[quote=CA renter]
An overweight person is labled “overweight” no matter if it’s from over-eating or lack of exercise, or body type (endomorphic, for example), or other reasons (certain medicines, hormones, etc.). If a person weighs more than XX pounds, they are automatically labeled “overweight” or “obese.”
….Many underweight people with eating disorders are very likely to not be labled as having an eating disorder, IMHO, because they can convince others that they are “naturally” skinny or that they are simply “fit.”

…The “fittest” people we know (work out for hours each day and carefully watch everything that enters their bodies) tend to have what I would consider to be very unhealthy habits. In many cases, I have yet to see any of them eat a single piece of produce, as they “eat” only protein powders and other “laboratory” foods. This, after knowing them and socializing with them for years…..[/quote]

CA renter, you’re absolutely correct: there are many overweight (labeled) people out there that are healthier than their slender fellow citizens. There’s a lot of individual-specific factors, aside from weight, that go into the equation for good health and longevity: heredity, emotional health, relationship status, environment, mental attitude, etc. However, there is an abundance of empirical data that clearly indicates the causal relationship between morbid obesity and health risk. Don’t quote me, but I believe that the jury is still out on many cancers. But morbid and super obesity very often results in chronic diseases and disorders such as heart disease, diabetes, sleep apnea, hypertension/stroke, and musculoskeletal pain and disability. These are difficult to treat, and have an extremely low rate of cure in the absence of weight loss. The cost to society, to the patient’s family, and to the patient is extremely high, in terms of health care delivery, strain on relationships, and lost or reduced work hours and capabilities.

On the opposite extreme, I think that scientists and researchers are fully aware of the extraordinary health risks posed by eating disorders. However, I think that this information has not been completely disseminated throughout the medical care provider community. This is not unusual: practitioners are typically so busy handling their patient load that they are unable to keep up with advances and discoveries in biomedical research. Add the cultural predisposition against obese people, and – you got it – a lot of unhealthy skinny people flying under the radar.

I’m not in favor of the government monitoring of people’s flawed eating habits; I’d be much happier if they would make it easier for people to get regular exercise. But I’m not necessarily against public information campaigns and taxes on zero-nutrition foods (to be earmarked for covering excessive obesity-related health costs). It seemed to help with smoking: many fewer tobacco-related diseases and deaths, with concomittantly lowered health costs.

I think they need to stay away from the ad agency that did the Hidden Valley Ranch salad dressing ads, though. Every time I see kids choosing raw vegetables over ice cream, I practically split a gut laughing. Possibly explained by my experiences raising four kids of my own.