Blaming individuals for obesity may be altogether wrong...
Replies
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See! I knew it wasn't my fault! All kidding aside, the article gives us a lot to think about. It seems that even if we are prone to be fat, our only option is still to watch what we consume and move our butts more. As imperfect as it all is, it's the best we have. We'll just have to keep swimming against the tide. That said, I think I'll order some blackout curtains for my bedroom. Thanks for the read.0
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I might not get to reading the full article for a bit but there's a lot to prove that blaming individuals is both pointless and incorrect. Social factors, environmental factors, physiological factors... obesity is incredibly complex! And if "eat less, exercise more" really worked, then obesity rates wouldn't be increasing, as the CDC has been telling people that for decades!
I'm very curious about some of the new points though. Looking into factors for obesity is one of my interests. I took a physiology course on obesity that opened my mind soooo much! Endlessly fascinating, although from a public health perspective, extremely depressing.0 -
Okay... a warning for that picture at the top would have been nice.0
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Okay... a warning for that picture at the top would have been nice.
that's a baker kneading dough...chill.0 -
Okay... a warning for that picture at the top would have been nice.
You can't tell what body part it is. It's simply stored adipose tissue or fat.
Only socially determined views and fat phobia make you consider it gross or worth needing a warning.0 -
Damn society for buying that tub of ice cream and putting it in my freezer!
Sabotage!0 -
Eating less and exercising more ALWAYS work, most people just don't want to do them. To people genetically predisposed to accumulate fat, eating less is tougher than it is for others. Still, it's far from impossible.I might not get to reading the full article for a bit but there's a lot to prove that blaming individuals is both pointless and incorrect. Social factors, environmental factors, physiological factors... obesity is incredibly complex! And if "eat less, exercise more" really worked, then obesity rates wouldn't be increasing, as the CDC has been telling people that for decades!
I'm very curious about some of the new points though. Looking into factors for obesity is one of my interests. I took a physiology course on obesity that opened my mind soooo much! Endlessly fascinating, although from a public health perspective, extremely depressing.
We're also born with different levels of intelligence, but with the exception for few people with mental disabilities, we are all expected to go to school and attain a certain level of knowledge. Maybe there's a small minority of people who just can't help being fat, but for the rest of us being overweight is simply due to a lack of effort.0 -
I have seen a lot of studies that say the chemicals in our food is a big reason that people are getting fatter.
I still think a lot of it has to do with the fact that we move a lot less than in the past and portion sizes are a lot larger. Years ago to make yourself breakfast, you had to go get the eggs, churn the butter, baked the biscuits. Now you can get all those things.
Fried Mozzarella, most fried foods actually, were eaten by poor people because they had one peice of cheese and needed it to feed a family of 4 and keep them full. So by frying fat was added, filling them up. But this was the entire meal. Now we have Fried Mozzarella appetizers, followed by fried chicken with mashed potatoes and lastly desert. And we don't have to make that food or if we do, often not from scratch. So that accounts for a lot.
Other research has shown how much more sugar is in our diets. Sugar used to be special treat. it was expensive and therefore used a lot less. With Corn Syrup and sugar being a lot less expensive, it has creeped into so many of the things we eat.
Then add the chemicals like the article says. When you drink water in this country there are traces of most modern day medicines aside from the chemicals that are just in the environment. They sight BPA, but reality there are chemicals in our water supply, our food supply, etc. Even foods categorized as Organic probably have traces of chemicals. There are even categories of Organic because if you use a plot that wasn't organic last year, well the chemicals are there.
So while I think are are many factors contributing to people growing larger, there is only person to blame if it has gotten obese. Being 30 lbs or so overweight, yes that could be the environment etc. Being 100 or more overweight, well I am thinking environment wasn't the only factor.
I also genetics has something to do with it as well. Not everyone can be a stick. My brother and I were raised in the same house, both of us are adopted. I love food, I love to eat. He on the other hand, eats till full and moves on. Both my parents loved food, would finish our food as well, but my brother he never was a foodies. Genetics is part of it for sure.0 -
Okay... a warning for that picture at the top would have been nice.
You can't tell what body part it is. It's simply stored adipose tissue or fat.
Only socially determined views and fat phobia make you consider it gross or worth needing a warning.
I can tell what it is. It's a fat naked woman laying on her side.0 -
Only socially determined views and fat phobia make you consider it gross or worth needing a warning.
Or the fact that it's NSFW...derp.0 -
Interesting article, but I agree that past a certain point we are personally responsible for our weight. Few people have the genetic propensity to be 100+ pounds overweight.0
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saving for later
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Anybody got a pig that needs a bath? Because that article is bunch of HOGWASH!
Almost every paragraph I read had a false assumption or conclusion. For example, when it talked about 'eating as few as 30 calories more per day would cause you to be fat" and then dispelling it as unreasonable to assume it were true because if it was everyone would be fat. What the article fails to point out is we are not just eating 30 extra calories a day to get fat, we are eating an extra 500 - 1000 - 2000 calories per day to get fat.0 -
Societal and economic factors can shift the pressure on an individual, but cannot absolve him or her of personal responsibility.
I was fat, and it wasn't anyone's fault but mine.0 -
Okay... a warning for that picture at the top would have been nice.
You can't tell what body part it is. It's simply stored adipose tissue or fat.
Only socially determined views and fat phobia make you consider it gross or worth needing a warning.
So, you're saying that gross or obscene is subjective and society influences our perceptions?
*Mind--Blown*0 -
I'm tending to see morbid obesity as a symptom of an eating disorder +/- manifestation of self-hatred. Shame people thus afflicted get virtually no support or even sympathy.
Now I'm a medic, and some patients on long-term steroids become grossly obese and experience other horrific side effects. People are oh-so-sympathetic when they find out...why should if be any different because someone chose to manifest his/her self-loathing (which, by the way worsens as the pounds pile on) by eating into an early grave?
The role of the obesogenic environments we live in in the West cannot be ignored. I packed on about 20 pounds simply by moving to a developing country to the UK. Did I suddenly lose self-control or stop caring about myself? Pretty much everyone else I know who emigrated to a Western country has had a similar experience, and we've all hard to work hard to lose the excess weight and keep it off.0 -
I might not get to reading the full article for a bit but there's a lot to prove that blaming individuals is both pointless and incorrect. Social factors, environmental factors, physiological factors... obesity is incredibly complex! And if "eat less, exercise more" really worked, then obesity rates wouldn't be increasing, as the CDC has been telling people that for decades!
? Um actually yes, eating less and moving more DOES work. Most people are just too lazy to do it.0 -
Societal and economic factors can shift the pressure on an individual, but cannot absolve him or her of personal responsibility.
I was fat, and it wasn't anyone's fault but mine.
QFT0 -
I might not get to reading the full article for a bit but there's a lot to prove that blaming individuals is both pointless and incorrect. Social factors, environmental factors, physiological factors... obesity is incredibly complex! And if "eat less, exercise more" really worked, then obesity rates wouldn't be increasing, as the CDC has been telling people that for decades!
? Um actually yes, eating less and moving more DOES work. Most people are just too lazy to do it.
For you.
In the short-term.
So did everyone just become lazy in 1980? Please tell me more! You alone can solve the problem of obesity curing people of their laziness!!! O_O0 -
I might not get to reading the full article for a bit but there's a lot to prove that blaming individuals is both pointless and incorrect. Social factors, environmental factors, physiological factors... obesity is incredibly complex! And if "eat less, exercise more" really worked, then obesity rates wouldn't be increasing, as the CDC has been telling people that for decades!
? Um actually yes, eating less and moving more DOES work. Most people are just too lazy to do it.
For you.
In the short-term.
So did everyone just become lazy in 1980? Please tell me more! You alone can solve the problem of obesity curing people of their laziness!!! O_O
Sorry, people have to want to cure themselves.0 -
I might not get to reading the full article for a bit but there's a lot to prove that blaming individuals is both pointless and incorrect. Social factors, environmental factors, physiological factors... obesity is incredibly complex! And if "eat less, exercise more" really worked, then obesity rates wouldn't be increasing, as the CDC has been telling people that for decades!
? Um actually yes, eating less and moving more DOES work. Most people are just too lazy to do it.
For you.
In the short-term.
So did everyone just become lazy in 1980? Please tell me more! You alone can solve the problem of obesity curing people of their laziness!!! O_O
No, in the long term.
People have always been lazy. They have also been stingy with their money. It's a recent phenomenon that delicious, calorie-dense food has been available to anyone so quickly and cheaply.0 -
whats it say for those of us who can't see0
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The author's point seems to be, "obesity is so complex, let us not blame a single individual for it."
It's appealing because we like to hear the egotistically comforting words, "It is not your fault".
A "General model of obesity in society" may indeed be complex. But that's not the point of weight-loss. We're not looking for nor do we need the equivalent of "Einstein's theory of obesity" to begin losing weight.
Millions of us on MFP (and outside) have shown that losing weight can be done through a sustained lifestyle of moderate eating (and the common accompaniment of exercise).
Does it work for every single individual? Of course not. But does that mean the average individual should stop taking responsibility for making responsible choices? Do the freedoms given to us mean we should put the blame right back on the society that gave us those freedoms? Or does the old saying, "With freedom comes responsibility" apply?0 -
On this site, we're looking at it from an individual perspective. In a broader public health and societal sense, it's logical to look at the overall aspects that are resulting in such high obesity rates.0
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the book Rethinking Thin by Gina Kolatta (sp?) changed how I think about this topic forever. I highly recommend it.0
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I might not get to reading the full article for a bit but there's a lot to prove that blaming individuals is both pointless and incorrect. Social factors, environmental factors, physiological factors... obesity is incredibly complex! And if "eat less, exercise more" really worked, then obesity rates wouldn't be increasing, as the CDC has been telling people that for decades!
? Um actually yes, eating less and moving more DOES work. Most people are just too lazy to do it.
For you.
In the short-term.
So did everyone just become lazy in 1980? Please tell me more! You alone can solve the problem of obesity curing people of their laziness!!! O_O
Sorry, people have to want to cure themselves.
eek! I don't think these two ideas are mutually exclusive.
yes, the individual needs to want to make a change and needs to eat less (calories) and do more exercise!
Culture and society DO play a role tho. First and foremost, our food is more calorically dense than it needs to be. A sammich is not a sammich (ok that sounds dumb but hear me out!)...getting an egg sammich at starbucks is more calories than an egg sammich made at home. Extra calories are lopped into their drinks with syrups and high sugar soy milks, etc. I think sometimes people haven't a clue how many calories they are actually eating. That small bag of combos that is easily just a tiny snack is also easily 300+ calories. It is also void of any nutrition which will leave you feeling hungry. The sugar in your starbucks will cause your blood sugar to rise and crash, leaving you feeling again hungry and your body starving for nutrients.
Yes, you can learn these things and change your eating habits.
Also, exercise- we all need more exercise but society and culture play a role there too. I am not making excuses, but we live in a world where you commute 2 hours a day by car to and from work then you gotta take the kids to practice, do homework, figure out dinner, blah blah blah.... It's not like we have lots of leisure time like we did say in the 1950's. We still have choices, of course...but I am just saying it is a combination.
Both culture/society and the individual play a role in the situation we are in. But guess which one we have control over??
Learning how to eat healthy is a choice and taking time to exercise is a choice. I did it as a single mom working full time paying back my student loans. I got my butt out of bed before my kid did and went running while the stars were still out and began spending my sundays preparing meals for the entire week. Now my son is older, I go to the gym from 10pm to midnight every night. I slip up here and there, but I do what I can. Sometimes I get take out and eat the 700 calorie meal that I probably shouldn't. But I do so with awareness.0 -
On this site, we're looking at it from an individual perspective. In a broader public health and societal sense, it's logical to look at the overall aspects that are resulting in such high obesity rates.
you so smart.
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I might not get to reading the full article for a bit but there's a lot to prove that blaming individuals is both pointless and incorrect. Social factors, environmental factors, physiological factors... obesity is incredibly complex! And if "eat less, exercise more" really worked, then obesity rates wouldn't be increasing, as the CDC has been telling people that for decades!
? Um actually yes, eating less and moving more DOES work. Most people are just too lazy to do it.
For you.
In the short-term.
So did everyone just become lazy in 1980? Please tell me more! You alone can solve the problem of obesity curing people of their laziness!!! O_O
Sorry, people have to want to cure themselves.
eek! I don't think these two ideas are mutually exclusive.
yes, the individual needs to want to make a change and needs to eat less (calories) and do more exercise!
Culture and society DO play a role tho. First and foremost, our food is more calorically dense than it needs to be. A sammich is not a sammich (ok that sounds dumb but hear me out!)...getting an egg sammich at starbucks is more calories than an egg sammich made at home. Extra calories are lopped into their drinks with syrups and high sugar soy milks, etc. I think sometimes people haven't a clue how many calories they are actually eating. That small bag of combos that is easily just a tiny snack is also easily 300+ calories. It is also void of any nutrition which will leave you feeling hungry. The sugar in your starbucks will cause your blood sugar to rise and crash, leaving you feeling again hungry and your body starving for nutrients.
Yes, you can learn these things and change your eating habits.
Also, exercise- we all need more exercise but society and culture play a role there too. I am not making excuses, but we live in a world where you commute 2 hours a day by car to and from work then you gotta take the kids to practice, do homework, figure out dinner, blah blah blah.... It's not like we have lots of leisure time like we did say in the 1950's. We still have choices, of course...but I am just saying it is a combination.
Both culture/society and the individual play a role in the situation we are in. But guess which one we have control over??
Learning how to eat healthy is a choice and taking time to exercise is a choice. I did it as a single mom working full time paying back my student loans. I got my butt out of bed before my kid did and went running while the stars were still out and began spending my sundays preparing meals for the entire week. Now my son is older, I go to the gym from 10pm to midnight every night. I slip up here and there, but I do what I can. Sometimes I get take out and eat the 700 calorie meal that I probably shouldn't. But I do so with awareness.
I totally agree with you. There are definitely larger societal factors that work against us. I was just disagreeing with the pp that moving more/eating less doesn't work. 0 -
*edited* because my own post was TL;DR for me.
basically my point was...even tho I exercised more and ate "better" I wasn't exercising enough and didn't understand how calorically dense my food was.
I needed MFP to come along and help me understand these things.0 -
On this site, we're looking at it from an individual perspective. In a broader public health and societal sense, it's logical to look at the overall aspects that are resulting in such high obesity rates.
Good point.
What did make America fat? The fiscal model blames it on overeating and inactivity. That will control it but doesn't really answer the question of what makes people fat.
Eric Schlosser blames it on fast food, yet the explosion of the fast food industry predated the increase in obesity. Obesity rates barely budged during the 50s 60s and 70s.
In a survey of obese adults done by social scientists at the University of California it asked women when they had started dieting, nearly two-thirds had gone on their first diet before age fourteen. Maybe dieting actually promoted their obesity. In Losing It, her expose of the billion dollar diet industry, author Laura Fraser believes it to be bingeing and diet foods.
In a study where researchers compared people with similar diets and physical activity they found that those experiencing food insecurity were the ones that were overweight. Once again, binge eating.When their food stamps ran out or their children's medical expenses used up the food budget they ate very little. When food became available they binged. Over time, their bodies adapted to the alteration by converting more of what they ate to body fat.
There are so many possible causes but I'm off to a Vietnamese place for seven courses of beef. Love those meatballs with peanuts, onions, lemongrass.
I'll reply to the original article later.
*most of these thoughts are influenced by Glassner's Gospel of Food book.0
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