Obesogenic vs. fatphobic: an examination of environment in relation to fatness

The eradication of fatness (referred to as “obesity”) is a longtime project of the medical establishment under the guise of health promotion. However, in spite of the large budgets, amount of studies done, and number of interventions tried over the years, the weights of the population still seem to be trending upward. Recent studies and research have been looking into frameworks aimed at combating fatness by reshaping the “obesogenic” environment as an approach that takes into account the social and physical environment and its part in promoting fatness. On its face, this research direction looks as if the discourse is changing from seating the fault of fatness at the feet of the individual and placing it more into the social systems and factors surrounding them. In this paper, I will challenge the continued conversation around “solving” fatness by looking at the role of the environment as a causal factor and will instead highlight the need to focus more on the impacts of a fatphobic environment on the wellness of fat people.