Letters to the Editor
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Ok
Ok that is just ridiculous. Morons.
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When Political Correctness Attacks
The picture of a very thin pregnant woman illustrating the dangers of obesity during gestation is a beautiful example of PC run amok. I'm sure the editors considered putting a photo of an *actually* obese woman..but then gave up in fear of all the backlash. Where does one draw the line in depicting obesity anyway? If you put a picture of woman 30% overweight in the story, most of the female readership will write in with derisive comments about 'the average woman is a size 10' (never mind that the average woman is overweight).
Of course now there will be a backlash against using the thin pregnant woman - because after all, her thinness is representing an unrealistic expectation about female body size and image.
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"Obesity" is Meaningless
The most commonly used medical definition of obesity is based on the BMI, which is a nearly meaningless statistic which tells you nothing about the state of the person described aside from the ratio of their height to their weight. The quite thin woman depicted is almost certainly classified as "obese" under this ridiculous system.
And then researchers have the chutzpah to claim WE'RE in denial when they describe athletic individuals as "obese".
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Moo -- Or Do I Mean, "Mu"?
Two things about this story jumped out at me. First:
"But our initial findings show reasons for concern with obese pregnant mothers, and there is a lack of weight management guidance and support readily available for them."
Ahem. Shouldn't the concern at this point be more about proper fetal nutrition rather than trying to "manage" the mother's weight? I don't know about in the U.K., but I know that in this country we have a major problem with babies being born with low birth weights, and often this occurs when women are freaked out about gaining weight (or, unbelievably, about not losing weight) during pregnancy.
One of the potential health consequences of low birth weight is insulin resistance -- which can, you guessed it, lead to serious disturbances in appetite and unusually easy weight gain. And thus the cycle begins anew, with the next generation being shamed more and more about their weight and getting fatter and fatter. To oppose something is to maintain it. And so it goes.
Secondly, there was this:
"One of the problems is that sometimes you can't see the ultrasound scan of the baby properly in obese pregnant women and this can lead to clinical problems as well as being upsetting for the parents who are not able to see a picture of their baby."
There are two different kinds of ultrasound used on pregnant women: abdominal ultrasound, in which the sensor travels on the outside of the abdomen and pelvis, and the newer transvaginal ultrasound, in which the sensor is used inside the vagina for a closer "look" at the uterus. (I assume British obstetricians have access to both types.)
While sonographers might have trouble getting a reading on abdominal ultrasound of a woman with a very large stomach (i.e. one with an apple-shaped body), many fat women are pear-shaped, with their weight being distributed more towards their hips and thighs, and thus would have to be extremely, extremely large -- yes, Sandra M, way way bigger than a size 10 -- for an ultrasound (especially the transvaginal kind) not to work on them.
Yet we get no indication that there's any difference at all between the body composition of one "obese" woman and another; to the folks responsible for this story, we're all just farm animals and we have no business having sex, let alone making babies. No wonder they couldn't actually use a fat pregnant woman's picture with this story; the anticipated reaction from your Average Reader to such a picture would undoubtedly be, "Cor, some bloke actually wanted to fuck her?"
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Very little support for pregnant women's weight management
I've struggled with weight all my life. When I became pregnant with my second child, I was a member of Weight Watchers. I'd done well, in a year taken off all the weight from the first child and then some, and felt great. However, I was specifically not allowed to continue my Weight Watchers membership while pregnant, even in their "weight maintenance" mode. Insurance or liability, or some bean counter afraid of lawsuit, or some such nonsense.
I talked to my doctor (nice lady, but childless and very thin) and she didn't have much to offer.
I know full well that my drug of choice is a bag of Oreos. I can turn down wine, beer, margaritas, and even coffee, but Lord save me from the ice cream. I wish that someone had a structured regimen like Weight Watchers for pregnancy... for those of us who so easily cross the line from enough to too much. We all have our weaknesses... I'm fully aware of what mine are.
Now that my kids are older, yes I'm still me and I still struggle with weight. However, there are so many more resources available to me now that I'm not pregnant any more. It still frustrates me that I needed help, I knew I needed help, I asked for help, yet there was none to be had. I gained about 50 pounds with my second pregnancy, and had a devil of a time taking it back off again.
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photo?
I did not find a photo at that link
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Photo?
What photo? And what exactly is the twisted message? It seems like a pretty straightforward article to me.
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The Missing Photo
There was a photo of a not anywhere near obese, pregnant woman accompanying the article yesterday. It appears that they have removed it today.