Special Delivery from the Duh Truck

Both that headline and this article come courtesy of reader Kate217. Thanks, Kate!

The article is about a new study that shows the following things:

~ Overweight teenagers are just as likely to exhibit disordered eating behaviors (binge eating, using diet pills, vomiting, using laxatives) as thin ones. It just doesn't make them thin.

~ "A history of teasing about being fat was one of the strongest predictors of risk for being overweight and extreme dieting."

~ Things get especially bad when it's your own fucking family telling you you're too fat.

Any of this news to those of you who have actually been fat? Didn't think so.

Seriously, though, I'm thrilled that this is out there, since it is news to a whole ton of people. And I'm over the moon that the article ends with the following paragraph. The quote is from the study's lead author, Dianne Neumark-Sztainer, Ph.D., a professor of public health at the University of Minnesota:

“We have seen over the years that it does not work to make people feel worse about their bodies. The data are striking — talking about weight, worrying too much about diet, focusing on it increases risk not only of eating disorders, but also of being overweight.” Instead, she suggests modeling and positive encouragement of healthy behavior like making better food choices and exercising — and unconditional love, regardless of weight.

Emphasis mine, of course. Especially on that last part.