Obesity as a disability or a self inflicted state
Obesity can be avoided and therefore it is not a disability, it is a self inflicted state where people eat over the RDA (recommended daily amount) and expect society and taxes to pay for their surgeries.
Whether a person’s obesity could fall within the definition of a disability found in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (“the DDA”). The definition of disability in the DDA is that “… a person has a disability … if he has a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day to day activities …”. Therefore, if a person’s obesity has lasted at least 12 months and substantially adversely affects his ability to perform everyday activities then it could be classed as a disability. However a disability is not self inflicted whereas obesity is and it can be avoided.
An obese person chooses to be obese, they eat irregularly and in excessive amounts if they were to eat the recommended daily intake their obesity would ‘disappear’ of course with exercise.
Children are increasingly becoming overweight and less physically active, to the point that childhood obesity is a global epidemic. Media use — including time spent watching television, playing video games and using a computer — has been identified as one of the contributing factors for a number of reasons, including the following:
- There is considerable advertising and promotion of high-sugar, high-fat foods during children's programming.
- Media use is displacing physical activity as children spend more and more time watching television and playing video games and less time being physically active.
Also channels like channel four broadcast the lives of obese people
- Too big to walk http://www.channel4.com/programmes/too-big-to-walk
- My big fat diet show http://www.channel4.com/programmes/my-big-fat-diet-show
- Britain’s fattest man http://www.channel4.com/programmes/britains-fattest-man/4od
- Supersize vs Superskinny http://www.channel4.com/programmes/supersize-vs-superskinny/4od
How can you be addicted to eating, it may comfort you but surely there is a limit to what your body can handle you must feel
They are encouraging people to be obese because these participants get payed to participate.
It is a way for the producers, editors, directors, writers, to be in control and domineering over the public (Marxist) (Hegemonic) .
Influences ideologies and beliefs.
An interesting and potentially controversial debate. Probably best to avoid focus on obesity as a disability but maybe useful to use it as a secondary area for comment.
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