They mean that the subject has tried many things, to the point of frustration.

Unless we accept that losing weight is the highest possible priority, then it will necessarily be balanced against other priorities. These will be generally inconsistently pursued, because people are not rational.

In part, people who are calling for acceptance of a wider range of body weights are arguing that there is too high a priority placed on a person's weight.

Thank you for that eloquent retort. Though I've been on both sides of a pedant's argument (often the wrong side), it's helpful to set the context that a conversation is happening in. Some folks will grab onto anything if it allows them to say, "I'm right, and you're wrong!"

I really shouldn't engage in these sort of back and forths, but sometimes I just can't resist...

For all I know, her body might not obey the laws of physics that every other object in the universe obeys. But I find that possibility somewhat unlikely.

If your food intakes contains less metabolisable energy than you use, you'll lose weight. It's as simple as that.

I reckon you should make a phone call to the Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Foundation with your astounding discovery, I'm sure they'll be really happy to be told that sufferers can just eat less. Who knew all this time?

The world doesn't work in absolutes and neither should you.

I think I'm gonna sign off for a while :-)

The poster was commenting about weight loss, not mitigating her disorder!

She has a fairly common endocrine disorder (5-10% of the female population is millions of people) that makes it easier to gain weight. That does not mean that her body defies the laws of thermodynamics or the conservation of energy, and I'm fairly certain that there are people who suffer from the disorder without being obese.

Indeed, it is hardly difficult to find medical resources on weight control for those who suffer from this, such as http://women.webmd.com/polycystic-ovary-syndrome-pcos-and-we...

That isn't to justify the many "Easy!" type comments: Life is tough. We all face tough battles. We all have ways that nature seems to conspire against us. But it does dispute the "I have {x} therefore I am without choice".

As one scientifically vapid, completely and utterly unproven sidenote just because it came to mind during this comment: one observation I've made about people who have difficulty controlling their weight is an almost perfect correlation with an innate desire to maintain warmth at all costs. Very warm houses with the heat set high, thick sweaters, giant comforters, no temperature setback at night. Generating heat is an expensive exercise for the body (calories, of course, are the measurement of the heat potential of foods), so I have to think that these environmental controls contribute to what people call a "low metabolism". I'm the sort of guy who wears a t-shift in the winter and uses the skimpiest threadbare sheet in the 58F house at nighttime, and people always marvel about my "incredible metabolism" as I devour a whole pizza.

Matter cannot be created nor destroyed. So, that means garbage in = fat + garbage out. You really are what you eat.

I know this by my own diet. When I gobbled up everything in sight, I <gasp> got fat. When I quit packing my face full of food, I lost weight. Interesting how that works.

Go google hypothyroidism and PCOS. Then come back and tell us what you learn. I'll have crayons and paper so you can show the whole class.

Imagine that.

Where PCOS is associated with overweight or obesity, successful weight loss is the most effective method of restoring normal ovulation/menstruation, but many women find it very difficult to achieve and sustain significant weight loss. A scientific review in 2013 found similar decreases in weight and body composition and improvements in pregnancy rate, menstrual regularity, ovulation, hyperandrogenism, insulin resistance, lipids and quality of life to occur with weight loss independent of diet composition.[41] Still, a low GI diet, in which a significant part of total carbohydrates are obtained from fruit, vegetables and whole grain sources, has resulted in increased menstrual regularity than a macronutrient-matched healthy diet.[41] Vitamin D deficiency may play some role in the development of the metabolic syndrome, so treatment of any such deficiency is indicated.[42]

..... In other words, eat your veggies and don't be a pig. Medically speaking, of course.

I was a lard-ass like you, until I took a doughnut to the knee.

Overweight people are not spontaneously generating matter, sure, but it's not like people can just stop eating until they hit the weight you'd prefer them to have, they kinda stop working before that happens.

https://www.google.com.au/search?q=polycystic+ovarian+syndro...

This takes me to Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polycystic_ovary_syndrome

Wikipedia tells me this has little to do with "gobbling up everything in sight". Sadly, physics, biology and chemistry don't know what cause it (yet), nor is there a cure (yet).

Of course it's far easier to complain that she's unfit and that everyone loses and gains weight at the same rate than to say you don't like the aesthetics of her body and she should lose weight because being fat makes her unattractive.

I apologise for my terrible phrasing.

Health is more than just body size.

Her doctor says she is ok, and she states that she is reasonably careful with her diet and does a large amount of exercise, which - because of the endocrine disorder she suffers from - does very little to change her weight.

In some of the comments here I wonder if I've been reading the same article! She makes it clear why her body shape is what it is, she says she's pretty healthy and looks after herself, gets checkups from her doctor and lives a full life. She seems pretty much at terms with her body shape... why are there so many comments telling her she needs to lose weight?