The Body Activists, LLC

The World is Hard Enough for Fat People. Why is the National Eating Disorders Association Making it Harder?

➡️ Read the full statement at the link in bio.

Saturday evening, I was enjoying a night with friends, including a thin friend of mine who recently became interested in my weight stigma awareness work. At dinner, she pointed out instances of fat shaming she’d seen that week, unpromptedly questioned her language around the potentially dubious “it’s all over when the fat lady sings,” and discussed how she can bring the conversation of weight-based discrimination into her corporate workplace. I felt supported, heard, and, frankly, like someone gave a s**t.

It was only a few hours later that I went on Instagram and was met with the National Eating Disorders Association’s statement on the mind-boggling treatment of childhood obesity guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics. I sat there, feeling my face heat and my numbness set in. What did I expect? Not this. Not absolution. Not the weak and invalidating language referring to Fat kids as “some,” the harm as “potential.” We know how many Fat kids there are, and we know that Fat young people who have bariatric surgery are more at risk of su***de. With everything the field knows, in addition to the Fat community’s efforts to share our lived experiences, NEDA knew better, and they did it anyway.

Instead of addressing the fatphobic and unsubstantiated bunk of the AAP guidelines head-on, NEDA addressed a separate topic: the idea that BMI is BS (newsflash, we’ve been talking about that already). Despite the accuracy of that information, it wasn’t the time or place; instead, they should have addressed the egregious pharmaceutical and surgical treatment recommendations, including metabolic and bariatric surgery, for kids as young as 13 years old. As the “leading” eating disorders organization in the United States, it is NEDA’s responsibility to use their power, influence, and financial resources to support the eating disorder community -- not to undermine it.

➡️For more, please read the statement at the link in bio.

You. Must. Listen. The guidelines you set at the beginning of this week will have deadly consequences for years to come. I'm ready to come to the table and discuss changes...are you? Read the letter at the link in bio or https://www.theprojectheal.org/blog/opposing-new-clinical-guidelines-from-the-american-academy-of-pediatrics

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