Human Rights Casualties from the “War on Obesity”: Why Focusing on Body Weight Is Inconsistent with a Human Rights Approach to Health

An increase in average body weight has been the subject of intense attention from public health authorities over the past decade. The weight-centered health paradigm and resulting concerns about the “obesity epidemic” are the foundation for public health policies and programs around the world. International human rights treaties describe the legal obligations of states and the moral obligations of other actors in society to respect, protect, and fulfill human rights, including the right to health. The authors critique the weight-centered health paradigm through the lens of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Public health researchers and practitioners may inadvertently breach their human rights obligations by working within the weight-centered health paradigm.