolate is correlated with a reduction in the risk of heart disease and stroke. Earlier studies link the benefit to flavonols, antioxidants present in many foods, and especially chocolate made from cacao that has not been "Dutched" (treated with alkali to make it look darker and taste less bitter).

http://newsletter.vitalchoice.com/e_article002202882.cfm

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3163382

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19289648

 

August 30, 2011: Cable network TLC premieres The Big Sexy, a three-part series that follows four fat women who attempt to bring big and sexy to the New York fashion world through clothing design and modeling. If you watched it, tell us what you thought of it.

http://thecurvyfashionista.mariedenee.com/2011/07/tlc-takes-you-to-the-big-sexy

 

August 30, 2011: Popular television actress Christina Hendricks, who is a size 14 (US), says that designers won't lend her dresses to wear at awards shows because they don't have anything in her size. While she can certainly afford to buy her own dresses, this does highlight how out-of-touch fashion designers are with average-sized American women like Ms. Hendricks.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20015081-10391704.html

 

August 30, 2011: To see if texting might help teens lose weight, researchers sent various types of text messages to fat teens and then looked at the feedback. Most teens preferred messages with helpful advice (weight loss tips and recipes) rather than reflective or feedback questions. The research, however, merely shows what the teens liked; the research did not address whether texting would be effective.

www.latimes.com/health/boostershots/la-heb-teen-texting-weight-loss-20110830,0,5332591.story

http://www.nature.com/oby/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/oby2011266a.html

 

August 31, 2011: Why do researchers continue to predict a global pandemic of obesity even though obesity rates have leveled off (and in some populations decreased) since 1999? You may not agree with the explanation in this article, but it poses some questions important to the fat community.

http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php/site/article/11038

 

August 31, 2011: Jay Leno mentions NAAFA's objection to the First Lady's Let's Move campaign, following it up with the usual swipe at fat people. Thanks for the mention, I guess.

http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=154283

 

August 31, 2011: Latest weight-loss craze in Japan: "fat burning" underpants.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8732342/Japanese-snap-up-fat-burning-underwear.html

 

August 31, 2011: Just in time for fat kids who are dreading going back to school, where they are often the target of bullying, President Obama announces that September 2011 is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month. It does not appear that any fat children were consulted on this decision.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/08/31/presidential-proclamation-national-childhood-obesity-awareness-month

 

September 2011: In a commentary in the American Jounal of Epidemiology, Katherine M. Flegal and coauthors question the importance of reverse causation in weight-mortality associations, that is, the idea that people lose weight when they are ill, obscuring the effect of fatness on death. The authors state that the evidence for reverse causation is weak, and that procedures used to adjust for it (deleting patients with illness-related weight loss, which sounds like cherry picking to us) haven't been shown to increase accuracy.

http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/173/1/1.short

 

September 2, 2011: In the face of research showing protective benefits of fatness in the elderly, Medicare may begin covering weight counseling for fat seniors. Oddly, the proposal misstates the conclusions of the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), which actually state ". . . the evidence is insufficient to recommend for or against the use of counseling of any intensity . . . to promote sustained weight loss in overweight adults." [Note: the third link below lets you comment on this proposal.]

http://www.medpagetoday.com/PrimaryCare/Obesity/28332

http://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/uspsobes.htm

http://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/details/submit-public-comment.aspx?DocID=253&ver=2&DocType=NCA&DocName=Intensive+ Behavioral+Therapy+for+Obesity+%2800423N%29

 

September 3, 2011: Susanne Eman of Casa Grande, Arizona claims to be vying for the title of world's fattest woman. Her rival, Donna Simpson of Akron, Ohio says she's now focusing on her family and going on a diet. A third woman, Pauline Potter of Sacramento, Calif., says that she currently has that title. One thing is clear: all are skilled at promoting themselves.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/03/worlds-heaviest-woman_n_942546.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/06/guinness-pauline-potter-worlds-heaviest-woman_n_950270.html

 

September 5, 2011: UK authorities threaten to take away four children from their parents unless the kids lose weight. There's no evidence of abuse by the parents (although the government's behavior seems abusive to us). Does anyone think that this nonsense will help the kids?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2033486/Your-children-fat-again.html

 

September 5, 2011: What you don't see on TV shows like The Biggest Loser is that, like most dieters, contestants who lose weight on the show typically regain the weight, and then some. This segment profiles some of the Australian contestants, who claim that they received inadequate follow-up. Of course, we recommend self-acceptance and HAES.

http://aca.ninemsn.com.au/celebrity/8294528/reality-bites-for-biggest-losers

 

September 5, 2011: Lovely pop singer Adele graces the cover of the UK edition of Vogue. She seems thinner these days, but don't bother asking her about it. She says, "I've seen people where it rules their lives, you know, who want to be thinner or have bigger boobs, and how it wears them down. And I just don't want that in my life."

http://www.vogue.co.uk/news/2011/09/05/october-issue-of-vogue---adele

 

September 5, 2011: Thirteen year old Savannah Corn has been bullied because of her size, but her new mentor, plus-size model Jamie E. Bruce, is teaching Savannah that beauty comes in all sizes. Savannah will work as a community outreach assistant for Ms. Bruce's plus-size model search.

http://www.idahopress.com/news/plus-size-girl-takes-anti-bully-stance/article_f080428a-d780-11e0-92ef-001cc4c03286.html

 

September 6, 2011: A study led by Torgeir T. Søvik, MD of the University of Oslo (Norway) shows that relatively-new type of weight loss surgery (WLS), duodenal switch, yields larger weight loss over two years - as well as severe side effects in 62% of subjects. The patients were supersized (BMI of 50 or greater) but were otherwise "fairly healthy"; so why was it felt that they needed this dangerous elective procedure?

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/06/us-surgery-weightloss-idUSTRE7855YR20110906

http://www.annals.org/content/155/5/281.short

 

September 6, 2011: America the Beautiful 2, a new documentary by Darryl Roberts, "explores why we have an unhealthy obsession with dieting in America, and who benefits from selling us the thin-is-healthy ideal." This is a sequel to his similarly-titled 2007 film, which focused on the fashion industry.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drpvF7gszOU

 

September 7, 2011: Rob Lyons, deputy editor of spiked and author of the book Panic on a Plate: How Society Developed an Eating Disorder, discusses how the trend of social workers removing fat children from their homes results from "obesity hysteria".

http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php/site/article/11056

 

September 7, 2011: Weight Watchers claims their program works based on a one-year study (funded by Weight Watchers) that shows that participants in WW lost 11 pounds versus 5 lb for those who received "standard care" (as defined by national treatment guidelines). What was not studied is what happens to the dieters after that first year.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/07/us-obesity-weightwatchers-idUSTRE7867SV20110907

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673611613445

 

September 7, 2011: Sometimes superficiality works in our favor. A small study looks at how college-age voters evaluate candidates based solely on their looks. Fat male candidates were evaluated more positively than thinner ones, while fat female candidates were evaluated the same or less positively.

http://themonkeycage.org/blog/2011/09/07/do-voters-discriminate-against-obese-candidates

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1901950

 

September 8, 2011: Allergan has already pulled one of its lap band products and may pull more because, as Business Insider puts it, the product keeps killing people. Allergan claims that the real problem is the way weight loss clinics like 1-800-Get-Thin advertise. However, according to the article Allergan has funded some of these clinics, including one that suggests the lap band could help women attain their "bikini weight."

http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-09-08/strategy/30127229_1_lap-band-tamara-walter-david-pyott

 

September 9, 2011: Marilyn Wann's SF Weekly blog post responds to the declaration of September as Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, stating "On the playground, 'awareness' means pointing a finger and shouting, 'Hey, fatty!'" Saying "don't be fat" reinforces the bullying of fat kids, and tells fat kids that they deserve it. Since bullying can lead to anorexia and suicide, this isn't just schoolyard play; it's life and death.

http://blogs.sfweekly.com/exhibitionist/2011/09/marilyn_wann_bullycide.php

 

September 12, 2011: If redheads sunburn more easily, why don't they just dye their hair? Because they would still have the innate characteristics that put them at high risk. Writer Dr. Deah Schwartz explains why it's wrong to assume that losing weight reduces one's risk for disease.

http://fiercefatties.com/2011/09/12/redheads-and-assumptions

 

September 12, 2011: Even though the obesity rate has leveled off in the US, and recent research that shows fat can be protective, a group of researchers are predicting there will be 65 million more "obese" people in the US by 2030, and that they will create a corresponding burden for healthcare costs.

http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2011/09/12/hlsa0912.htm

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673611608143

 

September 12, 2011: Hey, where'd all these fatties come from? Researchers at Harvard School of Health believe it's because there is too much affordable "bad" food available. After all, we all "know" fat people are fat because they eat too much. New York Times columnist Jane Brody agrees, and longs for the healthy behaviors of the 1940s and '50s.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/13/health/13brody.html

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673611608131

 

September 12, 2011: Plus-sized Meg Olson has won the Design Star competition on the HGTV cable network and gets to host her own new show. Nice to see talent win out.

http://blog.hgtv.com/design-star/2011/09/12/candices-recap-finale

http://blog.hgtv.com/design-star/2011/09/16/watch-hgtvs-great-rooms

 

September 13, 2011: Michigan, hailed as the only state to have a height/weight anti-discrimination law, is considering a law mandating that doctors provide the BMI of patients under the age of 18 to a state registry. The names of the patients will not be registered, but even so it's unclear how this could be beneficial.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44510663/ns/health-diet_and_nutrition

 

September 15, 2011: The city of Chicago plans to charge its workers $50 extra if they don't join a wellness program. Employees who lose weight (one of the listed health goals) "could see similar reductions" in premiums, said a Chicago Sun-Times article.

http://www.suntimes.com/7679419-417/city-workers-to-be-told-work-on-health-or-pay-higher-insurance-premiums.html

 

September 18, 2011: Beautiful and funny Melissa McCarthy wins an Emmy (her first) for her work in the television comedy Mike and Molly. Congratulations!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/18/emmys-2011-best-actress-i_n_968989.html

 

September 19, 2011: Researchers believe that the White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity's goal of returning the country's obesity rate to 5% by 2030 requires a greater focus on minority children. While we think the goal is harmful, we're glad to see some recognition of the intersection between socio-economic status and fatness.

http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/580416

http://www.nature.com/oby/journal/v19/n10/full/oby2011199a.html

 

September 19, 2011: In its 13th season, Dancing with the Stars features three larger-than-average dancers, Chaz Bono, Nancy Grace, and Ricki Lake. Sadly the weight-loss stories have already begun, but it is nice to see larger folks getting a chance to strut their stuff.

http://www.aoltv.com/2011/08/29/dancing-with-the-stars-season-13-cast

 

September 20, 2011: Good news! Hanne Blank's great sex guide for fat folks, Big Big Love, is back in print, this time in a revised edition. We can't wait to read it! Note: The second link goes to a list of book events (all East Coast US, though).

http://www.amazon.com/Big-Love-Revised-Relationships-People/dp/158761085X

http://www.hanneblank.com/blog/2011/09/07/big-big-love-events-fall-2011

 

September 22, 2011: Another study confirms that posting nutritional information has little or no impact on the food choices of adults or on food purchased for children.

http://www.ajpmonline.org/article/S0749-3797(11)00450-8/abstract

 

September 23, 2011: In March, NAAFA publically called on the Georgia Children's Health Alliance to take down its billboards targeting fat children. Instead, the "tough love" campaign has been stepped up, with more billboards and television commercials. We think that these ads will end up hurting the kids they say they are trying to help.

http://jjie.org/georgias-strong4lifes-tough-love-childhood-obesity-campaign-creates-controversy/39181

 

September 26, 2011: A study out of Australia found that fat stigma causes physical and mental problems, while causing many fat people to avoid activities that might improve their mental and physical health due to fear of stigma. Sadly, many fat people do not challenge the stigma because they believe they deserve it.

http://www.healthcanal.com/metabolic-problems/21148-The-stigma-obesity.html

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953611005284

 

September 27, 2011: In her ASDAH blog, Deb Burgard addresses the concept of "health speech" used to promote fat phobia. Deb includes a graph that depicts the effect of people gaining weight that is most edifying.

http://healthateverysizeblog.wordpress.com/2011/09/27/the-haes-files-when-health-speech-is-hate-speech

 

September 28, 2011: The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is suing a military vehicle manufacturing plant in Texas on behalf of a fat employee who was fired because of his weight. The employee was able to do his job, according to the lawsuit, even though (according to the employer) he had some difficulty moving.

http://www.chron.com/business/article/Feds-sue-company-for-firing-600-pound-worker-2191655.php

 

September 29, 2011: Chris Christie is the governor of New Jersey, a fat man, and a plain speaker. Although he repeatedly says that he isn't running for President, his name keeps coming up -- along with chatter about how his weight helps or hurts his chances. Paul Campos discusses why fat hate isn't a clear-cut issue. Our second link is to a Christian Science Monitor article on Christie that mentions NAAFA, and seems to be surprised that we exist. Meanwhile, Sun Chronicle (Mass.) columnist Betsy Shea-Taylor also mentions us, and discusses why fat phobia is even worse for female politicians. Paul Campos returns to discuss why liberal pundits who hate Christie's politics instead attack his size. Rebecca Puhl of the Yale Rudd Center (not always one of our favorites) lays out the facts about fatness, Christie, health, and bias. Finally, New York Times columnist Frank Bruni (although he starts out sounding mildly anti-fat) defends Christie as a possible candidate, and speaks about his own past as a recovered bulimic.

http://www.tnr.com/article/politics/95468/chris-christie-fat-gop-nomination

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Elections/President/2011/1001/Chris-Christie-sources-say-he-still-may-run

http://www.thesunchronicle.com/articles/2011/10/02/columns/10274432.txt

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/10/02/why-liberals-should-leave-chris-christie-s-weight-alone.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/02/opinion/sunday/bruni-chris-christies-weight-and-the-oval-office.html

 

September 29, 2011: Doctors need to be careful with their words when discussing a child's weight with the parent, according to this study by Rebecca Puhl and others at Yale University's Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity. Parents who find the doctor's language stigmatizing may seek another physician for their child.

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/columns/talk-of-the-day/article_a41d2530-ea0d-11e0-a300-0019bb30f31a.html

http://www.pediatricsdigest.mobi/content/128/4/e786.short

 

September 29, 2011: A blog post by a YMCA of Greater Rochester staffer looks at weight discrimination and mentions NAAFA in a positive light. But the real story is buried at the end, telling of a fat woman who wasn't using her Y membership because of fear of stigma, and how the staff at this YMCA helped her.

http://ymcarochester.wordpress.com/tag/naafa

 

October 2011: Turn to page 49 of the November issue of AARP Magazine and you may see a familiar face. The lovely Darliene Howell is included in an article on real people who are fifty and over.

http://pubs.aarp.org/aarptm/201111_NV?sub_id=48LIjSHpRMWC#pg50

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