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UK government obesity strategy
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Possibly Authoritarian might be a better word. Many countries have an authoritarian bias these days, some take it further than others. I'm interested to know what this Socialist - Communist - Dictatorship line has to do with the UK's government obesity strategy though.1
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We have this where I live in the US and I love it. It means I don't have to do extensive research on places in town before I feel safe ordering within my macros. I have seen it trigger the "fat positivity" types, but honestly, I think they need a reality check anyway.2
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The government has been very quiet on this one. The PM is on holiday believed to be in a tent by a Scottish cottage he ha taken for the event. Now will he have lost any weight when he gets home?0
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Possibly Authoritarian might be a better word. Many countries have an authoritarian bias these days, some take it further than others. I'm interested to know what this Socialist - Communist - Dictatorship line has to do with the UK's government obesity strategy though.
If you read back the thread you will see that someone asserted that socialists tell people what to eat.
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Most uk GP’s haven’t a clue on nutrition
I went in with a raised ALT liver reading
The Dr informed me to cut my saturated fat
While stuffing his face with a bag of walkers crisps. When I pointed out my total fats are .75grams per kilo of body weight he seemed totally lost.
Only then did he check my bp which he said was perfect. Don’t think he appreciated me pointing out the amount of sat fat in his crisps
I agree with GP comment, i once had an appointment at 830am and the Dr was drinking coke!0 -
Most uk GP’s haven’t a clue on nutrition
I went in with a raised ALT liver reading
The Dr informed me to cut my saturated fat
While stuffing his face with a bag of walkers crisps. When I pointed out my total fats are .75grams per kilo of body weight he seemed totally lost.
Only then did he check my bp which he said was perfect. Don’t think he appreciated me pointing out the amount of sat fat in his crisps
I agree with GP comment, i once had an appointment at 830am and the Dr was drinking coke!
Is it the time of day that was troubling you? I know several people who drink a coke in the AM because they like the caffeine but don't particularly care for coffee or tea.1 -
Possibly Authoritarian might be a better word. Many countries have an authoritarian bias these days, some take it further than others. I'm interested to know what this Socialist - Communist - Dictatorship line has to do with the UK's government obesity strategy though.
If you read back the thread you will see that someone asserted that socialists tell people what to eat.
You really need to study Venezuela. The Government controls the food supplies, so they control who eats, and what they eat.2 -
Possibly Authoritarian might be a better word. Many countries have an authoritarian bias these days, some take it further than others. I'm interested to know what this Socialist - Communist - Dictatorship line has to do with the UK's government obesity strategy though.
If you read back the thread you will see that someone asserted that socialists tell people what to eat.
You really need to study Venezuela. The Government controls the food supplies, so they control who eats, and what they eat.
And you, with respect, need to read the thread because, although it was weeks and weeks back, I am pretty sure we already did Venezuela. This country behaves as it does because corruption has turned it into a basket case, not enough food and not enough medicine despite its wealth, and not because of socialism.
Meanwhile, the socialism that is the UK with its NHS (and the topic under discussion) does not control what people eats nor do any of the other socialist countries in Europe.5 -
Theoldguy1 wrote: »
Socialist countries do not tell you what to eat either.
But there is much higher potential for them to decree what is produced and/or imported so indirectly they do.
Perhaps but it depends on the country as, for example, state support is pretty much outlawed in EU member states but many of those member state are never-the-less "socialist".
But that is hardly the same as telling the people what to eat.
And of course even the USA bans foods, Kinder eggs and haggis being examples of that.
Indeed -- the rules governing state aid to a specific company or industry in the EU seem to require actual review and waivers for any such action. In the U.S., all you have to have is enough money flowing from a given industry to the right politicians, and government aid isn't all that difficult to obtain. Look at sugar subsidies.0 -
Universal health care only works when the population is generally healthy. When the population as a whole is generally unhealthy then the costs become unsustainable. It is crucial for countries like the UK who have a rising obesity problem to nip this in the bud now or their health care system will collapse.0
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Universal health care only works when the population is generally healthy. When the population as a whole is generally unhealthy then the costs become unsustainable. It is crucial for countries like the UK who have a rising obesity problem to nip this in the bud now or their health care system will collapse.
Not sure where you get your information about the costs of obesity. As a guesstimate, the cost of obesity is roughly 5% of the total government health budget in my country with taxpayer funded health care. Also health care systems don't "collapse", they slowly reduce services over decades.1 -
Universal health care only works when the population is generally healthy. When the population as a whole is generally unhealthy then the costs become unsustainable. It is crucial for countries like the UK who have a rising obesity problem to nip this in the bud now or their health care system will collapse.
Do you have any data for this? Obesity increases death in the 50s and 60s from heart attack and stroke -- after someone has made the majority of their lifetime contribution to society both in terms of workforce productivity and tax payments, but saves society the very high costs of care in assisted living, nursing home, and end-of-life care that can be thousands of dollars a month, month-after-month, for several years, even for people without any serious health issues beyond frailty or mild cognitive issues that mean they can't live independently. That's often capped by days, weeks, or months of extremely costly efforts to maintain life in someone who may have little to no chance of ever being able to leave the hospital.0 -
For me, working from home throughout this pandemic has been a game changer. I literally didn't have time to look after myself before - if you're in a certain type of job, you get sucked in. The long hours and the long commute sap your time during the week, and your energy on the weekend. They also mess with your appetite regulation.
Saving on the commute doesn't just save on the time of the commute - you feel happier overall not having spent hours with your face in some bloke's armpit, less gross, and you don't have to recover from the stress of fighting to get on a train.
Having the flexibility to stop when I'm hungry (rather than when the local sandwich shops aren't busy) and to eat prepped home cooked meals is a revelation. If I have to do overtime, I can break for dinner, then carry on. I don't have to work through the evening then grab any old junk just before bed. I can still keep up a food routine even when my work routine has to flex.
I think a lot of employers in the UK are considering more working from home arrangements - even if just a few days a week - and that I think is what may give people the opportunity to take control of their health. I feel like work has been gradually killing me for years with the effect on my weight, my sleep and my stress - doing the same job, but from home, has really changed everything. There are some added fringe benefits like not wearing heels (no one can see those on a video call) - my feet are delighted, and so is my back.
Ideally, I'd never go back to the office again. Practically, once we're through winter and advice changes, I think I'll probably comprise with 3 days in the office and 2 at home.2 -
@thelastnightingale Well said! Working from home has brought so much benefit for me, too, physically and mentally. Having cut out my hour long daily commute, I can prioritise my health a lot more easily now and I have more time, energy and willpower to do so.
I wonder if it will make a sustained difference to many people... I hope so.1 -
@spyro88 I honestly didn't think it would - I had never advocated home-working before. But despite having one of the hardest years of my life, I'm also on track to get into the best shape of my life.
Sure, I've been lighter and fitter (and younger!) before, and I've been in a better place mentally before. However, this is the first time in my life I've genuinely treated my own health as a priority. That in itself is huge. Covid has finally made me realise being obese/overweight does carries an unacceptable level of risk, and that personal happiness is important.
I do also wonder how many other people are in the same position and who have managed to turn things around simply due to cutting out the commute. We've always seen 40 hour plus working weeks as normal in this country (with much longer weeks for certain professions), but we've never really considered how much time we really dedicate to work. Most people don't get paid for their commute, but it's still 'work-related' time we carve out of our days. Add in the skipped lunch breaks, a bit more extra unpaid overtime, maybe a bit of presenteeism competitiveness...
We did this to ourselves. Thankfully, we're now beginning to realise that, and to reclaim some balance.1 -
Why can't there be government incentives? Free gym memberships, health and wellness programs or services. I want the freedom to see ads, to walk in a store and see soda and chips. Banning stuff doesn't make it go away. Can we say banning drugs has worked?
Speaking from America, people are overworked and overstressed, and don't have tools to drop weight. Sad, but American docs rather medicate you than give you tools to improve health.5 -
We can have the answers to absolutely everything and still not be able to do anything.
Each of us needs to take full responsibility for ourselves. No one can do this for us or motivate us or inspire us. It's too exhausting for friends and family to prop us UP. We live in the land of abundance and we have grown accustomed to immediate gratification by entertaining ourselves with playfoods.
When anyone says I'm going to need you to keep me accountable by doing this, that and the other. I need you to do this for me...they're usually long gone within a week or two. Sometimes, they're here one day and gone the next.
This is not a competition. Our body is the best friend we'll ever have in this life. It hangs in there for every food protocol and means of overcompensation that we put it through. We put our body through the paces and there it stands like a faithful friend trying to unravel all of the dieting dogma and mind warp we throw at it.
Obesity and diabetes go hand in hand. It's now one out of three. All of the diets in the world haven't fixed it because the antidote becomes the problem. I live out in the country. I simply take it back outside and it's all free.
It's not the body that's the problem, it's the brain.
When you find yourself at the crossroads because you've eaten it all back or you've reached the highest weight you've ever been in your entire lifetime, ask yourself some serious questions.
What was going through your brain while you were in the process of eating it all back. Why wasn't your brain able to stop you from going on that eating excursion. Not. One. Single. Time. It could be a day. A month. A year. A decade.
Why is your body required to endure some brutally strict food protocol with massive amounts of exercise to overcompensate for the brain. Why?
Why weren't you able to pull yourself back from the brink? You have to figure these things out without massive rationalization and excuses. If you don't, rebound weight gain with friends can show right back up on your doorstep when you're not looking.
It's not the body, it's the brain that needs retraining tools.
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sportygal1971 wrote: »Why can't there be government incentives? Free gym memberships, health and wellness programs or services. I want the freedom to see ads, to walk in a store and see soda and chips. Banning stuff doesn't make it go away. Can we say banning drugs has worked?
Speaking from America, people are overworked and overstressed, and don't have tools to drop weight. Sad, but American docs rather medicate you than give you tools to improve health.
Part of that issue is that the typical consumer actively wants that quick-fix pill. Many doctors tell people to lose weight, exercise, or eat more healthfully, and the majority of people don't do it. Some other patients tell their doctor they'll lose weight, exercise, or improve their eating rather than take a drug, but they're back for the next check-up at the same or higher weight, and same health issues. (I personally did the latter for at least a couple of years, probably more, regarding statins.)
The visibly high level of emotion in my doctor and his nurse-assistant's astonished reaction when I came in around 30 pounds lighter after a 6-month period tells me that this is not a common thing they see. They weren't just congratulatory, they were *stunned*.
Any number of my friends "want to lose weight" but "just can't". I know enough about their lifestyles and attitudes to be fairly certain that the main reason they can't is that they don't *really* want to, enough to change habits. They're waiting for "easy". (I was in the same state for about 3 decades, so the signs are familiar.)
I can't really blame doctors when many of them go straight to the medication solution. Years of the above experience would wear a person down to "why bother" - maybe moreso if the doctor hasn't established a healthy routine for him/herself.
We can argue that the medical establishment has trained us to expect the quick pill fix, but at best it's a circular argument. We train them that we won't change behavior, so they should recommend the pill; their recommending the pill trains us to want and expect it.
Personally, I don't prefer to adopt viewpoints that paint me as a victim, when another interpretation is reasonably valid IMO. Victimhood as a viewpoint is disempowering, for me.
Edited: Typos6
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