'Obese' Or 'Overweight' Are Hurtful Labels, Whereas Terms Like 'Large' Considered By Parents To Be Less Offensive

Fat parents have fat kids.

Poor, poor nutritional child abusing babies.

Are their fatso feelings hurt?

If doctors want to develop a strong rapport with parents of overweight children, it would be best if physicians used terms like "large" or "gaining too much weight" as opposed to the term "obese." These were findings recently published by medical researchers at the University of Alberta.

Geoff Ball, a researcher in the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry with the Department of Pediatrics, worked with department colleagues Amanda Newton and Carla Farnesi to review articles about the important relationship between families and health professionals when it comes to addressing concerns about children's weight. Farnesi has since moved to Montreal where she will soon start her PhD at Concordia University. Their findings were recently published in the peer-reviewed journal, Pediatric Obesity.

They found the delicate balance was affected by: parents' preferences about language regarding obesity, how health professionals talked about weight, how care was delivered and parents' expectations.

"Health professionals probably shouldn't use terms like fat, chubby, overweight or obese," says Ball. "Terms that are more neutral, less judgmental and less stigmatizing should be used. Most of the time families will want that sensitive type of language. And that's what clinicians should want, too, because that's what families want."

Some parents felt blamed for their children's weight issues, while others found health professionals "rude and judgmental" or inattentive.

Which is why "F*ck you" is so appropriate a response to these fatsos.

It is a term that is universally understood, makes one's position clear and requires no need to remember how one tippy-toes around an issue.

There is much to be said for simplicity.