Media Advisories
Obesity and Climate Change: Framing is Everything
May 16, 2008
In a letter that will be published in the next issue of the medical journal the Lancet, British researchers Dr. Phil Edwards and Dr. Ian Roberts from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine suggest that obese people are significantly contributing to world oil demands and global food insecurity. Their letter states that obese persons use 18 percent more food energy than thinner persons, which in turn leads to a greater global demand for food.
“These data are interesting, but how they are framed will make a big difference,” states Dr. Kelly Brownell, Director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University. “Saying that obese people are contributing to climate change is highly stigmatizing and assigns blame to the individuals who are obese rather than the conditions driving the obesity in the first place.”
As an example, Dr. Brownell notes, “Children are overwhelmed by food marketing for nutrient-poor, calorie dense foods, have junk foods marketed to them in schools, have physical education subtracted from their curriculum, and are exposed to record portion sizes. Should we be pointing the finger at obese children and their families, or focusing on the conditions creating the problem? Which of these two approaches is likely to lead down a more productive road?”
The Lancet letter raises interesting questions about the connections between our toxic food culture and the environment. But suggesting that obese or overweight people are a burden on the environment may only fuel existing, widespread stigma. Dr. Brownell concludes, “The social issue of obesity should be the focus, not the inferred personal failings of obese people.”
For media or press inquiries, please contact:
- Kelly D. Brownell, PhD, Director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity. Email: kelly.brownell@yale.edu, cell phone: 203-988-6303.
- Rebecca M. Puhl, PhD, Director of Research and Anti-Stigma Initiatives for the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity. Email: rebecca.puhl@yale.edu, phone: 203-432-7354.