Posts Tagged ‘weight discrimination’

Perhaps it had to happen. CEOs are mad at the EEOC for challenging features of wellness programs that could have the effect of discriminating against people with a chronic disease. So they have persuaded a small group of legislators to introduce a bill in the Senate and the House to prevent EEOC from acting on such complaints. Simply […]

Money talks, even in healthcare it seems. These days, patient satisfaction scores are having a big impact on the profitability of health systems. So the harm in medical care that results from neglecting human needs for comfort, dignity, and respect is starting to get attention. It brings down patient satisfaction scores, which brings down the money a […]

The idea that people need monetary incentives for weight management just won’t die. Proposals that reflect this flawed thinking come in two forms: penalties for people with obesity or payments for people who lose weight. But they are two sides of the same coin. And they reflect an assumption that people with obesity need prodding to do something about […]

Novel ideas, phrases, and metaphors have a way of turning into annoying clichés. The more interesting an idea is, the more likely it is to get overused so that it becomes trite or irritating. So it is with these top 10 clichés of obesity. Thanks to all of you who have helped us identify them. […]

Let’s start with the truth of diet and exercise, which is that with careful attention to diet and exercise, most people can significantly improve their health. But the lie is that diet and exercise offers a reliable cure for obesity. In a commentary in Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, Christopher Ochner, Adam Tsai, Robert Kushner, and Thomas […]

Puerto Rico is now debating one of those childhood obesity proposals that leaves us scratching our heads. The idea is to punish the parents of children with obesity through fines that could add up to as much as $1300. Like other bone-headed ideas, this proposal would put schools in charge of policing the weight of […]

Obesity on Comedy Central seems like a formula for disaster. Against low expectations, Larry Wilmore certainly performed well this week when he devoted his show to the subject, specifically focusing on the implications of disabilities and discrimination. You can watch the opening segment here:   This is one of those glass-half-full things. Comedy tends to […]

“Plain of feature, and certainly overweight” is how a leading Australian newspaper began its obituary for a woman who is perhaps Australia’s most celebrated novelist. Should we mention that she was also a neuroneuroscientist? Immediately, FatLadyObit hit viral status. Colleen McCullough wrote The Thorn Birds, which became an international best seller, sold more than 30 million copies in […]

Reeger Cortell has been puzzling over the reasons that many people do not seek out surgical treatment for severe obesity, even though they could benefit. Roughly 70% of people with severe obesity say they would not even consider surgery. As a Nurse Practitioner, Cortell cares for people seeking bariatric surgery and produces the outstanding Weight Loss Surgery […]

About a month ago, the highest court of the European Union touched off a fierce debate about the relationship between obesity and disabilities. Today, all of the major organizations with expertise in obesity have stepped forward to clear up some of the silliness that came out of that debate. The Obesity Society, the Obesity Action Coalition, […]