# Choose for your child: smoker or morbidly obese? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 13, 2013, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810 "2013-03-13T12:49:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/1 "2013-03-13T12:49:56Z")
You have a child. One day the Great Gazoo appears and gives you a choice: when your child grows up, s/he will either be a heavy smoker, or morbidly obese. Whichever you choose will _definitely_ happen, however it does not guarantee the other will _not_ occur. If you refuse to make a choice, the Great Gazoo will ensure both. What do you choose? ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_fun_ball/32/17664_2.png) [@Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Fun_Ball)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/2 "2013-03-13T13:43:08Z")
What a horrible poll! ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/3 "2013-03-13T13:47:20Z")
> [@L. G. Butts](#): > > What a horrible poll! Don’t blame me. The Great Gazoo is a dick! ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/4 "2013-03-13T13:49:52Z")
Heavy smoker. At least he/she will be cool. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/5 "2013-03-13T14:01:04Z")
Obese. How is this even a choice? No parent wants their child to stink. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/6 "2013-03-13T14:14:40Z")
Smoker. Of course. Obesity gets you sick AND discriminated against. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/7 "2013-03-13T14:25:46Z")
> [@Dr. Drake](#): > > Obese. How is this even a choice? No parent wants their child to stink. Well, for one thing it’s arguably easier to quit smoking than it is to lose hundreds of pounds of extra weight. Additionally, the morbidly obese are [subject to and suffer from a far greater number of chronic health conditions](http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB4549/index1.html). ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/8 "2013-03-13T14:38:26Z")
Smoker. At least smokers can still get girls. ---
**Author:** ![Sterling\_Archer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Sterling\_Archer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sterling_Archer)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/9 "2013-03-13T14:46:59Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > Obese. How is this even a choice? No parent wants their child to stink. I said the same thing, “How is this even a choice?” But my answer is the opposite of yours. Stinking is no big deal compared to being unable to move without difficulty and unable to function in many parts of society. If you are too fat to move around a grocery store under your own power, that’s just a miserable lifestyle. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/10 "2013-03-13T14:50:43Z")
I don’t have a kid, but I’d probably say smoker, because at least he/she could do nicotine patches or something. Plus at least a smoker who quits can more easily avoid the object of temptation than someone who’s obese and manages to lose weight. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/11 "2013-03-13T14:55:58Z")
I Was both from the age of 16 on (obese probably from the age of 5). I was able to quit smoking after 18 years, but still struggle with the obese part and will for the rest of my life. ---
**Author:** ![Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Living_Well_Is_Best_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/12 "2013-03-13T15:34:04Z")
Of course smoking. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/13 "2013-03-13T16:32:13Z")
Smoker. At least they’d get laid more. So they die young, but have a better chance of procreating first. Edit: what \*\*Shakes \*\*said. ---
**Author:** ![thatguyjeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6de8d8/32.png) [@thatguyjeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thatguyjeff)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/14 "2013-03-13T16:43:37Z")
Both are discriminated against, but the obese much moreso IMHO. I pick smoking. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/15 "2013-03-13T17:33:18Z")
So is the kid allowed to quit smoking and/or lose weight at some point? If so, I’d vote for smoking. If they have to be a heavy smoker or morbidly obese for life, that’s a tough choice. ---
**Author:** ![jools](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b3f665/32.png) [@jools](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jools)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/16 "2013-03-13T17:42:54Z")
I picked smoker. Being obese and an ex smoker… it’s not even a choice. OK looking back basically what Zipper JJ said! ---
**Author:** ![Foggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foggy/32/1082_2.png) [@Foggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Foggy)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/17 "2013-03-13T18:04:36Z")
I never wanted nor do I have kids, but since The Great Gazoo is a dick I chose smoking. I am morbidly obese an it isn’t fun. Beside the big heath concerns there are a myriad of everyday little thing that make life uncomfortable, from finding cloths that fit to using the toilet. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/18 "2013-03-13T18:04:58Z")
What **ZipperJJ** and **jools** said. I’ve never been in either category, but a sizable minority of onetime smokers have managed to quit and stay quit. The number of people who’ve managed to lose a substantial amount of weight and keep it off for years seems to be pretty minuscule. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/19 "2013-03-13T20:28:37Z")
I’m a morbidly-obese ex-smoker. I pick smoking. Schlepping a lot of weight has a significantly more deleterious effect on one’s dating prospects and mental health. And it’s a lot easier to quit smoking than it is to quit being a fatty. Smokers are discriminated against when they’re smoking a cigarette or when they obviously smell like cigarette smoke. Obese people are discriminated against from the second they walk out their front door. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2013, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810/20 "2013-03-13T20:33:56Z")
Obese. It stinks less, doesn’t endanger others, doesn’t lower property values, and generally doesn’t kill you as gruesomely. I also find smoking personally offensive to a far greater degree, due to choking on smoke constantly growing up and being sensitive to smoke. I’ve lost multiple family members to cancer, and I wish they’d just been fat. Heart failure is a far more merciful way to go. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/choose-for-your-child-smoker-or-morbidly-obese/652810.md?page=2)