Queen Latifah is calling for more inclusive medical care for people with obesity. In a new interview as part of her work with It’s Bigger Than Me, a US-based campaign by healthcare company Novo Nordisk, the actor and rapper recounted how many people with obesity experience weight discrimination from medical staff. Sharing her personal connection to the issue, the Girls Trip star – whose real name Dana Owens – toldPeople: “I saw my cousin have to deal with this issue – she was morbidly obese and she went in and out of the hospital. “There were so many things she had to face. And for a doctor to just say, ‘Oh, you need to lose some weight.’ Well, it’s not that easy. Everyone’s bodies are not the same. We all deserve specific individual care.” Latifah, 53, backed the campaign’s call for “inclusive obesity care” ensuring everyone can feel “welcome and respected” when they visit the doctors. “Imagine how good it must feel when a patient walks through that door and sees the appropriate chairs or office set-up, that someone has considered them, has taken the time to think about what their needs are,” the Hairspray star said. “There’s a sense of, ‘I’m respected here. I’m welcome here’... If you’re discouraged to get into your doctor’s office, then that’s not a good thing.” When a person is defined as obese, this means that they are overweight “with a lot of body fat”, the NHS says. The World Health Organisation (WHO) explains that the terms “overweight” and “obesity” are used to refer to “abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to health”. It is estimated 64 per cent of adults in the UK are obese or overweight. Last summer, a British study found that obese patients were being “weight-shamed by doctors and nurses”, with weight stigmatisation pushing patients to skip appointments. The stigmatisation leads to patients avoiding appointments, feeling depressed or anxious and being more likely to put on weight, scientists said. The British researchers said there needed to be better education for medics over “weight stigma” to avoid this spilling into healthcare. The scientists looked at more than 3,000 research articles on the topic to identify strategies to tackle negative biases towards overweight and obese patients. In doing so, this could help to tackle the UK’s obesity crisis, as negative biases over weight limit access to healthcare services and treatment. Read More Joe Wicks defends decision to pull five-year-old daughter out of school Woman adopts husband’s ex-wife’s son after growing up in foster care herself Man who went to Turkey to make himself taller says pain was ‘worth it’ As Simon Cowell shares positive therapy experience, how can it help even if you aren’t in crisis? Man who went to Turkey to make himself taller says pain was ‘worth it’ Terminally ill mum prepares for worst after numb hand turns out to be deadly disease

Israeli troops on Thursday advanced their campaign to destroy Hamas in Gaza, fighting gun battles and taking control of a key port a day after a raid...

Henrietta Rogers, a mother from Wisconsin convicted of fatally strangling her 10-year-old daughter, received a 25-year prison sentence from a judge

Two airplanes have "highly likely collided" with each other at the Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Japanese public broadcaster NHK is reporting, citing the country's transport ministry.

Rishi Sunak said his “patience is wearing thin” over the UK’s inability to push through its flagship Rwanda

Off-year primary elections are like the deep tracks of American politics. Not a lot of people might be paying attention, but there are some interesting things going on for those who do.

World leaders attending the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima have been treated to a belt-expanding tour of local gastronomical delights with a host of menus showcasing the best of Japanese fine dining.

Rex Heuermann has been charged with killing three women whose bodies were discovered along a stretch of Long Island's Gilgo Beach in 2010, bound with belts or tape and wrapped in burlap.

By Guy Faulconbridge MOSCOW (Reuters) -A Russian warship on Sunday fired warning shots at a cargo ship in the southwestern

Maryland’s attorney general has released a less-redacted version of its report on child sex abuse in the Archdiocese of Baltimore

Hundreds of Jewish peace activists and allies from across the Midwest have called for a cease-fire in Gaza at a major Chicago train station

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has begun testifying at his fraud trial, saying the innovative business he hoped would move the cryptocurrency ecosystem forward ended up doing the opposite and customers were hurt