It is no secret that childhood obesity is a growing issue with various solutions. Eating healthy and physical activity? Sure. Publicly humiliating a child and having them endure a rigorous calorie-counting diet? No go. The author of a controversial
Vogue article has done just that and has now come under fire for chronicling her overweight seven-year-old-daughter’s questionable weight loss regime and landing a book deal out of it.
In the article, Dara-Lynn Weiss writes of the unsettling weight-loss measures she put her daughter Bea thought after a dietitian diagnosed her as “obese” at four-foot-four and 93 pounds. Depriving little Bea of her dinner after learning that she had eaten nearly 800 calories at a school event. And banning “Pizza Fridays” at school after were quick fixes.
But the story reaches another creepy level. Weiss admits, “I have not ingested any food […] without silently launching a complicated mental algorithm about how it will affect my weight.” She asks, “Who was I to teach a little girl how to maintain a healthy weight and body image?” We’re sure her critics would agree.
The memoir however, landed her a deal with Random House (the forthcoming book will be called
The Heavy). The book’s publisher describes it as “an experience that epitomizes the modern parenting ‘damned if you do/damned if you don’t’ predicament.”
Weiss, who seems to talk more about her own weight issues than those of her daughter, has us thinking if this could be a case of a parent trying to fulfill her goal through her child. Well, whatever it may be, slimmer and trimmer Bea graces
Vogue having lost 16 pounds and given new dresses for her triumph (because reward systems always go over well), just in time for their mother-daughter photo shoot.
This story reads more like a recipe for a future eating disorder than a happier child. We question if publicly detailing such a sensitive issue is worth a book deal.
THEY SAID:
Jezebel: “[…] the worst
Vogue article ever […] one of the most f—ed up, selfish women to ever grace the magazine’s pages.”
The Cut: “Years from now, when Bea is in therapy, she won’t have to waste those early sessions explaining herself because she’ll just be able to hand over that article and say, ‘SEE WHAT I HAD TO DEAL WITH?’”
WE SAID:
Bernadette Morra, editor-in-chief: “It’s very easy to criticize how other people (especially our own parents) raise their children. However, this is a disturbing story on many levels, and it is clear that neither the mother nor daughter’s struggle is over. What I wonder is how
Vogue feels about the author’s approach to the girl’s weight issues. Printing this story implies that they condone the mom’s words and actions. Or is it meant to be a cautionary tale? It’s hard to know, because sometimes editors run stories they know are going to create controversy, then sit back and wait for the drama to begin.”
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