Ok, Jase (and everyone), I came across this one today. It actually made me laugh. This one is by the Daily Telegraph but doesn't have an author which makes me suspect.



Read article.

What are your thoughts?

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I feel a poll coming on. Look at it from a medical stand point and not from a body image stand point. Meaning, if you're a size 8 you're probably not considered fat by medical standards.

Odd, all the lesbians I know are very skinny!

Well, it looks like they used self-reporting to determine both that women were lesbians and that they were overweight. What do you think the odds are that women who are willing to admit to falling into one less-than-optimally-socially-rewarded category will admit to falling into two? Versus not admitting to either?

Julie

LOL Most of the lesbians I know aren't fat either ;0)

Thats like saying all lesbians are granola dykes, love nature, hate to shave or use body care products, and abhor men!

*blinks* erm - yup all of my les friends are perfectly porportional ...but that quote is laughable

Whoa! Whoever says that obviously never watches "Workout" on Bravo or has seen Jackie Warner. I know men who would like to have a body as hard as hers. And it frequently shows the women she dates - and they aren't pudgy either.

- Jackie Warner

(I'd kill for those Abs - or maybe that would be die trying )

No no no...all lesbians ARE fat, just as all frenchmen stink of onions and garlic, all italians survive on pasta, all australians are drunken lagerlouts, all englishmen are football hooligans and all chinese people eat with chopsticks. Of course.

(Hang on, I'm just re-checking the Australian one....)

The researchers must have been short on money that month...had to research something to get some grant money? Pick on the lesbians!!! Yea they won't mind us calling them fat! lol

Hell, we get called everything else. Might as well throw 'fat' in the mix.

research can be defined as polling a group of homophobic old men and coaxing the correct information...never trust research unless you know how it was conducted by who and WHEN

lol my being over weight has nothing to do with me being a lesbian, it has to do with my lack of self control i'll still be a lesbian if i ever get skinny

if anything I'd say being a lesbian helps to burn calories *wink wink*

I do not agree with these findings.

Well, when I was sporting the hetro-lifestyle...I was a fatty! I mean fat, fat, fat. Somewhere in my early thirties, I realized that inside that fat, fat, woman was a much thinner, beautiful, energetic lesbian just dying to "come out"! I thank God everyday that I found that little lesbian inside because she is a much braver, more intelligent, more attractive, healthier woman.

I actually wonder if that is part of what is going on here. Several other studies show that women who feel "excluded from social groups" are heavier than women who feel a part of a social group. In essence they tend to comfort themselves with food if they don't have a social network to support them.

So lesbians like you guys who are out and proud and happy tend to be a healthy weight because you have that self assurance. But lesbians who are NOT out and who do not have a social support group - maybe who have parents who disapprove of them and such - turn to food for comfort. And that ends up affecting their weight.

I actually find this study very believable given the people I know. The ones who are more secure generally are more healthy weighted.

I guess that goes both ways, heterosexuals whom are heavy may feel excluded from social groups, and also find comfort in food. its hard to say cuz 2 of my gay friends are thin, 2 of my straight friends are over weight.
just woke up so if i'm off on the wrong foot i'm sorry.

Oh definitely I don't think anybody is saying "all gays are heavy" or "all straight people are thin" I think it's more that they're saying "people who feel they have social acceptance tend to be thinner - on average - than people who feel less socially accepted".

So I know many gay people who are quite loud and proud, and who are in great shape. So if anything, they help to reinforce the theory I also know many straight people who are comfort food fiends and who turn to food - not friends - when they have an issue.

I hear u Lisa, thats so true

I have been there myself. When I was down and depressed, I tended to seek comfort in food. Now I seek comfort in food for the benefit of liking food. I eat now WITH friends not INSTEAD of friends. It is no longer my crutch. A lot of it had to do with being happy in my own skin and finally learning that others opinions of me didn't matter

Jase you've come a long way, lots of luck n good things in your life will come. keep up your positive thinking.

I love the loud and proud comment. I have many a friend who out loud and proud.. even my bigger ones ;0)

Of course lesbians are fat..lol..
They don't feel the pressure of spending thousands upon thousands of dollars for implants, but lifts, tummy tucks, and liposuction, to try to keep the attention of middle aged men with wandering eyes.
(jk)
Anyway, I really believe that when people are comfortable in their relationships, they gain weight with their partner and don't feel threatened. Insecure people are always trying to fix their insides by surgically altering the outside.

When my husband and I got together, (my second marriage) we put on about 20 pounds. Twenty pounds of pure love that comes from living and enjoying life without fearing that if we don't "look" a certain way one of us is going to run off with someone else.

I mean, yes, it's good to be healthy, but I think when two people are truly in love, they feel more comfortable putting on weight around each other, and knowing that they are accepted for who they are, no matter what they look like at the moment.
Beauty is fleeting and weight, well, can be here today and gone tomorrow...it's what's on the inside that makes a relationship last...

That's a fascinating way to look at it. I'm sure we could find examples to support any point of view in this debate since we're talking about general trends and individuals are always doing their own unique thing.

In my circle, for example, the couples who are really happy are the ones who are fit together. Not because they "need to prove the love" or anything but because they actually really like doing things together - going for walks, going biking, going skiing, etc. They like to have fun together. They are in shape not because of some strange magazine fetish but because they really enjoy life.

The couples I know who are overweight are the ones who tend not to do anything - who sit watching TV which isn't really an "interactive activity". They also tend to be less engaged as a couple compared with the ones who are out "having fun together".

To make an analogy to your comment, the women who are out having fun aren't putting on makeup or doing up their hair. So they aren't 'worried about looks" which is what you are saying. But they do have an interest in doing active fun things with their partner because they truly enjoy his company. So that's a different motivation.

So that's the experience I have.

well theres one thing for sure, im a lesbian and im no where near fat!

Hi silva, welcome to the forum, hope that you enjoy your stay!
Rosie

Huh. I'm thin, and I'm a lesbian. I have to admit, though, most of the lesbians I know are overweight. I never thought it was a gay thing, just more of a Wisconsin thing. One thing I think is true is that women don't hold other women to the same sort of standards that many (not all) men hold women to in the looks/weight department. I'm gonna think on this one some more.

Sigh. Hello, forum. I'm Barbara, I'm a lesbian, and I'm pretty sure that I'd be considered "fat." I'm 5'8" and about 225 pounds. I'm also completely hot, so there you are.

Its all about being comfortable in your skin

I know with my friends my straight girlfriends are always dieting or if they're not dieting they're always saying they should be and are, overall, very weight conscious. My lesbian friends aren't at all. Weight seems to be so much less of an issue for them. Maybe thats because I'm on a small Irish scene where everyone knows everyone else so appearance is less of an issue, I dono. But either way, most of my two groups of friends would be "somewhere in between" and neither skinny or fat. Maybe because we're less concerned with staying skinny, and therefore we're more happy to report being fat?