Obesity in Poor People

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Replies

  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
    people just don't know how many calories they are putting in their bodies.
    and people are generally less active imo
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    In a recent blog post, the wonderful SideSteel touched on just a few of the issues the poor might face. Read down to where he starts talking about the hypothetical Margaret.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/SideSteel/view/-you-fat-people-are-obviously-just-lazy-748937

    The saddest thing? Compared to some people, Margaret is privileged. There are people who have grown up in circumstances where they lack the necessary skills to prepare even convenience foods and the means to prepare them, and this is in the United States.
  • sullus
    sullus Posts: 2,839 Member
    yarwell wrote: »
    Our food and water is laced with antibiotics, hormones, pesticides and other additives to enhance taste and prolong shelf life

    I didn't realise water had a shelf life, or that these things would make it taste better.

    Processed water totally has a shelf life. And the added minerals make it taste better.
  • madhatter2013
    madhatter2013 Posts: 1,547 Member
    I read a news story recently about a woman on SNAP benefits complaining that the state didn't "pay her enough" to eat healthy. The picture had her standing in front of her cupboards, wide open, with nothing but junk food in them. If I find it I'll update this comment but I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I'd ever read in my life.
  • jmule24
    jmule24 Posts: 1,404 Member
    It's Friday folks!!!!!!! So much going on in here I must list it out to see if I'm up to speed.....

    1. Socioeconomic status + "poor" food quality + "cheap" food = Obesity
    2. Organic food will give me immortality?
    3. I should rob a bank if I'm poor; in order to afford organic food so I won't be obese, and I will live forever!!!!
  • madhatter2013
    madhatter2013 Posts: 1,547 Member
    bmorss807 wrote: »
    ceoverturf wrote: »
    bmorss807 wrote: »
    That is a very interesting observation, and I agree with everything you have said. I have noticed that watching "old" movies...there are not many obese people, and I fully agree that the current situation in is due to stuff like this:

    2013-04-27-20-07-28adj.jpg

    Flourescent lights and shiny floors causes obesity?

    Or is it the coolers and folding chairs on top of the displays?

    Pls explain.

    Is this better?

    018.jpg

    Lasagna causes obesity?

    Well, $#!&. I'm screwed for life.
  • jmule24
    jmule24 Posts: 1,404 Member
    Peachiko87 wrote: »
    Oh and sooooo much of this

    Van-Dame-Funny-GIF.gif

    ^ Can I have both?

    If it fits your macros!!!!!

  • auntstephie321
    auntstephie321 Posts: 3,586 Member
    I read a news story recently about a woman on SNAP benefits complaining that the state didn't "pay her enough" to eat healthy. The picture had her standing in front of her cupboards, wide open, with nothing but junk food in them. If I find it I'll update this comment but I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I'd ever read in my life.

    I think a lot of that comes down to education on food choices. If you've grown up only knowing processed "junk food" that is what you are comfortable with and gravitate to. It can be scary to go to the store and see how little you can buy of fresh produce meats and dairy, compared to the quantity you can buy of less nutritious foods.

    I feel that what is misunderstood is that a person doesn't need massive quantities of more nutrient dense foods to feel full and be fueled properly.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    I read a news story recently about a woman on SNAP benefits complaining that the state didn't "pay her enough" to eat healthy. The picture had her standing in front of her cupboards, wide open, with nothing but junk food in them. If I find it I'll update this comment but I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I'd ever read in my life.

    There might be some ignorance behind her beliefs. I'm not aware of how much SNAP pays, but she might not have the knowledge or the kitchen equipment to prepare basic cheap healthy foods like rice and beans and frozen veggies.

    Some working poor work two jobs and really lack the time to do even that.

    There was an eye opening thread a few months back which had a social worker posting in it. She filled in a lot of the blanks on this kind of stuff.

  • jmule24
    jmule24 Posts: 1,404 Member
    Brolympus wrote: »
    Organic foods are the hipster version of broscience

    +1

  • msf74
    msf74 Posts: 3,498 Member
    edited June 2015
    Ask anyone who was alive during World War II. How many poor people were obese? Answer is none. Then why are the poorest people the most obese?

    Answer is poor food quality. Today food is cheap. But why? Our food and water is laced with antibiotics, hormones, pesticides and other additives to enhance taste and prolong shelf life. If you saw the conditions in which your meat was produced, you would stop eating meat.

    Want an easy weight loss tip? Do what I did. Change as much as you can to organic food. Yes it costs more but you will eat less. You will feel fuller faster and longer. I now save money on groceries because I eat less. I am not as hungry because my body isn't starving for nutrition. You owe it to yourself to try.

    It's a little more complex than that if you are talking about the correlation between poverty and obesity:
    Accessibility – How do people reach shops, and are there any shops near to their home? Between 1986 and 1996, eight independent stores closed each day in the UK, often in communities that lack alternatives. For those who do not have access to adequate public or private transport, not being able to get to the shops is a defining factor in their ability to buy healthy affordable food.

    Availability – Even if somebody can get to a shop, they may not be able to buy the healthy food that they want. Local shops may not stock healthy options, such as fruit and vegetables, due to a shorter shelf life, lower profit, a perceived lack of interest or a shortage of storage options.

    Affordability – Expenditure on food is the most flexible part of household budgets as the amount spent on food is often whatever is left over when all the essential bills have been paid. When sudden or unexpected costs happen, the amount available to spend on food is reduced. Many people also perceive healthy food (especially fruit and vegetables) to be more expensive and therefore avoid them. In addition, some people are reluctant to purchase food they are unfamiliar with, due to a lack of cooking skills or worries that “unusual” food will be rejected by the family and so get wasted.

    Awareness – Many individuals lack the knowledge or skills needed to buy and cook foods from scratch. There is also a lot of misinformation about nutrition and healthy foods in the media meaning many people do not know where to start.

    from here: sustainweb.org/foodaccess/what_leads_to_food_poverty/
  • Alluminati
    Alluminati Posts: 6,208 Member
    edited June 2015
    jmule24 wrote: »
    Peachiko87 wrote: »
    Oh and sooooo much of this

    Van-Dame-Funny-GIF.gif

    ^ Can I have both?

    If it fits your macros!!!!!


    <===just checked macros, has plenty
    giphy.gif
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    Yeah, I was going to put time down as a factor.

    I was a poor single parent. I fed my children with the Canada Food Guide posted to my fridge. I got compliments from care-givers on the healthy snacks I provided my children. My children were not obese.

    I get annoyed even when people suggest that the poor are obese because they lack basic nutritional education. I wasn't one of them.
  • bpetrosky
    bpetrosky Posts: 3,911 Member
    edited June 2015
    Awareness – Many individuals lack the knowledge or skills needed to buy and cook foods from scratch. There is also a lot of misinformation about nutrition and healthy foods in the media meaning many people do not know where to start.

    This! Yes this! OMFG THIS!!!!

    It's a shame the OP just lobbed his elitist "clean organic food will save you poor ****s!" grenade and ran off. Everyone here is going to exhaust themselves debating and @Olivia will be sad again. :(
  • baldielove13
    baldielove13 Posts: 219 Member
    jmule24 wrote: »
    It's Friday folks!!!!!!! So much going on in here I must list it out to see if I'm up to speed.....

    1. Socioeconomic status + "poor" food quality + "cheap" food = Obesity
    2. Organic food will give me immortality?
    3. I should rob a bank if I'm poor; in order to afford organic food so I won't be obese, and I will live forever!!!!

    This about sums it up.

    It's nice that the OP can afford organic food. For the rest of us who can't, we have to find other options to be healthy. It can be done, but it's harder to be healthy when you're broke.
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    Beans - 1.79/bag = will feed me for lunch 5-7 days.
    Rice- 6$/5 pound bag- last forever
    eggs 4-7$/18-24 eggs
    bread 2$/loaf

    Roughly 15$ to feed me for a week.

    yogurt - 4.99/container= 7 servings
    Talenti 2.88/container- for the week.

    add in my yogurt and ice cream and it's up to just around 20 bucks

    food and a treat for the week.

    People are poorly educated and have no idea that they eat WAY to much food- and across the board our society's have become more commercialized and less agrarian- which means we do less moving- and more sitting- so our activity level and NEED for more calories are greatly reduced.

    it's not that hard.
  • jmule24
    jmule24 Posts: 1,404 Member
    OP - due to a medical condition it's very hard for me to eat raw veggies and fruits; therefore, I am forced to eat frozen or canned veggies and fruits. I'm cheap not poor. I choose to purchase generic branded foods. So, I don't eat Organic, I don't get "superior" nutrition, and I eat "cheap/processed" foods.

    Based on your logic, why am I not obese?
  • bpetrosky
    bpetrosky Posts: 3,911 Member
    jmule24 wrote: »
    OP - due to a medical condition it's very hard for me to eat raw veggies and fruits; therefore, I am forced to eat frozen or canned veggies and fruits. I'm cheap not poor. I choose to purchase generic branded foods. So, I don't eat Organic, I don't get "superior" nutrition, and I eat "cheap/processed" foods.

    Based on your logic, why am I not obese?

    I'm sure he'd just say you're skinny fat or something.
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
    ceoverturf wrote: »
    ceoverturf wrote: »
    bmorss807 wrote: »
    That is a very interesting observation, and I agree with everything you have said. I have noticed that watching "old" movies...there are not many obese people, and I fully agree that the current situation in is due to stuff like this:

    2013-04-27-20-07-28adj.jpg

    Flourescent lights and shiny floors causes obesity?

    Or is it the coolers and folding chairs on top of the displays?

    Pls explain.

    It's the folding chairs, I've been struggling with weight issues caused by folding chairs for nearly a decade.


    OMG I just put a folding chair in my trunk for the summer season. There go my gainz... :(

    Sure, but you know by the end of summer you will need a bigger folding chair...
  • msf74
    msf74 Posts: 3,498 Member
    bpetrosky wrote: »
    It's a shame the OP just lobbed his elitist "clean organic food will save you poor ****s!" grenade and ran off. Everyone here is going to exhaust themselves debating and @Olivia will be sad again. :(

    Both "clean" and "organic" seem to have become marketing terms for "pay more" and unhelpfully conflated with the idea of a balanced diet. It's decidedly counter productive as if you are struggling financially you will be less likely to adopt what you deem to be an expensive approach and therefore locks you into your existing approach.
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