Bestselling author dismantles myths about fatness in latest book

Stephanie Sy:

Aubrey Gordon`s second book, "You Just Need to Lose Weight": And 19 Other Myths About Fat People`we`ve scientific research, cultural analysis, and Gordon`s own personal experiences into a handbook for people she writes are, quote, struggling to interrupt moments of anti-fatness in their lives.

Aubrey Gordon joins me now thank you so much for being with us. Right off the bat, I am just so uncomfortable using the word fat. It feels unkind to say. But one of the first things you write in your new book is that fat is a neutral descriptor primarily for plus size people. Explain why you`d rather that descriptor be used than ones that are less fraught.

Aubrey Gordon, Author and Podcaster: I totally understand that many folks are uncomfortable with the word fat, most of us have learned that that is an unkind word to use. And what that means for me in my daily life as a fat person is that anytime I reference my size, what ends up happening is that most people correct me and will say no, no, no, no, no, you`re not fat, you`re beautiful, or you`re not fat, you`re fun, or you`re not fat, you`re smart, which is like very revealing of sort of the biases that we attach to the word fat and our ideas about fat people.

Some of the more sort of, quote unquote, neutral words that folks will use are words like obese, which the Latin origin of that term is to have eaten oneself fat, right? So it`s already sort of presuming you`re here because of gluttony. You`re here because you couldn`t control yourself. So for me, personally, I just prefer the word fat, it`s very straightforward.

And again, everybody gets to use whatever words they want for their own bodies. For me, that`s mine.

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