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Weight Stigma is…

When a person changes the way they interact with an individual or makes assumptions about them based on their weight.

When a doctor assumes a patient exercises a certain amount or eats a certain amount based on their weight.

A teacher’s comments about their student’s weight when they looks in the child’s lunchbox.

A poster in a school that associates a child’s weight with certain foods or health outcomes.

When a parent feeds a child with a larger body differently than a child with a smaller body.

Individuals that experience weight stigma:

Are more likely to avoid going to the doctor

Have increased cortisol levels and blood pressure.

Are at increased risk of depression and low self esteem

Are at increased risk of engaging in behaviors that are harmful to their health

And…the thing many think weight stigmatizing comments “help with” – Are more likely to gain weight. (See below for references)

We need to be having a “War On Weight Stigma,” not a war on individuals’ body sizes. The current way we treat individuals with large bodies is causing the very health consequences that we associate with higher weight bodies and that we say we are so concerned about. Weight stigma causes harm and, as parents, we can help change our society and eliminate weight stigma for the health and well being of our children.

3 Facts Parents Need to Know About Weight Stigma:

No child should hear their body is wrong. It’s typical for a pediatrician to review a child’s growth chart in front of a child at a well child visit. Many pediatricians use arbitrary percentile cutoffs to decide what is a “healthy” or “unhealthy” body and to make nutrition and exercise recommendations. This can be confusing for a child and can be a form of weight stigma. You can ask your healthcare provider to not review growth charts in front of your child. Check out this post written in conjunction with Katja Rowell, MD, including a letter you can send to your child’s healthcare provider.

People of all sizes can have eating disorders. Weight Stigma prevents providers from diagnosing individuals with eating disorders. If you are worried about your child’s eating, focus on the behaviors you are concerned about, not the child’s weight and challenge your healthcare provider to do the same.

Your child’s weight is not the problem, our weight stigma-filled society is. If you are concerned about your child’s weight, don’t try to change their body to protect them from bullying and weight stigma. Restricting a child’s intake or telling them they need to lose weight, are themselves forms of weight stigma. Instead, fortify and protect your child from weight stigma, by supporting them and the body they have. Let them know through your words and actions that you love them and trust their body 100%. Just as you would for any sized child, model and support them in health enhancing behaviors that are feasible and appropriate for your family.

The Creation of Weight Stigma Awareness Week

Weight Stigma Awareness Week was originally created by BEDA (Binge Eating Disorder Association) in 2011 when Chevese Turner was BEDA’s director. It is because of her hard work and advocacy and the hard work and advocacy of many others that we have Weight Stigma Awareness Week and are having important conversations and needed change in the eating disorders field.

References:

Puhl RM, Heuer CA. Obesity stigma: important considerations for public health. Am J Public Health. 2010;100(6):1019-1028. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2009.159491

Puhl RM, Neumark-Sztainer D, Austin SB, Luedicke J, King KM. Setting policy priorities to address eating disorders and weight stigma: views from the field of eating disorders and the US general public. BMC Public Health. 2014;14:524. Published 2014 May 29. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-14-524

Remmert JE, Convertino AD, Roberts SR, Godfrey KM, Butryn ML. Stigmatizing weight experiences in health care: Associations with BMI and eating behaviours. Obes Sci Pract. 2019;5(6):555-563. Published 2019 Nov 12. doi:10.1002/osp4.379

If you follow us on Instagram and/or Facebook, you may have seen the poll asking if you’d like me to post this recipe for pasta with zucchini, corn and cilantro. The majority voted YES, so I’ve written up the recipe below!

I made this delicious pasta with zucchini, corn and cilantro all summer long. It’s also a nice dish for fall. There’s still time to make it before fresh corn is gone for the season. If you’re looking for a quick pasta dish that’s hearty enough for a main dish and also works well as a side, you’ll want to give this recipe a try. It’s adapted from Alice Waters, Chez Panisse Vegetables.

Kids and teens can be unpredictable

We get it! Kids and teens can be unpredictable about the foods they’ll eat. The first time I made this zucchini recipe over the summer, my 16 year old loved it! She also likes the zucchini cakes (in my previous post) when I coat them in bread crumbs before cooking. There have been other times she hasn’t eaten the zucchini cakes. And my 13 year old hasn’t tried them yet.

One reason I love this recipe is because it offers me another quick and easy way to cook zucchini and the kids another opportunity to try zucchini. It’s also great because selective eaters can easily eat around the zucchini. The most recent time I made this dish, my 16 year old did just that. She said she just wasn’t in the mood for zucchini. My 13 year old only eats the pasta. Of course, that could change at any moment!

Making back-to-school lunches

first day of school picture — First day of VIRTUAL school: 8th and 11th grades

Yet another reason to make this pasta is it reheats well. Since school is back in session, I’m back to planning lunches more strategically. And anything that reheats well is considered a win! This summer, my kids fixed lunch on their own fairly often. With the start of (virtual) school, I feel like I need to bring back some of the structure that comes from having me (the parent) plan and make meals for them. Since they have asynchronous learning on Mondays, I’m going to experiment with them making their own lunches on Mondays and I’ll take care of lunches the rest of the week.

I initially thought I might actually pack their lunches even though school is virtual. I haven’t done that yet, but we’re only just into the third week of school. There’s time to adapt if needed!

If you’re looking for simple lunch ideas and tips to make planning and making lunches easier, you can purchase our Lunch E-Book by clicking here. We also have some previous posts with simple lunch packing tips and ideas:

Pasta with Zucchini, Corn and Cilantro

A simple pasta with zucchini, corn and cilantro that hearty enough for a vegetarian main dish and also make an quick side dish. The recipe is adapted from Vegetables by Alice Waters.

Author: Elizabeth Davenport

Scale

Ingredients

4 small or 2 medium zucchini

3 Tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, chopped

Pinch of red pepper flake (optional)

4 ears of corn, blanched and cut off the cob

3 Tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup water from blanching the corn

¼ cup chopped cilantro (more or less depending on your taste)

½ a lemon

Salt and pepper to taste

1 lb fettuccine

Instructions

Shuck the corn. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Once the water comes to a boil, cook 3-5 minutes. Remove corn from the water. Leave the pot of water on the stove, because you can cook your pasta in it. You’ll also need 1 cup of the water reserved for the sauce.
Once the corn cobs are cool enough to handle, cut the corn off the cobs and set the corn aside until it’s time to add it to the pan.
Dice the zucchini. (It also works to shred it if you prefer). Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large saute pan over medium high heat. Add the diced zucchini and cook for about 5 minutes or until some of it begins to brown. While the zucchini is cooking, peel and chop 2 cloves of garlic.
Bring the large pot of reserved water from cooking the corn back to a boil and add the fettuccine. Cook according to package directions.
Add the pinch of red pepper flake, the garlic and the corn to the pan and cook on medium to medium high heat for about another 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Chop the cilantro.
After 5 minutes, add 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter, the chopped cilantro and the 1 cup of the water you used to cook the corn.
Once the fettuccine is cooked, drain it and add it to the pan of zucchini and corn sauce. Toss with the sauce. Squeeze the half lemon and add to the pan. Taste the sauce to see if it needs more salt, pepper or lemon.
Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Notes

Using fresh pasta (I buy it from a local Italian store) takes this dish to the next level.

Family Feeding

What is Weight Stigma?