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Obese Label 'Derogatory', Nice Warns

PA  |  Posted: 09/05/2012 06:23 Updated: 09/05/2012 09:47   PA

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Obesity
The advice is included in NICE's paper entitled Obesity: Working with Local Communities

Telling overweight patients they are obese could be seen as "derogatory", a health watchdog has warned.

Public health workers have been told that patients may respond better if they are encouraged to achieve a "healthier weight" rather than being labelled obese, under draft guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).

The advice is included in NICE's paper entitled Obesity: Working with Local Communities and urges health professionals to use "appropriate language" to help obese patients.

It said: "The term 'obesity' may be unhelpful - while some people may like to 'hear it like it is', others may consider it derogatory."

It continued: "Directors of public health and local government communications leads should carefully consider the type of language and media to use to communicate about obesity.

"For example, it might be better to refer to a 'healthier weight' rather than 'obesity' - and to talk more generally about health and wellbeing or specific community issues."

The advice prompted opposition from some health campaigners.

Tam Fry, of the National Obesity Forum, told the Daily Telegraph: "This is extremely patronising. They should be talking to people in an adult fashion.

"There should be no problem with using the proper terminology. If you beat around the bush then you muddy the water."

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Telling overweight patients they are obese could be seen as "derogatory", a health watchdog has warned. Public health workers have been told that patients may respond better if they are encouraged ...
Telling overweight patients they are obese could be seen as "derogatory", a health watchdog has warned. Public health workers have been told that patients may respond better if they are encouraged ...
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sabelmouse
i love to tumble , ask me why .
833 Fans
 
12:21 PM on 05/10/2012
people should read and think about this when temped to use health as an excuse to abuse fat people.
http://meloukhia.net/2011/12/health_does_not_equal_worth.html
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ladiesbane
192 Fans
05:57 PM on 05/09/2012
"Obesity" is a clinical term. If appropriate, the doctor at best is guilty of accuracy, not insult.

Consider that a doctor who fails to relay the facts to his or her patients is derelict in the duty to inform. Imagine if your physician euphemized and danced around health issues such as heart disease or cancer? -- both of which correlate to obesity.

This is ludicrous. Most of all because it has the potential to minimize and soften a real health risk...all in the name of making it "not a big deal" to the patient. If it's affecting your health, you have bigger things to worry about than hurt feelings.
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Ravan A
On the internet, no one knows you're a housecat
102 Fans
 
10:15 AM on 05/16/2013
"...health issues such as heart disease or cancer? -- both of which correlate to obesity."

Correlate, but it can't always be said that obesity was the cause, and not the consequence.

Also, if I got lectured about "obeeeeeeeesity" every time I went to a doctor, no matter what about, I'd stop going to that doctor. He would not be treating me, he would just be treating a generic fat person who he made erroneous assumptions about.
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liven
47 Fans
05:00 PM on 05/09/2012
I find the term "sick" to be derogatory. I prefer to be told I'm unwell.
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AiSaiko5
93 Fans
04:42 PM on 05/09/2012
Are they serious? It would be unprofessional to sugarcoat the dangers in the effort to be polite.
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Folkman
8 Fans
04:25 PM on 05/09/2012
Well, if telling someone they are fattious et cuntious doesn't get one in trouble, what could possibly be wrong with telling someone they are obese. In fact, relatively speaking, the obese person addressed as such may feel as if they are being complemented. Isn't education wonderful !
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sabelmouse
i love to tumble , ask me why .
833 Fans
 
12:23 PM on 05/10/2012
you are being very offensive. i suppose reflecting on your attitudes would be to much to ask for .
are you a perfect human being ?
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emillio11
90 Fans
05:06 PM on 05/11/2012
he mightn't be but I am.
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Mike War
11 Fans
04:22 PM on 05/09/2012
Does that mean now they have to get rid of those Height to Weight charts which indicate what group of "Plump" people you belong to?
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mrjamo46
0 Fans
04:00 PM on 05/09/2012
It's high time PC was bannished from our shores! It's done more harm to our society than anything else and created a miriad of 'orange box' jobs that are nothing more than a drain on our resources and damaging to us as people and to our industries! At the outset there was good intention, but it's reached a point where we're becoming the laughing stock of the world!
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PurleyEagle
1 Fans
03:51 PM on 05/09/2012
I'm a Doctor and I always find it easiest to use the Latin. Instead of telling a patient they are obese I tell them they are " Fattious et cuntious".
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jack Winn
213 Fans
04:18 PM on 05/09/2012
And of course an informed patient needs an explanation, which you can bill the insurance for.
Then you can send them to therapy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAdLruOIKmA
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dan-b
13 Fans
03:28 PM on 05/09/2012
It is clearly more insulting for someone to skip around the issue rather than come out with what the person should hear
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bobbie 27
14 Fans
03:25 PM on 05/09/2012
You are EX small now shape your self and become EX big
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Norman Mitchison
92 Fans
 
03:25 PM on 05/09/2012
Wouldn`t it be more subtle to just say `they dont make coffins your size` so lose weight....
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emillio11
90 Fans
05:07 PM on 05/11/2012
or; how did you get here, is that your truck blocking the exit?
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Tony McCreton
3 Fans
03:22 PM on 05/09/2012
'Obese' is the correct terminology in Medical language. Disguising the problem by 'feather-bedding' it does the sufferer no favours.
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Peter deBullion
20 Fans
02:58 PM on 05/09/2012
I think fat or overweight is nasty but more simple than saying "if you weigh yourself you could damage the scales"
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tobo
..........................................
277 Fans
02:57 PM on 05/09/2012
I'll stop calling other people fat, when they stop nagging that smoking's bad.
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2ndcornets
42 Fans
04:13 PM on 05/09/2012
That makes two of us [at least]. Time the "normals" fought back !!
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graleman
4 Fans
02:51 PM on 05/09/2012
Why can't we call a spade a spade anymore.The vast majority of these bloaters have nobody but themselves to blame and they are nothing but a burden on the taxpayer what with medical help and mobility vehicles etc.It makes me sick to hear them say "ohhh it's my metabolism or it runs in my family etc" The simple fact is they eat too much.I used to be a very active person in my work in my younger days and would consume around 4000 calories a day and only weighed around 9 stone but now my work is different so I cut down to around 1800 calories and admittedly put a little weight on but still only 11 stone which is healthy for my height.Why can't these people just eat accordingly after all if you change your Range Rover for micra you dont keep putting the same amount of fuel in do you.
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