If 84% of French people consider obesity as a public health problem, many of them remain poorly informed about this disease, which is still too stigmatized, reveals a new Odoxa poll on the occasion of the Unified World Day against Obesity , this Wednesday, March 4.
Worldwide, two billion people are overweight (BMI between 25 and 30) or obese (BMI equal to or greater than 30). In France, the latest figures stand at 8 million and each year the disease kills 180,000 people. On the occasion of the Unified World Obesity Day on Wednesday, March 4, organized to eradicate “ambient grossophobia”, the Odoxa Institute carried out a survey to identify the French people’s view of this disease. If the vast majority of them agree that it is a public health issue, the ideas received against this affliction die hard.
In detail, 84% of French people consider obesity a public health problem, especially women and seniors. In addition, 67% think that we don’t care enough. However, the disease remains poorly understood. In its survey, Odoxa asked respondents to estimate the share of obese people in our society, giving them two votes: 9% and 17%. Verdict: 70% of French people wrongly think that people with obesity in France represent 9% of the population, while the true figure is around 17% (adults and children combined). In addition, 64% of respondents have the idea that obesity is recognized as a disease in France, while it is not included in the list of long-term conditions. Thus, in practice, French people with obesity cannot benefit from 100% coverage for the necessary care and treatment.
Above all, this survey sheds light on the stigma that people with obesity continue to suffer from. For 62% of French people, obesity is above all due to poor diet and a lack of physical exercise. Many studies have however proven that many other factors could play, psychological, environmental, metabolic or genetic.
Men and CSP+ have more prejudices
In addition, 6 to 7 out of 10 French people have already said that an obese person eats poorly (67%), should not practice a lot of sport (58%). According to the survey, 47% have already thought that she must not be taking enough care of herself, 47% that she must have trouble forming romantic or friendly relationships, 37% that she may not be not very dynamic and 23% that she was probably a little less efficient at work. In detail, men have more prejudices: 53% of men think that an obese person does not take enough care of him (12 points more than among women). The wealthiest categories, the most qualified, the CSP+ and the under 35s would also have more prejudices about the disease.
Regarding social categories,there is a higher prevalence of obesity among the most modest, more disadvantaged categories. Obesity is multifactorial and is linked to a social environment. We tend to look at subjects that we know less about, or that we consider to be the prerogative of another social category, with a little more height. It’s something a little foreign and the further away it is, the more critical we can look at it. The other more modest social categories may know the subject a little better and are therefore perhaps less severe, even less contemptuous, towards people who could find themselves in a situation of obesity”explains Céline Bracq, general manager of Odoxa, to Why doctor.
In terms of gender, it has been proven that “that obese women are more often discriminated against than men”, she develops. “The gaze is more critical in a woman in a situation of obesity than in a man in the same case. Statistics show that it is more difficult to find a job when you are obese, especially when you are a woman. We therefore see, through the survey, that women show greater empathy towards obesity than men and have less prejudice towards people who have it.. Thus, it is clear that in our society, “we have fewer ready-made ideas about men”.
The evolution of society has “created a thousand and one reasons to get fat”
Finally, according to the survey, 67% of French people believe that losing weight is above all a question of will and 55% consider that we should not hesitate to make obese people face up to their responsibilities. “However, in many cases of obesity, even with a lot of willpower, weight loss is impossible. Many of these causes are beyond the control of the disease. If eating a balanced diet and playing sports are excellent for your health, this is not enough to prevent obesity. Certain diseases or genetic factors promote obesity such as hormonal imbalances, pollution, endocrine disruptors, psychological and social weaknesses, sedentary lifestyle, low income.explains Céline Bracq.
While many states are encouraging obese people to eat healthier and be physically active in hopes of reducing healthcare costs, “high caloric dietary intake and lack of physical activity alone cannot explain the rapid rise in obesity rates worldwide. And for good reason, the truth is elsewhere”explains on the sidelines of the survey Agnès Maurin, director general of the League against obesity, first French non-governmental organization that brings together all the actors against the disease. In a few decades, the evolution of society has “created a thousand and one reasons to gain weight”, she insists.
“In this tormented and intransigent world, psychological and social fragilities, changes in the family unit, isolation, sedentary lifestyle, low incomes… constitute the fertile ground for the explosion of overweight and obesity. Worse: it causes human tragedies that lead to exclusion via assumed anti-fat racism”laments Agnès Maurin.
Explain to the general public that obesity is a multifactorial disease
This poll proves it. “We see that we lack information on the disease. We have preconceived ideas and the majority consider that it is enough to be careful not to find ourselves in this situation. Today, obesity is seen as a continuum of a small overweight problem. Some people think that obese people have to let themselves go a lot to get to this stage. However, it is very often uncorrelated. You can’t compare ‘recovering yourself’ after overeating during the holidays to someone who is sixty pounds overweight. They are two different universes. However, we can clearly see here that the two universes end up merging because of the culture in which we live where we must constantly pay attention to our appearance and our weight”explains Céline Bracq.
Finally, this survey shows that “people see obesity as an important issue and would like governments to pay more attention to it”. “This does not only pass through measures which made it possible to help people in a situation of obesity but also through information for the general public to explain exactly what this disease is. For example, we should simply inform that it is a multi-factorial affliction and that people who find themselves in this situation do not necessarily eat too much or are not necessarily inactive, continues Celine Bracq. That alone would be good for the 17% of people with the disease.”
.
