Eating Disorders Coalition Hill Briefing: “Fear of Fat and Weight Stigma: The Intersection of Obesity and Eating Disorders”

Last week the Eating Disorders Coalition held a briefing on Capital Hill that addressed issues around the negative health outcomes that can result from weight-based stigma and discrimination. They also discussed how important it is to take the focus off of obesity and size, and instead shift the focus to healthy behaviors. The panel of speakers included: Rebecca Puhl, PhD, Deputy Director, Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity, Yale University B. Timothy Walsh, MD, Ruane Professor of Pediatric Psychopharmacology, Department of Psychiatry at the College of Physicians & Surgeons, Columbia University Chevese Turner, CEO & Founder, Binge Eating Disorder Association April Winslow, MS, RD, Founder of Choose to Change Nutrition Services Below is a summary of their presentations: Health Consequences of Weight Stigmatization and the Contribution to Obesity and Eating Disorders (Rebecca Puhl, PhD)     Rebecca talked about what weight stigma actually is — people being treated negatively based on their weight. At one time or another, we’ve probably all witnessed some kind of negative images and words associated with people of larger size. It’s become a pervasive problem in our society. They’re often categorized as lazy, sloppy, and lacking the self control to just be a smaller size. It can happen at any age, whether it’s a child being picked on at school, or an adult being denied adequate health care at work. For women especially, it’...
Source: Balanced Health and Nutrition Rebecca Scritchfield's Blog - Category: Nutritionists and Food Scientists Authors: Tags: diet health healthcare policy binge eating disorder weight stigma Source Type: blogs