To the Editor:
Re “Obesity Rises Despite Efforts to Fight It” (news article, Nov. 12):
Obesity has been a growing concern over the last few years, and is becoming more and more of a concern because more Americans than ever before are obese.
I myself am overweight, but continue to be aware and careful about what I eat, exercise with a personal trainer and swim at an indoor pool. But there are extraneous variables as to why one is obese: medicines someone is on, heredity (familial), resources a person may not have (access to a gym or a pool), health status (how are a person’s feet, knees and hips).
We should not point a finger at someone who is obese, for there may be reasons besides overeating one is obese, and the person may not have control over it. As a human race, we come in all shapes, colors and sizes, and what we need to do is respect people no matter their color, shape or size.
AMY ROSENFELD
New York
Note from KBJ: Yes, there "may be reasons besides overeating," but the overwhelming majority of fat people are fat because they eat too much relative to their caloric expenditure. I am sick to death of subsidizing laziness, stupidity, and lack of self-control. If you want to die young, fine, but leave me alone!
