5 Myths About Fat People You Need to Stop Believing

Fat people have many myths about them, largely perpetuated by society and media, even though many fat people live lives. 

Fat people face discrimination

Fat people face discrimination every day based on their size alone – from the way they’re treated at work to how they’re perceived in public to whether or not they’re capable of finding someone who loves them.

•  This is why it’s important to stop believing these myths and start understanding fat people as human beings, just like you. 
• Here are five of the most common myths about fat people that you need to stop believing once and for all.

Myth #1: Being fat makes you lazy

When a person is considered overweight or obese, people automatically assume that individual must be lazy and unmotivated.

 Wrong! Studies have shown time and again that when people lose weight, their resting metabolism decreases significantly. A healthy body takes more effort to maintain than an unhealthy one.

Myth #2: If you’re overweight, you don’t have the willpower

 at willpower is a quantifiable thing—or at least one you can measure by looking at someone’s body type.

•  And two, that willpower and thinness are inversely related—if you have good willpower, you must be thin (and vice versa). 
• Both assumptions ignore an incredibly important fact: Not all fat people are unhealthy or undisciplined, and not all thin people are healthy and fit.

Myth #3: Obesity is always an individual choice

This idea is infuriating, especially since it’s often spouted by those who have never tried—or perhaps even embraced—an active lifestyle.

 If a fat person didn’t make a conscious decision to be overweight, it shouldn’t be assumed that their laziness or gluttony is why they are.

Myth #4: Being fat means being unhealthy

Obesity is a health condition, but it’s not inherently unhealthy. 

• Consider that about 5% of people with a body mass index (BMI) over 30 are healthy by traditional medical standards; they don’t have high blood pressure, abnormal cholesterol levels, and other indicators of poor health often seen in obese individuals. 
• So while it’s true that being overweight can lead to diabetes and heart disease, simply weighing too much isn’t enough evidence for a diagnosis of ill health.

Myth #5: Overweight people aren’t as intelligent

Anyone can be overweight. And while it’s true that obesity is sometimes caused by illness, a lot of it is caused by an unhealthy lifestyle. 

This myth persists because people tend to place more value on what they see than on what they know. It’s just easier for some people to consider someone stupid if they have a fat face, but appearances can be deceiving.