During our class discussion today, a topic that quickly caught my attention was the causes for obesity. Although behavior, genetics, and environmental causes all play a factor in causing obesity, there is a significant cause that was not addressed. The rapid change in the human lifestyle is arguably one of the primary causes for obesity. For most of human history, the ability of the body to store fats and salts was a competitive advantage for individuals. The rarity of the occurrences in which people were able to consume fats and salts made them a crucial portion of a human diet. Therefore, individuals who were able to ingest and store fats and solids were able to live longer and produce more generations of offspring. Due to this fact, individuals who had an affinity for “unhealthy” foods had greater fitness over individuals who did not crave salts and fats.
I find this point interesting because it suggests that the recent lifestyle changes of human beings, and the rapidity of these changes, has had a significant effect on what is considered a “disability.” While, in different historical contexts, as was mentioned in the reading by LeBesco and Braziel, being able to maintain fat was considered a positive characteristic. Are there any other characteristics that might be considered a disability now that were once considered an asset to the fitness of an individual? Alternatively, maybe vice versa, are there qualities that are currently desirable that at one point were considered disabling? Furthermore, are there features that are currently disabling that one day may be considered a competitive advantage?
All of these questions support the idea that disability should be seen as a flexible continuum, if recognized at all. More radically, many of our readings argue that disability is a completely arbitrary social construct that should be terminated. I do not believe that disability is a completely social construct; there are characteristics that render an individual unable to perform a task with the same efficiency as a person without that characteristic. For example, a person with chronic fatigue syndrome will need to rest more frequently during the workday than an individual who does not have this syndrome. However, it is the way that society stigmatizes having a characteristic, such as chronic fatigue syndrome, that is disabling for individuals with the syndrome.
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I don't understand the time period from which you are pulling your first paragraph. As far as I know, craving fats and salts has never in the history of humanity been a good thing. If, perhaps, you're referring to the time-period around the 1920s, I agree that having a larger body was viewed as much more favorable. I don't, however, think that this was because the larger bodied people craved fats and salts more; I think the concept deals more with the idea that they had the food, ate it, and therefore, had larger bodies. Those who couldn't afford food (the poor) could not afford the food and couldn't eat it, and therefore, naturally had smaller, less plump bodies.
Perhaps you could provide a time period from which you're pulling your first paragraph. A source would also be nice, but a time period would suffice in helping to find a source.
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