The Frame

Early on in my fatsphere adventure I asked, "What are the sides?"

By that I meant, if fat people are on one side and others on the other, what do those sides represent in terms of ideas?

To make it even easier, what sides were during our dieting decades? We wanted to be slim and others claimed that too. Usually that means we agree.

It's another odd feature of this weight fandango, agreement doesn't mean agreement, and disagreement doesn't mean disagreement. [Debate also doesn't mean debate, but that's another story].

John Hickner MD MSc, October last year.
Is obesity a disease?

It depends on whom you ask. But if you ask me, obesity should not be labeled a disease.
I understand the rationale for calling obesity a disease—it helps legitimize the time we spend treating obesity and aids in getting paid for that time.

By "treating" he means telling people to diet/drug up/get mutilated. Either way, he agrees with fat activists, don't define weight as disease. "So what can we do?" he asks;

We need to recognize our limited, but important, role and remain nonjudgmental with our overweight and obese patients when they are unsuccessful at losing weight. It is easy to play the blame game, even in subtle ways. Recognizing that obesity is more of a social issue than a personal behavioral issue is a great place to start. Asking patients what they want to do and helping them set goals and find the resources to reach their goals can be helpful. Celebrating even small decreases in weight or increases in physical activity is always good medicine. Remember that a 5% to 10% weight loss has medically beneficial effects, especially for patients with diabetes.

Dude, that's what y'all want to get paid for!! And both 'overweight" and 'obese' are judgements.

In addition to recommendations (and referrals) to help patients reduce calories and increase exercise, we have other weight-loss tools to draw upon. Gastric bypass surgery is certainly effective—especially for obese patients with diabetes. And while medication is no replacement for proper diet and exercise, it is another option to consider. 

Ditto. D'oh!

..whether you consider obesity a disease, or not, we now have even more ways with which to combat it.

No you don't. You have the same old shit as ever, based on the same failed premise.

Whether we agree or not, things stay the same as long as 'obesity' is the frame.