The Sin of Thin
This is an article about the prejudices “skinny” people deal with. The American population is led to believe that everyone in the USA is obese or walking a fine line towards it, and that the answer is always to lose weight, exercise and get healthy. Though this may be true for many- it is not true for all. In fact, Carrie Vantresca- founder of Clubskinny.com, which is a designer denim company marketed to thin women says, “It’s no sin to be thin. And if you are among the 14% of American women who wear a size 4 or smaller then you finally have choices.” Yes, we have choices in jeans- but what about other people’s misconceptions?
I’m constantly bombarded with messages from books, magazines and commercials on how to lose weight, say good-bye to fat, and how to enrich my life by getting thinner. I’ve read how a simple airplane seat can produce terror in an obese person, and how anxiety builds when a heavy-set lady goes to shop for clothes at a mall store. Most everyone remembers the Tyra Banks undercover story where she wore a “fat suit” and went shopping. I, too, felt disgust and rage at the way overweight people were treated in that episode.
But, I think another segment of society is also criticized though no one ever seems to broach the subject. When I tell friends I’m trying to gain a little weight, I get the eye-roll, the shake of the head, and last week a neighbor even told me, “You better watch your words. Do you know how many women hate you when you say that?”
Seriously, she actually had the nerve to say that to my face! But I’m forced to listen to women drone on and on about their diets and how hard they’re trying to lose weight (sometimes while literally shoving an entire pie down their throats). Am I supposed to look at them guiltily, as if it’s my fault I’m thin and they’re not? Am I supposed to offer words of comfort?
Why? I don’t get encouraging words? I get dirty looks and back-handed comments that would never be accepted by an over-weight person. Here’s an example: I was eating at a Super Bowl party, chewing my shrimp and dipping nachos in some hummus when a woman walks up to me and says, “God, I wish I could stuff my face like that and still have the figure of a 12 year old.” I just stared at her stunned. Did she think that was a compliment? To be 41 years old and told I look like a gangly pre-pubescent teen? Or how about those who love to ask me my weight? I get that all the time. I’ll hear, “So, what are you up to now- about a buck soaking wet?” And then the women will laugh and add-“Are you shopping in the kids’ department with your daughters now?” How do I respond to these catty comments? If the reverse had been said to one of them I’d be the devil incarnate. I mean picture it- “So Julie, what are you? - tipping about 350 on the scale now? You look great though- really- that size 26 Lane Bryant sequined dress is a stunner!” Ok, so hopefully you get my drift of how reverse social stigmas directed at thin people happen every day.
But that’s exactly why I wanted others to read this. So maybe they’d think before they speak.
I have Celiac disease. And as this disease gets more and more notoriety, as it should, since it’s estimated that up to 15% of the US population has intolerance to gluten, then more people than ever are going to be affected. According to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse website, more than 2 million people in the United States have celiac disease. This averages out to about 1 in every 133 people. Weight loss is a usual symptom, but so are instances of colon cancer, osteoporosis, abdominal pain, bloating, gas, and a whirlwind of other problems. What people don’t realize when they say sarcastically, “how nice it would be to be your size,” is that I’ve been hospitalized three times, fight fatigue daily and have been put on liquid diets twice when I was a mere 92 lbs to give my stomach “bowel rest.” I have a B12 deficiency, tooth enamel loss, and a myriad of other issues that no one would want to ever deal with- all because my intestines can’t hold on to the nutrients it needs.
But too often, people don’t take the time to know this before telling me, “You have no idea what it’s like to diet. You’re so thin, I have to watch everything I eat or I’ll gain weight.” Are you kidding me? I can’t eat anything with wheat, barley, rye or (contaminated) oats. Bread, pizza, pasta, flour, subs; even soy sauce makes me violently ill. So, please be a little understanding when you make assumptions against the thin. They may be fighting a war you can’t see.
This isn’t an article to pit skinny people against overweight people. It is meant to help expose the negative criticisms that many thin people face daily. Being lean isn’t always a blessing. Many times, it feels like a sin.
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