“Fat shaming doesn’t need to end. It needs to make a comeback. Some amount of shame is good.” Bill Maher sat at a host desk for his HBO show, Real Time with Bill Maher, and said those words to his audience.
Maher went on to tell his audience that fat being perceived as healthy isn’t OK, and being fat isn’t a birth defect. He encouraged the audience to utilize fat shaming to encourage people who are overweight to lose weight. Needless to say, there were some discrepancies within his argument, and that’s where James Corden came in to set the record straight.
Fat shaming doesn’t need to make a comeback; fat shaming hasn’t gone anywhere.
Corden discussed the numerous common misconceptions about people who are overweight: mainly that people think they’re lazy and don’t put effort into staying healthy, and that people aren’t born overweight and can control it from the get-go.
There is a plethora of reasons people live their lives at what is considered an “unhealthy weight.” Some have to do with portion control, lack of exercise and not getting the nutrients they need by just eating junk food, but a huge reason is also poverty.
People can go to Wendy’s and get a cheeseburger, chicken nuggets, fries and a soda for $4, while one pound of broccoli from Kroger is more than half of that price at $2.49. Poverty is directly connected to obesity, and that’s clear just from grocery store prices and fast food restaurant chain prices alone.
Genetics are also a huge factor in obesity. Molecular geneticist Jeffrey Friedman discovered a hormone called leptin, which is made by fat tissue that plays a role in controlling appetite and weight. Defects in the leptin gene are associated with severe obesity in animals and in humans, according to a study by Rockefeller University.
Maher believes fat shaming is the tough love overweight people need to get themselves in shape. Fat shaming, however, is really just a specified form of bullying. Fat shaming, does one thing: it makes people feel ashamed. Shame leads to mental health problems like anxiety, depression or self-destructive behavior, like overeating. This creates a vicious cycle that actually works against the cause of what Maher is intending for fat shaming to do.
“Bill, please hear me when I say this: while you are encouraging people to think about what goes into their mouths, just think a little harder about what comes out of yours,” Corden, in response to Maher’s comments, said.
Further than any of this, the point is not about the weight. Maher condemns people for treating overweight as a healthy and normal thing, but a healthy lifestyle looks different on everyone. Skinny doesn’t mean healthy: healthy is just taking care of your body, eating the foods that make you feel happy that have nutritional value and making sure your overall health is in a good place.
It doesn’t matter if a person is considered “fat” because fat doesn’t automatically mean unhealthy. As long as a person has a healthy lifestyle, it doesn’t matter what their weight is. Fat shaming doesn’t need to make a comeback; it needs to be replaced by accessible necessities and the mindset that health doesn’t equate to a certain weight.
Riley Runnells is a sophomore studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Do you agree? Let Riley know by emailing her at rr855317@ohio.edu.
