Every time I switch on the television to watch the news or a UK or USA documentary I seem to be confronted by obese women, fat men and overweight children. The problem has become so great that I had to invest in a wide screen TV just to accommodate some of the huge arses that affront me.

I know that television is supposed to add 10lbs to you but the whole thing has got totally out of proportion. It doesn't matter what subject the journalist is covering, whatever member of the public is being interviewed, they are huge and I don't just mean huge, I mean they are gigantic.

I sometimes find myself almost throwing myself backwards over the top my sofa in horror at the state of some people. For goodness sake; doesn't anyone in the UK or USA have any pride in their appearance any more?

Instead of the presenter warning us that the next report contains some flash photography and images that some viewers might find upsetting, they should say "this next report contains some morbidly obese interviewees that some viewers might find absolutely shocking." I find myself squirming in my seat wondering how anyone could possibly inflict this on themselves. More importantly I find it incredulous that any parent should be allowed to let their children get so fat.

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Do other fat people notice this huge increase in obesity? Do they recognise other fat people as being obese or has being extremely overweight become the norm and it is slim fit people who stand out?

I only have to gain a couple of pounds and I feel uncomfortable. My clothes feel tight, my backaches and I look at myself in the mirror and feel disgusted with myself. At 55, I know it is expected to gain a little weight and as one grows older, it normally makes one look better, rather than looking gaunt. However, I can tell the difference between carrying a little extra padding than looking pretty disgusting.

I don't expect my body to be able to do the things I could do thirty years ago and I don't expect to look twenty five in my mid-fifties but I sure as hell don't want to look like Jabba the Hut just yet.

Maybe people don't care because they don't stand out in a crowd like they used to. Forty years ago, before I left school, there was one fat kid in every year. About one hundred and sixty kids in each year and one obese child that stood out like a sore thumb. Now I see documentaries, news items and reality TV shows where half the children are either overweight or obese. And when the parents are interviewed obesity obviously runs in the family.