Harriet’s Heart
I want to tell you a story. It’s a story about a heart. Listen up.Hi my name is Henrietta and I’m a heart. I’m over worked because Harriet, my owner is overweight and that puts more stress on me. Let me tell you a little bit about Harriet. She is a 32 year old African-American woman. Both parents are overweight. Her mom is diabetic and her father suffered a heart attack at the age of 43. Harriet is the oldest of six children. As a teenager she was active, playing volleyball and running track. The activity helped her to balance the hefty meals that were a staple in their household. Harriet was afraid of being overweight and started dieting her senior year of high school. She’d starve herself all day and then eat a meager supper.
After college she got married, and became pregnant. After the birth of her baby she was left with 65 extra pounds, and decided to diet, again. Same method, very low calories. She dropped about twenty pounds. Then her marriage started to deteriorate. Harriet sought comfort in food. The twenty pounds she lost found her and brought along ten friends. Her parent’s health also began to falter. As the eldest she felt it was her responsibility to help care for them. And her siblings were quick to oblige her.
After caring for her parents and her child, she had no energy except to eat, and her weight sky-rocketed. Harriet did the only thing she knew how to do, she went on another diet. This time it was all fruits, liquids or whatever was popular. She added a brisk walk once a day and lost fifteen pounds in only two weeks. For the next two years Harriet tried whatever the most fashionable diet was. Gaining and losing the same fifteen pounds. A trip to her doctor revealed that she was diabetic and her blood pressure was dangerously high. Feeling the need for a vacation, Harriet booked a cruise. Before sailing she lost an additional ten pounds. Confidently she cruised her way to her dream vacation. Amongst the things she brought back were jars of exotic spices and twelve pounds. Her slow metabolism and jaunts to the all you could eat buffet allowed her to pack on the pounds. I tell you this story to let you know that three out of four African-American women are overweight or obese. The statistics on how many American women are dieting at any given time vary widely, studies show a range from 25% to 85%. One study found that 60% of average weight girls, and 18% of underweight girls, between the ages of nine and eighteen were also dieting. They along with Harriet are on the weight loss and dieting roller coaster.
Women go on diets because they are looking for the quick fix, and the easy way out. It also gives them something or someone to blame when the diet doesn’t work. The weight loss industry rakes in obscene amounts of money yearly, and there is no end in sight. Dieting women are holding out and hoping that technology will come up with the pill/potion or lotion that will give them the body of their dreams in the fastest way possible. And we all know that’s not going to happen.
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