Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
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Carole Makita Reporting More than 60-million Americans are now so overweight, doctors consider them obese. The number of young people living with this health problem has tripled since 1980.
In 2003, Ali Schmidt, a teenager from New York went under cover in a fat suit to a high school for a news special on obesity. Her experiences, which we discovered today are very real for many, were the inspiration for this made-for-TV movie titled To Be Fat Like Me.
It began as an experiment. How would life look from inside a fat suit? Ali Schmidt thought her bubbly personality could overcome anything.
Kaley Cuoco, To Be Fat Like Me: "The second she walks in that school as that heavy person, her life is kind of turned upside down and people just treat her horribly, you know, she's shocked by the whole thing."
I spoke by satellite with actress Kaley Cuoco about her starring role in 'To Be Fat Like Me, based on a true story. She described her four-hour prep time getting into make-up and costume as frustrating...but very much a learning experience.
Q: Did you find that you had a better understanding or empathy for those who struggle with their weight?"
Kaley: "I do have more of a soft heart for someone who is really overweight; it's a very sad thing, not only emotionally but physically as well."
Becky Mann now helps many teens overcome self-esteem problems at Orem's Center for Change, where she was once a patient.
Becky Mann, R.N., Center for Change: "I was walking home from junior high, about 8th grade, and one of the high school boys was driving by and yelled, 'hey, you, Jenny Craig's the other way."
Nicole Hawkins, Ph.D., Center for Change: "If you've been caught in the cycle of teasing people or criticizing people because of their size, it'll make you step back and go, ‘Wow, this does hurt people, maybe I should not do this.' "
The problem, they all say, as addressed in the film, is difficult. Cuoco says working with Caroline Rhea opened her eyes to the connection between weight problems and family problems.
To Be Fat Like Me premiers on the Lifetime Channel Monday, January 8th. Check your listings for time.
