While there were many views about weight in the Who Are You Calling Fat? house, they all came from the same place. All nine contributors explained theyve been looked at as lazy, and stigmatised. When this happens, people respond differently.
Its not the fault of the individuals that they are the size they are.
There are both nature and nurture causes of weight gain. In terms of nature, hundreds of genes play a role in your body weight. Some people might be hungrier, some will find food rewarding, some will respond to stress by eating.
Basically, some people will find it more difficult to say no to food than others.
Nurture plays a part too it could be culture, education, social-economic class all of those have an impact.
One view expressed in the Who Are You Calling Fat? house is that weight doesnt impact your health. But science doesnt tell us that. Yes, someone who carries more weight could be healthier than someone whos lighter, but thats down to an individuals fat cells whether theyre big enough to contain all the fat or if theyre going to spill into the liver and muscles (which is what causes problems).
While its true that someones body size is not an indicator of their health, we do know that obesity increases your risk of having certain conditions. For example, obesity is believed to account for 8085 percent of the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. Obesity is also linked to coronary heart disease and some cancers.
If you want to lose weight and keep it off you need to find a plan you can stick to which rules out extreme diets as you cant stay on them for ever. Theres not going to be a magic diet that suits everyone, you just have to find an eating and lifestyle plan that suits you for the long term.
Before embarking on any weight-loss plan you have to ask yourself why youre doing it. Is it because you want to be skinny or healthy? Lots of us will never be skinny, and setting unattainable goals wont help. Trying to lose enough fat so you can become healthier that should be the focus.
Watch episode one of Who Are You Calling Fat? on BBC Two on Monday 28 October at 9pm and episode two at 9pm on Tuesday 29 October.
See more here:
What it's really like to live with obesity or identify as fat - BBC News