Why is it ok to publicly condemn smokers but not overweight people?

[xoxxx]

First of this thread is not for flaming and is for serious discussion only.

I was thinking, If you see somebody smoking in a car with the windows rolled up and a child, most people would go up to that person and tell them to stop harming their child, they are horrible parents, etc..

But when you see a parent feeding their kids horrible food ALL the time nothing is done, you see a obese child at mcdonalds downing 3 cheeseburgers, your not going to say anything, are you?

Approximetly 19.8% of the united states population smokes, while about 1 in 3 people are considered obese. Heart disease is the number one killer in america. In my opinion it should be considered a hero if you tell somebody that is overweight they need to loose weight. You could literally be saving their life. Please dont be afraid to talk to your friends or family about loosing weight, say it in the nicest way you can, show them facts.

Whats your opinion?

[Grey fox]

Humour - Because overweight people really hurt people they physically assault?

OK but seriously, I think overweight people suffer the brunt of bullying though. In school, are you more likely to get picked on for being fat or smoking? (I know the answer, and it's why I was so miserable for about 7 years of my life)

PERSONALLY I just pity REALLY obese people, who clearly have no idea about nutrition, and really feel sorry for them, but how can they learn when "junk" food is so chock-full of additives and flavourings to make it as tasty as possible, and when modern work hours mean there is often very little chance of either exercise or having the time to prepare and good a meal. Takeaways are just easier, and often cheaper as well!

You can't argue that there is a lack of education about smoking though, it is a persons choice, after all, all the packets of tobacco products in the UK have "SMOKING KILLS" or "SMOKING SERIOUSLY HARMS YOU AND YOUR CHILDREN'S HEALTH" written on them, so it is a persons choice of whether or not they smoke. As well as all the campaigns and public information that goes on. All GCSE and A level biology students are required by the government to learn about the diseases associated with smoking, but only the few taking food related courses learn about nutrition.

Only very recently has there been concern about diets in the UK, but nothing more than half-hearted campaigns has been done about it.

It's all very well telling someone to loose weight, but that won't do anything more then make them feel even more miserable and bad about themselves. It is really hard to loose weight, and you need to have a lot of support and positive motivation behind it. It can also take years, and is very very easy to put back on, especially if you are unfortunate enough to have a relatively sedate lifestyle and a slow metabolism.

Hopefully this semi-answered your question, and opened more lines of debate! :)

[Sapphire]

Lol. I'd love to see the people that you've based these statements on!
Seriously, I don't know anyone who has been approached by or who has approached another person for smoking around their own child.

Also, telling someone they need to lose weight is very insensitive. There is no way of knowing (without a candid conversation about the reasons behind their weight) whether a person is overweight because they are too lazy to get off their backsides and do something or because they have a medical problem.

[Amyxoxo]

Yea i think that telling someone there over weight may do more harm than leaving them, it can seroisly harm them!!!

[BlackenedSilver]

I see both sides of this though if someone is like morbidly obese then I think they need a wake up call sometimes as being that size can seriously harm their body. Though you never know if theres a medical reason behind that as well.
But I think what the OP was also getting at was the harm to children, as they usually copy their parents eating patterns. This can cause more damage to the child than to the adult as we all know how cruel kids are, Grey fox has already mentioned being bullied because of their weight, I was as well. This can cause an uprise of emotional problems, eating disorders etc. So maybe if the parents become aware of what they are actually doing to their children then they could change this. Tbh I think the Governments attempts at making children healthier could be alot better and more graphic adverts or letter to parent I think could be the answer.