Mo'Nique's Fat Chance

"When you're out at a restaurant with a man, don't order a salad without dressing. You know you want egg, bacon and dressing in it. Order it! And take home a doggie bag. So the next day you can have something to eat when you're watching Oxygen, and when your man calls and asks what you're doing, you can say, 'I'm having some of that dinner you bought me last night." This is one of Monique's dating tips interspersed in this train wreck of a show.

According to official estimates, about two-thirds of adult Americans are overweight or obese, and the effect on individual health and the health-care system is considerable. Obese people are more likely to develop cancer, diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure, which can lead to stroke. Hospitals have had to "super-size" their wheelchairs and beds to accommodate the new generation of sick and overweight Americans. And overweight African-American and Hispanic women, who make up some of the contestants, are at even higher risk of heart disease and diabetes.

And besides the health risks, there are the substantial lifestyle factors that being overweight affects: Climbing a flight of stairs is a strain, walk a block and you're out of breath, you can't sit comfortably in a movie theater or plane seat (Mo'Nique advocates airlines making their seats wider. Yeah, that's going to happen).

There are certainly unhealthy body images perpetuated in pop culture, and everyone deserves to feel good in her skin. But that Mo'Nique is celebrating and rewarding an unhealthy, dangerous condition—and calling it a "movement"—is appalling and shameful. What's next, the Miss D.R.U.N.K. or Miss M.E.T.H. pageant? I mean, you want that drink, you want those drugs, you want that fat and cholesterol? Don't deny yourself or worry about your health. Have it! Hell, we'll even call it a movement.

This pageant was the first and best I have ever seen!!! I am so glad that Mo'Nique took it upon herself to sponsor this for full figured women. She deserves more than 10 stars but this is all I could give at the moment!!! I hope that she does this again next year. For years, people have thought that being overweight was gross and ugly, but now that overweight people are as one contestant put it, the majority, it is time for thin America to accept this, Mo'Nique let it be known that full figured women do not walk around in flowered muu muus every day with a diet soda in one hand and a bucket of chicken in the other. We lead normal lives and do normal things that slender women do.

Yes, it is just as bad to promote unhealthy underweight women as it is to promote unhealthy overweight women, and people DO complain about those too. If you remember, this past year's Fashion Week in Madrid banned underweight models from their shows. London did NOT follow suit, but hopefully they will this coming year.

There are a lot of girls starving themselves to achieve the scary-thin bodies that they see, but doing just the opposite is not good either.

What happened to average-weight women? Why aren't THEY being revered the way that the overweight and underweight women are? As a model, you can be either a size 0 or a size 13. This is totally ridiculous.

Bring back healthy women!

The oh so holy health nuts who are trashing this show miss the point. This show does not advocate obesity or unhealthy behavior--it does advocate loving yourself and having self confidence in a world where being undernourished and thin is worshipped.

It is funny how many people jump on Monique and her show but say nothing in regards to the modeling, pageant, and movie industries where being underweight is championed. Those industries support a behavior that is just as unhealthy as being overweight but no one whines about it.

If you are going to damn Monique, than damn these other industries too! Large people have existed since the beginning of time and to even compare these people with drug users is absurd.

I am so proud of Monique and the beautiful women of her show. What a trailblazing show for women who would otherwise be ignored in the traditional modeling and pageantry world.

Congratulations to the winner.

Nashville Singer Abby Burke has a song on her new album called I'm Built for Luxury written by songwriter Jaclyn Brown.Abby's rendition of this song screams to be put with this show. I love this song about feeling good in your skin and it seems a perfect match for this show. I believe both Abby Burke and Jaclyn Brown have web sites with this song for listening and downloading.Both the show and song are about feeling good and proud of who we are regardless of clothing size. They rate 10 stars in my book. Does anyone know how get this song to Mo'Nique? As women we need more media like this show and song, about real people. You are only as sexy as you think you are.