I was made aware of this story this morning…about a fat woman named Rowan Trezise (the size of a tree?) who New Zealand authorities refused to let into New Zealand.
This follows hard on the heels of the ‘rumour’ that Chinese authorities won’t let western couples who exceed a certain BMI (Body Mass Index) to adopt any of their orphaned children.
I’d like to know if this legislation actually exists. Because this story never appeared in the New Zealand press I’m inclined to think that it’s rubbish, but if it is true then a big hearty congratulations needs to be extended to the Immigration Department.
Because we are all entitled to free health care then this couple are entitled to the same privileges as the rest of us. But larger people are likely to place an unnecessary burden on their hearts and blood vessels as well as on our health system, let alone their susceptibility to diabetes and associated problems.
Rowan’s hubby managed to lose some weight and is already in New Zealand while Rowan is back in the UK trying desperately to lose weight so she can join her husband.
Keep trying Rowan. I wish you well, but if it was up to me I’d instigate regular check-ups to ensure you kept the weight off. That way we’d know you were serious.
Awesome. I can’t wait until flight luggage allowance starts being assessed on your combined total weight.
You are SO right.
Why should I, as a slim 72kg man be limited to 7kg of carry-on luggage and 20kg stowable when the tub of lard behind me in the queue is likely to tip the plane into a left turning nose dive?
Coming back from China I was over on carry-on and stowable and was prepared to have an argument about it – thankfully I didn’t need to!
The issue with combined body weight + luggage is that you then begin impacting those that actually do strength training. Given that muscle weighs more than fat it’s not all that difficult to be 100Kg but have very low body fat %.
As an example, I’ve put on roughly 6Kg in the last three months of gym training despite my body shape not generally changing and looking generally better than I did when I started).
That’s the issue with BMI being used as it doesn’t take into account muscle vs. fat however we hardl want to be doing a complete body fat measure every time as it would be too time consuming.
Just my thoughts,
– JD
“I’d like to know if this legislation actually exists.”
The Immigration Act basically allows the government to make up any rule it wants to for letting people in or keeping them out. What’s the bet she has diabetes or something similar but just told the papers it was because she’s fat.
Skinny, I am generally a fan of your writings, but I am disappointed with you on this one.
Did you not know that to a certain extent, body shape is genetically determined (in the same way that your height is)?
You are programmed to be skinny, I am programmed to be, well, chubby. As a further illustration of this idea, I eat a much better diet and get way more exercise than my dear spouse, but he is basically tall and thin (well, thinnish) whereas I am short and chubbyish. What is that if not genetic?
You would look at me and see an overweight person. But you would be plain wrong in assuming that I am unhealthy or unfit because I categorically am not. I won’t claim that I’m fitter than you because I don’t know you, but I am certainly fit by the standards of my peer group (middle age mums). I spend my weekends out doing 6 hour mountain bike rides, I’ve biked around lake taupo (160 km) in a pretty damn good time and .. well, I could go on, but I won’t.
I accept the obvious point that morbidly obese people have severe health risks, but otherwise there just isn’t an automatic relationship between weight and health. So how about getting off the moral high ground:?
To answer your point about carry-on luggage, think of it as being a basic human rights issue.
I can accept that some people are genetically disposed to being larger – but genetics does nothing to explain the huge increase in obesity, and the associated health risks.
If it was all genetics then SPARC wouldn’t be running campaigns on eating healthy food, and encouraging exercise (30 mins for adults per day, and 60 minutes for kids). The government wouldn’t be promoting exercise and healthy eating, or wellness programmes in workplaces. American airlines wouldn’t need to reduce the number of seats on airlines to accommodate a physically larger population.
I hate it when I see morbidly obese people, or even obese people (not chubby people but fat) buying crap at the supermarket, and eating at McDonalds. And even more disturbing is seeing fat parents with fat kids (again, not big boned chubby kids but children so large their shins hang over their socks).
That is not genetics. It’s bad nutrition. It’s a lack of parenting. It’s a duty of care to feed your children healthy food.
I’m sorry that you’re offended by my comments. I personally know ‘chubby’ people who are incredibly fit, as you also appear to be.
I also personally know overweight people who should eat better and exercise to improve their mental and physical wellbeing, and to reduce health problems in later life.
Greetings from the other end of the body mass index! (well, not quite).
You’re right, of course, Skinny, on most points; I totally agree that it’s a duty of care to feed kids well and instill good habits.
But doesn’t it ever occur to you that the obesity epidemic is a bit of a beat up? Do you really see a huge (so to speak) increase in obesity all around you? I look around my kids school and among my friends, and it doesn;t really add up to me. There’s a few chubby kids at school, but haven’t there always been?
Here’s a thought for you: thinness doesn’t automatically equal good health. More like genetic good luck. The thin tend to be very smug.