A controversial billboard using the term “muffin top” to convince passersby to get plastic surgery has been vandalized with a much friendlier message.
According to MLive , an Ann Arbor plastic surgeon’s billboard advertisement that sparked outrage for featuring the words, “Friends don’t let friends muffin top,” was spray-painted to promote healthier body image. “Muffin top” is a colloquial term for when stomach fat hangs over the top of someone’s pants, which is depicted on the billboard as two muffins with the cups holding them illustrated to look like denim jeans.
A local Michigan vandal who disapproved of the billboard’s fat-shaming message crossed out the original text and wrote “You’re beautiful!” in its place. In addition, the muffin tops were spray-painted with smiley faces.
The office manager for the plastic surgeon’s office, Tammy Nelis, said she believed the billboard was vandalized over the weekend.
“It’s truly an unfortunate situation,” said Nelis. “We’ll be making a police report.”
The muffin top billboard was put up shortly after the plastic surgeon’s office took down another controversial billboard in Ann Arbor. The first billboard read “Size matters” and featured one small coffee cup labeled “B” and another larger one labeled “D.” Facebook fans called the billboard “tasteless and horrible,” which resulted in it eventually being taken down.
The muffin top billboard sparked an even angrier response. Some internet users are considering the muffin top vandal a hero.
Nelis claims the office is working to replace the billboard with a new one with the exact same ad. She says the muffin top billboard was not meant to be offensive.
According to The Independent , an official statement from the plastic surgeon’s office said the following:
“Plastic surgery is not for everyone. This ad is not to offend anyone. It’s simply to get people to chuckle. Try to see the lighter side of this ad.”
A Facebook user replied to the message with the following comment:
“I have a really lovely sense of humor, but your signs just suck, majorly. Please do not think that affirmations from women saying ‘Hey, I laughed!’ should mean you glaze over the other women-and more importantly, young girls- that read your opportunistic, money-hungry corrupt nonsense signs and get sincerely hurt, or get it in their heads that there is something fundamentally wrong with their bodies as is that requires them, by default, changing it.”
What do you think about the muffin top billboard? Let us know in the comments.
The Inquisitr recently reported on Jessica Alba’s claim that her muffin top forced her to cook better. Read more here .
[Images courtesy of MLive ]