Have you seen Cancer Research UK's latest campaign, featuring the word 'obesity' on cigarette packets? The posters feature heavily on public transport and in prominent places across the UK in a bid to raise awareness of the links identified between obesity and cancer. After numerous call-outs to 'have your say' on daytime television, polls on social media and back and forth debates about whether or not the campaign is offensively fat-shaming, or whether or not fat-shaming exists, it's easy to feel overwhelmed by opinions.
The problem lies not solely at the feet of the charity behind the campaign. They do, after all, specialise in supporting medical research and bringing forward the facts and information about the disease that affects the majority of us over the course of our lives. They are well within their right to state that being obese has cancerous risks, if that is supported by medical research - if it's a fact. In this world of fake news and half truths it is refreshing to have the facts. It is not down to CRUK to worry too much about the emotional well-being of the public but it is their duty to be on the frontline of new medical developments and to tell us about them. The issue here is not with the information, but the way it is presented to a hostile environment that fails to acknowledge the damaging effects of fat-shaming that still exist so prevalently in our society. CRUK claims that the campaign is calling on the government to start taking action, and yet the campaign clearly targets the general public. It presents the issue under the guise that fat people do not already understand the health risks and that they need to be told not only by patronising posters, but by everyone else who sees the posters and uses them as leverage to fuel their intolerance.
I do take issue with the message behind the campaign. I understand that obesity is the new smoking in relation to preventable causes of cancer, according to new research. But obesity is a condition that is brought on by a multitude of factors. It's not as clear cut as a nicotine addiction and comparing it like for like is reductive and disingenuous. Smoking is very much a choice - you do not need to smoke to survive, but you do have to eat.
Obesity can be caused by a lack of sleep, increases in stress levels and cortisol production, mental health related eating patterns, lack of exercise and high sugar diets. Notice how our government have had to introduce a sugar tax because our foods are packed full of the stuff? Sugar, described to be almost as addictive as cocaine is constantly and unnecessarily added to our foods to make us eat more and buy more. And lo and behold, the UK has comfort eaten its way into an obesity crisis. So yes, the government do need to take action and has a duty of care to help us lead healthier lives in the face of capitalists who want to get rich from fattening us up and then slimming us down - rinse, repeat.
But that won't happen with this new campaign. This campaign hits a big red button, targeting those who are already finding it difficult to stick within a healthy BMI range. As someone who has lived a life of obesity and all that comes with it, I can tell you it's not necessarily something a person does by choice. I've managed to lose weight more recently through healthy eating and exercise, but do you know how expensive it is? And do you know how mentally gruelling it is to be on a diet every single day for years? I couldn't do it without the support of friends and family, without being as mentally well as I am currently or without the cash. I am extremely lucky to be in a golden zone where these things have aligned and I am able to do this. Not everyone has this setup, and if you are missing even one of the three, it is extremely difficult.
And do you know what doesn't contribute to mental wellness? Shame. Being told every day how you are going to die because of the way in which you exist. Having a large portion of the nation piling on because you are regarded as a second class citizen, and in their insecure, selfish ways they need to keep you that way. Questioning and debating whether your lived experiences actually happened or not, and whether or not you should be allowed to feel low from constantly having to explain and justify your physical appearance. Having This Morning do a call-out with the purpose of disregarding and delegitimising the feelings of those who feel affronted by an ill-thought campaign. Having the general public accuse you of "denying science," and concern trolling you at every opportunity.
And do you know how all of the above contribute to the late diagnoses of life-threatening conditions, such as heart disease and cancer, risking the lives of people instead of saving them? I mentioned in a previous post how it took me SEVEN years to get my heart sorted out because I was too ashamed to get medical help. And if I had a pound for every time I went to a GP to get something looked at, only to be turned away and told to lose weight before they'd consider anything else, I'd be very rich indeed. Or I would be, if it hadn't discouraged me from going back. Fat-shaming both by society and by the medical profession KEEPS PEOPLE FROM RECEIVING THE MEDICAL HELP THEY NEED AND DESERVE. It does not push people in the "right direction." It does not encourage people to make healthy, life-long lifestyle choices. It does the polar opposite and the sooner we get this message embedded into the very root of our being the sooner we can all lead happier, healthier lives.
It's such a shame that we're still having these campaigns. It's disappointing that we're still having the backlash and the debates that follow. They're only becoming more polarised over time, and they're only serving to worsen the problem, not help to solve it. If you want the government to change, lobby in parliament - use your platform to get them listening. If you want people to lose weight, support them with kindness and empathy. I find great irony in a charity pushing a campaign to "save lives" only for it to do the complete opposite.