{"id":785,"date":"2023-09-29T09:57:52","date_gmt":"2023-09-29T13:57:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/assessmentnursingmain\/chapter\/problematizing-anthropometric-body-measurement-assessments\/"},"modified":"2024-05-03T15:19:02","modified_gmt":"2024-05-03T19:19:02","slug":"problematizing-anthropometric-body-measurement-assessments","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/assessmentnursingmain\/chapter\/problematizing-anthropometric-body-measurement-assessments\/","title":{"raw":"Problematizing Anthropometric Body Measurement Assessments","rendered":"Problematizing Anthropometric Body Measurement Assessments"},"content":{"raw":"It is important to problematize<\/strong> the assessment and evaluation of anthropometric body measurements and reflect on how these measurements are used<\/strong> since they are biased and not neutral.<\/strong> For example, these body measurements may bring to the forefront body image issues that are closely related to one\u2019s personal identity (Puhl, 2022). Additionally, the origins of these measurements are deeply embedded in racist, sexist, and ableist discourse. Evidence concerning how to use these measurements has shifted and is continuing to shift. We delve into this evidence in this chapter.\r\n\r\nIt is important to be attentive and critical<\/strong> of how weight and health are constructed within society, and especially within the media. In Western society, dominant body ideals of thinness have existed for many years. In many of today\u2019s cultures (including Western society), a thinner body often suggests an illusion of health<\/strong> (Farrell, 2011). But this is not necessarily true, and it is important to NOT assume someone is healthy just because they are thin. Additionally, when a person does not fit this thin ideal, their body image and personal identity can be adversely affected leading to and\/or exacerbating physical and mental health issues.\r\n\r\nWe live in a culture where fat shaming is normalized; people who are overweight and obese are stigmatized and made to feel ashamed of and blamed for their body size and medical issues that may arise (Dolezal & Spratt, 2022; Spratt, 2021). The cultural stigma surrounding weight\/obesity inhibits the ability to fully examine health issues and health outcomes (Farrell, 2011). This stigma can limit individuals (such as healthcare providers) to identify and recognize medical concerns versus aesthetic concerns (Farrell, 2011).\r\n
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Contextualizing Inclusivity<\/strong><\/h2>\r\nIn the context of healthcare, a [pb_glossary id=\"812\"]neoliberal [\/pb_glossary] discourse can be marginalizing because it can negate<\/strong> the influence of social determinants of health.<\/strong> It also reinforces a shaming\/blaming discourse in which the individual is solely responsible for their weight. Similarly, while body positivity and the Health At Every Size movements have recently come to frame wellness as acceptance and empowerment, this also places an onus on the individual to achieve \"health\" and prove health through other forms of measurement such as blood pressure, heart rate, and cholesterol levels (Gibson, 2022). It is important to see how such discourses may place a moral obligation on individuals to project health, whilst ignoring the social and biological influences which may constrain efforts (Gibson, 2022).\r\n\r\nThese kinds of discourse can have a negative impact<\/strong> on physical and mental health in which the person may gain additional weight as a result of a negative feedback loop (Brewis & Wutich, 2019; Meulman, 2019). The stigma surrounding obesity can also lead to eating disorders and mental health conditions such as depression (Chakravorty, 2021; Puhl et al., 2014). It assumes that obesity is a choice<\/strong> and negates social determinants of health such as structural and socioeconomic factors (Dolezal & Spratt, 2022). This neoliberal and shaming\/blaming discourse is problematic because: it assumes a singular notion of health; it assumes that access to healthy food choices and healthy lifestyles is equal across populations; and does not address the complex causes of obesity (Spratt, 2021).\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n
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Knowledge Bites<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n<\/header>\r\n
\r\n\r\nSee FoodShare TO\u2019s (2021) panel titled \u201cDismantling fat shaming and weight stigma in health and wellness spaces<\/a>.\u201d<\/strong> This panel discussion problematizes the singular notion of health and will help you understand the concept of \u201cfat oppression\u201d and \u201cbody liberation\u201d and the important role you play in activism.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

References<\/strong><\/h2>\r\nBrewis, A., & Wutich, A. (2019). Lazy, crazy and disgusting: Stigma and the undoing of global health. Johns Hopkins University Press.\r\n\r\nChakravorty, T. (2021). Fat shaming is stopping doctors from helping overweight patients\u2014here\u2019s what medical students can do about it. BMJ, 375. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/bmj.n2830<\/a>\r\n\r\nDolezal, L., & Spratt, T. (2022). Fat shaming under neoliberalism and COVID-19: Examining the UK\u2019s Tackling Obesity campaign. Sociology of Health & Illness, 45(1), 3-18. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1111\/1467-9566.13555<\/a>\r\n\r\nFarrell, A. (2011). Fat shame: Stigma and the fat body in American culture. New York University Press.\r\n\r\nGibson, G. (2022). Health(ism) at every size: The duties of the \u201cgood fatty\u201d, Fat Studies, 11(1), 22-35, https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1080\/21604851.2021.1906526<\/a>\r\n\r\nMeulman, M. A. (2019). Sizeism in therapy: Fat shaming in supervision. Women & Therapy, 42(1\u20132), 156\u2013 163. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1080\/02703149.2018.1524072<\/a>\r\n\r\nPuhl, R. (2022). Weight stigma, policy initiatives, and harnessing social media to elevate activism. Body Image, 40, 131-137. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.bodyim.2021.12.008<\/a>\r\n\r\nPuhl, R., Luedicke, J., & Grilo, C. Obesity bias in training: attitudes, beliefs, and observations among advanced trainees in professional health disciplines. Obesity (Silver Spring) 2014; 22: 1008-1015. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/oby.20637<\/a>\r\n\r\nSpratt, T. J. R. (2021). Understanding \u2018fat shaming\u2019 in a neoliberal era: Performativity, healthism, and the UK\u2019s \u2018obesity epidemic\u2019. Feminist Theory, 24(1), 86-101. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/146470012110483<\/a>","rendered":"

It is important to problematize<\/strong> the assessment and evaluation of anthropometric body measurements and reflect on how these measurements are used<\/strong> since they are biased and not neutral.<\/strong> For example, these body measurements may bring to the forefront body image issues that are closely related to one\u2019s personal identity (Puhl, 2022). Additionally, the origins of these measurements are deeply embedded in racist, sexist, and ableist discourse. Evidence concerning how to use these measurements has shifted and is continuing to shift. We delve into this evidence in this chapter.<\/p>\n

It is important to be attentive and critical<\/strong> of how weight and health are constructed within society, and especially within the media. In Western society, dominant body ideals of thinness have existed for many years. In many of today\u2019s cultures (including Western society), a thinner body often suggests an illusion of health<\/strong> (Farrell, 2011). But this is not necessarily true, and it is important to NOT assume someone is healthy just because they are thin. Additionally, when a person does not fit this thin ideal, their body image and personal identity can be adversely affected leading to and\/or exacerbating physical and mental health issues.<\/p>\n

We live in a culture where fat shaming is normalized; people who are overweight and obese are stigmatized and made to feel ashamed of and blamed for their body size and medical issues that may arise (Dolezal & Spratt, 2022; Spratt, 2021). The cultural stigma surrounding weight\/obesity inhibits the ability to fully examine health issues and health outcomes (Farrell, 2011). This stigma can limit individuals (such as healthcare providers) to identify and recognize medical concerns versus aesthetic concerns (Farrell, 2011).<\/p>\n

\n

Contextualizing Inclusivity<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In the context of healthcare, a