Oh boy. Hold onto your body image! Considering the dreadful body image people already are coping with in America and in many western nations, we are no stranger to seeing skinny people think they’re fat. Now the Mayo clinic is confirming our fears– you can be skinny and fat at the same time.
A new report from the Mayo Clinic, which looked at data from 6,100 patients, warns that as many as 30 million Americans are skinny yet, somehow, still fat. (Aol news)
What is that supposed to mean? Well, it turns out that just looking thin is not the end all be all. You still need to exercise and take care of yourself. According to the study, even thin people can end up with a lot of fat around their organs– fat that is dangerous to our health.
Put simply, the “skinny-fat” phenomenon occurs when someone has a normal body weight but a high percentage of body fat. Experts have dubbed the problem “normal weight obesity” and warn that it can accompany a host of health risks, mostly the same ones plaguing the obese and overweight: diabetes, metabolic syndrome, high cholesterol and high blood pressure. (Aol news)
So this makes me wonder, is there such thing as “Fat-Skinny?” I mean, can a person appear fat but actually be healthy? If we are saying that a person can look skinny but actually harbor have a large amount of hidden fat, can the inverse be true?
I guess Mom was right. You really can’t judge a book by its cover.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Thank you Dr. Robyn for sharing not only the danger to people already struggling with body-image issues in this Mayo message but also the very important message that we need to be active for our health not simply in attempt to sculpt our bodies into some form that we have been led to believe is ideal.
It makes me wonder what his Mayo hoping to accomplish here with this “news” that as many as 30 million Americans are skinny yet, somehow, still fat? My guess is that their goal is as you so clearly state, “You still need to exercise and take care of yourself.”
I love that you point out the concept that perhaps someone could appear fat but actually be healthy. Maybe one day BMI charts will be used for something useful – a fossil fuel perhaps.
Thanks Dr. Robyn!
Becky Henry
Hope Network, Inc.
Thank you, Becky, for your comment. I still keep feeling that we need to stress health, power, and strength over thinness. We need to help women and girls switch from asking “how do I look?” to “how do I feel?” and for those questions to truly be separate rather than enmeshed.