Does Thin Privilege exist?

Yes and no. While the media does tout being thin as being the best thing since white bread, there is is still a lot prejudice that exist towards thin people, especially people who are perceived as having eating disorders.

I've faced my fair share of ire for being thin. Strangely enough, I got my most criticisms when I was going through bouts of anorexia, than when I was still thin but not doing anything out the ordinary with my eating habits.

 

You don't have to be thin, either. I think that kind of proves its existence; thin privilege is that you see being thin as always better.

 

There are a number of misconceptions that always arise when discussing the subject of weight in society. I have noticed that one of the most common misconception lies in the terminology.

Overweight does not equal obese.

The definition of overweight is "exceeding the weight considered normal or desirable". It is very possible, and actually quite common, to be overweight and slim in modern society. Many people who carry the heights, muscles, and curves that society praises would be considered a couple of pounds overweight. When medical professionals are preaching about the dangers of access weight, they are not referring to the state of being "overweight"; they are referring to the state of being "obese". Obesity is a medical term entailing of an "abnormal accumulation of body fat". Obesity is often categorized by the presence of over twenty-percent body fat in a individuals total mass or a BMI surpassing thirty.

For example: At my current weight and stature, I would have to weigh 150Ibs or 68kgs in order to be classified as overweight; however, in order to be classified as obese, I would have to weigh a minimum of 185Ibs or 83kgs.

The difference between the health of an individual at the medically desired weight in comparison to being moderately overweight is often non-existent. This is not the case, however, when we have surpassed the threshold of obesity. The second most common misconception lies within the notion that because one can be simultaneously obese and healthy that obesity is therefore not specifically unhealthy. Truthfully, this is a manipulation of semantics. Under the same notion smokers and alcoholics who are presently healthy discount the detrimental capabilities of cigarettes and alcohol. As with most results of less than healthy habits, the effects of obesity most prevalent arise during the periods of middle and old age. The statistical correlations between obesity and early, health-related deaths when compared to those within the brackets of average to moderately overweight cannot be denied.

With all of this being said, I never condone the shaming of those within our society who happen to be obese, nor the notion that certain physical builds should be viewed as the respectable standard. Obesity is certainly not the healthiest physical state to be in; however, there a number of things that we all do that go against the healthiest standard. Quite frankly, terminal diseases and the probability of random death never discriminates anyway, so the prospects of a moderately shorter average life span is marginal at best. We all have to go someday.

 

I think being a healthy weight is better. I don't consider rail thinness to be good as that's going from one extreme to another. Gen is right though - you can be slightly overweight and be healthy - most rugby players will be overweight because of their large, muscular build. At the same time, you can be a healthy weight, but eat a lot of processed crap, and be flabby and out of shape. The BMI is pretty flawed.

If people are fine with their weight, then it's not my place to judge - and I certainly do not agree with 'fat shaming', but I don't think we should encourage obesity as there are clearly numerous health problems related to it, and they cannot be overlooked.

 

Perfect answer.



I see judging people life choices as unnecessary unless they harm you, the judgement comes associated with a genuine constructive criticism (or genuine concern about their health) or it affects you directly.

Not encouraging someone to be/stay obese is not the same as mocking people or voicing your opinion when it is neither solicited nor constructive.

Having said that I also agree that 99% of the times being obese is not something that is imposed to us by biology. But staying on healthy weight may require lots discipline and effort for some people and they are the ones that need to decide whether if they are willing to commit it or not. I personally don't think being obese is good for anyone and would advice to get to a healthy weight tough.

 

I said yes, but it depends. In some cases, the weight can be offset by other attributes. Then, it's always a matter of degrees.

I agree with gravechild. Our society tends to push being muscular and at least medium framed, though not overly so, for men. There is an ideal build. For women, it tends to be influenced by culture, though American culture seems to dictate thin but with enough curvature. The thing is that a lot of really thin women in America also have what is called a "runner's build," which means there aren't many curves to go along with the thinness.

 

In high school unfortunately it does. It is not even thin privilege really it is just an excuse for people thinner then you to look down at you. I am not overweight but I am quite fat for my 5'3 high ,I especially look fat. This does not affect my health at all! I don't think anyone in my family has ever been thin at all but have still been perfectly healthy! Girls who are thinner then you look down at you and treat it as there right to feel sorry for people who are bigger then them. They treat it like being so thin that your bones stick out is better then being a lil bit chubby and that everyone wants and needs to look like that. No one will look at you twice romantically if you are not thin, unless you have big boobs or bum as a female. I have even got people tell my my hands are weird because they are little, chubby and you cant see the bones going down to my wrist when I close them in a fist.

Unfortunately in a high school environment no one gets teased for being thin, they get teased for not being thin enough. There are no 'thin' friends, there are your 'fat' friends. I have never ever heard a positive comment to bigger but healthier people about there bodies, ever!

 

Stop shoving food in your face hole. No privilege just people over consuming or consuming what's needed. Being over weight means you are also creating a higher demand for food and raising prices. It's bad for me and the rest off us poor folk and the third world.

 

Not all bigger people eat a lot, I know plenty of people who eat way more then I do and still have a thin body shape.

 

what is "thin privilege"?

 

Well, I definitely agree that fat people get a lot of crap about their weight, but thin people aren't much better off. I have a high metabolism and I hear "twig", "stick", and "get some meat on them bones" a lot. I wouldn't call it "privilaged". If anyone is privileged, it's the people with normal metabolism and weight.

Like Gen said, "overweight" and "obese" are not synonyms. Someone can have extra meat on them and still be perfectly healthy. You don't look obese to me, at least not from your photos.

I'm 5'8", and my weight ranges from 117 to 129. Wow...

Yep. I eat nothing but shit 24/7 and I'm underweight, apparently.

 

"thin privilege" to me is healthy weight privilege. People who are over weight are often shamed in media and are typically considered unattractive (I don't consider you unattractive, or more attractive. Who you are matters more to me). But yes, I think it does exist.

 

As someone who has spent most of their life being classed as underweight due stomach/digestive problems I can tell you thin people get their share of bullying, verbal abuse, name calling etc (especially as teenagers). The amount of times I've been called anorexic even by people who knew full and well about my digestive problems. I never got the whole idea of thin=popular as have never really seen this to be true in practice, I'm very much a loner anyway but in others the people I remember as being 'popular' were generally somewhere between curvy and overweight. Maybe it depends where you live.

What's really a shame is when you hear someone start off saying something positive like 'it doesn't matter what you look like, everyone should be happy as they are.' Then ruin it by going on a rant about how thin people look 'disgusting' or 'unnatural'. :rolle: How is this any different than throwing out insults at someone for being big? Picking on one group of individuals is no better than picking on another.

The idea of Thin Privilege exists mainly in the minds of those who assume the grass is always greener on the other side. The media has a lot to answer for in this regard but also it is human nature to want something different than what you have. I can understand the logic of this actually because I've often fantasized about what it would be like to be a plumper, Rubenesque type. Mainly for the physical comfort of having some padding but also for the look of it. But of course because I'm picturing this as being a kind of ideal I'm not focusing on the negatives that bigger people have to put up with in reality. The same goes vice versa when a heavy person imagines that being thin would solve all their problems. Of course there can be health benefits to gaining or losing weight but in terms of image the reality is nobody gets it particularly easy, the arseholes of the world will always find something to give you a hard time about whether it's your body or your height or the colour of you skin or hair or whatever.

 

Honestly, privilege is bullshit. I hear people talk about all kinds of privilege white, thin, straight, gay, minority, black, some under different names. I'm not buying it. It's bullshit and people can think whatever they want about that but in the USA you can get as far as you want if you work hard and harder than everyone. That's the american dream. Are people not going to like you because of who you are? Yes. That's going to happen to everyone at some point. THAT'S NOT ON the people who are liked more than you. That's not the fault of the skinny girl your one and only is dating, it's not on the white kid who got the part instead of you that's on your "one and only" who thinks fat people are disgusting, or on the director who thinks that black people are the devil *or whatever*

People in power can be biased. It doesn't make the group that they are biased in favor of 'priveleged'. It makes them the weird winners of an unfair game that they aren't playing.

This got off topic, but it's been on my chest awhile.
-Myc

 

Thank you. :eusa_clap

 

Your originality stuns me. Believing that there's a universal base level of equality is either deluded and misinformed or driven from a belief that social inequality is deserved. Either way, I find that extremely unacceptable.

You contradicted your whole point in the end. If people have an advantage over others for being part of a particular group, as you said with this:

That is, in fact, privilege. As there's no distinction between the formal/literary and popular uses of that word, I'm not being too semantic.

From the Oxford dictionary - Privilege: A special right, advantage, or immunity granted or available only to a particular person or group.

Also, I find it extremely difficult to believe, bordering on an outright lie, that people with privileges "aren't playing [the game]." If that were so, then why does social inequality exist?

 

On the surface, it may appear so but no, I personally don't believe it. Like Gravechild said, for men, it's deemed unattractive. I'm a relatively thin guy. I'm 5'10 and weigh 120-125 (I fluctuate). Just like how it's hard to lose weight for some, it's hard to gain weight too. I do have my own workout regimen but I have trouble eating large portions of food and since my metabolism is pretty fast, I never put on much weight or I lose it.

Being called "malnourished", "anorexic", and "skeleton" isn't such a good thing to hear you know...

 

Fat people with genuine eating disorders are often told that it's impossible that they have one.

Being underweight comes with difficulties, yes, but when I was very underweight, I still didn't get nearly half the insults and problems that I've seen fat people face.