Obesity as a Disability

Obesity and Disability

Overweight and obesity are labels for a wide range of weight that is greater than what is considered healthy for a particular weight. This term also identifies a range of weight that are indicators of the likelihood of development of certain diseases and health problems. Obesity affects different people in different ways and therefore may increase risk of health conditions among people. Obesity is involved with metabolic syndrome at times refereed to as obesity syndrome that involves the enlargement of waist circumference, resistance of insulin, high triglyceride levels and high blood pressure.

For an individual with obesity to qualify as being disabled by social security or SSI disability they need to have more than just a diagnosis of this metabolic syndrome or even diabetes. The obesity has to have caused lot o damage through cardiovascular disease or has to have limited the mobility or an individual's functional ability. The paper is an interview with a person with a disability. I have chosen obesity as a disability to look at and I will focus on a family member that struggles with obesity as a disability.

The interview

Brandy: Hi Sheila, and thanks a lot for accepting to form part of this interview process, I appreciate. Tell me, when were you diagnosed with Obesity?

Sheila; I was diagnosed with obesity about five years ago and I have been struggling with the disease ever since then.

Brandy: Do you consider obesity as a disability?

Sheila: yes I do Brandy, I believe that obesity is a disability just like other disabilities. This means that it has to be given adequate attention just like any other disability.

Brandy; why do you consider obesity as a disability?

Sheila; I believe obesity is a disability because it is covered by the Americans with disabilities Act. This therefore means that obese people have legal protection against any form of discrimination that is based on their weight, and a sharp tool that can be used for the enforcement of protection in the court of law. Historically it has been quite difficult for obese people to convince judges that they are disabled in lawsuits when they have allegations of employer discrimination not unless obesity is a symptom of another disability. However this has been improved by the American Medical Association according to laws of employment. The AMA upgraded obesity from being a mere condition to a disease. The focus by AMA on obesity as a disability is centered on question of whether obesity is a disability under the ADA .Ada defines a disability as a physical or mental impairment that leads to a substantial decline or limits one's major life activities, a record of such impairments or even being regarded as having such an impairment. Obesity fits under third definition of disability as it can lead to one being unable to perform major activities in their lives. I being a living example of the complications that obesity has rendered in my life such that I am now unable to go by to the employment industry. Therefore it means that any medical condition an individual is diagnosed with is termed as a disability.at the same time the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission now also considers obesity as a disability under Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act. Another fact is that one can be awarded disability benefits for being obese however, SSA will still consider obesity under impairment listings if and only if; the limitations of obesity are same as those in the impairment listings or if obesity causes or is a contributing factor to other impairments. These are not my thoughts alone but thoughts of recognized bodies which can never lie and are out there to protect the well-being of individuals. Therefore I totally agree that obesity is a disability and should that be treated so.

Brandy; Do you believe obesity as a disability is overlooked by mainstream society?

Sheila; yes, I totally believe that obesity is not given the much attention it deserves like other forms of disabilities. People in society view obesity like a disease that one brings on to themselves in their lifestyles and food they eat. They therefore do not take it serious and hence overlook it. They view it as something that can be prevented and hence see no reason as to why it should be classified as a disability. They believe that unlike other disabilities obesity can be prevented if one wants hence it should not be termed as a disability. For instance cases where an individual wants obesity to be termed as a disability have always required one to show some different underlying medical condition which is a disability and thus causes obesity as a symptom. This clearly shows that the society does not really view obesity as a disability; they rather see it just like any other disease and not a disability. Another reason as to why I believe obesity is given little public attention as a disability is the fact that it used to be listed as impairment in the impairment listings. However, obesity was removed from this listing by SSA in 1999. The logic behind this removal Brandy was the fact that many obese individuals were still able to lead productive as well as still hold gainful employment. This is quite unfair to obese people like me as it is not the case always. As you know I have been out of employment for the past three years since I can not be able to do anything productive as a result of the disease. Therefore I really feel that obesity as a disability is really overlooked by the mainstream society.

Brandy: what then do you propose should be done regarding obesity as a Disability?

Sheila; I strongly believe that obesity should be given just as much attention as other disabilities. This is because there are cases where obesity has led to an individual not being able to perform any major functions in their lives. This means that the individual is disabled and has top be accorded the necessary care just like any other person with a disability. Therefore I believe that people should be sensitized on the issue of obesity as a disability and they should not be discriminated in any way on the basis of being obese.