Have you ever heard of fatphobia? Although technically it could be translated as “fat phobia”, in reality, more than a phobia it is a rejection (or even discrimination) towards fat people.
That is, this rejection is given to people socially categorized as “fat” (overweight or obese). In this article we analyze this phenomenon from a social and psychological point of view, and we tell you about its symptoms, causes and how to combat it.
Fatphobia: what is it?
Fatphobia could be defined as, more than the phobia of fatness, the rejection of it. Thus, people with fatphobia feel a rejection towards people who are overweight or obese. But, What is hidden behind fatphobia? In this article we describe its possible causes and how to combat it.
In this way, we insist that it is more appropriate to define fatphobia as a rejection, and even hatred, towards fat people. That is, it is not so much a phobia, as it could be the phobia of clowns or the phobia of water.
In this case, fatphobia produces a kind of cognitive bias, which makes people who suffer from it tend to belittle or ignore people who are overweight or obese.
This bias, on many occasions, is unconscious, and makes us discriminate against fat people, or underestimate their abilities, focusing solely on their fatness, as if it were the only thing that represented them.
This contempt for fat people occurs especially toward women, more than toward men; that is to say, that although fatphobia can appear in both men and women, the objects of contempt or ridicule are above all overweight women.
A little history…
How did the concept of fatphobia arise? A moment in which it is explicitly mentioned is 14 years ago, in 2005, when a psychology professor and researcher, Kelly D. Brownell, together with other researchers, Rebecca Puhl, Marlene Schwartz and Leslie Rudd, published a book en titled “Weight Bias: Nature, Consequences and Remedies” (2005).
What is the book about? It raises the idea that obesity, in addition to being a he alth problem, implies a social rejection by people in the environment; this discriminatory bias is called fatphobia.
Symptoms
The symptoms of fatphobia would include a rejection of this type of person, whether they are men or women. In addition to rejection, hatred can also appear, in the most extreme cases, indifference or contempt.
A person with fatphobia who sees a fat person almost automatically associates them with a person with low self-esteem, who does not take care of themselves and who is not attractive. Unconsciously, they think that fat people are people who are not “at the same level” as other people, because their weight is not “normal” or “adequate”.
Logically, this bias and these symptoms of fatphobia are strongly influenced by a culture and aesthetic fashion that emphasize the importance of being thin in order to be beautiful. Thus, we would be in a way talking about some of its causes.
Causes
The causes of fatphobia lie in the culture and fashion of thinness, and in the stereotypes that to be pretty or pretty one has to be thin /a That is, we unconsciously associate fatness with ugliness, and with lack of he alth. Logically, obesity is not synonymous with he alth, on the contrary; Being excessively fat is not he althy. However, fatphobia even occurs in people who are simply overweight.
Thus, in a way, we have inherited a culture that emphasizes thinness, the symbol of current beauty canons. That is why everything that moves away from it (especially obesity, where the distance is greater), causes us rejection or discomfort.
On the other hand, there has also been talk of the objectification of the female body as a possible cause of fatphobia, a phenomenon that stems from today's macho society. Objectifying implies the fact of considering something (in this case, the woman's body) as a “thing”.By considering the body as a “thing”, we simplify it and reduce its value as beyond something inert; Thus, people with fatphobia could be influenced by this macho phenomenon.
Another possible cause of fatphobia (not supported by everyone) is the unconscious fear of becoming fat too It's as if when we see a fat person, we see a reflection of the reality that we do not want to reach. This occurs completely unconsciously, but it may also be at the base of fatphobia.
Treatment
Although fatphobia is not actually a mental disorder, the underlying beliefs can be treated. Thus, from a psychological point of view, fatphobia can be combated by questioning one's intrinsic beliefs, such as: “fat people are not attractive” , “fat people cause aesthetic rejection”, “fat people cause social rejection”, etc.
To do this, the person must learn to identify these beliefs, as well as other types of thoughts associated with fatphobia, and once identified, deconstruct and transform them into more realistic beliefs. On the other hand, if there are also discriminatory behaviors towards fat people, these should also be worked on.
On the other hand, at an educational level, it is important to educate the youngest from school, in the diversity of bodies and in the importance of not discriminating against people for a merely aesthetic reason (or for no other reason).
Current movement
The reality is that, currently, the social movement is precisely going in the opposite direction to fatphobia; This movement advocates curves, overweight and even obesity, in many cases.
This phenomenon is evident in campaigns of "curvy" models, on social networks, where more and more photos are uploaded of people who show off their curvy, overweight and even obese bodies, without being ashamed of it , etc.
Thus, a type of activism is increasingly promoted against society that humiliates people based on their weight , in order to combat fatphobia and defend values such as self-acceptance, freedom and the beauty of all bodies, regardless of their shape, size and weight.
The Body Positive
This movement actually has a name: the “Body Positive” movement, which defends the diversity of bodies and bets on a positive vision of oneself, whatever your weight and the body shape you have.
The Body Positive movement began in early 2007 in the Spanish-speaking world; This happened when the magazine "Belleza XL" appeared, which was committed to giving visibility to "plus sizes" (in fact, its target was people with a size considered "large"). However, in the United States the Body Positive movement was already taking its first steps.
So, since 2007, in Spain and in the rest of Europe this movement has been growing and gaining strength in society. We could say that it is an important social tool when it comes to combating fatphobia.