Whether hurtful comments from family members or getting fired for being too fat, organizers of what is being billed as the first Canadian summit on weight discrimination, to be held Monday in Toronto, say stigma against the obese is pervasive and growing and that the “war” on obesity has become so laden with moral overtones, “we can’t even have a rational discussion about what the causes and solutions are,” says Dr. Arya Sharma, a professor of medicine at the University of Alberta.

“The public health messages are not telling you that obesity is a consequence of depression, addiction disorders, sleep problems, stress levels and the hundreds of other reasons you can think of that are actually driving obesity,” says Sharma, scientific director of the Canadian Obesity Network.

“The stereotype is that if you are motivated enough you can do this, and if you can’t do this, you’re a failure and you need to be penalized. That is the attitude we often take in this discussion — it’s not the attitude that is supported by the science, and yet that’s the messaging you see in public health announcements,” Sharma says. “We’ve essentially said, ‘It’s your problem.'”

Toronto summit to weigh the social strains of obesity discrimination