“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Human Rights

That quote appeared on the news as I sat here pondering what I want to share with you today.

Martin Luther King, Jr. was an eloquent man with many important things to say. Although we tend to think of Civil Rights as being mostly related to racial discrimination, Civil Rights applies to everyone, regardless of race, age, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or BODY SIZE.

I think MLK’s words apply to many, many areas of our lives. My local newscaster just gave an eloquent summary of how Civil Rights are a big part of the solution to many of the ills we see in our society today, including political ones. She concluded with the statement, “Yes, we must either fight as brothers or perish as fools.” That rings true, doesn’t it?

Think about Fat Activism. How much more powerful could our voices be if fewer and fewer of us felt shame about our fat and banded together to insist upon our rights as human beings. Hmmm, that is something I need to ponder and explore – what is the difference between human rights and civil rights? (Just as a side note, that quote above reminds me of the song “Sound of Silence” by Simon and Garfunkel.)

Joint Replacement

My sister had hip replacement surgery today.

When she mentioned her plans for this in her Christmas newsletter, she found out that her husband’s stepbrother just had hip replacement surgery. I had knee replacement surgery last year, and so did the daughter of a friend of my mother. Oh, and my neighbor had hip replacement surgery, too, as well as the mother of my son’s fiancé.  I think all of us are in our 50s.

There was a time when most joint replacements were performed on either elite athletes or people over 65. So, why are joint replacements being performed at younger ages now, for ordinary people and not just athletes?

The orthopedist who diagnosed my knee arthritis told me that I was too young for knee replacement surgery. They say this because they expect the artificial joint to wear out in 20 years or less. But my thinking is that I won’t mind being in a wheelchair as much at 70 something as I would at 50 something. I think that is how many of my generation feel.

Of course, his initial recommendation was to lose weight. There was an article in the Huffington Post last May about the trend toward joint replacement at younger ages. The article states:

“Knee replacement surgeries have doubled over the last decade and more than tripled in the 45-to-64 age group, new research shows. Hips are trending that way, too. And here’s the surprise: it’s not all due to obesity. Ironically, trying to stay fit and avoid extra pounds is taking a toll on a generation that expects bad joints can be swapped out like old tires on a car.”

The article quotes researcher Elena Losina, who states that, “At most, 23 percent of the 10-year growth in total knee replacement can be explained by increasing obesity and population size.”

To me, that is maybe the most important statement in the article. I am not too pleased with the implication that people in my age group are treating joint replacement lightly, like changing tires. I don’t believe that is true at all. We just want our quality of life to be as good as possible for as long as possible. I do think it would be a good idea to conduct further research on the reasons that so many joint replacements are needed at younger ages now, though. Maybe that research could lead to learning more about how to prevent the need for joint replacement, by keeping our joints healthier and free of arthritis, regardless of our weight.

What thoughts are floating about in your head? How did you reflect on life this Martin Luther King, Jr. Day? Are you aware that it’s Healthy Weight Week? What does that make you think about.

Check out the Revolutionary Life Balance Program with Michal!

My interest in nutrition developed from the weight issues I had in my youth. My sister and I always tended to be heavier than other kids, and we were teased about it, so naturally I wanted to "fix" myself by dieting. That worked pretty well in my teenage years, but adulthood was much more challenging. I started out as a dietitian who advocated dieting, but due to my own experience with my weight and dieting, as well as my extensive study of the subject of weight management, I have become an advocate of Health at Every Size. The first fellow professional who influenced my "conversion" was Ellyn Satter, who is also a dietitian. I got my Bachelor's Degree in Dietetics in 1975, (LSU) followed by a Master's in 1981(Univ of TN), and a PhD in 1997 (Univ of TN). I have worked in longterm care, public health, and one hospital. For the last 8 years, I have been teaching at the college level. I am the proud mother of a 24 year old son, and have been single since my divorce in 1993. That is when I moved to Atlanta from Cookeville, Tennessee. I moved around a lot in my childhood due to my father's job, but my parents grew up in Texas, and that is where my roots are. I lived in Brazil for 3 years as a teenager, and one of my sisters still lives there.