Why are we bigger than ever?

malibu927

Eat more, move less. Portions are bigger now, and we're so consumed with technology that we never get out.

BeYouTiful94

I believe there are a lot of factors that come into play. Food is becoming more and more processed so that it has a longer shelf life and so that I can even make it to the grocery store from middle-of-nowhere, China. Also, with most households consisting of two working parents and then children that have all sorts of after-school activities, fast food has come to play a major role. Many households struggle to find the time to make healthy meals. Also, outdoor activities have been cut way down. My parents always tell me about times when they were smaller and could go out and walk several miles to their friend's house and no one would worry. But now, there are so many just evil-doers out there that parents worry about letting their kids go out alone. We've always lived in a nice area and a nice house and have had nice neighbors, but even then my parents never felt safe letting my brother or myself go further than the front yard unless they were outside with us or the neighbors were outside in their front yard. Likewise, we couldn't go to the park unless our parents walked down and stayed with us, or one of the neighbors was already down there with their kids. Never alone. So "outside time" has become something you've got to do with the family, which means you've got to wait for mom and dad to get home and do everything before going out. By then, it's dark out. So instead, my parents bought us GameBoys and Nintendo DS's, TV's and DVD players, GameCube's and Wii's, Xbox's and Playstation's, iPod's and iPhone's .... Things to keep us entertained indoors where we were safe.

Also, "family outings" are no longer fun trips to the park or to the zoo or a museum, but instead a trip to a restaurant with 600 calorie appetizers, 900 calorie entrees, and 1200 calorie desserts. Or a trip to the movies with its over-buttered popcorn and cheesy nachos and extraordinarily large sodas. Only to go back home and sit around.

And then there is also the media and advertising. They consistently make it seem like people get overweight because they don't have enough Garcinia Combodgia in their system, which isn't the person's fault and if they just take these 100% Garcinia Combodgia pills, the weight will just slide right off. Or they make it seem like people can eat whatever and then take a Hydroxycut and stay slim. They show lean and fit people eating at McDonalds with their family, happy as can be. And salads are advertised and being incredibly healthy when not all of them are. Put enough cheese or ranch in the salad and it's right on up there with the burgers and fries. Etc etc.

And lastly, there's the economic side of things. Some people can't afford healthy foods and feel that there is just nothing they can do to help themselves since the chips and cereal are cheaper than the kale and strawberries.

lfod308

Poison in the food supply. Fluoride, gmo, high fructose corn syrup, aspartame, antibiotics, gluten, dyes, chemicals, drugs, and removal of iodine from salt. Doctors in bed with the drug companies. Plastics and bha destroying your thyroid. Monsanto roundup on your food. Government dietary guides that will make you fat sick and stupid. Vaccinations with murcury. Eat up, the government loves you!
Sorry for the rant. Research and consume real food and avoid all the junk above. Don't trust your doctor or the government and make your own conclusions. Good luck.

vingogly

lfod308 wrote: »

Poison in the food supply. Fluoride, gmo, high fructose corn syrup, aspartame, antibiotics, gluten, dyes, chemicals, drugs, and removal of iodine from salt. Doctors in bed with the drug companies. Plastics and bha destroying your thyroid. Monsanto roundup on your food. Government dietary guides that will make you fat sick and stupid. Vaccinations with murcury. Eat up, the government loves you!
Sorry for the rant. Research and consume real food and avoid all the junk above. Don't trust your doctor or the government and make your own conclusions. Good luck.

Is this a joke?

MommyL2015

lfod308 wrote: »

Poison in the food supply. Fluoride, gmo, high fructose corn syrup, aspartame, antibiotics, gluten, dyes, chemicals, drugs, and removal of iodine from salt. Doctors in bed with the drug companies. Plastics and bha destroying your thyroid. Monsanto roundup on your food. Government dietary guides that will make you fat sick and stupid. Vaccinations with murcury. Eat up, the government loves you!
Sorry for the rant. Research and consume real food and avoid all the junk above. Don't trust your doctor or the government and make your own conclusions. Good luck.

I spent some time on a conspiracy website. I had to quit because I felt my brain imploding. I suggest you get out before it's too late.

endlessfall16

I disagree that portions are getting bigger. I've been eating fast foods for decades and the portions served in many places have actually shrunk.

But,

There are lots more options and life basically is becoming easier as years go by, contrary to the fact that older generations tend to believe that the next generation won't make it, eg they are all going to hell.

So portions are shrinking but are being outpaced by growth of choices. The comfort and sedentary lifestyle earned from advancement outpace the rate of required physicality. That's the reason.

misskarne

Honestly, portion sizes. I'm an Australian currently on holiday in the US and I was absolutely shocked. Take McDonalds for example: an American medium fries and drink is the same size as an Australian LARGE fries and drink, and the American large fries and drink is probably twice the size.

Also, holy guacamole, could you guys go two seconds without adding sugar to stuff that doesn't need it? Especially your bread? Trying to find bread anything to eat here so far has been an experiment in feeling nauseous. And I felt really nauseous when I stepped into a candy aisle at Target. The size of the bags! I'd never seen anything like it.

macchiatto

Tangent since everything I would have said (and much I would not ) has been covered, but cup holders in cars are one of the best inventions. I use mine all the time. 95% of the time for water, 5% for coffee.

lkpducky

misskarne wrote: »

Also, holy guacamole, could you guys go two seconds without adding sugar to stuff that doesn't need it? Especially your bread? Trying to find bread anything to eat here so far has been an experiment in feeling nauseous.

My husband is from Wales and he commented that just about everything in the USA tastes sweeter than the equivalents in the UK. He's not thrilled with most restaurant food here, and that's one of the reasons. He thinks that some restaurants add sugar to sauces to hide the fact that the meats are not the very top quality so they wouldn't taste good on their own.

trisH_7183

Back then schools had physical ed,recess.....where we played all kinds of games,softball,foot races,acrobatic jumps etc. We walked to school,walked home for lunch,walked back,then walked home ...5 days a wk. Most of us got back early after lunch,giving us more play time.
After an early dinner,we were free to play in the yard or on the porch ....when old enough,it was ok to go to our friends house...tho we were always outside unless it rained. Riding bikes etc,but you had to be home at a certain time....before dark.

Schools didn't have soda machines,just a water fountain.Looking back,most kids didn't slow down long enough to gain much weight. I remember one boy in my class who was chunky....just like his Father.

Our Mother was home & home cooking was all we knew.So many things & ways of living have changed,not all to the good.JMO

Noreenmarie1234

I also think it's part of our culture and acceptable now. You see everyone else overweight, you think it's okay and normal. I know so many of my overweight friends don't think they are overweight because they are smaller than most people they see. Not to mention all the magazine and everything are now promoting plus size as healthy.

ForecasterJason

Noreenmarie1234 wrote: »

I also think it's part of our culture and acceptable now. You see everyone else overweight, you think it's okay and normal. I know so many of my overweight friends don't think they are overweight because they are smaller than most people they see. Not to mention all the magazine and everything are now promoting plus size as healthy.

I think there is some truth to this. It was mentioned earlier in the thread that people who are overweight probably know it, but I think part of the issue is that it's basically the norm today.

RobD520

Noreenmarie1234 wrote: »

I also think it's part of our culture and acceptable now. You see everyone else overweight, you think it's okay and normal. I know so many of my overweight friends don't think they are overweight because they are smaller than most people they see. Not to mention all the magazine and everything are now promoting plus size as healthy.

Empirical evidence? I didn't think so.....

The one comment I do agree with is that there are more people who view people in the 26-30 BMI range as attractive. But I view that as a sign of health.

ilovefastcarstoo

Noreenmarie1234 wrote: »

I also think it's part of our culture and acceptable now. You see everyone else overweight, you think it's okay and normal. I know so many of my overweight friends don't think they are overweight because they are smaller than most people they see. Not to mention all the magazine and everything are now promoting plus size as healthy.

I totally agree with this. Even though I am considered plus size, I don't think it's anything anyone should want to promote. It is unhealthy and in my opinion not attractive. That's my two biggest reasons for wanting to get in shape/ lost weight. I also know that I currently would feel more comfortable dating a man that is overweight so I wouldn't feel out of place when around him. That being said, we would technically be making the problem worst unless we both decided to lose weight together. Hypothetically speaking. Something to think about...

knelson095

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is clothing. A lot of it is stretchy now, so we don't have that everyday reminder of how our clothes fit. I have some jeans that I have reasonably worn in three different 'sizes'. When I was bigger they just stretched to accommodate, and when I gained weight I didn't really notice.

ilovefastcarstoo

knelson095 wrote: »

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is clothing. A lot of it is stretchy now, so we don't have that everyday reminder of how our clothes fit. I have some jeans that I have reasonably worn in three different 'sizes'. When I was bigger they just stretched to accommodate, and when I gained weight I didn't really notice.

Good point... Also our sizes are actually bigger than what they used to be. Our plates when you make meals at home our bigger. It's crazy how things change...

richardgavel

I also think we tend to make meals shorter in time than we used to, which means we can eat more before our brain signals us as being full.

Alyssa_Is_LosingIt

lfod308 wrote: »

Poison in the food supply. Fluoride, gmo, high fructose corn syrup, aspartame, antibiotics, gluten, dyes, chemicals, drugs, and removal of iodine from salt. Doctors in bed with the drug companies. Plastics and bha destroying your thyroid. Monsanto roundup on your food. Government dietary guides that will make you fat sick and stupid. Vaccinations with murcury. Eat up, the government loves you!
Sorry for the rant. Research and consume real food and avoid all the junk above. Don't trust your doctor or the government and make your own conclusions. Good luck.

None of the above.

Eating too much and not moving enough. That's the reason right there.

gradchica27

Portion sizes, definitely. My grandma served OJ in juice glasses--4 oz. now it's hard to find any glasses that small--we drink OJ in 6, 8, 12 oz glasses bc that's all we have (not me, bc I finally found the elusive tiny juice glass!). Coke was served maybe once or twice a week, in the same glasses.

Two separate stoneware sets I've purchased have dinner plates too wide for my cabinets. Seriously, so big the doors won't shut. Hard to visualize correct portions on something that large--it warps your idea of what a "normal " portion is.

And snacks. Snacks are everywhere, all the time. Snacks at least once at my kid's 9-2 school (plus lunch). Snacks after a 30 min soccer practice. Snacks during their 10-12 am mom's group childcare class. Cripes, we just finished breakfast 10 min bf we got in the car, and we will eat lunch 10 min after the mtg ends, I think they can go 2 hrs without food! Hunger is just not acceptable anymore, for even a few minutes. We don't know what real hunger feels like so we eat at the first twinge of "hmm, food might be good".