A choice?

I mean is any addiction a choice? Would you say that a drug addiction is a choice?

If you don't have any health issues, then yes it is a choice.
Mental and physical health conditions can affect weight, some medications can also affect weight, in those cases it is less of a choice.
My sister is around 350 lbs, has PCOS, she eats well and exercises regularly, but is unable to lose weight. That's not really her choice, she's making good decisions her body just doesn't work in the typical way.
Someone who is overweight, with no preexisting conditions, usually does choose to be overweight even if they don't realize it themselves. They choose to over eat or eat unhealthy things even when they see what it's doing to their body. Some people refuse to even believe that they are over eating and claim to have no idea how they got so big, I think that's BS. You can't be close to 400lbs and not know unless you're delusional. At that point it's a choice to continue and not make healthy changes.

My mum is very overweight and has diabetes. She eats like a bird. However doesn’t move as she’s disabled. It’s not a choice.
It’s linked to self esteem, mental health issues, depression ect.

i’ve known a person to admittedly do it to get disability. i’ve known people that were just raised badly and don’t know how to fix what their shitty parents started, some try, some don’t. sooo many factors go into this. so it’s a huge mix of choices and exposure etc

I don’t think these things are black and white. 2 things can be true at the same time. So yes sometimes ppl are obese cuz they don’t have a choice and other times it’s because they choose to make bad dietary decisions. Either way obesity ends up being a disease and it sometimes leaves ppl fighting for their lives. If u personally know some1 who is suffering from obesity then u can learn from them & their stories & u can know WHY they have that disease first hand from a loved ones perspective bt I don’t like it when ppl assume that everyone is obese for the same reasons & that its ALWAYS a choice bt & that’s not the case. I think this assumption that it’s always a choice is what makes ppl feel ashamed or embarrassed of their own bodies. So many factors play a part in obesity so it’s not a simple yes or no topic

Theres also medication that make you gain weight. Some birth control. As well as genetics. Its hard and expensive to maintain a healthy lifestyle

I have the disease of obesity. I’m on drugs for it. I’m lucky to be able to afford these drugs though. Many people cannot. My sisters are all morbidly obese. They grew up extremely poor. So their choices of foods were pre determined by their parents ability to buy healthy foods. It’s how they were raised. And how they live now.

I think its a bit a both, breaking habits is hard, how you eat and what you were fed growing up plays alot into how you eat and your relationship with food as an adult, the food that’s convenient it’s usually unhealthy, there are food deserts, the process food have so many calories in little meals, companies pay food science to make these foods more addictive and they taste good. Eating is something we absolutely HAVE TO do everyday lol. Still you can eat better and make better decisions and honestly have you ever over ate ? Some of these people are eating like 10,000 calories in a day to maintain their weight and thats fucking hard to do! Like genuinely it is just as hard to be severely overweight as it is to try and lose weight. It takes effort to eat that much.

I think a lot of it is not having the education. I often watch secret eaters and some people were eating baguettes of over 1500 calories but thought it was a healthy meal because it had salad in it. Many people think they don’t eat a lot but the foods they eat are very calorie dense but lacking protein and fibre so it makes you want to eat more. The food industry also makes the unhealthiest foods extremely addictive. As someone who has recently lost 20kg post partum I can definitely say it is a choice but not an easy one it takes time, dedication and mental strength which if you have ongoing mental health issues or not access to the correct information around food it can be very hard

I think the choice lies in wanting change

I think it's easy to say being obese is a choice when you've never actually experienced it. There's a tipping point where you don't really acknowledge what's happening in the mirror, struggle to motivate yourself to exercise and resist temptation. Food absolutely can be an addiction, and being overweight can be a symptom of many things, including depression, medication, illness. I put on a lot of weight during my fertility journey, and through having a baby in NICU, and all the challenges we encountered afterwards. I wasn't in the headspace to just eat more healthy food, I didn't have the time or motivation to exercise more. I kept putting on weight until this summer, when I made a big leap to make serious changes. And it's been fucking hard work, I've nearly given up many times. I have off days and weeks and just want to eat all the unhealthy food I can think of when I'm tired and stressed. It's not easy. I didn't realise how much I'd put on until I lost 22kg. I feel more overweight now I'm paying attention.

There is too much nuance for me to explain my thoughts on this well, but we know that it is the minority of people that exercise AND there are countless systemic barriers to being able to exercise. We know that it is the minority of people that get enough fiber in their diets and the majority of people that have too much processed food in their diets AND there are countless systemic barriers to not having access to healthy nutrition. We also know that “obesity” is a term to describe weight, but not to describe health. So, like anything, there are some elements of choice, many elements of systemic barriers, education issues, etc. to say a blanket “obesity is a choice” no. Absolutely no.

With me, the numbers on the scale and a corresponding BMI chart would have me as obese but to look at me, I don't look it. It's really strange. My diet isn't all salads but it is varied and I am always on the go, and fit.

My husband is plus size , he was smaller when we met & his food choices and lack of exercising caused him to gain more weight .
Heck after having my baby , I’m now considered plus size . I go on walks everyday but I guess it’s harder to lose weight once you’re older & a mom .

Ok I believe it can be both some people have health issues like my mom (who was at one point over 450 pounds or more) she worked sooo hard to get her weight down and she would work out and not eat anything , I watched her basically starve herself only to lose a couple pounds , she eventually went to the doctor got put on abunch of vitamins and a thyroid medication (she had hypothyroidism) along with some other health issues , my moms obesity was not her fault , but I also have an uncle who is a big guy and I believe his is 100% his diet

If anyone wants to know more about how nonsense the BMI is here is a great podcast to listen to, the whole show is about debunking weight loss and diet stuff there are loads of great episodes and it's funny not just super serious

https://open.spotify.com/episode/5Hm6oJt40eeAHhKseCtju8?si=VtqeL0r6TyikxlGhQVix9g

Everybody’s metabolism is different, some people pack on more weight then most and it can be very difficult to lose even with exercise and dieting, women it can be harder and take longer for us since we are estrogen dominant, and we’re suppose to have a bit of fat around our hips, buttocks, lower abdomen, thighs. And a lot of women have PCOS which can make it that much harder to lose weight.

I’d say no one actively chooses to be obese but rather choose to live the lifestyle of not actively trying to stay fit (lounging all day every day over eating etc.) but for some I would say mixtures between genetics, mental health, general health and so much more could prevent someone who is obese from losing said weight.

My parents were overweight, and it wasn’t a choice depression plays apart in it, and how they grew up. Food was the filler to the hole they had. They are now in their 60”s trying to be better and lose the weight