I totally agree with the
great article below.
I wish everyone could read & understand this.

If You’re Concerned About
Your Fat-Loved-One’s Health
                 by Ragen Chastain,
                     @ danceswithfat

This is a question I get a lot, and I got it five times yesterday so it seems like it’s time to blog about it. It goes something like this:

“We love our fat [loved one], but we’re concerned about their health.
We think they need to lose [insert number of pounds.]  
How do we tell them that we love them as they are,
but we are afraid for their health,
and we want them to be around for a long time?”

I know that people dealing with this have the best of intentions, and I know that they are living in a society that encourages them to do this. Still, I think it’s something to think over very, very carefully.

First, consider that there is not a single study of any weight loss method where more than a tiny fraction of people actually lose weight, and the weight they lose is typically a few pounds.

The odds of actually losing a lot of weight and maintaining that are basically lottery odds, gaining back the weight is a near certainty, and a majority of people gain back more than they lost,
so if you’re worried about the person’s weight now, suggesting that they attempt weight loss might actually be the worst possible advice that you can give.


To take that a step farther, I would suggest that everyone who wants to be involved in this intervention ask themselves the following:

"Why do I think that this adult isn’t capable of making decisions for their own health?  Have they asked that folks comment on their body size/health/choices? Do I think they haven’t heard the