4 ms·

The article starts out talking about a woman who is 502 lbs. Why wouldn't "lose weight" be the best suggestion? You're 500 lbs!

by NDizzle 10y ago

Sir_Substance 10y ago
>The doctor’s scale went up to 350 pounds, and she was heavier than that. If she did not know the number, how would she know if the diet was working? The important bit of that anecdote that you skipped over. Every doctor will tell overweight people to lose weight, but they also tell them not to lose it too fast, or it can lead to liver and kidney problems. If a doctor says "lose weight", but can't actually assist you in doing that in a safe, controlled and sustainable fashion because he doesn't have the equipment, he's actually not very useful. My grandmother could tell a 500lb woman to lose weight, but I wouldn't pay her $200,000 a year to do so. However, the key allegation of this article isn't just that doctors don't have the equipment to give first-world-quality health care to overweight people, it's that they have biases that cause them to not want to rectify that problem, even though that's as simple as buying a sturdier scale. That's a much more serious issue. It's one of the key reasons AIDS was such a problem 30 years ago. No one wanted to treat ~~the gays~~ in the 70's, and so HIV was allowed to run rampant rather than be treated. Within a handful of years of our society realizing it didn't actually give a shit about whether people like butt stuff or not, HIV went from a terminal diagnosis to a manageable condition, because /doctors actually started taking the people it affected seriously/.
- rangibaby 10y ago
  There was about a 11 year period (first US cases in 1981, "Gay-Related Immune Deficiency" in 1982, Magic Johnson got HIV in 1992) where an HIV/AIDS diagnosis was a certain death sentence. I think there was more of a stigma against gays from politicians and their constituents than doctors, which contributed to it's spread too. It was recognised as early as 1983 that GRID wasn't a gay disease, hence AIDS. If you would like to read more I believe the definitive history of the early days of the AIDS epidemic is "And the band played on" by Randy Shilts. I honestly think that if the governments of the world stopped allowing corporations to put sugar in everything then the problem of obesity will fix itself. I'm not going to promote a low-carb diet or whatever, but it is not a disputed fact that sugar makes anything taste better and is addictive, which is why companies add it to everything. People will complain, but it's not really "personal choice" when you are literally choosing food spiked with a drug to make it more addictive. A lot of people who overeat do it for a number of reasons. I know I like eating a lot now because I was poor once and had to eat as much as possible of whatever was available. I lift 3-4 times a week and bike daily, but am still obese according to my BMI and was recommended against having surgery for appendicitis last year (it fixed itself with a hospital stay and IV antibiotics which was lucky). I think that for a lot of people counselling would be a good start instead of "eat less". If it were that simple then there wouldn't be fat people, would there? One problem is that some people are just bullies and like to put down others to make themselves feel superior. Then there are things like the "fat acceptance movement". I will never understand that either.
  - maxerickson 10y ago
    Yeah, it was for sure recognized as a public health problem in 1981. https://www.aids.gov/hiv-aids-basics/hiv-aids-101/aids-timeline/ https://www.aids.gov/hiv-aids-basics/hiv-aids-101/aids-timel... AZT was approved by the FDA in 1987, with some federal funding to pay for it. Which is the real story of why people survive it today, drugs were developed to treat it. But the attitudes of front line doctors in 1990 wouldn't have much to do with the development of those drugs. One strategy I've used against my poor eating habits is to eat something like broccoli when I want a large serving. A huge serving with a modest amount of butter is ~200 calories.
    - rangibaby 10y ago
      > One strategy I've used against my poor eating habits is to eat something like broccoli when I want a large serving. A huge serving with a modest amount of butter is ~200 calories. My wife had a good idea and she has got me eating a big bowl of high-fiber vegetable (cabbage etc) soup before whatever silly main I want to eat. It's very filling and I believe the same strategy as yours.
- hasenj 10y ago
  Why is it the doctor's obligation to provide her with a scale for her size? Why can't she buy one herself?
  - jakebasile 10y ago
    Because she is paying the doctor for medical care, either directly or indirectly through insurance. Because the doctor has taken some form of oath to do no harm, and to take every measure necessary to treat a patient, and to have empathy and sympathy for the sick. Because she is a human being who deserves medical care.
    - hasenj 10y ago
      Did she pay the doctor for an extra extra extra large scale?
      - jakebasile 10y ago
        What the fuck does that have to do with receiving medical care? A heart patient pays for medical care and gets the use of an EKG. An obese patient deserves the same level of care. I guess the oath to heal the sick doesn't matter if that person happens to be big. They don't really deserve to live anyways, they're just weak, right?
        hasenj 10y ago
        If the scale exists in the market, there's no reason why she can't buy it. If it doesn't exist, it can't be that doctor's fault. Shifting the blame from oneself into the doctor doesn't do anyone any good. It just wasted everyone's time and makes people less willing to tolerate your bullshit.
        jakebasile 10y ago
        Wanting to receive medical care is bullshit? You are all over this thread throwing around vile "aphorisms" about big people being moral failures and that they "just need to eat less!", as if it was so simple. Your casual dismissal of people's lives is appalling, and your ability to dehumanize others is sickening. I do not blame doctors for my weight. I do blame doctors that do not give adequate medical care to people because of weight.

The article starts out talking about a woman who is 502 lbs. Why wouldn't "lose weight" be the best suggestion? You're 500 lbs!

by NDizzle 10y ago

The article starts out talking about a woman who is 502 lbs. Why wouldn't "lose weight" be the best suggestion? You're 500 lbs!

Sir_Substance 10y ago

>The doctor’s scale went up to 350 pounds, and she was heavier than that. If she did not know the number, how would she know if the diet was working? The important bit of that anecdote that you skipped over. Every doctor will tell overweight people to lose weight, but they also tell them not to lose it too fast, or it can lead to liver and kidney problems. If a doctor says "lose weight", but can't actually assist you in doing that in a safe, controlled and sustainable fashion because he doesn't have the equipment, he's actually not very useful. My grandmother could tell a 500lb woman to lose weight, but I wouldn't pay her $200,000 a year to do so. However, the key allegation of this article isn't just that doctors don't have the equipment to give first-world-quality health care to overweight people, it's that they have biases that cause them to not want to rectify that problem, even though that's as simple as buying a sturdier scale. That's a much more serious issue. It's one of the key reasons AIDS was such a problem 30 years ago. No one wanted to treat ~~the gays~~ in the 70's, and so HIV was allowed to run rampant rather than be treated. Within a handful of years of our society realizing it didn't actually give a shit about whether people like butt stuff or not, HIV went from a terminal diagnosis to a manageable condition, because /doctors actually started taking the people it affected seriously/.

rangibaby 10y ago
There was about a 11 year period (first US cases in 1981, "Gay-Related Immune Deficiency" in 1982, Magic Johnson got HIV in 1992) where an HIV/AIDS diagnosis was a certain death sentence. I think there was more of a stigma against gays from politicians and their constituents than doctors, which contributed to it's spread too. It was recognised as early as 1983 that GRID wasn't a gay disease, hence AIDS. If you would like to read more I believe the definitive history of the early days of the AIDS epidemic is "And the band played on" by Randy Shilts. I honestly think that if the governments of the world stopped allowing corporations to put sugar in everything then the problem of obesity will fix itself. I'm not going to promote a low-carb diet or whatever, but it is not a disputed fact that sugar makes anything taste better and is addictive, which is why companies add it to everything. People will complain, but it's not really "personal choice" when you are literally choosing food spiked with a drug to make it more addictive. A lot of people who overeat do it for a number of reasons. I know I like eating a lot now because I was poor once and had to eat as much as possible of whatever was available. I lift 3-4 times a week and bike daily, but am still obese according to my BMI and was recommended against having surgery for appendicitis last year (it fixed itself with a hospital stay and IV antibiotics which was lucky). I think that for a lot of people counselling would be a good start instead of "eat less". If it were that simple then there wouldn't be fat people, would there? One problem is that some people are just bullies and like to put down others to make themselves feel superior. Then there are things like the "fat acceptance movement". I will never understand that either.
- maxerickson 10y ago
  Yeah, it was for sure recognized as a public health problem in 1981. https://www.aids.gov/hiv-aids-basics/hiv-aids-101/aids-timeline/ https://www.aids.gov/hiv-aids-basics/hiv-aids-101/aids-timel... AZT was approved by the FDA in 1987, with some federal funding to pay for it. Which is the real story of why people survive it today, drugs were developed to treat it. But the attitudes of front line doctors in 1990 wouldn't have much to do with the development of those drugs. One strategy I've used against my poor eating habits is to eat something like broccoli when I want a large serving. A huge serving with a modest amount of butter is ~200 calories.
  - rangibaby 10y ago
    > One strategy I've used against my poor eating habits is to eat something like broccoli when I want a large serving. A huge serving with a modest amount of butter is ~200 calories. My wife had a good idea and she has got me eating a big bowl of high-fiber vegetable (cabbage etc) soup before whatever silly main I want to eat. It's very filling and I believe the same strategy as yours.
hasenj 10y ago
Why is it the doctor's obligation to provide her with a scale for her size? Why can't she buy one herself?
- jakebasile 10y ago
  Because she is paying the doctor for medical care, either directly or indirectly through insurance. Because the doctor has taken some form of oath to do no harm, and to take every measure necessary to treat a patient, and to have empathy and sympathy for the sick. Because she is a human being who deserves medical care.
  - hasenj 10y ago
    Did she pay the doctor for an extra extra extra large scale?
    - jakebasile 10y ago
      What the fuck does that have to do with receiving medical care? A heart patient pays for medical care and gets the use of an EKG. An obese patient deserves the same level of care. I guess the oath to heal the sick doesn't matter if that person happens to be big. They don't really deserve to live anyways, they're just weak, right?
      - hasenj 10y ago
        If the scale exists in the market, there's no reason why she can't buy it. If it doesn't exist, it can't be that doctor's fault. Shifting the blame from oneself into the doctor doesn't do anyone any good. It just wasted everyone's time and makes people less willing to tolerate your bullshit.
        jakebasile 10y ago
        Wanting to receive medical care is bullshit? You are all over this thread throwing around vile "aphorisms" about big people being moral failures and that they "just need to eat less!", as if it was so simple. Your casual dismissal of people's lives is appalling, and your ability to dehumanize others is sickening. I do not blame doctors for my weight. I do blame doctors that do not give adequate medical care to people because of weight.