Feb, 2001.
Volume 43, No. 18

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The Carillon brings you the weekly news from the University of Regina.

Contact:
The Editor
Newsline:
(306)-586-8867
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(306)-586-7422
Room 227
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University of Regina

Last week, the U of R Women's Centre hosted Natural Sizes Week, and it got me thinking about weight, eating disorders, and body image.

As the week progressed, I began to feel a nagging sense of concern forming in the back of my head. At first I couldn't put my finger on it­there was just something in the way Natural Sizes Week was being presented that bothered me.

Finally, I realized what it was: all of the emphasis seemed to be placed on the eating disorders of anorexia and bulimia, and seemed to ignore the much larger problem of overeating in our society.

Anorexia and bulimia are serious diseases, and I'm glad that the Women's Centre raises awareness about them. They both arise, at least in part, from societal pressures to look a certain way, and from personal feelings of inadequacy.

Natural Sizes Week tries to combat these factors by challenging beauty ideals and helping people to be happy with the bodies they have. If Natural Sizes Week helps people to feel better about themselves, and if it can prevent even one person from suffering through anorexia or bulimia, then it has been a success.

However, the fact remains that anorexia and bulimia only affect a small percentage of people, while overeating and excessive weight affects almost half of the population.

Anorexia and bulimia are very dramatic, quickly deteriorating the health of a person, and sometimes leading to death at a young age. Overeating may kill much more slowly, but it kills far more people through heart disease, diabetes, and other serious health problems.

My concern with the way Natural Sizes Week is presented is that it might send the message that it is okay to be overweight, despite the serious heath risks associated with it.

This is something that I have increasingly noticed in a broader context as well. It is no longer 'politically correct' to say that it is bad to be overweight because then people might develop image problems and become anorexic or bulimic.

Well, let me be politically incorrect, then: it is not okay to be overweight. It has nothing to do with the way it makes a person look. I see no reason why a person can't be "big and beautiful." Rather, I'm concerned with the health risks associated with being overweight. It is simply not healthy to be overweight, and carrying excess weight is hard on the body.

I'm also concerned with people not getting the help they need for emotional problems. Overeating is a disorder in the same way that anorexia and bulimia are. Many people use eating as a way of coping with stress, anxiety, sadness, or other problems.

If being overweight becomes socially acceptable, and overeating is denied as a disorder, then people might not recognize that they have a problem and fail to get the appropriate attention.

My final comment regarding the way Natural Sizes Week is presented is that it focusses on "body image"­how we see our bodies­instead of how healthy we feel within our bodies. It strives to expand the definition of beauty to fit many different body types, but this still seems to focus on the outward appearance of the body.

What does it mean to be overweight? A person can be a little heavier, and still be perfectly healthy. People naturally have different hip-waist ratios, body type,s and ideal weights. A person can have larger hips or a bigger stomach and still be healthier than a smaller person. A person who is overweight is a person that is carrying more weight than is physically healthy for them.

This suggests that instead of using weight, numerical measurements, or outward appearance as a means of judging our bodies, we should use internal physical and emotional health. If you feel healthy, and you are able to deal with your problems in a healthy way, then chances are you will have a healthy relationship with your body.

We shouldn't try to broaden the image of what our bodies should look like so much as we should strive to feel healthy within our bodies. This may mean getting a proper amount of exercise, eating in a healthy manner, and possibly even seeking counselling of some sort in order to achieve mental and physical health.

Natural Sizes Week addresses important issues, but it partly misses the point. It doesn't put enough emphasis on the problem of overeating, and risks giving the impression that it is okay to be overweight.

It also emphasizes the image we have of our bodies and accepting its external appearance rather than on striving for a body that is healthy.

A healthy body feels beautiful, regardless of what it looks like.