WASHINGTON - TelAve -- Many influencers and others who once promoted fat acceptance (also known as fat pride, fat empowerment, fat liberation, fat activism, and body positively) are now discrediting the movement by themselves becoming thin by losing massive amounts of weight, and sometimes even telling their followers about how they feel healthier.

One admitted that she was fat because of disordered eating practices, while another provided a strong motivation for losing weight: "I have zero remorse or shame for being public about my weight loss. Two years ago, I couldn't wipe my own ass!"

Interestingly, comedian Bill Maher suggested that society should use fat shaming as a way to attack America's second most serious and expensive public health problem  despite objections from many liberals (whom he called "the NRA of mayonnaise") and from the so-called the fat acceptance movement.

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Maher ridiculed that movement which excoriates anyone who criticizes a person for being fat - of accusing such critics of fatphobia and sizeism - and drawing an analogy to criticizing someone who is drunk: saying sarcastically "How dare you drink-shame me - being blotto is beautiful."

Shaming smokers - making them feel, in their own words, like "social pariahs" - was tremendously effective in helping millions of smokers do what most already wanted to do, says public interest law professor John Banzhaf, who played a major role in slashing smoking in the U.S., thereby saving millions of lives and hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars in medical care costs.

A recent study concludes that the "total cost of chronic diseases due to obesity and overweight was $1.72 trillion - equivalent to 9.3 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP)," although the CDC's estimate is somewhat lower.

So anything which might help slash the prevalence and huge unnecessary costs of obesity might well be worth trying, suggests Banzhaf.

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At a time when some companies are actually refusing to hire people who are obese and/or charging them far more for their health insurance, shaming the great majority who can control their weight by eating more healthful foods, reducing portion size, and getting a bit more exercise seems far less extreme, especially if it provides a much needed incentive for people to do what most already want to do - stop being obese.

The professor has also reported on steps governmental bodies could and should also take to fight the current epidemic of pediatric obesity, and help obese Americans achieve and maintain a more healthful weight:
Biden's Plan to Cut Obesity Falls Far Short; U.S. Should Learn from Successes in Other Countries (https://www.valuewalk.com/bidens-plan-to-cut-obesity-falls-far-short/)

http://banzhaf.net/  jbanzhaf3ATgmail.com   @profbanzhaf