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Body Size - No Body's Perfect
Author: Peggy Hoehne
Published on: July 7, 2004
No one has a perfect body. Not the top fashion models, not Britney Spears, not Hilary Duff, Jennifer Lopez,
Tyra Banks, not Brad Pitt, Patrick Swayze, Orlando Bloom or Will Smith.
But most of us, all those
of us whose bodies work the way they're supposed to, have normal bodies. As long as our arms & legs work, all essential
organs work & we're able to do our jobs effectively, we have normal bodies.
All of these normal bodies
differ in details. Some are short – 4 foot 9 inches, some tall – 7-foot 5 inches. Some are thin – 80 pounds,
some are fat – 400 pounds. There all kind of combinations: short & thin, short & fat, tall & thin, tall
& fat.
There are even some that are
average – the median height for a white woman in America at age 30 is 5-foot 4 ˝-inches & her weight 135 pounds
(64 kg). The median height for a white male in America at age 30 is 5-foot 10-inches & his weight is 173 pounds (78 kg).
Do even the average people
think they're perfect? No. Their bottom is too big, their breasts are too small, their thighs are too heavy, their calves
are too thin, their shoulders are too narrow, their chest too sunken, their legs too skinny, their belly too round. No one is perfect.
How do we deal w/all of these
various body shapes & sizes? Some people resort to cosmetic surgery, some use diet & physical workouts to define the
good & reduce the “so-called” bad. Most of us use clothing to try to look more like the norm we strive for.
The right clothing can make
us appear taller, shorter, bigger, or smaller. The most important thing many of us want clothing to do for us is to fit us
well & attractively. We truly feel this isn't asking too much of the clothing manufacturers, but we rarely can find good
fitting clothing.
Those of us who fall outside
the norm have other concerns as well. We face issues of comfort, accessibility & safety that those whose body size falls within
the norm have never considered.
Have you ever tried to reach
a switch or sit in a chair w/your feet reaching the floor, but being unable to do so because you're too short? Have you discovered no hotels have beds long enough & few cars have enough headroom because you're taller than the norm?
Is it hard to find clothes
appropriate to your age, because everything in your size is made for a pre-adolescent or your grandmother / grandfather?
Have you ever ridden in a
car with a safety belt that wouldn't go around you?
Dieting, anorexia & bulimia & other eating disorders affect people of all sizes. Illegal steroid use is becoming a major problem among athletes the world over. It isn't just among Olympic athletes or professional athletes,
but with high school & college age athletes who are told they need to bulk up to make the team
Some jobs are won or lost
because of body size. If you're in the public eye you may be warned not to gain weight or you'll lose your position. For other
jobs, you needn't even bother to apply if you do not fit the desired body size. Stewardesses & TV anchor persons are some we hear about often in regard to this issue.
People who don't fall into
the “normal” body size range sometimes have difficulty getting or keeping their jobs. Employers will not say they
are biased against any particular body size, but your qualifications can be excellent & the job will go to someone within
the “normal” range.
Have you tried to obtain health
insurance if you're outside the norm? Believe me, insurance companies blatantly discriminate against body sizes outside of
their norm charts. They may have some very good reasons for not wanting to insure some of us.
Many overweight people can't
use the seat belts in their cars unless they get an extender. Because they're nearer the steering wheel, they are much closer
to the airbag when it goes off. This means, if they are in an accident they are much more likely to be seriously injured.
Overweight people often find
they can't find a comfortable chair in a restaurant or other public place. Everything is sized for much smaller people. They don't fit in the seats at the movie
theaters or in airplanes.
They also don’t fit
the seats & safety restraints at amusement parks. This spring there
was an incident at one nationally known amusement park where an employee allowed an overweight man to go on the ride even
though the safety bar wouldn't latch. He was thrown from the ride &
killed.
Some short people may not
be able to go on some of the rides either. Many have a minimum height limit. If you don't meet the height requirements, you can't go on the ride. This is, of course, a safety issue;
but explain that to the 20 year old girl who can't accompany her friends because she is shorter than most 10 year olds.
If you're too thin you may
slide under the safety bars. If you're too tall you may hit your head
on some rides. There are some amusement parks whose seats & restraints are sized to fit many more of us.
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