Did you know that obesity is considered a disability?

Question

Did you know that substance abuse (drugs & alcohol) was considered a disability?

My professor told me that both are true. Also, when I was living in New York, the doctors declared my obesity as a disability.

Answer 1

Yep. It surprised me, too when I first learned that most of the money spent that should go to people with real disabilities actually goes to help drug addicts.

I learned it in one of my undergraduate classes on children with disabilities and the accommodations that were reasonable and necessary. It makes me sick to think that a drug addict is taking funding away from a child born with blindness' education.

Answer 2

That is true in some--but not all--cases.

Severe obesity--particularly if caused by a medical condition--is considered a disability. But the majority of people who are technically "obese" are not considered disabled.

And strictly speeking, substanceabuse is not considered a disability. Rather, the law (the Americans with Disabilities Act) specifically says that anyone abusing drugs may NOT be considered disabled. A person who has STOPPED abusing but who experiences problems as a result can be considered disabled--but only if he/she does not again start using.

Answer 3

I knew about the substance abuse being a disability. Obesity should be considered one too. I am sure we have all known people who eat less than we do and are very obese. Either from medication or other health issues. It is an epidemic and IS a disability.

Be prepared to be slammed with people criticizing this being called a disability.

Answer 4

Well said, crabby_blindguy.
"My professor told me that both are true" - so it must be true? Not doubting what he said but I want to ask you - is he/she a specialist in medicine or disability?

Obesity is a CONDITION - and it may, and usually DOES lead to a disability. A condition becomes a disability when that condition causes you to be unable to perform normal daily activity or unable to function within what is considered the norm in society.

It is becoming fashionable to brand a condition as a disability because it give the person the "power" or the "right" to ask for assistance and support.

To give you an example of what I am trying to say:
In my line of work, some parents ask me for respite support, extra money for childcare, specialist support workers - for their child who has Down's Syndrome. Their argument is "he has Down's symdrome - so I need respite!" The fact is that the child, while he HAS Down's syndrome, he would be described as "very high-functioning" child, can self-care, no need for assistance when toileting, can speak and communicate his wants fairly well, goes to normal school, physically active, has brothers and sistes who treat him like any other kids and display NO challenging behaviour whatsoever.
Now.... for what he is and the age he is - he can easily be supervised by ANY normal baby sitter. But because he has Down's Syndrome - he is seen as "disabled" and people then use this "right" to demand extra services (espedially because these services are virtually FREE!)

I am NOT doubting that you have a condition and that you may need assistance but - - - Don't confuse a CONDITION with a DISABILITY.

Answer 5

in the uk they say they will refuse some medical services to people who are obese on the nhs. if this is right then surely its discrimination and exclusion against someone with a disability.

Answer 6

i was going ot give an answer but crabby blind guy gave the right one already. being 250lb is not disability being 600 lb maybe. if it was a disability airlines could not charge extra for a 2nd seat like america west does.

Answer 7

Acccording to the ADA it is considered a disability.

Answer 8

yes

Answer 9

I knew that it was just a matter of time for that!

Answer 10

Well I dont know about the definition of disability as put forwards here, as it being a "blanket acceptance" for people with Downs Syndrome. I found this on a site: link below, so it doesnt really look as if it is as cut and dry as some people think it is.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments for children with disabilities
SSI makes monthly payments to people with low income and limited resources who are 65 or older, or blind or disabled. Your child under age 18 can qualify if he or she meets Social Security’s definition of disability for children, and if his or her income and resources fall within the eligibility limits. The amount of the SSI payment is different from one state to another because some states add to the SSI payment. Your local Social Security office can tell you more about your state’s total SSI payment.

SSI rules about income and resources
When we decide if your child can get SSI, we consider your child’s income and resources. We also consider the income and resources of family members living in the child’s household. These rules apply if your child lives at home. They also apply if he or she is away at school but returns home from time to time and is subject to your control.

If your child’s income and resources, or the income and resources of family members living in the child’s household, are more than the amount allowed, we will deny the child’s application for SSI payments.

We limit the monthly SSI payment to $30 when a child is in a medical facility where health insurance pays for his or her care.

SSI rules about disability
Your child must meet all of the following requirements to be considered disabled and therefore eligible for SSI:

The child must not be working and earning more than $900 a month in 2007. (This earnings amount changes every year.) If he or she is working and earning that much money, we will find that your child is not disabled.
The child must have a physical or mental condition, or a combination of conditions, that results in “marked and severe functional limitations.” This means that the condition(s) must very seriously limit your child’s activities.
The child’s condition(s) must have lasted, or be expected to last, at least 12 months; or must be expected to result in death.
If your child’s condition(s) results in “marked and severe functional limitations” for at least 12 continuous months, we will find that your child is disabled. But if it does not result in those limitations, or does not last for at least 12 months, we will find that your child is not disabled.

and

It can take three to five months for the state agency to decide if your child is disabled. However, we consider certain medical conditions so limiting that we expect any one of them to disable a child. In these cases, we make SSI payments right away and for up to six months while the state agency decides if your child is disabled.

Following are some of those conditions:

HIV infection
Total blindness
Total deafness
Cerebral palsy
Down syndrome
Muscular dystrophy
Severe mental retardation (child age 7 or older)
Birth weight below two pounds, 10 ounces
If your child has one of the limiting conditions that is expected to disable a child, he or she will get SSI payments right away.

However, the state agency may finally decide that your child’s disability is not severe enough for SSI. If that happens, you will not have to pay back the SSI payments that your child got.

I have searched all over the internet for morbid obesity, and although thyroid problems can cause it, it is treatable, the general consensus is eating too much, not getting enough exercise.

There is no real proof that it is genetic and researchers feel its more a matter of the life style and choices passed on by obese parents that contribute to child obesity, the child then grows into an adult who also suffers from obesity. How can one twin be obese and the other not? They share the same genetic makeup

Also found some research refering to mental problems found in obese people. I can buy into that because who in their right mind eats themselves into 650 lbs ? Sorry dont mean to offend anyone here.

I dont agree with most obese people being considered disabled, yes the condition CAN lead to back problems, diabetes, heart problems but in MOST of the cases, they have a choice - stop eating, get some exercise.

I didnt have a choice as to whether or not I wanted to be disabled. I wouldnt have chosen it if I did have.

The costs to the Amercian health system is enormous because the obesity problem is growing rapidly. STOP stuffing your kids and get outside and play with them, DO something, DONT sit in front of the TV and shovel in crappy, high calorie, sugar laden crap. How many sodas does the average American family consume per month?

American consumption of soft drinks including carbonated beverages, fruit juice and sports drinks increased by 500 percent in the past 50 years.

Americans drank more than 53 gallons of soft drinks per person in 2000. This amount surpassed all other beverages. One of every four beverages consumed today is a soft drink, which means other, more nutritious beverages are being displaced from the diet.

* Today, one fifth of all 1- to 2-year-old children drink soda pop and teens drink twice as much soda as milk as opposed to 20 years ago when they drank twice as much milk as soda.

* A bottle of pop in the 1950s was 6.5 ounces. Today, a 12-ounce can is standard and a 20-ounce bottle is common. Larger container sizes mean more calories, more sugar and more acid in a single serving.

* In regular pop, all the calories come from sugar. Soda pop is America's single biggest source of refined sugar.

* In addition to cavities, heavy pop consumption has been linked to diabetes, obesity, kidney stones, heart disease and osteoporosis.

White refined sugar, extracted from the sugar beet or sugarcane, is the prime example and the most used of these destructive sweeteners. Most things are tolerated in sensible quantities but the desire for sweet tastes has generated an excessive use by the food industry and by ourselves. There are literally tablespoonfuls of sugar in a can of soda pop. It is present in most of the aforementioned condiments, in baby foods, and in most pastries, candies, cookies, other baked goods, and syrups and jellies. The excessive use of sugar can deplete certain vitamins and minerals that are needed to metabolize it, and its use has been associated with dental caries, pyorrhea, diabetes, hypoglycemia, obesity, nervous system disorders, and mental illness. Obesity and diabetes are associated further with increases in atherosclerosis, heart disease, nerve disease, and cancer

Want to know where all those obese people and ADHD or Autistic kids are coming from? Check the rise in soda consumption against the rise in these condtions being diagnosed.

I refer to American people because these are American statistics, certain areas of Canada have more than their fair share of obese people. Which leads me BACK to the theory that it is parental choices and lifestyles that lead to obese children, Its a vicious cycle.