Lara Frater's Blog, page 20

ASDAH Conference! This Summer!

An Invitation.  Please feel free to repost.

Recently we lost one of the great icon's of the magical movie age, Elizabeth Taylor.  She was beautiful and strong and struggled with her demons often in the public eye.  She certainly experienced the gamut of admiration for her physical beauty to disgust for her fat and physically disabled body.  In many ways she represents the madness our culture experiences around the physical self.

In March, as President of ASDAH, The Association for Size Diversity and Health, I presented at the Endangered Species Women Summit in New York City convened to address the toxic culture that women and girls face.  This damaging environment not only manifests in how we feel about our physical selves but it directly impacts our spiritual, intellectual and emotional selves.  The summit was an amazing experience. Several ASDAH members and colleagues also in attendance presented and spoke eloquently and passionately on the need to live and love in our bodies.  The clear overwhelming consensus from this diverse group of 500 women and men, young and old, from around the globe was that the Health At Every Size SM Approach was a logical and natural path toward ending the toxic culture that ALL bodies face across the globe. Take a minute and let that sink in.  It wasn't a gathering for HAESSM practitioners and supporters.  The majority of those in attendance had never heard of HAESSM in any formal way.  They were people who passionately felt that shame and hate and blame did not belong on our bodies so when we brought HAESSM to the table, no one had to make room, there was already a place for it.  What an incredible thing,

ASDAH's upcoming conference will be a galvanizing event as an organization and as the stakeholders in the HAESSM movement.  So let's take that place at the table and make sure everyone knows we earned it with hard work and strength of character and perseverance. I invite you to join us.

Deb Lemire

ASDAH, President

 

"I call upon you to draw from the depths of your being — to prove that we are a human race, to prove that our love outweighs our need to hate, that our compassion is more compelling than our need to blame." Elizabeth Taylor upon accepting the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, in 1993.

 

SAVE THE DATE!  ASDAH Conference

No BODY Left Behind—The HAES(SM) Approach:

Ensuring an Inclusive Approach to Health and Wellness

 

August 12-14, 2011  Sofitel Hotel, San Francisco, CA

Registration Open!

www.sizediversityandhealth.org

 

Happy International No Dieting Day!

19th International No Diet Day

Greetings to all of you celebrating this auspicious day.
How far have we come since 1992? Well, in some respects a long, long way.
More health professionals support a 'health at every size' approach.
There are fat study groups in colleges as younger people are challenging the status quo.
And people in the public eye are speaking out about their experiences.
Plus there are a few more clothes to choose from.

But, the pressure is still on us all to be other than we are...
Whether child or geriatric
There's far too many people ever ready with their knives.
And quacks peddling magic drugs and potions
Fat remains an easy and socially acceptable target and a useful vehicle for others to project their self hate.

It is not unusual for oppressed people to understand their oppressors more than they understand us.
So, no surprise if people scratch their heads in puzzlement as we say, in our various ways, "get off our backs" -
when 'they only have our best interests at heart'.
But today is a day of pride and to use our precious creative and fighting energy to challenge institutional sizeism and the nasty trinity:
diet, media and fashion who exploit us all for their own ends.

As a British politician famously said, "Don't let the bastards get you down".
INDD is an opportunity to change the rules: encourage self acceptance and respect for all.
And use your love and friendship to have a great day.... in the way it suits you.
Go well.

In solidarity, Mary Evans Young
Oxfordshire, England

Glee, sex and self esteem.

Check out the essay I wrote for Xhibit P, a interactive site that covers issues in pop culture.  My essay is about the lack of storyline and sexuality of Glee's fat characters.  Don't just read my essay but the entire theme is all about body image including Zoe Spencer's article about black women's booty or Franchesca Ramsey video about photoshop: "Pixel Perfect". 

In my essay, I point out that the character Mercedes who is a regular on Glee is non-sexual (she remains the only main character in Glee who has not had a long term relationship) where Lauren (who is reoccurring)  is hypersexual.  Fat women are often characterized (especially in media) as either giving it freely so people will like them or not getting it at all because no one wants them.

A entry from a blog called Live Once, Juicy explores the myth of fat sexuality (from a list of myths about fat people from Pattie Thomas' excellent book Taking up Space) and how fat people being asexual is a myth. Fat isn't asexual. She points out that asexual is an orientiation of people who aren't interested in sex.  In other words, the real myth here is that fat people aren't sexy, she writes.

This is a modern phenomenon possibly brought on by media which puts conventionally pretty people as positive and desirable compared to fat people who are often headless and associated with disease and death.  But look at nudes in the past and you'll see chubby and fat. 

However there are people out there who either prefer a fat partner or don't allow media to cloud their judgement about what is attractive.  The problem is that fat people also believe the hype. They don't consider themselves sexy because they don't look like what the media has made desirable.  And a suitor might be potentially be turned off by the low self-esteem.

So it's important fat girls that you improve that self-esteem. Give up those magazines, try to avoid those images that make you feel like dirt. Go to Fat Positive events. I just went to one on Saturday, the Fat Girls Fleamarket. And it wasn't the "new" clothes that made me feel good, (although I did snag an Igigi dress for $10), it was the feeling of comradarie of this event. Here was a place that I could not only get cool clothes but wouldn't feel like a leper while shopping.

 

Foodies, Fat and HAES

I'm not really a "foodie" per se. I try to eat organic, I'm going into my second year with a Community Sustained Agricuture share (CSA), I work at a  writing desk older than I am, I buy almost all my clothes gently used or discounted. Although I drive a mini-van, I only put 8000 miles on it per year. I believe in sustainable farming, buying locally, reducing, reusing, recycling. While I'm not a vegetarian I think animals slated for food should be treated and slaughtered humanely.  When I have red meat it tends to be from grass fed, organic beef. I will tell you right now, it's expensive. And while my CSA is cheap in the long run, it is expensive upfront. There would be no way I could eat the way I do now if I was poor.  The reason why I choose to eat organic is this: I kind of like my food without poison or antibiotics and I think organic food tastes better. I don't know how much organic aids in health since Americans have been living longer despite "gorging on junk food." Being a foodie also helps me learn to enjoy food again instead of feeling ashamed when I eat.

You think I would get more involved in the movement, but I can't. Because I feel ostracized due to my weight. Many movements that encourage sustainability use ending fatness as a reason.  Fat people are put into two different groups: On the one hand we're villains,  where groups like PETA use images and messages that it's fat people's fault because they don't eat vegetarian (I actually know a couple of fat vegetarians and some rail thin meat eaters.)  They also pick on children. On the other hand the more dangerous aspect is being labeled as a victim. The poor fat people don't know how to eat right, and are too stupid to realize that if they just changed to organic they would be thin and happy. Victimization makes fat people less than human. We become unable to make our own decision and have to be told what to do. At least with being labeled a villain, people are honest.  

Where does that leave me and the food movement? Still on the outside looking in, however not all seem to think "organic = thin!".  Linda Bacon, Liz Snyder, and Jill Richardson are all pro-foodies and pro-fatties. There was also a blog post from 2 years ago on Feministe complaining about the get rid of fat with good food meme.

If you want people to begin changing to sustainability, you need to not alienate them. The movement isn't all for people with a BMI under 25.

And to go completely off topic, if you're in the NYC metro area and you want a fat dose of high self-esteem, awesome bargains on clothes, please get to the Fat Girl Flea Market!

Another diet drug bites the dust

According to Canadian researchers, Xenical aka Alli aka Oilyshit has shown to potentially increase kidney problems. It can also cause liver damage in rare cases. Public Citizen is asking that the drugs be removed from the market. This is on top of Meridia finally being pulled.  Even Glaxo, the makers of Alli are abandoning the sinking ship by selling the brand.

Glaxo once tipped Alli as a possible blockbuster, but sales never took off, and the drug was hurt last year by reports that a small number of people taking it experienced liver damage...

Here is my mantra again: NO diet drug has been proven to work in the long run. In fact some of them are dangerous.  From the same article about Glaxo: Glaxo hoped to fight that phenomenon by marketing Alli as only part of a sensible dieting plan that also needed to include healthy eating and exercise.  This is pretty much exactly how dexatrim the first OTC diet drug I ever took was marketed. (It turn out dexatrim had Phenylpropanolamine which can cause strokes)

So once Alli is finally off the market, after causing both kidney damage and embarrassing oily stains, drug companies are working overtime to get the new obesity drug out and they are working hard to get Qnexa approved (Despite a previous FDA rejection.) 

I'm sure that there are many drugs that help people. I know many people alive who would be dead or have a severely diminished life if it wasn't for drugs. However diet drugs won't do this. They won't save a life (They have in fact killed many people), they won't make people's lives better (unless you call kidney disease and liver problems a better life) and they won't make you thin.  

You might as well do Health at Every Size. You eat well, you learn to enjoy food, and movement and there is no kidney damage. 

Making fat kids thin

A recent study in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Health discovered that an intervention to reduce junk food, soda consumption and television viewing failed to reduce weight in pre-school children ages 2 to 6.9.  The study however showed that a year later the kids were still watching LESS TV.

The first problem with this intervention is that it would be considered a failure because it did not make fat children thin, even though it got them to watch less TV and eat less junk food. Anyone at any age or size can go with the good and simple advice of eat your vegatables and go out and play.  I'm all for walking or reading instead of watching TV and let's eat more veggies and less McDonalds. (When I grew up McDonalds was considered a rare treat.) However considering the failure of it to make children slender, what will be next? Calorie reduction? Hardcore dieting? Children should not be reducing calories. They need them to grow. 

Second this intervention program "High Five for Kids"  (which comes out of fat hating Harvard) singles out fat children. This gives the impression that it's perfectly okay for thin children to watch a lot of TV, drink soda, and eat fast food.

Just accept that some children are fat, provide healthy food and movement to all children of all sizes and allow occasional junk food. 

So please leave the fat kids alone. They have it bad enough from their peers, they don't need it from adults, too. 

Speaking of the Grand Canyon. http://www.change.org/pe...

Speaking of the Grand Canyon.

http://www.change.org/petitions/worldwide-campaign-to-save-the-grand-canyon

The Grand Canyon

I've never been to the Grand Canyon. I always wanted to go before they decide to fill it with cement and put in a mall.

But right now I can't. I don't want any of my money going to the State of Arizona which was one of the last states to recognize MLK's birthday, which treats their citizens of hispanic descent as second class, who won't cover organ transplants, and oh now wants to charge their fat citizens who get medicaid an extra $50. 

So let's get this straight. Fat people due to stigma, victimization and villianized suffer low ecomonic standards of living which means we are more likely to rely on state services. $5o to a poor person can mean no rent or food. $50 less could mean eating crappier cheap foods. 

And of course dieting and weight loss works. Just look at the 2-15% average success rates of long term dieters. Obviously fat people should lose weight because it's "healthy" even though a recent study has shown again that fat and fit people are heart healthier than thin and unfit people or that stigma and stress can cause health issues in fat people. What's more stressful than being told that despite your repeated attempts to lose weight, it's all your fault fattie.

So I won't be visiting the Grand Canyon anytime soon. I hope other people will stand with me and that residents of Arizona move to a more accepting state. Empty the state until there is nothing left but a lovely giant hole. 

Setting the fashion industry on fire

If the fashion industry went out of business, I wouldn't care. If everyone stopped subscribing to fashion magazines, I wouldn't cry. I don't follow trends, so I never know what's in or out.

High fashion and these magazines don't cater to me. They cater to what their advertizers want us to be: unnaturally thin, with flawless skin, glassy inhuman eyes, fully made up by a professional. Oh and photoshopped. They also want me to buy expenisve clothes, except I can't until I lose 100 pounds.  Before I started on my size acceptance journey, I believed a lot of this bunk. I thought I really could be unobtainable.

I know one place that does cater to me: The Fat Girl Flea Market, which I am happy to say is returning this year on April 30th. Yes this post is a shameless plug for the Flea but I wanted to tell you the difference between shopping at the Flea and shopping at Macy's. I don't shop at Macy's anymore. Do you know why? I feel like a leper. The local Macys has such a limited plus size section, it's nearly impossible to find anything with a good fit, leaving me to either not buy clothes or leave with poorly fitting one.  When I go to the flea I have lots of selection. If something doesn't fit right, on to the next thing.  With everything under $10 if I buy something then turn out I don't like it, I can donated it to next year's flea. At the flea I feel comfortable and happy with myself.

I know not everyone has things like the Flea or Re/Dress within a reasonable distance, if at all. I know some people only have Walmart as an option, but if you have other options use them instead of the stores that treat you like dirt.  As of now I only shop at Re/dress, Marshalls, and occassionally Lane Bryant, Torrid, and The Avenue.  I refuse to shop at a place that doesn't make me feel welcome for being fat.

People hearing without listening

I went to a body image conference on Friday night and Saturday. Although I had a good time, learned a lot, enjoyed the speeches especially of Deb Lemire, Deb Burgard, Erica Watson, Katherine Flegal, among others, I have my own issues with this conference. Namely something I wrote in my essay about fat chick lit: I referred o size 16 as the fat glass ceiling. In my essay I mentioned that in chick lit novels the average size of fat heroines was 16. Granted you won't find size 16 or 40 on the Howard Stern show, but you do find far more acceptance of someone like Cannie Shapiro of Good in Bed compared to Ronnie in Alt. Beauty (Ronnie weights 300lbs, Cannie is a size 16.) 

After a panel about medicalization and the body, people lined up for questions. Because I tend to be familiar with a lot of the issues, I like to ask a question so the audience would have something to think about. So my question was about Let's Move. I said while I'm not against encouraging kids to eat better and excercise, I am concerned about using it to make fat kids thin. I feel that it would create eating disorders, low self-esteem, and stigma. I was also worried that the diet industry was targeting children as a new cash cow. 

But to repeat. I am not against healthy eating, junk food in moderation, and enjoyable movement. 

So about five minutes later, we got a commenter with "Won't someone please think of the children?" She remarked that she worked with children and the essence of her comment was Let's Move is a great idea, we need to get children healthy and that all fat children had diabetes. 

Deb Burgard asked the woman for her sources. When the woman couldn't give any other than anedotal data, Deb told her, the official statistics for diabetes for children were very low about .26% (Rates for Adults are 8.3. And that .26% is mostly Type 1). Deb had to repeat no one was against healthy eating, and exercise, but felt it was unfair to target one group to change (when there is no proof that the majority of people who lose weight keep it off).

I believe that anti-fat bias is so ingrained that we only see fat never the message. No one on the panel taked about encouraging unhealthy eating or sitting on the couch, merely to remove weight as a health indicator.