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Alex Rauch

Dr. Herndon

English 210

4 December 2014

Cookie-Cut

We see it everywhere in our sexualized American society. Movies, television shows, and

advertisements they all depict and promote those perfect beach bodies everyone has grown to

love and desire. Big muscles, six-pack abs, and the highly sought after hourglass figure are a

few examples of societys standard. Everyone dreams of looking their best for varying personal

reasons, but often times people sacrifice health in order to fit into societys mold of physical

perfection. Yet, even with this seemingly innate desire to look good, obesity is a very prevalent

issue in the United States. And alongside the extreme of obesity, a huge portion of the remaining

population is still considered overweight! According to the CDC, 69.0% of Americans were

obese or overweight in 2012 (Obesity and Overweight). Technically speaking, that means

being overweight or obese is normal for an American. So how did America succumb to such a

devilish, unhealthy epidemic? It continues to rise; the pressure for overweight people to make a

change is constant. But is being overweight the sickness I am really talking about here? Perhaps

not, perhaps America has it wrong when it comes to being overweight and unhealthy. While

obese and overweight individuals suffer from many health complications, it is not as clear-cut an

issue as many make it out to be. Isnt it possible that the true devil in America is the cookie-

cutter image society endorses so fervently? Its complicated, but health is not completely defined

by a perfect body, there are many other factors to consider when discussing holistic health.
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As defined by the World Health Organization, health is, a state of complete physical,

mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity (Frequently

Asked Questions). If body size and shape were the only things we looked at in regards to health,

we would misdiagnose an unfortunate number of people as healthy and unhealthy. Physically

healthy people can be mentally and/or socially unhealthy. Similarly, mentally and socially

healthy people can be physically unhealthy. Health is not measured by a linear model, there are

way too many variables regarding health to classify someones health only by their physical

appearance.

Despite the true complexity of health, Americans have been trained by society to think of

health as physical appearance. But in actuality, we are all made differently at the genetic level.

Someones physical form can often be a good indication of physical health, but it is not the tell-

all. Weve been told time and time again not to judge a book by its cover, yet we often do not

take that simple rule into account when judging an individuals health. When it comes to body

weight and size, Americans are simply not all created equal. As Muscle & Strength CEO Damien

Mase discusses, there are three basic body types: ectomorph, mesomorph and endomorph.

Everyone is born with a bone-structure that they simply cannot change. While these

classifications are not absolute (someone can be a mix of two body types) they do greatly impact

how someones body can look, and also dictates how much effort it requires to look a certain

way. Ectomorphs, for example are naturally skinny. They have very lean muscle mass, narrow

skeletal frames, high metabolisms, and will find it harder to gain weight than people of other

body types. For an ectomorph, it is relatively hard to gain both fat and muscle. On the other end

of the spectrum, endomorphs are naturally large. They have a large amount of muscle mass,

wider skeletal frames, slower metabolisms, and will gain weight easily. For endomorphs, this
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means they will gain fat quickly if they eat poorly, but they will also gain muscle mass much

more easily as well. Mesomorphs make up the middle, able to gain weight more easily than

ectomorphs, and lose weight more easily than endomorphs (Mase). All of this is to say that being

fit for an ectomorphic person is going to be much different than being fit for an endomorphic

person. A muscular (and fit) endomorphic person may even have a high enough BMI to

technically be considered overweight or obese. Our bodies are all created differently, making it

unrealistic for everyone to achieve societys perfect standard.

Our biological make up, caloric intake (from food and beverages), and exercise we take

part in all factor into our caloric surplus/deficit. As a general rule of thumb, people lose weight if

they have a caloric deficit (take in less calories than they expend) and gain weight if they have a

caloric surplus (take in more calories than they expend). The quantity and type of food people

consume may affect their size, but size is not the only thing that matters when considering

physical health. Medical doctor Mark Hyman highlights how healthy looking (thin) people can

still fall short of really being fit, possibly due to a lack of exercise or poor diets. This is, in fact,

so common that it has its own medical term: metabolically obese normal weight (or MONW).

A metabolically obese person has many of the same risk factors that a stereotypical obese person

has (Hyman). They have a greater risk for diabetes, heart disease, and the like all diseases that

stimulate much of the social pressure for an obese person to slim down. An American Medical

Association study found that almost 25% of skinny people have pre-diabetes and are

"metabolically obese" (qtd. in Hyman). This is why exercise is an extremely important factor of

physical health.

An agreed upon perfect balance between diet and exercise will most likely never be

found. What experts can agree on, however, is that a complete focus on one or the other will not
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be as effective as a combination of both. Exercising will allow for more calories per day, but

those calories will not be of much help if they are filled with junk food. As nutritional biochemist

Shawn Talbott states, You can't out-exercise a bad diet. In fact, it would a take a whopping 4-

mile run to burn just the 500 calories in a fast-food quesadilla (qtd. in Wexler). Likewise, eating

right without exercising will only get someone so far. As physical education professor Michele

Olson tells us, Yes, you can lose weight with diet alone, but exercise is an important

component. Without it, only a portion of your weight loss is from fat -- you're also stripping

away muscle and bone density (qtd. in Wexler). For people to prevent a loss of muscle and bone

density they have to exercise. Whether through cardiovascular workouts or resistance workouts,

yet again there is another variable to consider in our quest to be healthy. For endomorphs in

particular (as one example), resistance workouts will even add weight since muscle weighs more

than fat. That new muscle mass, then, often adds so much weight that they are considered

overweight or obese! But, in reality, they actually have achieved a greater overall fitness level.

This would mean that the stereotypical picture of physical health is wrong; people actually can

be healthy and technically overweight.

This constant push and pull between physical reality and societys standards can leave

some people mentally and emotionally unstable. The pressure it puts on people, both young and

old, is too often detrimental to their mental health. And referring back to the WHOs definition

of health, mental well-being also must be considered when discussing health as a whole. The

WHO defines mental health as a state of well-being in which every individual realizes his or her

own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully,

and is able to make a contribution to her or his community (Mental Health). Based on this

extension of our definition of health, this means we must not only be physically healthy, but also
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find that we have value in order to be truly healthy. Though some would debate me, as someone

who was once considered obese (due to body fat, not muscle), I can testify as to how much

obesity affects someone mentally. Not a day went by that I did not think about how other people

saw me, and it was a major self-esteem killer to know I could not measure up to the worlds

physical standard. Even though I was excelling in high school academically, I was convinced

that people still looked down on me because I was fat. Whether or not that was actually true I

cannot say for certain, but it was certainly how I felt, because I knew I had fallen short of what it

meant to look like a success.

Unfortunately, the self-pity I felt, and my poor perception of my self are not uncommon

in overweight and obese individuals. One very common mood disorder associated with being

overweight is depression. Depression already runs rampant in America, affecting at least 10% of

the American population every year the Centers for Disease Control reports (qtd. in Thompson).

But an increased risk can be seen in those who are overweight and obese. In fact, it has been

shown that obesity and depression are correlated. One Everyday Health author noted how studies

have found an obese person is 25% more likely to have a mood disorder than a non-obese person

(Thompson). In some cases the mood disorders actually cause the weight gain, but, many would

argue, in plenty of cases weight gain actually causes the mood disorders.

One main reason a mood disorder would plague an overweight or an obese individual in

particular is because of stigma surrounding being fat. Feeling successful and looking like a

success to others in an undeniable motivation to strive for excellence. Everyone wants others to

look at their self in high esteem. When they feel as though the have fallen short of the acceptable

standard, that leaves plenty of room for depressive mood disorders to creep in. Terms used to

describe the pressure overweight and obese people often feel are weight stigma and fat
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shaming. A stigma or bias in this context, as defined by the Obesity Society, refers to, negative

attitudes that affect our interpersonal interactions and activities in a detrimental way (Obesity,

Bias, and Stigmatization). In other words, the immediate negative disposition towards the

condition of being fat can affect people in such a prominent that it can clearly be seen and felt.

The Obesity Society also gives a few examples of how these stigmas can be shown. They can be

shown verbally through teasing, ridicule, and even jokes. They also manifest through physical

actions, such as playfully or jokingly poking and jabbing someone to highlight the fat they

have. They also can be seen through general barriers to behavior. These obstacles are sometimes

seen when larger people wont get promotions or jobs due to their size, or more overtly, some

companies will refuse to make clothes large enough for overweight and obese people to wear

(Obesity, Bias, and Stigmatization). One company that has even come under-fire for such fat

shaming is Abercrombie & Fitch, who will not even acknowledge XL or XXL womens

clothing, the highest size pants they will sell for women are a size 10 (Lutz). As NBCs Melissa

Dahl reports, the idea of shaming someone into losing weight has proven to be ineffective, so

why do we continue? In fact, studies show stigmatizing overweight individuals actually leads to

psychological factors that provide for weight gain, and within a study, overweight people who

reported experiencing weight discrimination were more than twice as likely to become obese by

the next check-in (Dahl). Such biases, others and myself can attest, are only a detriment for

overweight and obese peoples mental well-being.

Other mental illnesses related to the idea of acquiring the perfect shape in order to live

up societys standard actually cause mental unhealthiness with severe physical consequences.

Eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa can cause people to be

underweight and/or desperate for the nutrients of a healthy diet. Though there may be other
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factors contributing, according to the American Psychological Association the sexualization and

objectification of women in particular is linked to eating disorders (as well as depression and low

self-esteem I might add) (Sexualization of girls). As Mental Health America informs us,

Anorexia nervosa involves a mental illness, where people believe that they are fat (when they

clearly are not) so they do not eat, essentially starving themselves (Eating Disorders). This

starvation then has obvious physical consequences on top of the mental illness. Losing that

weight that they really did not have to lose, due to a lack of body fat, anorexic people will

deteriorate there muscles and bones instead an obviously unhealthy practice. Bulimia, as

Mental Health America also informs us, involves binge eating, and then vomiting up the food to

prevent gaining weight (Eating Disorders). This method, while it does prevent weight gain,

means participants do not receive the nutrients essential to a healthy diet. These diseases could

be partially prevented if those victims did not feel there was such a harsh standard to live up to.

Without fat shaming, and by understanding that fit does not look the same for everyone, we

could prevent a lot of mental health diseases.

Being truly healthy does not necessarily mean looking like a model. In fact, for some

people looking like a model can even mean they are unhealthy, and treating their bodies poorly.

Advertisements commonly wield sexual innuendos to sell products because sex sells. But the

sexualized culture America employs is actually detrimental to many peoples health in many

ways. Physical health may look different depending on each individuals genetic make-up not

everyone fits into a cookie-cut image. Considering how our genetically different body types

work is imperative to understand. Slim (often ectomorphic) people are not, by any means,

necessarily healthy at a metabolic level as many as 25% of slim people in fact are

metabolically obese! Metabolically healthy endomorphic people in particular may technically

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even be considered overweight or obese due to muscle mass. And beyond that, physical health is

not the only defining factor of holistic health - mental well-being is crucial as well! Fat shaming

is one cause for depression in overweight and obese individuals, a mental health condition that

we should be working to fix, not indirectly promote through bias. On top of that, our fat

intolerant culture helps cause eating disorders in far too many people. America is hyper-sensitive

to being healthy, but we are not doing anyone a favor if we do not look at health as a whole.
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Works Cited

Dahl, Melissa. "'Fat Shaming' Actually Increases Risk of Becoming or Staying Obese,

New Study Says." NBC News. NBCNEWS.com, 26 July 2013. Web. 04 Dec.

2014.

"Eating Disorders." Mental Health America. Mental Health America, n.d. Web. 03 Dec.

2014.

"Frequently Asked Questions." WHO. World Health Organization, n.d. Web. 02 Dec.

2014.

Hyman, Mark. "Why Skinny Doesn't Always Mean Healthy." Food Matters.

Permacology Productions, 29 Aug. 2012. Web. 03 Dec. 2014.

Lutz, Ashley. "Abercrombie & Fitch Refuses To Make Clothes For Large Women."

Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 03 May 2013. Web. 04 Dec. 2014.

Mase, Damien. "Your Body Type - Ectomorph, Mesomorph or Endomorph?" Muscle

& Strength. Muscle & Strength LLC, n.d. Web. 02 Dec. 2014.

"Mental Health: A State of Well-being." WHO. World Health Organization, Aug. 2014.

Web. 17 Nov. 2014.

"Obesity, Bias, and Stigmatization." Obesity.org. The Obesity Society, 2010. Web. 04

Dec. 2014.

"Sexualization of Girls Is Linked to Common Mental Health Problems in Girls And

Women--Eating Disorders, Low Self-Esteem, and Depression; An APA Task

Force Reports." American Psychological Association. American Psychological

Association, 19 Feb. 2007. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.

Thompson, Dennis, Jr. "Depression and Obesity." EverydayHealth.com. Ed. Pat F. Bass.
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Everyday Health Media, 15 July 2011. Web. 05 Nov. 2014.

Wexler, Sarah. "Exercise Vs. Diet: The Truth About Weight Loss." The Huffington Post.

TheHuffingtonPost.com, 30 Apr. 2014. Web. 04 Nov. 2014.