MCAT, GPA, and...BMI?!

[Tiger26]

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Never been obese, but I saw my brother lose 100 lbs through diet and exercise, and I've gotta say that you can't have morbidly obese people lecturing their patients about having the discipline to lose weight. It's like having high school teachers lecture about anatomy or path--you've gotta be able to back that stuff up. And with the not being able to physically move to a code, at that point you're just endangering the safety of your patients.

 

[makshim]

For me this is based on the completely anecdotal experience of working with some truly workaholic overweight people. Not saying all workaholics are overweight, but I don't think there's any correlation between being overweight and being a lazy employee or student, which is what the above poster was arguing.

Also, there is some genetic component of obesity. My first year in college, I ate more in general and more junk food than my roommate, and we both got about the same amount of exercise. However, I wasn't overweight, and she was. If you've lived with someone like that, it makes it clear that something else is going on that makes it harder for some people to keep weight off.

I'm not saying ALL fat people are lazy or that all lazy people are fat. But I think even you would agree that it wouldn't be that much of a stretch to assume that this trait is more prevalent in the obese population.

 

[Kfire326]

That's hilarious! I'll have to remember how "overworked" fat people are next time I go to Walmart and see them puttering around on the little scooter things.

Fat people are fat because they eat too many calories and don't exercise enough. It's not "genetic" (that's just stupid), and it's not because they're "too busy" to take care of themselves (if I can drag my ass to the gym 4x a week, anyone can). It's energy intake versus energy expenditure, simple as that.

Yea fine, this does apply to people in walmart on their scooters...but as a pre-med/med student, most of the work you do is sitting down to study/read/do homework/write up something/whatever else/procrastinate on SDN...And if you ask those people if they think they're working hard, I bet they'll say yes. I would.

 

[bubabugster]

Wow- why are people making fun of obese people? If somebody is obese, it is their own personal problem. I understand making comments about how being overweight is unhealthy, but lots of people here are just making fun of overweight people and stereotyping. As med students, shouldn't you have some sort of compassion for others? You can't run off making assumptions that fat people are lazy and don't want to work-out. Also, in countries where people don't eat as much junk food (McDonalds, Jack in the Box etc.), you don't see the type of obesity as in the U.S. I mean, there are sooo many growth hormones in the meat that screw up with the kids metabolism. Then, the kids start to develop at faster rates and gain excessive weight. The people who do anything to make a buck off of somebody's health should be the ones that are humiliated, not the people that ended up suffering from the end result. Often, horrible eating patterns develop early in children, whose parents are either unaware of the consequences or are maybe socioeconmically disadvantaged and live off of cheap food. Bottom line: whether somebody is fat or not does not give anyone the right to judge or make fun of a given physical characteristic.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Wow- why are people making fun of obese people? If somebody is obese, it is their own personal problem. I understand making comments about how being overweight is unhealthy, but lots of people here are just making fun of overweight people and stereotyping. As med students, shouldn't you have some sort of compassion for others? You can't run off making assumptions that fat people are lazy and don't want to work-out. Also, in countries where people don't eat as much junk food (McDonalds, Jack in the Box etc.), you don't see the type of obesity as in the U.S. I mean, there are sooo many growth hormones in the meat that screw up with the kids metabolism. Then, the kids start to develop at faster rates and gain excessive weight. The people who do anything to make a buck off of somebody's health should be the ones that are humiliated, not the people that ended up suffering from the end result. Often, horrible eating patterns develop early in children, whose parents are either unaware of the consequences or are maybe socioeconmically disadvantaged and live off of cheap food. Bottom line: whether somebody is fat or not does not give anyone the right to judge or make fun of a given physical characteristic.

I agree and am questioning the good sense of the op in posting this as a joke. It's sort of like posting a joke about URMs in pre-allo -- you know it's just going to produce a lot of ugliness.

Yeah, it is telling how some of the posters here are falling into all the most blatant stereotypes about overweight/obese people.

 

[Tired]

Yea fine, this does apply to people in walmart on their scooters...but as a pre-med/med student, most of the work you do is sitting down to study/read/do homework/write up something/whatever else/procrastinate on SDN...And if you ask those people if they think they're working hard, I bet they'll say yes. I would.

Did you even follow this thread? The contention was that supposedly people get obese because they are "too overworked" to take care of themselves. By your rationale, I should be enormous, as should the rest of SDN.

 

[pagemmapants]

That is very true. Prior to my starting to weight lift this year I was right at the edge of being underweight according to the BMI, but my body fat percentage the last time I had it checked was 27%, which is just above the normal female range of 15 to 25%. They really should use body fat percentage instead of BMI, but I understand that it is more complicated if you are doing a quick screen (and you can't do it yourself).

Plus they don't teach you how to do the caliper training in med school anymore. Gotta go to Phys Trainer school for that.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Did you even follow this thread? The contention was that supposedly people get obese because they are "too overworked" to take care of themselves. By your rationale, I should be enormous, as should the rest of SDN.

So quick question not about the causes of obesity in the US -- do you think that obese people aren't usually in med school because they're too lazy to do the work necessary to get admitted? That was posited earlier in this thread, and yes I think that's classical discriminatory stereotyping that obese people face.

Anyway, don't know why I'm playing into this. The op's a troll (read his post history), and I wish the mods would just lock this thread.

 

[Tired]

So quick question not about the causes of obesity in the US -- do you think that obese people aren't usually in med school because they're too lazy to do the work necessary to get admitted? That was posited earlier in this thread, and yes I think that's classical discriminatory stereotyping that obese people face.

I have no idea, to be honest with you. I don't have any obese students in my class, and I have yet to see one walking around my school. This does suggest to me an active discrimination, however, I also did not see any obese students when I was interviewing various places (admittedly there weren't many), which would be the first time the schools would be able to tell if a person were that large.

I do think that if you're going to accuse schools of discrimination, you ought to have a little more evidence than "I don't see many overweight med students."

 

[Bubb Rubb]

He/she does not feel competitive enough to try radiology, and also balks at the sedentary lifestyle and at sitting in a dark room all day.

from your description i wouldn't have guessed that his/her would object to being sedentary...

 

[babycapybara]

If part of the requirement for a specialty is to be able to move quickly and maneuver in tight spaces, then I don't think someone who can't do this (be they fat or for some other reason..an amputee?) should consider the specialty. On the other hand, I do think that obese or ex-obese doctors could offer a better perspective when giving advice to patients. If I were obese, and a skinny athletic doctor, who had never had a weight problem were giving me advice, I would feel annoyed.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

So getting back to makshim's proposition that obese people aren't in med school because the laziness (questionable hypothesis but I'll go with it) that caused them to be obese is all-consuming and leads to laziness in pursuit of all life goals. Consequently, obese people are just lazy and unable to do the work required to get admitted to medical school. Okay, my house has paper all over the floor, and I hate to clean. That's laziness right there in cleaning my house. Are messy people unable to gain admission to med school because we're too lazy to do the work necessary to get in? I know for me that's definitely untrue, and I've met lots of messy med students and doctors. Why is it logical to globalize the laziness of obese people to every facet of their life yet it's not for messy people?

As for discrimination, it's pretty accepted that interviewers and people in general assign positive traits to people who are attractive and negative traits to people who aren't. I would be shocked to find out that med school admissions weren't discriminatory against people deemed unattractive by society for reasons like obesity or anything else. It's not willful or intentional discrimination (or maybe it is in some cases), but it's likely that your interviewer is going to like you a little less if they don't like how you look. That's just basic human nature.

 

[45408]

There are no obese people in my med school class. I always wondered at what stage in the process they were weeded out.

hmmm, we've got a few in my class. I always wondered what they were thinking as the anatomy lab table next to them is going "Ooooh, look at all this nasty fat! it's yellow and slimy."

 

[Ashers]

hmmm, we've got a few in my class. I always wondered what they were thinking as the anatomy lab table next to them is going "Ooooh, look at all this nasty fat! it's yellow and slimy."

My class too. I'm no where near one of the skinniest people in my class, to be fair. Lecturers also constantly say that the typical Cushing's patient looks like a lot of people in Wisconsin.

 

[45408]

I'm no where near one of the skinniest people in my class, to be fair.

But you are pretty. 😍

Lecturers also constantly say that the typical Cushing's patient looks like a lot of people in Wisconsin.

 

[Ashers]

But you are pretty. 😍

Thanks, though.

 

[naegleria brain]

this damn thread. i've noticed that the medical school class is actually quite good looking. theyre not models (those idiotic bimbos ***** themselves for jobs elsewhere) but the vast majority i think are above average.

maybe its the age when men/women are at their highest level of attractiveness, thus making them more attractive than the general population, or there really is a weeding out process.

people just turn fat. stress causes fat buildup. not having time to exercise. not having time to shop for carrots so you opt for pizza instead. i've done this countless times and was blessed with an amazingly fast metabolism (albeit the oxidative damage will probably kill me 20 years too early). perhaps obese people don't have the work ethic to get in here, but i'd think the people in here lead lives that could lead to obesity given the inherent stress involved.

then again, the vast majority of us also can be found in the gym throughout various points in the day.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

people just turn fat. stress causes fat buildup. not having time to exercise. not having time to shop for carrots so you opt for pizza instead. i've done this countless times and was blessed with an amazingly fast metabolism (albeit the oxidative damage will probably kill me 20 years too early). perhaps obese people don't have the work ethic to get in here, but i'd think the people in here lead lives that could lead to obesity given the inherent stress involved.

Which is why there's lots of fat doctors out there. But wait how could that be -- all fat people are lazy, so how could they have the work ethic to get into med school? 🙄

 

[naegleria brain]

Which is why there's lots of fat doctors out there. But wait how could that be -- all fat people are lazy, so how could they have the work ethic to get into med school? 🙄

yeah i'm saying it goes both ways.
i'm a very stereotypical person if it makes sense. i'll purport the logic passionately. e.g. women in trauma surgery, neurosurgery, etc. there are plenty of reasons why they don't enter (lifestyle, not being able to get married/have kids, etc. that men can give up with more ease than women, but that's another thread), but the fat thing i think there are too many confounding factors.

i'm sure there are fat people who are just too lazy but that doesn't necessarily extend into their work ethic. there are plenty of fat people i've worked with who are very hard workers but are too lazy to get to the gym. physical laziness and work laziness are two completely different things and can't be mixed together, and aren't necessarily correlated with each other so a generalization wouldnt be fair.

some people are just fat from a metabolic problem, but i'm assuming youre exclusing that population from this discussion, as its not nearly as prevalent as obesity in this country.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

i'm sure there are fat people who are just too lazy but that doesn't necessarily extend into their work ethic. there are plenty of fat people i've worked with who are very hard workers but are too lazy to get to the gym. physical laziness and work laziness are two completely different things and can't be mixed together, and aren't necessarily correlated with each other so a generalization wouldnt be fair.

some people are just fat from a metabolic problem, but i'm assuming youre exclusing that population from this discussion, as its not nearly as prevalent as obesity in this country.

Well, the genetics/metabolic argument is whole other can of worms that has been discussed extensively on SDN, and it's a discussion where no progress is ever made. Mainly, I'm interested here in debunking makshim's idiotic stereotyping showing a pretty common cultural belief that obese people are just plain lazy in all aspects of their lives.

 

[45408]

maybe its the age when men/women are at their highest level of attractiveness, thus making them more attractive than the general population, or there really is a weeding out process.

Cha-ching. To the first one anyways. I always feel kind of sad when I walk around the hospital, and I see a significant dearth of attractive people. Then I wander back towards the med school and see lots of them. And then I head back to my undergrad and see even more of them. Then you head to the beach, and it's like hotness was on sale at Wal-mart. Fat and wrinkles tend to accumulate with age.

 

[evade]

Wow- why are people making fun of obese people? If somebody is obese, it is their own personal problem. I understand making comments about how being overweight is unhealthy, but lots of people here are just making fun of overweight people and stereotyping. As med students, shouldn't you have some sort of compassion for others? You can't run off making assumptions that fat people are lazy and don't want to work-out. Also, in countries where people don't eat as much junk food (McDonalds, Jack in the Box etc.), you don't see the type of obesity as in the U.S. I mean, there are sooo many growth hormones in the meat that screw up with the kids metabolism. Then, the kids start to develop at faster rates and gain excessive weight. The people who do anything to make a buck off of somebody's health should be the ones that are humiliated, not the people that ended up suffering from the end result. Often, horrible eating patterns develop early in children, whose parents are either unaware of the consequences or are maybe socioeconmically disadvantaged and live off of cheap food. Bottom line: whether somebody is fat or not does not give anyone the right to judge or make fun of a given physical characteristic.

👍 😍 👍

There are so many factors that go into a person's weight, and it's impossibly stupid to judge them based on your own assumptions. No, it's not just "in the genes," but that is a contributing factor. More important is the environment in which we live (particularly for the disadvantaged), not to mention some degree of psychopathology, particularly in the very obese. I do believe it's possible to be addicted to food, and I do believe this addiction should be treated like any other: not with shaming and judgment, but with compassion and assistance. To a lesser degree, many people use food as a coping mechanism (myself included), which should also be recognized.

Bubabugster, your attitude will serve you well in medicine. Glad you'll be joining us at UCD this fall. 🙂

 

[NCF145]

Couldn't get the video to post on the site. Anyways, here is the link
Family Guy - Fat Kid

 

[AuburnPreVet]

It doesn't seem to be a stetch that those who apply for admissions to programs of med school caliber tend to have relatively high perception of their self-worth - and extremely obese people tend to have somewhat lower self-esteem as a whole.... thus, they may tend to go for more "average" positions/schooling?

I didn't read the whole thread, so - forgive me if this has already been discussed. I'll go back to the vet forums now... 🙂

 

[monkeydo]

stop eating, fatty!

Just a thought... Obesity is a health problem, and whether it's genetics or lifestyle, weight is obviously something that some people have difficulty controlling. There is some evidence to suggest that obesity might result from an addiction to food. Would you have issues with medical schools taking in students with obsessive compulsive disorder or other health problems? If the person can still perform the duties of a physician, it shouldn't matter what health problems he or she has.

And seeing as we're all eventually going to be responsible for the health of others, maybe we should start changing our perceptions of the obese from saying things like "stop eating, fatty" to showing compassion and trying to understand what is causing their problems and how they can be helped.

 

[JDovers]

And seeing as we're all eventually going to be responsible for the health of others, maybe we should start changing our perceptions of the obese from saying things like "stop eating, fatty" to showing compassion and trying to understand what is causing their problems and how they can be helped.

I'm with this guy.

 

[blues91776]

Obesity isn't a simple matter. Just because you think you know how it works for you doesn't mean you can universalize it with everyone else.

My diet as a college student is terrible. I hardly exercise and can't remember the last time I played a sports activity till I made a drop of sweat. I'm so thin, my ass hurts when sitting on a hard surface for too long. And I've been trying to gain weight. One time I got kind of excited when my weight was increasing over 2 weeks during the summer but it suddenly dropped back down. I doubt everyone can relate to me.

In several other countries, the more plump people are, the more attractive. Sometimes, I can understand why.

 

[crimsonkid85]

i used to be fat. then i decided that i wanted to be hotter, and went on the apple a day (keeps the doctor away!) diet till i lost 25 lbs. then i started working out, and now i try to keep up with it as much as possible. ok that was a non-sequiter.

but aside from all this---I think that fat people should be taxed or something to compensate for the fact that they use up more resources than thin people. I never understood why I should pay the same price for a small or X-small t-shirt as the same XXXL t-shirt! I mean, the XXXL t-shirt uses like three times as much the cloth! WTF!