Obesity

What does contemporary obesity discourse primarily do?

Frames weight as a moral, medical, and political problem.

Which item is NOT part of the Weight-Centered Health Paradigm (WCHP)?

The idea that weight is unrelated to health.

What is healthism?

A moralised ideology emphasising individual responsibility for health.

How do critical weight studies differ from fat studies?

They analyse weight as a social, political, and medical construct beyond fat-identified people.

What is "fat panic"?

Media-driven cultural fear framing fatness as dangerous and urgent.

What is lifestyle drift?

When public health policy shifts back to individual blame after acknowledging structural causes.

How does neoliberalism shape obesity discourse?

By emphasising individual responsibility, self-management, and lifestyle choice.

What is the purpose of Chapter 2?

To map key critical perspectives on obesity and review major critiques.

What does the "fat as fatal" frame do?

Defines fatness as dangerous, unhealthy, and socially costly.

What predicts mortality more reliably than BMI?

Metabolic risk markers.

What does backlash against Flegal et al. (2013) demonstrate?

Contradictory findings are often attacked within obesity science.

What do body pedagogies do?

Teach people to monitor and discipline their bodies according to health norms.

What is an "obesity assemblage"?

Interconnected institutions working to regulate bodies and behaviours.

Who is disproportionately blamed in childhood obesity narratives?

Mothers.

What is meta-critique?

Critiquing the critiques themselves—reflecting on tensions and power relations.

How do the authors describe obesity debates?

Complex, diverse, and requiring respectful dialogue.

What does HAES® stand for?

Health At Every Size.

What does TINA stand for?

There Is No Alternative.

What does TARA stand for?

There Are Reasonable Alternatives.

What is a key critique of weight-loss interventions?

They often fail long-term and can cause harm.

Which health fields produce internal critiques of obesity science?

Epidemiology, dietetics, and exercise physiology.

What is obesity discourse?

A framework portraying weight as dangerous, moralised, and in need of surveillance.

How did COVID-19 shape weight stigma?

It intensified weaponised stigma linking weight to national vulnerability.

Who often polices contradictions in obesity science?

Influential scientists defending dominant paradigms.

What describes the combination of medical, cultural, moral, and political elements?

An obesity assemblage.

Define obesity discourse.

A powerful framework positioning fatness as dangerous, unhealthy, and morally deficient.

Give two scientific uncertainties in obesity research.

Metabolically healthy obesity; metabolic factors predict outcomes better than BMI; weight loss often fails; obesity paradox.

Explain "fat panic."

Media amplification of the obesity crisis that stokes fear and urgency around fatness.

Why are metabolic risks more important than BMI?

They correlate more strongly with morbidity and mortality and vary within every BMI category.

What are body pedagogies?

Institutional teachings that instruct people on how to manage and moralise their bodies.

Why include meta-critique in Chapter 2?

To show critiques are political, contested, and shaped by power.

What is mother blame?

A gendered pattern of attributing children's weight to maternal irresponsibility.

Role of neoliberalism in obesity discourse?

Shifts responsibility to individuals and depoliticises structural inequalities.

Gard & Wright's contribution?

They exposed contradictions and uncertainties within obesity science.

Why is "two sides" framing inaccurate?

Groups are diverse; activists and scientists are not monolithic; positions overlap.

Limitations of the WCHP.

Overreliance on BMI; ignores metabolic complexity; promotes stigma; assumes individual control; weight-loss failures; neoliberal ideology.

How science, media, and politics build the "obesity crisis."

Selective evidence; crisis narratives; media exaggeration; political moralising; blame on individuals.

Intersectional nature of weight stigma.

Gendered mother blame; class-based judgment; national identity; racialised and ableist dynamics.

Purpose of meta-critique.

Reveals internal conflicts; challenges authority; shows knowledge is political.

Compare fat panic, body pedagogies, and obesity assemblages.

Fat panic = fear; body pedagogies = teaching norms; assemblages = institutions regulating bodies.

Why cross-disciplinary dialogue matters.

Avoids polarisation; enhances nuance; integrates biomedical and social insights.

COVID-19 and intensified stigma.

Weight framed as risk factor; moralising health; heightened blame; reveals ideological assumptions.