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Is obesity a disability?

Nancy_Winks

Nancy_Winks

Well-Known Member
Apparently an EU court is ruling on whether obesity should be considered a disability after a Danish childminder was sacked.

The case seems a bit odd to me based on the fact that the guy hasn't been explicitly sacked for being obese, and doesn't himself consider himself disabled.

I think I agree that obesity can be a disability in that being morbidly obese disables you compared to other people (in terms of mobility, access etc). And obese people definately face discrimination.

But I'm not sure if obese people themselves would welcome being thought of as disabled. Would legally forcing employers and public services to accommodate obese employees or service users be welcome?
 
Wilf said:
Don't think obesity in itself is a disability, but it can lead to medical conditions that might make the person disabled.
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Just googled the definition. You're disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a 'substantial' and 'long-term' negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities.

Sounds like obesity to me.
 
Nancy_Winks said:
Like what?
Click to expand...
Could be anything that makes it difficult to exercise or where you're prescribed medications that cause weight gain.

Lots of people put on weight on some of the antipsychotics often prescribed for schizophrenia eg olanzapine. My mum has migraines as part of her lupus and piled on weight on the migraine meds.

Eta crossed posts with purenarcotic
 
Nancy_Winks said:
Like what?
Click to expand...

As others have said there are lots of conditions and medications that cause hige weight gain.

But in my case...
I was a size 12 five years ago. I am now a size 22.
A mixture of not being able to get out so much and move about, depression causing generally being slower moving around, panic stopping me getting out and TONNES of meds that all cause weight gain.
 
It kinda side steps the issue tho to talk about health conditions causing obesity. I mean sure, if you've got something else wrong with you that might make you even more disabled.

But the ruling is that obesity in itself (whatever the cause) is a disability.
 
That's all true. But suppose you don't have any underlying conditions but eat too much and don't exercise and get obese as a result? I guess then it's a self-inflicted disability, and in that case should employers accomodate such people? Probably not, or at least should demand some changes to the lifestyle.
 
Like if you get COPD (emphysema) from smoking for 20 years and you can't walk across the room without needing oxygen, that's a disability, no doubt.

If you're 25 stone from overeating for 20 years and you can't catch a train or get a job requiring you to stand or move about, then that's surely a disability in exactly the same way?
 
Forget for a minute about all the people who have a diminished physical ability to control their weight for whatever reason, and just consider the set of people who eat too much and don't exercise enough of their own volition.

What happens if you make it a formal disability?

Well for one, they get better access to services - you can go and get NHS therapy of all kinds for mental health issues, for example, but who do you go to today to tackle weight in a structured and therapeutic manner? So treating it as a proper condition rather than some of lifestyle tangent is likely to be of benefit.

On the other hand you implicitly reduce the level of self-responsibility, suggesting it's something that merely happens to you rather than something you have a degree of control over. Plus where do the resources to treat it properly as per the above come from?
 
Nancy_Winks said:
Just googled the definition. You're disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a 'substantial' and 'long-term' negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities.

Sounds like obesity to me.
Click to expand...
But 'obesity', a specific bmi, being x stone 'overweight' or whatever language you might want to use isn't itself a disability.

Edit: may well of course up the chances of getting medical conditions or complications, but not itself one.

...anyway, that's all a bit medical, the other way of looking at it is using the social model of disability.
 
Teaboy said:
No they don't, I don't think I have.
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Then you're very lucky :D Almost everyone I know has something wrong with em these days. Half the population have got a bad back by the age of 40, and mental health problems are incredibly common. I'm not being sarcastic when I say your lucky.

I don't get kitty's point really. Are you saying that obesity shouldn't be considered a disability in itself, only if the underlying condition qualifies as a disability kittyP ?
 
Citizen66 said:
Well food itself can be an addiction. Comfort eating is no different than self medicating with booze or smack or whatever really. Food interacts with pleasure receptors. It's not discounted in rehab put it that way.
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Yep. Goes back the other way, too. Bariatric surgery patients are warned to be careful of drink/drugs post surgery.
 
mauvais said:
Forget for a minute about all the people who have a diminished physical ability to control their weight for whatever reason, and just consider the set of people who eat too much and don't exercise enough of their own volition.

What happens if you make it a formal disability?

Well for one, they get better access to services - you can go and get NHS therapy of all kinds for mental health issues, for example, but who do you go to today to tackle weight in a structured and therapeutic manner? So treating it as a proper condition rather than some of lifestyle tangent is likely to be of benefit.

On the other hand you implicitly reduce the level of self-responsibility, suggesting it's something that merely happens to you rather than something you have a degree of control over. Plus where do the resources to treat it properly as per the above come from?
Click to expand...
Yes. The medical issues causing obesity is a tangent.

If obesity is classed as a disability in itself. Then it'd seem that drug and alcohol addiction would qualify too surely.
 
Nancy_Winks said:
Then you're very lucky :D Almost everyone I know has something wrong with em these days. Half the population have got a bad back by the age of 40, and mental health problems are incredibly common. I'm not being sarcastic when I say your lucky.
Click to expand...

Yes, I appreciate how lucky I am. I guess my point would be that there are lot of people out there who are overweight (me) or indeed obese according to that stupid BMI index thingy but there is a reason they do not move into morbid or super morbid because they do not have the extra problems in their lives.
 
mauvais said:
Forget for a minute about all the people who have a diminished physical ability to control their weight for whatever reason, and just consider the set of people who eat too much and don't exercise enough of their own volition.

What happens if you make it a formal disability?

Well for one, they get better access to services - you can go and get NHS therapy of all kinds for mental health issues, for example, but who do you go to today to tackle weight in a structured and therapeutic manner? So treating it as a proper condition rather than some of lifestyle tangent is likely to be of benefit.

On the other hand you implicitly reduce the level of self-responsibility, suggesting it's something that merely happens to you rather than something you have a degree of control over. Plus where do the resources to treat it properly as per the above come from?
Click to expand...

I agree to a large degree, but there are plenty of disabilities and conditions where the individual has a degree of control over the progression and management of their situation.
 
Teaboy said:
Yes, I appreciate how lucky I am. I guess my point would be that there are lot of people out there who are overweight (me) or indeed obese according to that stupid BMI index thingy but there is a reason they do not move into morbid or super morbid because they do not have the extra problems in their lives.
Click to expand...
Are you saying that morbid obesity is always a mental health problem?
 
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