Hi, so like, hope you are feeling well
can I ask what the difference between death fat and small fat is? Same thing?
Also btw, I've heard that there is no way being too fat is unhealthy, but I have also heard the opposite. can you like give me A Measure of what really is unhealthy? Like can there be Too Much Body Fat at all?
Like atp I don't trust ANY of the established doctors... like...???
so I trust you to have a standard like... how much body fat is too much... cause things are complicated
or is there no such thing as too overw*ight?
it'd be easier to explain this by going thru the fategories as a whole; feel free to skip the parts u didnt ask about directly since ik its a lot
small fat: people who straddle the line between straight size and fat. they may fall slightly outside standard sizing and face judgement or prejudice, but generally are able to participate in public life similarly to straight size people. they may face some medical fatphobia, but it's less likely to dominate their care.
mid fat: people who clearly fall within their society's plus/extended sizing, restricting their ability to shop and participate in events due to uncomfortable seating. they may face more marked discrimination and prejudice, and be outright rejected. medical fatphobia is common, especially for people with other marginalizations (ex: women, trans people, people of color, chronically ill people).
large fat: people who experience all the struggles mid fat people do, but to a greater degree. they are unable to shop for clothes unless in special stores catered to plus/extended sizes only. they may find virtually no seating available to accommodate their size. medical fatphobia is pervasive.
super fat: this is a term to describe the largest fat people - the fat people who are treated like circus animals on reality TV, or near completely barred from public life due to inaccessibility or ridicule/shame. medical fatphobia is a guarantee at this point, and may lead to death due to neglect & misdiagnosing a health issue as weight-related when it isn't.
death fat: has no weight limit. the intention of the term is to reclaim the idea that fatness inherently equals morbidity. this ties into your other question:
is being fat ever unhealthy?
sometimes, being fat can cause health issues. however, being fat alone does not guarantee this - for some people, they're actually healthier when fat. everyone's body needs something different, because everyone's metabolism is different.
one health issue from being fat that genuinely deserves to be talked about honestly & respectfully is the mobility restriction. as weight increases, it restricts movement. this is a genuine mobility disability, not a failure, and not something that can easily be fixed by "eating less."
another common health issue is obstructive sleep apnea, which when untreated, carries risk of cardiovascular issues (high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke) and generally worsens health outcomes over time across the board.
but again, not every fat person is going to develop sleep apnea, and skinny people get obstructive sleep apnea too. fat around the neck is more so a contributing factor than a direct cause: it makes it easier for the airway to collapse.
i think a lot of fat people are afraid to recognize when being fat does cause disability, because so much of fatphobia is literally just ableism. people are being blamed for health issues when they do arise. they're being shamed for their weight under the guise of "care" and "worry." they're denied access to public spaces, clothes aren't made for their bodies, people mock them, and doctors mistreat them.
it's not a moral failing to be disabled, and weight-related disabilities are no exception, whether you're skinny or fat. IMO, saying fatness is never disabling isn't activism. it's just ableism dressed up as body positivity.
fat people don't have to be abled bodied to be given our due human rights. that includes you, and every other fat person reading this, no matter their size.
