Happy, Healthy, Fat Old People

[pani]

Hi! I am wondering if we can start a thread where we list all the fat people we know who have lived along time. With all the deliberate lies and fake studies out there, concrete proof to the contrary can make people take a second look at our side of the story. The average person has no idea what the stats mean even if they weren't so much bunk. I can't tell you how many times I have run into people who are surprised there are so many fat people who remain healthy into a ripe old age. I started one on BFB as well, but the format changed and it is in the forums so one has to register to see it. I say the more it is disseminated the better. I will start:

The town of Roseto PA, which gave us the "Rosetto Effect." Populated by Italian immigrants, these fat folks had a lower rate of heart disease than their neighbors. It is hard to find an article that mentions them being fat, but at least this one does acknowledge they ate fat. (Although link to book mentions weight.) I don't know who this guy is, or what his agenda is either, this is just one of the more readable links I came across. Links and pics help get the point across.

http://www.innerself.com/Health/roth_ron_01254.htm

[ThatFatGirl]

My grandmother was quite fat and very active all her life. She lived to be 83. She was borderline diabetic for many years, but never had to take medication for it. I think she lost some weight in the last decade of her life, but she was still what most would call very large. She married a 60 yr old when she was 70 and traveled to Alaska and HI, and was without question a very happy senior.

My father on the other hand died at 59 from a heart arrhythmia/heart disease at about 250 lbs.. He was a walking ball of stress. I hope I have more of my grandmother's genes and less of my father's where longevity is concerned.

[babyjeep21]

The women on my father's side of the family have always been fairly large. By far, I am the smallest of the women. My great grandmother, who I am very close to, is nearing 90. She is definitely a larger woman. Her husband, my great grandfather, died a few years ago after celebrating their 65th year of marriage. I had never seen such a happy and playful older couple. Regardless of age, size, or health problems grandma continues to travel back and forth to see all of her grandchildren. She's had a few heart problems, but still keeps on visiting and inviting us to come see her. Every year, she throws a family reunion! It's fantastic to see someone her age so happy and enthusiastic.

[TallFatSue]

This reminds me, last February Art & I spent a week on St. Thomas, and we met a really nice older couple from Michigan in another unit at our resort. I must gravitate toward other fat women, or they toward me, or both. One day when she and I were together, she said she had always been fat, and then a few pregnancies made her even bigger. A few years ago she started to walk with a cane, but she didn't really know whether that was because she was 350lb or because she was over 70 or both. Even with a cane, she got around pretty well. I'm pushing 50 myself, so I'm kinda concerned how my obese body will handle my advancing years, and she gave me hope. She said she always listened to her body and didn't give a hoot when other people nagged her to lose weight. As long as her vital signs were normal, she wanted to enjoy the finer things in life, and now that she's pushing 75, she feels vindicated. Wow, did I love her attitude!

[Frankie]

I'm not old, but I thought this post might still be appropriate for this thread. since it pertains to being fat and fit. I think it's fair to say that I'm on my way to a very good level of physical fitness, and, yes, I am fat (200lbs at 5'5", 32 years old). I joined a gym in April and was pretty surprised when my cardiovascular ability tested as right smack in the middle of the "good" category. My flexibility tested at "excellent," though much of my muscle strength was "poor" or "fair" at best. My overall fitness level was described as being "good." I plan to be re-evaluated again at the end of November, and I hope that my cardio ability will test as "excellent" and muscle strength at "good" or better.

At times I was dubious about the whole "fat and fit" thing, but I proved myself wrong.

I was weighed, measured, and the calipers were applied in numerous locations. A surprising outcome: even at 5'5", my target weight is 159lbs to 170lbs (not that I am actively trying to lose weight at the moment; I'm just trying to remain stable). I thought for sure I would be told something in the neighborhood of 125 or 135 lbs.

I have to admit, my eating habits are terrible, so I while I would call myself fit, I wouldn't call myself truly healthy.

[wrench13]

My maternal grandma was 83 and a BIG lady. Grandma Lutzie was one helluva cook and stayed active right up til the end. RIP, Oma.

[pani]

Those are all great examples. Thanks for sharing!!!!!

Here is a woman who was way before her time when it came to fat pride - Sophie Tucker. Plump since a child, she was forced to perform in the reprehensible makeup of blackface because "she was so big and ugly." She ditched it as soon as she could. I chose this bio of her because it gives full bodies shots that do not try to make her look thinner. But another bio of her tells how here doctor told her to lose weight and she refused. Maybe that is why she made it into her 80s. It would be great to see a fat pride film maker or theatre company do her story - cast with the spunkies fat actress they can find. Actually, I know many people are disappointed in her, but I think Camryn Manheim would be perfect for the part.

http://www.jwa.org/discover/comedy/tucker.html

[EtobicokeFA]

My grandmother on my father side was heavy for most of her life. She lived into her 90's. My mother's father was heavy as well, lived into his late 90's.

I am heavy as well, and I always get a good results for annual checkup.

[comperic2003]

But do personal accounts debunk thousands of scientific studies? I am in no way accusing anyone of hiding from the facts, I am just extremely curious about the contradicting studies and governmental lies you speak about. I have never heard of them but would love to.

[HappyFatChick]

Every woman in my family is/was fat/obese and lived long lives. My great-grandmother was a big apple and died at 90. She was self-sufficient and independent until the end.

I'm sure if we googled we could find numerous stories about fat/obese old people. They're just not publicized because of the multi-billion dollar diet industry and the myth that fat is not/cannot be healthy.

I am living proof fat is/can be healthy/fit. My "numbers" are perfect at fat and "obese".:)

[Frankie]

But do personal accounts debunk thousands of scientific studies? I am in no way accusing anyone of hiding from the facts, I am just extremely curious about the contradicting studies and governmental lies you speak about. I have never heard of them but would love to.

I'm not claiming that my personal story means it's possible for everyone to be healthy and fit at all weight levels. Some people can be fat and perfectly healthy at a range of weights, whiles others will have difficulties even at lower weights. There is truth on both sides of the issue. For myself, I want to hear some positive stories about health and fat people to balance out all of the negative stories that the media and medical community often bombard us with. I don't think a desire to hear something encouraging necessarily equates with people wanting to deny what is the reality for some.

[comperic2003]

of course it does not, but the first poster made bold claims and i am curious what support he or she has.

[pani]

C. no, these personal accounts do not "debunk" studies. If you had read carefully, what I said was that the average person has no idea what the studies mean. Right now, I am not going to even go into how flawed most studies on fat are. I just want to deal with this one aspect. Studies that find fat people have a higher risk of death, heart disease; whatever, only mean that there are more fat people that do, not that ALL do. The media likes to scare us with 300% more etc, but never tell us what the base numbers are. For instance, take the much harped on Nurses and Health Study by JoAnne Manson (who has financial interests in serveral pharmaceuticals.) All we heard in the headlines was that heavier nurses had 300% greater risk of heart disease. But the base number was approx 3 in 10,000 for "average" women. For heavy women it was approx 9 in 10,000. (In Manson's study, these are not national averages.) However, because many never go behind the headlines, this translates into many folks believing it is extremely rare to be fat, healthy, and live to a ripe old age. I can't tell you how many times I have heard, "How many fat people do you see make it past 75?" I have even heard doctors use this argument. The media distorts studies to exaggerate the health risks. This thread is intended to balance perceptions, NOT debunk studies.

As far as bold claims, nothing new here. Nothing new that studies are degenerating into marketing schemes! (In many areas, not just weight vs health.) Nothing new for anyone who has been looking beyond the headlines. If you are truly interested in debunking myths I would recommend"

Big Fat Lies by Glen Gaessar

The Obesity Myth by Paul Campos (just plug him into a search engine, many of his articles are online)

The Weighing Obesity series by Sandy Swarc on Tech Central Station (This web site is sponsored by major industry and I would take everything they say with a grain of salt. Still, she did an excellent job taking us behind the scenes.)

BigFatBlog.com - We often get the the bottom of the headlines

Show Me The Date - A website associated with Dr. Paul Ernsberger

PRWatch.Org - Not fat related, not even fat friendly. Still, through them I learned about 50% of all studies in medical journals are ghostwritten by the pharmaceuticals, then rubberstamped by some physician who often doesn't even read let alone write what his/her name is on.

Or, the next time a study comes out, just go to the journal yourself. You will be amazed at how the media distorts and takes things out of context.

p.s. No offense, but if you want to debate this issue, could you possibly start another thread for it? It would be really nice to just one long list of fat people who defied the stereotype, and not have it go way off topic. Thanks

[lemmink]

Funny, that. Of my grandparents, my two skinny Irish grandparents died in their 30s/40s, and my thin Irish/French grandfather died in his 70s. My fat Creole grandmother died in her mid 80s. She also looked about 50 at the most when she died, although her health wasn't exactly the best.

[Sweet Tooth]

I'm doing a little size estimation here, although I used to go clothes shopping with one grandmother.

My size 14-18 mom [all of my life between those weights] is a 20+ year cancer survivor and just celebrated her 70th birthday. She retired and promptly went back to school and found a new career.

My grandmothers were both larger. One was a size 18/20 [although she lost weight in her 90s, down to about a size 10/12] and lived to be 100. She was active, even baking cookies, in the last week of her life. Mind you, she'd had a heart condition since she was 5 and it was in no way related to her weight. She also never had a broken bone.

My other grandmother was about a size 22/24, and she lived until age 89.

My great grandmothers were all larger women, too. One was about size 24 and lived to the age of 86.

I can't say that fat made much of a difference in their longevity one way or another. I know they were all active, not exercising, but working in the yard or around the house or whatever. They all ate what they wanted, although they certainly ate their veggies [something I struggle to do like I should].

My grandmothers both lost their husbands around the age of 40 [actually in the same week of the same year in the same town], so maybe long life has to do with lack of male aggravation. LOL

[LillyBBBW]

of course it does not, but the first poster made bold claims and i am curious what support he or she has.

I just read this short blurb the other day. This may shed some light on what the OP is referring to.



New Weight Scare Based on Faulty Analysis

At least 400,000 Americans die of overweight and obesity every year, making it soon to surpass smoking as the leading cause of preventable death [1]. At least that's what the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) told us.

But an updated federal report, published last year in the Journal of the American Medical Association (and reported in the Late Spring 2005 NAAFA Newsletter), acknowledged that the previous analysis suffered from computational errors [2]. In fact, obesity and overweight only result in an excess of 26,000 annual deaths, far fewer than guns, alcohol or car crashes. And separating overweight from obesity reveals further interesting information: "overweight" people live longer than "normal" weight people.

The data weren't surprising to those of us who study these issues. This is not an anomaly, but consistent with many other investigations. That it came from the CDC and got published in JAMA were the real astonishing facts.

We waited for the backlash. Fear-mongering about weight is worth billions to industry and is consistent with government policy. Few stand to gain from the news that overweight is benign, if not beneficial. The backlash has been slowly building, and recently came out full force in a highly publicized study published in the August issue of the New England Journal of Medicine [3].

The front page leader in my local paper loudly proclaimed: "Just a few extra pounds is bad for you" and the article title reinforced the message: "Study finds risks for the barely overweight." Turn to the original report, and you find a consistent conclusion in the abstract: "excess body weight during midlife, including overweight, is associated with an increased risk of death."

But before you dust off those diet books, let's take a look at the data itself. The authors worked hard for their conclusion. They examined records from over a half million AARP members that had been surveyed over a ten year period. What they found was entirely consistent with the earlier JAMA report: "overweight" people had the lowest mortality risk. But that wouldn't serve their purposes. NEJM's press release wouldn't look nearly as attractive with that headline.

So they subjected their data to numerous manipulations before finally arriving at a suitable conclusion. First they threw out data on people who were smokers or former smokers. Nope, still shows overweight as benign. They hid this with a sleazy method: using only the top (BMIs of 23 to 24.9) of the "normal weight" group compared to the whole of the "overweight" group.

Then they found an even more creative trick. When they asked participants - some of whom were in their 70s - what they had weighed at the age of 50, they hit paydirt: at last, overweight - at midlife - was associated with increased risk, albeit modest. This will grab the headlines. No need to highlight that we had to whittle our data down to about 5% of the original sample to get this result! (That 40% of the participants chose to leave the question on recalled weight blank should give some indication of the ability of people to accurately report this information.)

Their paper is weak for many other reasons: they had a very low response rate (18%) from a sample that is not nationally representative; their data is based on self-report, which is known to be inaccurate; adjustments for potential confounders were weakly conducted; the list goes on. And they neglected to note another important conclusion: weight loss is associated with a significant increased risk of death for middle-aged "overweight" people.

Come on, New England Journal of Medicine. We expect scholarship, not propaganda.

References

[1]Mokdad, A.H., et al., Actual causes of death in the United States, 2000. Journal of the American Medical Association, 2004. 291: p. 1238-45.
[2]Flegal, K.M., et al., Excess deaths associated with underweight, overweight, and obesity. Journal of the American Medical Association, 2005. 293(15): p. 1861-7.
[3]Adams, K., et al., Overweight, Obesity, and Mortality in a Large Prospective Cohort of Persons 50 to 71 Years Old. New England Journal of Medicine, 2006. 355(8): p. 763-8.

[Egbert Souse]

Let us not forget Sarah Caldwell, the opera director and conductor, who passed away at 82 this year.
She was a 4-500 pounder, the first woman to ever conduct the Metropolitan Orchestra and an all-around ball o' fire.

[GoddessNoir]

Women on my dad's side of the family tend to be very heavy and they live to be into their late '70s, early '80s. In fact, according to everyone, I look JUST like my father's mom, height, body, to the point where I have on more than a few occasions made aunts and uncles cry when I visit. My maternal grandmother and her twin were both big, tall women (250+), my gram died early but, she died of pnuemonia, not weight related. Her twin died when she was about 80 of cancer. She was diabetic but was never dependant on medication.

[Tracyarts]

I only know of one supersized person who remained supersized/survived into old age. She lived to her early eighties, but was extremely compromised for almost twenty years before death. Due to hip and knee problems she lost mobility in middle age and started to develop serious cardiovascular problems shortly therafter. By her mid sixties she was not leaving her house much and by her seventies was confined to a few small rooms and required daily assistance to perform the most basic of tasks. By the time she reached eighty, she required almost constant nursing care and went into the final decline.

I have never personally met any supersized persons older than their fifties, and only a very few at that. So I really don't know how common it is for somebody to remain supersized and yet thrive into old age.

Tracy

[Carol W.]

My maternal great-grandmother lived into her middle eighties, and she was probably around 350lbs on a 5'5 frame. She was a farmwife, had nine children, and I am told was a very hard worker, which is not surprising given those circumstances, I guess! In her last years she had a bad case of "dropsy" (edema) in her legs, but she would have been close to eighty when it started, and this was back in the 1920's, when there were no meds available for diuretics, hypertension, etc.

My husband's grandmother lived to 83; she was diabetic and probably weighed about 300 on a 5'0 frame. She did lose weight in her seventies but I don't think she actively dieted, it was more just a natural process.

It is my cynical belief that, not always but generally, studies show whatever the underwriters of those studies want them to show. There is no quicker way for a medical professional to turn me off than to begin a statement, "Studies show....."

[CuteyChubb]

I am the only morbidly obese person in my family. My Mom who was 125 lbs. died at 43 from diabetes. My Dad who was 185 and 6'2 died at 40 from heart disease. I am 35. I plan on outliving my parents and will have a huge party for myself for my 41st and 44th birthdays. You are all invited. I want to live to see great grand children.

[pani]

The King of Tonga just passed away at 88. Some media reports have him at 400 lbs into his 70s. Apparently he did lose weight after that, but was still 300lb+ in the last decade of his life.

[BeautifulPoeticDisaster]

I only know of one supersized person who remained supersized/survived into old age. She lived to her early eighties, but was extremely compromised for almost twenty years before death. Due to hip and knee problems she lost mobility in middle age and started to develop serious cardiovascular problems shortly therafter. By her mid sixties she was not leaving her house much and by her seventies was confined to a few small rooms and required daily assistance to perform the most basic of tasks. By the time she reached eighty, she required almost constant nursing care and went into the final decline.

I have never personally met any supersized persons older than their fifties, and only a very few at that. So I really don't know how common it is for somebody to remain supersized and yet thrive into old age.

Tracy


And that is exactly what scares the living shit out of me. There are those on this board who feel threatened by diet talk and weight loss talk...but for some of us...that is our only hope of living past our 40's. I wish that it was true that being fat isnt unhealthy....but there is apoint where it becomes very unhealthy indeed.

[pani]

That is fine SSBBW. But many people do not feel they are over that point and feel comfortable with their size. Why not let them have them have one place free from fear and negativity? It is not like the bombardment is not constant and complete!

Isabel Sanford of The Jefferson's fame. She lived to her mid 80's and kept her beauty right up to the end!

[BeautifulPoeticDisaster]

That is fine SSBBW. But many people do not feel they are over that point and feel comfortable with their size. Why not let them have them have one place free from fear and negativity? It is not like the bombardment is not constant and complete!

Isabel Sanford of The Jefferson's fame. She lived to her mid 80's and kept her beauty right up to the end!


I was not trying to bombard anyone nor invoke fear and/or negativity. I was agreeing with Tracyarts that there are very few Supersized people who make it to mid/old age. It is worrying that the truth irritates you to the point that you wish to silence/shun people who bring it up.

I do believe people can be fat, very fat infact and be healthy, but the fact of the matter is...there are many who are not. And why am I not free to discuss my health concerns in a place where people understand? Not like I can go to weightwatchers.com or "insert diet website here" and meet supersized people who understand my issues. I do not desire to be thin...just healthy...and if that isnt accepted on a Size Acceptance board...then it is not really acceptance.

Reguardless...sorry for the temporary highjacking.

[pdgujer148]

When I was in my early teens I found a box of old 8mm home movies. I conned my parents into letting me rent a projector so I could transfer the old family films to video.

I had a surprise when I got to the third reel. It was a film of my father and mother swimming at out cabin. Suddenly this supersize woman dashes into the frame in a 1930's style full-body swimsuit and swimming cap.

A few minutes late another midsized woman wades into the lake.

"Mom, come here. Who are these people?"
"What do you mean?"
"The two large women. Who are they?"
"That's grandma G and grandma J"

Huh. My grandmothers were both tiny little women. Grandma G (the supersize woman) looked like fluffy version of Ruth Gordon by the time I knew her.

So, one theory for why you don't see many supersize women in rest homes (though there are a couple in my mothers assisted living residence) is that they drop weight as they age.

[pani]

"And why am I not free to discuss my health concerns in a place where people understand?"

I respectfully asked if we couldn't have this one tiny little thread to just have a running list of fat people who lived long healthy lives. That was the sole purpose of this thread. If you had been reading the headlines you will agree that the media (not you) bombard us daily with the myth that fat is lethal. I think Lily even contributed an article where the headline read "Even a little pudge can be lethal." That stereotype affects peoples ability to get a job, health insurance, and quite honestly live a sane life w/o harrassment. I personally think it is a good idea to have postitive examples to counter that, as thoughts can and do create reality. I also think it is good to have examples we can easily point to in self defense. But too much debate or bringing in other issues can take a thread way off topic to the point it has lost its impact. No one is remotely suggesting you shouldn't be talking about your issues on Dimensions. If fact, if you would like to start a new thead I would be happy to debate with you there. But can't we please just have one thread that is just a list, and discuss the tangential issues under another topic?

[BeautifulPoeticDisaster]

"And why am I not free to discuss my health concerns in a place where people understand?"

I respectfully asked if we couldn't have this one tiny little thread to just have a running list of fat people who lived long healthy lives. That was the sole purpose of this thread. If you had been reading the headlines you will agree that the media (not you) bombard us daily with the myth that fat is lethal. I think Lily even contributed an article where the headline read "Even a little pudge can be lethal." That stereotype affects peoples ability to get a job, health insurance, and quite honestly live a sane life w/o harrassment. I personally think it is a good idea to have postitive examples to counter that, as thoughts can and do create reality. I also think it is good to have examples we can easily point to in self defense. But too much debate or bringing in other issues can take a thread way off topic to the point it has lost its impact. No one is remotely suggesting you shouldn't be talking about your issues on Dimensions. If fact, if you would like to start a new thead I would be happy to debate with you there. But can't we please just have one thread that is just a list, and discuss the tangential issues under another topic?


ok, you can have THIS thread ;) and hopefully I will be on of the supersized who make to to old age.

[LillyBBBW]

Interesting points made here. Just to add a little something extra. I'm a supersized woman at 370 - 385 pounds give or take, I've no idea. Being a fat activist I would say that 65% or the people I call friends are all fat to super sized.

I am home today with a narsty cold. (I hate being sick) Last night I got a call from a fat friend of mine who upon hearing me could tell how sick I was. Suddenly she got really alarmed and warned me not to take sudafed. My medicine drawer is full of the stuff. I'm ever the conspiracy theorist so I asked her why. I know the pharmacies keep them behind the counter now so I figured maybe the surgeon general came out with a new proclamation claiming the stuff was poison or something. :D She went into this whole thing about how sudafed is bad for your heart and can induce a heart attack if you have high blood pressure and how she's not allowed to take sudafed. I was taken aback. My doctor showers me with the stuff. I don't have high blood pressure so taking sudafed is not a concern.

But for HER, it is. She's a SSBBW, much younger than me, and is apparently convinced that fat is the reason she has HBP. I would imagine it looms large in her mind as a major concern and it should. But somehow my super sized friend assumed that just being fat makes it a concern for me when it clearly doesn't. I went to see my doctor today and sure enough, he sent me home with a fist full of sudafed.

It remains to be seen who the deluded party is. As fat people maybe we are all supposed to be sick and I'm just a victim of bum luck for the time being. Especially since I'm African American. Being black supposedly makes me more prone. I've never seen any African American support groups for high blood pressure though which is strange considering we 'all' are walking time bombs for the disease. Maybe it just boils down to the idea that some people are sick and some people are not, but being fat can intensify matters when it turns out that you are sick so you have to be careful? I'm fat, female and black. Maybe I 'deserve' to be sick?

I'll be 40 in a few weeks. I suppose you can toss me on to the pile of people who are fat and healthy. *knocks on wood* That doesn't mean I won't be looking over my shoulder from here on in.


"And why am I not free to discuss my health concerns in a place where people understand?"

I respectfully asked if we couldn't have this one tiny little thread to just have a running list of fat people who lived long healthy lives. That was the sole purpose of this thread. If you had been reading the headlines you will agree that the media (not you) bombard us daily with the myth that fat is lethal. I think Lily even contributed an article where the headline read "Even a little pudge can be lethal." That stereotype affects peoples ability to get a job, health insurance, and quite honestly live a sane life w/o harrassment. I personally think it is a good idea to have postitive examples to counter that, as thoughts can and do create reality. I also think it is good to have examples we can easily point to in self defense. But too much debate or bringing in other issues can take a thread way off topic to the point it has lost its impact. No one is remotely suggesting you shouldn't be talking about your issues on Dimensions. If fact, if you would like to start a new thead I would be happy to debate with you there. But can't we please just have one thread that is just a list, and discuss the tangential issues under another topic?

[pani]

Plump and smart, Dr. Frances Horwich has been called "the best teacher ever." Sadly, if she were to have a t.v. program for kids today, the fat police would probably complain she was a bad influence. Dr. Horwich lived to be 94

http://www.skooldays.com/categories/saturday/sa1382.htm

[estrata]

I know I am awakening this forum from a little while ago but I just randomly read some of it and I have an opinion. Woot!

I have two grandmas (surprise! :D ), who since I was young I would call “fat grandma” and “skinny grandma”. My fat grandma is currently pushing 90, and aside from certain personality defects that she’s had all her life (they’ve just gotten worse as she got older!), she is ABSURDLY healthy. My “skinny grandma”, on the other hand, is early 80s and an absolute mass of bad health. Cancer, osteoporosis, you name it. And her daughter (my mom) has a BMI of I would guess 20-21, yet has been battling high cholesterol for ages. Yet she is so thin, and she exercises regularly. I, with a BMI of 19, expect to enjoy high cholesterol as well as I get older. Horray for me.

I think in the end health is down to the genes. As is whether or not your body is natural big. If you are naturally fat, I think it is very healthy to be so. If you are naturally thin, however (like myself), I think it is quite unhealthy to gain weight intentionally – no matter how much you may want it.

It is true that big pharma likes to shove the dangers of being fat down our throats. But in the end, if you are a naturally fat person I think it is far more dangerous to diet your entire life and never be happy with yourself. If the fad diets don’t kill you, the stress of self-hatred will do you in for sure.

However, eating burger king all your life is certainly not healthy either. I think a problem a lot of these studies have is that they are looking at the weight, and not the food that put that weight on. Even a naturally thin person will get big eating double whoppers every day! But if you eat healthy and exercise a decent amount, I think that whether your fat or thin it’s your genes that determine your health, not your weight.

[pani]

Well, what do ya know. I just read in _Never Satisfied_ by Hillel Schwartz that Elizabeth Cady Stanton was "plump." And she lived to be almost 87. She was such a brave woman and way ahead of her time. Definitely glad to have her in our camp!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Cady_Stanton

[MoonGoddess]

There are physical and mental aspects of obesity. And there are also untold countless personal ramifications. Case in point. My father was always very big, he weighed 550 at 5'10"at his heaviest. He was never sick, never took meds...almost never saw a doctor. He loved his food, was never one to say no to a cold beer. He went hunting, he traveled. He lived his life on his own terms and never apologized for his size. He did die at the age of 65 from a massive heart attack. But he was happy to the end. My mother was 250-300 all her life. She was always trying this diet or that diet. She suffered from high blood pressure. Over the course of her life she fought 4 different kinds of cancer (NHL took her at the end). She was not a happy person, always stressed out over this or that. She lived to be 70, but was never truly happy with herself. My grandparents on both sides were heavy, all had some sort of health issue. All made it to their 80's.

I am almost 47. I currently weigh 220 on a 5'6" frame. I have during the course of my adult life tried almost every fad diet there is. I have done the work out 'til you drop thing. I have been sane and simply eaten a healthy and balanced diet and moved my body each day (lots of walks in the woods). And despite it all, my weight has continued to creep to it's current point. I have fought cancer and won. I am pre-diabetic. My blood pressure is generally good. I recently got a great job with Time Warner Cable that I love. In a nutshell...I am pretty happy with my life. Will I live to be 100? Most likely not. Will my health deteriorate as I age? Probably, if genetics and my family history are any indication. But I will cross that bridge when I get to it.

I guess that I am saying studies are fine. But our individual situations and circumstance have a tremendous bearing on whether or not we will live to be happy, healthy, old fat people.

That's my ramble for today.

[BeautifulPoeticDisaster]

Dont want to get all biblical on you, lol, since that isnt even my forte....but it has been said, those who love life will lose it....aka..the good die young.

I have noticed that it is the confused, sad, depresed, miserable people who live to very old age...in a lot of cases...I know Im hella generalising. But the opposite is true...those who love life and take it for all its worth tend to die younger.

Just thinking outloud. sorry.

[pani]

You make a good point! Myself, I really don't want to live a very long time. The number that scares me is not BMI, or cholestoral, but what the Social Security Administration says I will be getting when I retire. Assuming they are still around. NO WAY I could live off of it. I also don't think I can save much until then. At least not enough to make a difference. I have no desire to be a poor old woman on a hot chaotic planet. In my own personal belief system, we are here for a purpose. Once we finish we move on. Doing everything possible to eack out every last second is like deliberately flunking in order to never leave high school.

BUT, it really does bug me that society says it is not possible to be fat and live along time because the evidence suggests otherwise. So I will end this post with Zulu shaman Credo Mutwa. You can't tell from this picture but he weighs over 400 lbs. He does have diabetes and cancer now but he is in his mid 80's and that is to be expected at that advanced age.

http://literature.kzn.org.za/lit/18.xml

[pani]

Character actress Peggy Rea is 85. She was Aunt Rose on The Waltons if anyone remembers her. She was already fat when she was on I Love Lucy. It was hard to find a picture of her, She was in so many things I bet most of us will recognize her when we see her.

http://members.aol.com/lucynet/reunion/rea.html

[SilkyAngela]

My maternal grandmother was near 300 pounds and lived to be 88 years old, still had her mobility and independence as well as her love of food and feeding those she loved.
She always cooked with real butter, real sugar, real salt, and never a non/fat or sugar free substitute. She raised a garden every year to feed herself and her family and always raised enough to give tons of produce away to her neighbors and friends who were in the seniors community in her town. She canned vegetables made home made jellies and jams to give away at Christmas to those who were no longer able to do so for themselves....she said to give her friends a taste of yesterday.
To this day, I can't begin preparing a meal for my family without smiling and remembering her and the many years of love she shared from her garden and her kitchen.

[Observer]

I don't know how I missed this thread, initially but it brings back memories. The Roseto story is one which I first encountered forty years ago in the pages of Rodale's Prevention Magazine. It was seminal in my becoming convinced that obesity is not incompatible with health. But there are two aspects downplayed in the current accounts.

Roseto was definitely a close knit family oriented community. But as I recall it is also very hilly. This meant that to go anywhere or get anything done you had to exert yourself physically every day. It was the combination of human interaction and regular exercise that overrode all the high cholesterol eating and stress of the depression and war years..

The exceptional resistance to heart disease and other problems was, alas, not to last. When television, fast food, and sedentary living came to the city so did poorer health. Even improvements in diet did not reverse the trend. A follow-up Prevention article in the mid-eighties noted that the "Roseto effect" was diminishing in the then younger generation.

Here is an update of the story (http://www.beliefnet.com/story/9/story_902_2.html)

Moral: before accepting the conclusions of so-called "science" make sure all the evidence is included. Not smoking, reducing fats and refined sugar and incresng veggies woith anti-oxidents are certainly not bad things, but the Roseto lesson is that exercise and inner security are even more essential.

Problem: emulating the Roseto environment has proven nearly impossible for the residents of that community - how as a practical matter do the rest of us do it today? No diet or operation or weight loss nostrum can achieve this nirvana.

[JMNYC]

Charles Durning, perhaps best known as the unsuspecting suitor of female impersonater Michael Dorsey (Dustin Hoffman) in 1982's "Tootsie" is extra large---I saw him three years ago in "Glen Garry Glen Ross" in New Jersey and he was big as life. He was born in 1923, which makes him 83 now.

[AtlasD]

Winston Churchill was fat, drank, smoked cigars and lived to be 90. Euell Gibbons was thin, ate sticks and pine cones, and died at 64.

[Emi]

B.B. King (http://www.bbking.com) is 81 or so and hes awesome. I read on wikipedia that he's a vegetarian (me too) and doesn't smoke or drink. I wonder how many of us fat vegetarians there are out there? Prolly a lot more than most people would assume.

[Adrian]

Speaking of BB King, has anyone ever noticed that in the urban areas where most African American families live, have BBW matriarhs! If being a BBW is so unhealthy why is it she outlives most of her family?

Adrian

[pani]

http://pages.interlog.com/~gilgames/liliuo.htm

The last queen of Hawaii, Queen Liliuokalani lived to be 79 and I have read
she weighed over 200lbs. That was quite a long life back then, considering
all the heartache she had to endure. Thought we needed something to balance the coming barage of antifat marketing.

[Wayne_Zitkus]

My Aunt Willie spent most of her adult life between 300 and 400 pounds and was very mobile up to the end. She sufferred a massive stroke and died at a new restaurant she and my uncle were trying for the first time. She was 73.

My mother was very weight-conscious and was probably around 100 pounds when she died at 72.

[pani]

Australia!!!

As Sandy Swarc pointed out in her excellent blog, Australia has one of the
highest longevity rates in the world:
78.5 for males, 83.3 for females. For men, only Honk Kong and Iceland are higher, for women only Hong Kong and Japan.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070108/ts_nm/australia_life_dc

Australia is also one of the fattest nations in the world, or so the hype goes.
In fact, the second paragraph in this linked article claims Australia has overtaken the U.S. as fattest nation:

http://www.katelundy.com.au/obesity.htm

Granted, crude statistics are a very poor way of proving a point. There are countless other factors that come into play. But if fatness is really as deadly as this unfortunate Kate Lundy is whining about, how come Australians are living so long? Something just doesn't add up!!! (Other than the creative accounting of politicians and BigPharma!)

[ashmamma84]

All of my family ranges from chubby to supersize, with the exception of two or three people. My paternal Grandmother is 85 years of age - doesn't look it at all, and about 275 lbs. She loves a good homemade meal (she's a southern woman) and turns her nose up at all 'that diet stuff'.

My maternal grandmother was a chubby woman (about a size 16 or so) - she died at the age of 79. Not because she was overweight, she had Alzheimer's for about 10 years.

My father's side has great genes as far as age is concerned - they live long, regardless of how fat they are.

[pani]

Since there was a recent thread about fat and longevity, I though I would revisit this thread. I don't know how I forgot about Mary Kay Ash, BBW who lived to 83. I couldn't find a link with a good photo, although I am sure one exists since she was a cosmetics queen!

[TheSadeianLinguist]

My grandfather is in his mid 80's and fat. And he's alive. I don't know how fat, but above 260 but below 300 at about 6'.

[TheSadeianLinguist]

My Aunt Willie spent most of her adult life between 300 and 400 pounds and was very mobile up to the end. She sufferred a massive stroke and died at a new restaurant she and my uncle were trying for the first time. She was 73.

Actually, dropping dead after a healthy life like that probably was a pretty good way to go. Hope we're all that lucky!

[EtobicokeFA]

Most on my family where fat and lived into their 90's.

By the way, I thought I remember Inside Edition, was doing a article on a retirement home that was full of fat people, anybody heard about it?

[lemmink]

I always thought it was the position of abdominal fat - like if it was pressing on the organs, or if it was just soft fat on top. Can't remember but I think there was another thread on that.

[pani]

O.K. I kind of stole this entry from celebs who inspire us.
The Borden Twins. Probably best known for Teensy and
Weensy on I Love Lucy. The part itself wasn't exactly fat flattering,
but apparently Lucy wrote them in because she worked with
them before and admired their professionalism. They were both
ardent AIDS activists as well. Roz passed away at 71 of liver
disease. Marilyn is 75 and still with us.

http://www.thebordentwins.com/us.htm

[pani]

The late great Speaker of the House, Tip O'Neill - 82

http://www.ehistorybuff.com/tiponeilbk5.html

[ExpandingHorizons]

my grandma was a fat lady and she had a stroke in mid 80s and she passed away when she was 88 years old. that's a good long life she had there. it was my dad's mom. she is a strong jewish lady, too.

[pani]

Fats Domino just had his 80th birthday!!!

http://www.starpulse.com/Music/Domino,_Fats/

[Neen]

My grandma lived to be 89. She was never a small woman, but 'hefty'. Around 5ft6 in heigh. She did have diabetes, but never took insulin...married to my grandpa for 55 years. When she died in 2003, he died one year later to the DAY. He was 95 but super skinny. I'm greek so i have the long life genes.. garlic and olive oil.. and you'll live forever!

[Fatgirlfan]

Did any mention Mary Kady Stanton? She was a famous and promanant women's right activist and a friend of Susan B. Anthony. She was was short and fat, she weighed about 285 and lived to be 87. Her lifespan was much longer than the average woman of her time. SHe died in 1915.

[Fatgirlfan]

Well shit, I see that someone did mention Mary Kady Stanton. She was proud of her size, she liked the fact that she gained weight as she got older.
She did wald with a cane at the end of her life.

[lypeaches]

B.B. King (http://www.bbking.com) is 81 or so and hes awesome. I read on wikipedia that he's a vegetarian (me too) and doesn't smoke or drink. I wonder how many of us fat vegetarians there are out there? Prolly a lot more than most people would assume.

I hear ya...I grew up going to a church where the whole congregation was vegetarian, and there were plenty of fat people there, including myself. I always laugh at people who suggest going vegetarian to lose weight. Vegan, maybe...

Anyway...I'm still formulating my ideas on health, weight and life expectancy, but my preliminary conclusion is: it's pointless to think that anything you can do will extend your life. The only reason to make lifestyle changes is with the goal of feeling better in the here and now. I was reminded of this a while back when two window washers fell 47 stories from a building here in NYC. You would think they'd both be dead, but no, one of them lived. Any reasonable person would think he should be dead as well. So, I believe that "your time to go" is rather out of your control. Someone or something else picks that time for you. I think that one of my jobs in life is to love myself...and sometimes that will mean swimming laps for an hour, and sometimes that will mean having a bowl of ice cream. They each bring me pleasure.

Like I said, I'm still formulating my own theory on this...don't want to entirely derail the thread, but welcome any thoughts.

As for my grandparents, there are no conclusions to be drawn there. 2 were chubby, and two were thin. One of each died in their 70's, and the other two in their 90's.

[pani]

The former Dodger manager is 81. Yes, he did lose weight during his gig with ultra slim fast, but he regained it back as everyone else I have ever met who lost weight that way. He was heavy for much of his adult life.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Lasorda

p.s. How very sad about his son

p.p.s LYPeaches - Oh but your grandparents stats are of interest to us. Pop culture tells us only thin people live to a ripe old age and fat people die early. That one of each lived a moderately long life and one of each lived a very long life tells us there is so much more to it than weight.

[pdgujer148]

Both of my grandmothers were fat.

My maternal grandmother weighed about 200 pounds and died at 92. My paternal grandmother was supersized until her 70s and lived to 91.

[largenlovely]

My piano teacher was around 600 pounds and died when she was around 86 i believe it was...My gramma is a good 275 pounds and she's 76 years old and still kickin' :) My dad had an Aunt who was around 300's somewhere and she was in her late 70's when she died....lots of fatties living long healthy lives :)

[BigBeautifulMe]

My now 90-year-old grandmother was about 225 most of her life. I very much believe that there are few truly fat old people because - guess what? - we lost our sense of taste and our appetites as we age. Therefore, people lose. My grandmother is an excellent example of this. She's lost a significant amount of weight, which her doctor is actually UNhappy about, because past a certain age, even docs think weight loss is not good. Of course, my grandmother is thrilled that she fits into smaller pants, so wears skin-tight pants in tinier sizes. :doh: She always was very eating-disordered though.

[pani]

Jane Darwell, perhaps best known for Ma Joad in Grapes of Wrath. She lived to be 87!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Darwell



Cuban musician Israel "Cachoa" Lopez. This is a recent photo, but in previous photos, he
looked to be heavy set for a long period in his life. He lived to be 89!

http://tinyurl.com/7lm9en