Terms:
Fatosphere: While it does not have one clear definition, Dickins et al. describes the Fatosphere as a community of Web logging and blogging that provide an online space in which people of all sizes can engage in and contribute to critical dialogue about obesity, and receive informal peer-based support for a range of stigmatizing experiences. Participants in the Fatosphere believe that fat acceptance has a positive effect on their health, self-esteem and well-being (Dickins et al. 2011)
Fat (Size) Acceptance: In the 1960s, fat acceptance emerged as a movement to respond to weight-based discrimination and the stigma directed to fat individuals. Regarded as a consumer-based movement, it attracts those who question the commonly held beliefs that fat is always unhealthy and critically examines the weight loss industry (Dickins et al., 2011). Key elements of the movement include acceptance of one’s body and letting go of the idea that one’s body must conform to societal ideals in order to be acceptable.
Fat Fetishism: is an attraction (sometimes exclusively) to overweight or obese individuals. Generally this attraction has more to do with sexual conquest and less to do with long term romantic relationships.
Body Mass Index (BMI): This is a formula used to calculate “health” weight for most individuals. It is obtained by dividing a person's weight in kilograms by the square of their height in meters, squared. It is generally agreed that the index is read as follows:
Underweight = <18.5
Normal weight = 18.5–24.9
Overweight = 25–29.9
Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater
Natural Eating: refers to eating only when hungry and not due to other cues. This includes eating because of stress or boredom. Natural eating also involves eating the things you would like to eat, without feeling guilty about it. The theory is that this leads to self-acceptance and less pressure to lose weight and focuses more on health.
Binge Eating: The Mayo Clinic defines binge eating as "...a serious eating disorder in which you frequently consume unusually large amounts of food". This is not the occasional over-eating that everyone indulges in from time to time. Binge eating is a secretive behavior that is reoccurring and associated with a deep sense of shame.
Pro-Ana: refers to the promotion of the eating disorder Anorexia Nervosa. Often it is referred to just as “ana” or as a personification of the eating disorder. Eating Disorder Review, January 2007, used a quote from a pro-ana site participant to illustrate this point; “Ana takes up all my free time, but this doesn’t matter because I do everything with Ana.”
Pro-Mia: refers to the promotion of the eating disorder Bulimia Nervosa. Also sometimes used interchangeably with the term “pro-Ana”.
National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA): NEDA’s mission statement: “NEDA supports individuals and families affected by eating disorders, and serves as a catalyst for prevention, cures and access to quality care.”
For More Information: If you or someone you know has an eating disorder, you can contact www.nationaleatingdisorders.org or the National Eating Disorders Association at 1-800-931-2237 for information and referrals.
Relevant Web Links
Harvard School of Public Health Obesity Prevention Source
Procon.org: An independent non profit non governmental charity examining the pros and cons of obesity as a disease
Scientific American: Consumption Junction: Childhood Obesity Determined Largely by Environmental Factors, Not Genes or Sloth
A Comprehensive list of blogs from the Fatosphere (Links may contain explicit and adult content generated by users of the blogging community).
Fat (Size) Acceptance: In the 1960s, fat acceptance emerged as a movement to respond to weight-based discrimination and the stigma directed to fat individuals. Regarded as a consumer-based movement, it attracts those who question the commonly held beliefs that fat is always unhealthy and critically examines the weight loss industry (Dickins et al., 2011). Key elements of the movement include acceptance of one’s body and letting go of the idea that one’s body must conform to societal ideals in order to be acceptable.
Fat Fetishism: is an attraction (sometimes exclusively) to overweight or obese individuals. Generally this attraction has more to do with sexual conquest and less to do with long term romantic relationships.
Body Mass Index (BMI): This is a formula used to calculate “health” weight for most individuals. It is obtained by dividing a person's weight in kilograms by the square of their height in meters, squared. It is generally agreed that the index is read as follows:
Underweight = <18.5
Normal weight = 18.5–24.9
Overweight = 25–29.9
Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater
Natural Eating: refers to eating only when hungry and not due to other cues. This includes eating because of stress or boredom. Natural eating also involves eating the things you would like to eat, without feeling guilty about it. The theory is that this leads to self-acceptance and less pressure to lose weight and focuses more on health.
Binge Eating: The Mayo Clinic defines binge eating as "...a serious eating disorder in which you frequently consume unusually large amounts of food". This is not the occasional over-eating that everyone indulges in from time to time. Binge eating is a secretive behavior that is reoccurring and associated with a deep sense of shame.
Pro-Ana: refers to the promotion of the eating disorder Anorexia Nervosa. Often it is referred to just as “ana” or as a personification of the eating disorder. Eating Disorder Review, January 2007, used a quote from a pro-ana site participant to illustrate this point; “Ana takes up all my free time, but this doesn’t matter because I do everything with Ana.”
Pro-Mia: refers to the promotion of the eating disorder Bulimia Nervosa. Also sometimes used interchangeably with the term “pro-Ana”.
National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA): NEDA’s mission statement: “NEDA supports individuals and families affected by eating disorders, and serves as a catalyst for prevention, cures and access to quality care.”
For More Information: If you or someone you know has an eating disorder, you can contact www.nationaleatingdisorders.org or the National Eating Disorders Association at 1-800-931-2237 for information and referrals.
Relevant Web Links
Harvard School of Public Health Obesity Prevention Source
Procon.org: An independent non profit non governmental charity examining the pros and cons of obesity as a disease
Scientific American: Consumption Junction: Childhood Obesity Determined Largely by Environmental Factors, Not Genes or Sloth
A Comprehensive list of blogs from the Fatosphere (Links may contain explicit and adult content generated by users of the blogging community).