The Hunk Vs. The Chunk

Ken Krause, a self-proclaimed anti-obesity crusader, got himself in hot water for daring to e-mail a La Crosse news anchor commenting on her long time  battle of the bulge, how it hadn't changed for years and how her current appearance certainly isn't a good role model for the young, especially girls. Plus the fact it was unhealthy.

My goodness, you'd have thought he'd posted photos of her like you often see of the lovelies who shop at Wal-Mart!  He was even invited to go on air and discuss his "hatred for people who are a bit overweight."

  Jennifer Livingston , the anchor, decided to read the e-mail on air and turn it into a case of bullying since this is Anti Bullying Month. Okay, I may be on the wrong side of this one, but I'm going to defend Mr. Krause.

Ms. Livingston complained that he didn't even know her nor what the causes of her obesity may be.  She claimed it was unfair to judge her on her appearance and that what he had done was akin to bullying.

Remember now, we have a First Lady who is so concerned about overweight youngsters she's changed the face of school menus to the point the kids are complaining about being hungry all the time.  The mayor of New York has legislated a limit on the size of soda you can buy.

Ms. Livingston is a public figure.  Forgive the pun.  In a business where image is everything.  As is often the case with smaller TV markets, the on air personalities don't present the level of professionalism in either demeanor nor dress you expect to see on the networks and bigger cable outlets.

I live in such a market and often have problems with how the locals appear on air.  Especially the women.  I wonder if some know they can get their hair trimmed and can comb it before going on.  I wonder if they know they can buy jackets that don't make them look like stuffed sausages or that a show of cleavage really isn't necessary to the news. Role models?  Hardly.  If anything it gives young people the idea there are no standards to which one should aspire.

Granted, I've never sent any of them e-mails on the subject though I've often thought about writing their management. Would that be considered bullying?  If I wrote them directly and the topic was anything other than weight would it be considered bullying?

Ms. Livingston reminds us she knows she's overweight and that she has struggled with it ever since she started having children.  So have a lot of others.  I too have a struggle with weight and have to be constantly vigilant to not let it get out of hand.  It's hard.  Darn hard.  But I do so because I care about how I look, how I appear to others, even if it's only the neighbors much less a television audience.

Frankly, I think all the venom directed at Mr. Krause by women commenters is misguided.  What he did is not bullying in my opinion.  If he had flooded her mailbox with diatribes and insults on the matter it would be different.  That doesn't appear to be the case.  If it is it certainly doesn't appear to be part of the story.

It seems to me she may be looking for acceptance and a sense of self she doesn't have because of her problem.  She was the topic of conversation on The Talk where she was given
a thumbs up by the hosts.  She's to get a shot on Ellen.  Wow.  That's one way to keep the issue alive isn't it?

I don't particularly enjoy looking at fat people.  I certainly don't enjoy being overweight myself.  Should I consider my doctor is bullying me when he says a few more pounds would be good?  Or if my husband says I have a ways to go before those slacks really fit well? I don't think so.

Obesity is a problem in this country.  A huge problem.  Again, pardon the pun.  A news anchor is a role model as is any other public figure.  Words pointing out she could be an even better one are not cruel, but fact.  If she has a health issue, state it.  But don't think for a minute Mr. Krause is the only one who finds her appearance less than desirable for a woman in her position. She's fortunate her management is willing to overlook it.

She chose to go public with the e-mail.  Why?  Nothing in it as I read it was cruel, certainly not bullying or what one reporter called bullying creep.  Is she consumed by guilt and looking for a scapegoat?  I don't know.  As she points out, none of us know her, but none of the commenters nor she herself know Mr. Krause either.

Is Ellen going to give him a shot to tell his side of it?  I doubt it.  I'm just thinking the delete key is well marked and the fat lady didn't have to sing. As for Mr. Krause trying to impart some constructive criticism, bully for him!

Fat Chance!

It's hot and I'm getting cranky as the temperatures continue to rise. I'm tired of politics. I really am. Especially since I've been preaching to the choir lately and it seems I'm the lone member. So. It's time for a change of pace for at least a few days. As difficult as it may be, I'll look for some positives.

With all the focus on health and health care, let's begin with our new Surgeon General, Regina Benjamin. Those who can be nothing but negative, no matter what, have been all over the fact that she is - uh - chunky. What kind of an example is that?

We women tend to obsess over our weight but that she is chunky never crossed my mind when she was nominated. I looked at her background and felt she was an excellent choice, but then I do march to a different drummer.

We've all been told there is an epidemic of obesity in this country. Yes. At least an epidemic of overweight by some criteria other than your mirror. So just what constitutes overweight and obesity from a more scientific point of view? BMI, Body Mass Index.

Knowing I'm on the heftier side of normal I wanted to see if I was merely overweight or really, actually obese. So I followed the link, plugged in my height and weight and found that, alas, I was merely overweight and not badly so. I consoled myself that this little test does not take into account age, bone structure or any of that good stuff. Just plain and simple, height and weight.

Now the good news! According to a story in this morning's Spokesman , being overweight may not be so bad! It informed me that two recent studies have shown overweight and obese people can expect to live as long as "normal" people while underweight people are at increased risk for premature death!

Take that all you skin and bones super models and movie stars! Ha!

Sure, those who are a tad more than pleasingly plump are ripe for various ailments less likely for their thinner counterparts. Yet the skinny on that is plumps don't suffer from anorexia or bulimia, for example. Nor do they cause all sorts of system wide upsets from restrictive and crazy diets that rob a body of basic nutrition!

So here I am. A senior with weight settling in places I wish it wouldn't. So be it. One thing with having a pet who is not well, I'm learning how to control my penchant for obsessing. That it's carrying over to other aspects of my life has to be good - for my anxiety level, my eating patterns and even how much wine I consume to ease the frustration.

I've accepted the idea I can wear a size larger on the bottom than on top. I've accepted I can wear a larger size period! And still look good! Now I can dress for dinner in something nice and come home satisfingly full and not feel the waist line cutting into me!

So those of you in Mississippi who are fat and happy as number one for the 5th year in a row on the fattest state competition, enjoy. Careful with your kids, but enjoy. And you Colorado folk, who rank the lowest, with your lean and sinewy bodies, don't you drink too many Coors. It could add some fat to the meat on your bones! Oh, woe!

As for Dr. Bengamin, she looks good to me. I just can't build up a trust in those who have that lean and hungry look!

I'm Killing Our Planet!

Hub came into the kitchen at lunch time and took a sandwich out of my hand. "Serious diet time," he says, "You (me) have to get down to 150 and I have to get to 180."

"Where are you taking me?" Now isn't that a logical question? Who'd have thought it was in response to the latest studies showing fat people are making global warming worse. Okay, I thought, we move more slowly and sweat more. Maybe that does add to the heat wave. Dumb me.

We've now joined livestock as the villains in our own earthly scenario! Actually it has not so much to do with the fact that the populations of all but the poorest of countries are getting fatter with each generation as much as what it takes to get us that way. Food. It's because we eat more food. Food production produces major CO2 emissions and the more we eat the more is produced.

Okay folks, here comes another Dogwalk solution. We need a cap and trade policy for eating. Those of us who over indulge on prime beef and fine wine buy credits from the poor starving people in the many third world countries we never seem able to elevate. They'd get money to plant crops and buy their own livestock and gain weight and improve their standard of living. When they're equal with the rest of the world, we'll be out of funds from buying credits, the roles will reverse and the cycle will start all over again. They've made global warming simple. I've made solving it simple.

Never mind matters of health ranging from stressed joints to heart disease. Never mind what it will do the retail market for women's sizes! What about the medical professionals who treat us - family practice physicians and all the specialists, physical therapy after the hip and knee replacements, chiropractic to straighten out those old bent bones. The pharmaceuticals who produce all those pills we pop for blood pressure, cholesterol and pain! The pharmacists who dispense them - if they're so inclined. You get the idea.

Dr. Phil Edwards of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine told the The Sun (UK), "Moving about in a heavy body is like driving a gas guzzler. We need to do a lot to reverse the global trend towards fatness. It is a key factor in the battle to reduce carbon emissions and slow climate change."

I rather like my solution for global warming. Fat credits. As far as the economic issues I've outlined, I'm sure there's a solution for that too. I think it's called TARP. Troubled Asset Relief Program. Of course if our collective "asset" less maybe we wouldn't be fat in the first place!

Oprah Winfrey - Heavyweight

When I read the AP article about how upset Oprah is with herself I could empathize. So can just about every other woman in the world who has trouble maintaining a medically acceptable weight. So many of us belong to the "Sisterhood of the Yo-yo"!

The ads at the end of the article added insult to injury. They were Drop 13# with Acai, Dr. Oz Diet and Simple 2 Lose. Ha!

I had a health professional brighten my whole day awhile back. We were discussing my issues and the weight I've put on since vacation and Thanksgiving. "You're not going to obsess over losing a lot of weight are you?"

"Well, I'd like to shed 10 or so pounds and the first of the year brings my annual stint on the South Beach to accomplish that," I replied.

"Perfect." It's a good, sound plan, it works and it's easy.

It was music to my ears! Yes. I'd really like to lose more than that 10 pounds but realistically I realize I probably won't. And that's okay. Even that amount will help keep the blood pressure and cholesterol in check; the physical therapy and treadmill which is part of it, will help keep the old cardio vascular pumping at peak and I won't need to beat myself up.

I think the same goes for Oprah. As long as she's been a star she has had, shall we say, a zoftig physique. I think it bothers her far more than it does her fans. To confess that she's had to starve herself to achieve the weight losses she's had is no more healthy than being severely overweight. She worries that she's to be a role model and she let people down. Nonsense. Promoting something that is unachievable by most and certainly unsustainable isn't what role models are about.

All the special diets and pills in the world won't help anyone maintain their weight. Most of them don't work. If you already have high blood pressure you probably put yourself at even greater risk by taking them.

What does work is a modicum of discipline and realism. When you find yourself gaining, just stop and take it back off. Right away. I've done it and if I can anyone can.

True, as a "senior" no one expects me to look as I did in my 20s. The important part is that I don't either. Oprah, in her 50's is what she is. She doesn't have to get back into her Calvin Klein's to be healthy or please her fans. She doesn't have to look like Cher. All she has to do is be okay with herself and know that a whole lot of women like her just the way she is.

I'm always going to have those extra pounds I'd like to lose. So will Oprah. It's a female thing. We just need to be realistic, like ourselves and worry less about what we imagine others may be thinking. We're probably wrong anyway. That's another female thing. We're full of them!

Oprah is a heavyweight all right but it's for all the good she has done, her phenomenal accomplishments. That's a figure that cannot be measured in pounds!

Why Would An 8 Year Old Kid Need A Statin?

When did they start testing kids for high cholesterol? Is it becoming a routine part of pediatric exams since kids are getting fatter? I haven't a clue, but it is certainly a wake up call.

I have an ongoing battle with my doctor because of my own cholesterol. She looks at the "bad" stuff; I look at the ratio which I'm told is an obsolete measure. Depends on who you talk to. The battle will no doubt continue because I'm flat out afraid of the side effects that are possible - liver problems being one of the more prevalent. At the moment I'm on enough non-effective medications to open my own pharmacy. I don't care to add another to the mix.

But that's me. A senior citizen who realizes maintaining a semblance of health is a constant balancing act.

But for kids? I see them. Around schools, in the malls, in grocery store parking lots - places I pass or visit with some frequency. If I were of an age where I had a lot of friends with kids I might also see them in their homes. Just what would I find? Burgers, fries, pizza and soda pop as a steady diet? Sitting around texting their friends? I guess eight year olds are savvy enough to do that. Playing non-stop video games? I really don't know. But if that is what I would find there is a remedy that is far better than prescribing  statins.

Go outside and play. Ride a bike. Take a hike. Go swimming.  Join a team. Play a sport. And take your folks with you. Pills may lower the cholesterol but they won't do squat about solving the problem. The doctors know it. The parents know it. And I'll bet even the kids know it.

A Taxing Situation?

I knew it! Now that we're past the point of extreme vanity and getting used to the fact we're never going to fit into the clothes in our closets labeled "skinny", we've a new burden to bear.

Those of use who are a bit thick through the middle, maybe just a wee bit overweight, are being told we're contributing to global warming! Yep. There was actually a study done by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, reported in Lancet via Rueters . First of all, I find it hard to believe there is actually a school bearing such a name but apparently there is and they are quite serious!

So here's the deal. No more chocolate chip cookies from Super One, no beer with my ribs, less wine with my dinner and fewer steak dinners. Forget the foie gras and the molten chocolate cake! Next thing you know we'll be taxed for every pound of excesss weight we carry! No matter that as I get older there is less and less I am able to do with my once incredible vigor fast disappearing, eating well and enjoying it was something I always could.

Just as I'm beginning to enjoy it without dreading an additional bulge here and there I find I'm part of this humongous world problem! You see, the reasoning goes, we require more fuel to transport us, we eat more leading to shortages. To make matters worse the additional agricultural pursuits required to keep us fat and happy increases greenhouse gas emissions!

Whew! That's quite a bit to bear. Worldwide, they tell us, 400 million adults are obese. By 2015, according to the World Health Organization, 2.3 billion adults will be overweight and 700 million will be obese.

Now. This isn't all bad. You see, in a speech right out of OZ, John McCain told us he could see the Iraq war being won by the end of his first term - 2013. It seemed like pie in the sky at the time. Maybe there is a certain logic to his madness - everyone will be too fat to fight!