Katie Hopkins has created a stir by undertaking an “experiment” to be filmed for a TV documentary which involves her consuming more than 6,000 calories a day to put on three-and-a-half stone, which she will then attempt to lose to prove her point that loosing weight is not so hard.

I’ve been truly amazed by the reaction which she has received.

Katie achieved notoriety with her outrageous comments made on a host of social issues where her opinion usually sits somewhere between extreme right wing and Nazi.

I more often than not, completely disagree with the points she makes, but have a degree of respect for the fact that she is willing to make her opinions known – which for some of my close friends has been a concept hard to comprehend.

She describes herself as “business operator, social commentator, speaker and TV personality” and the social media site, Twitter, appears to be her biggest media outlet currently.

The premise for Katie’s latest bid at increased publicity attacks the excuses that people give for being overweight. She is hoping to prove that with determination, exercise and a healthy diet, the weight falls off.

Some have said that she is offensive for not considering the feelings of overweight people, but I have a suspicion that she may be on to something, despite her rather brutal way of making her point. She has been branded cruel, unkind and heartless and is criticised for her seemingly flippant attitude to a serious subject, which I would agree with.

However, I will always have some respect for people that put their money where their mouth is. While I would never ever condone being deliberately unkind to anyone, I believe we live in a society that is becoming increasingly afraid to face up to reality.

Regardless of my thoughts on Katie’s weight loss experiment, I wonder whether we need to remove the fluffy-coating we so often put on hard hitting messages in the name of kindness, and get to the heart of the problem.

Obesity is becoming an increasingly big problem, with one in two people likely to be clinically obese within the next few years. In a health system with limited resources, how on earth are we going to be able to face the health problems that this will bring?

Sometimes kindness and honesty do not sit comfortably together. Yes, perhaps there is a kinder way to raise the topic but let’s face it – it’s got a lot of people talking and the softly-softly approach clearly doesn’t seem to be working.

In my opinion, it’s just a shame that what everyone seems to be talking about is the arrogant mouthpiece that is Katie Hopkins, and not the issue itself.

I don’t want to live in a society that is so politically correct that we are afraid to voice an opinion lest it offend anyone, but obviously this calls for a degree of common sense, however this is so often where the problem lies. It is possible to have an opinion without being rude, it just calls for a degree of sensitivity and some thought into the reasons why people may hold different viewpoints.

I would be the first to admit that I am not shy of letting my opinions be heard, which has sometimes got me into hot water with my friends. It’s never my intention to upset anyone.

In my book, there’s a world of difference between being deliberately provocative and inciting discussion.

Perhaps herein lies the difference between Katie Hopkins and myself.

Sometimes I think we just have to give it to people straight, which can be hard enough to give, let alone receive.

We also need to know who to listen to and whose opinion matters. Would I take health advice from someone who describes herself as a social commentator? Probably not.

But I’m not sure I find her as offensive as a large proportion of the population seem to either.

I see Katie more as a comedy character; someone who I’m not convinced believes half the rubbish she spouts and certainly not someone to take seriously. We don’t have to listen to people who offend us but I for one am grateful that everyone has a voice, even if it’s not always what I want to hear.

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