Extreme obesity and paper plates. Question for people in the USA
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I can only speak for my personal experience (me, family, friends, acquaintances I've eaten with) but I only use paper plates at home for cookouts, to take to block parties, and (holiday-themed paper plates) to pack up treats for neighbors at the end-of-year holiday season. Occasionally on family vacations we would do paper plates when we brought carryout food back to wherever we were staying (even if it had a kitchen and real dishes, because who wants to do dishes on vacation?). Oh, and kids' birthday parties, but I haven't been to one of those in years, as all the youngsters in my family currently live at some distance.
I hadn't thought about it, but I can certainly see the argument for disposable plates and utensils if you have mobility, stability, gripping strength, or other issues that make breakable dishes and loading and unloading a dishwasher (or washing by hand) problematic. I have some inexpensive plastic plates I bought for serving heavier or damp/greasy things like burgers at cookouts so I didn't have to worry about paper plates collapsing, but that would only help with the breakage issue.2 -
I'd suggest being wary of making any inferences from "reality" TV shows - any inferences at all.
Yes, 'My 600lb. Life' is a scripted TV show complete with a neatly segmented story arc. Have you ever wondered why all the participants sound exactly the same when reading their voice-over lines? When they relocate to be near Dr. Now's facility, even with the production stipend, the rental units usually do not include kitchenware and cutlery. 9 times out of 10, the rental's commode will need to be replaced or re-seated (sometimes more than once) after or during the participant's stay and is one more line item in the show budget.
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I'd suggest being wary of making any inferences from "reality" TV shows - any inferences at all.
Yes, 'My 600lb. Life' is a scripted TV show complete with a neatly segmented story arc. Have you ever wondered why all the participants sound exactly the same when reading their voice-over lines? When they relocate to be near Dr. Now's facility, even with the production stipend, the rental units usually do not include kitchenware and cutlery. 9 times out of 10, the rental's commode will need to be replaced or re-seated (sometimes more than once) after or during the participant's stay and is one more line item in the show budget.
That is also a good point and one I hadn't considered, even though I did mention that TV isn't real life in my post. I think if I were temporarily relocating somewhere, especially for less than a year, I would probably not bother bringing crockery, either. Might get a plastic mess kit at the dollar store, if that, maybe, especially if I were relocating solo to do something extremely stressful. I've never watched My 600Lb Life so I don't know anything about it beyond "look at this incredibly fat person," so thank you for the insight from the production side.1 -
I use paper plates every week.
I have a family of 5 - I work from home and my kids homeschool, so we are home all day. I think this is the difference. I don't see how families get by not using them, unless they wash dishes all the time.
We have service for 4 (8, 7 plates, one shattered) of actual dishes, and 2 sets of resuable plastic children's plates.
If we eat three meals, that is 15 plates each day. We wash dishes once a day. You do the math, it isn't enough.
Now, we don't use them every day, DH washes the plastic kids plates by hand from breakfast and use them for lunch and dinner. But sometimes we don't do dishes EVERY day, or we are in a hurry and the dishwasher is still running at dinner time, or we are just having sandwiches.
We plan to buy more plates eventually, I'd like to get a set that matches what we have. We DID buy additional silverware and haven't had to use plastic silverware since.
MIL uses plastic silverware, she can taste the metal (she isn't crazy, it's legit, most people just filter it out). I suggested some washable plasticware for her, but I don't think she got it.3 -
For me, if it is something that is not particularly messy: I'll use paper plates. Easier on cleanup. I don't often use disposable utensils though. I only buy those for social gatherings, so none lately!
Regarding the show you mentioned - it often has the show subject relocating to Texas to live near the clinic. I imagine these people do not fully furnish/stock the apartment or home they rent since they are only there temporarily. That would make the use of disposable/temporary dishes sensible.Fatgonegirl wrote: »Sorry if this is not the correct board.
I watch My 600lb Life - I know I should be ashamed but I find it entertaining. One thing that puzzles me is the number of people shown eating from paper plates using plastic knives and forks. It is not everyone but it is fairly frequent. Is this a common practice in the USA?
In England, disposable crockery and cutlery are only used at gatherings where the host does not have sufficient pottery plates and metal cutlery or for children's parties as a novelty. Possibly the participants on the show are not fit enough to fill the dishwasher or wash up by hand. However, they often have family members who could undertake the task.
Is paper plate use linked to eating junk food or is it a common practice across the general population?
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ExistingFish wrote: »I use paper plates every week.
I have a family of 5 - I work from home and my kids homeschool, so we are home all day. I think this is the difference. I don't see how families get by not using them, unless they wash dishes all the time.
We have service for 4 (8, 7 plates, one shattered) of actual dishes, and 2 sets of resuable plastic children's plates.
If we eat three meals, that is 15 plates each day. We wash dishes once a day. You do the math, it isn't enough.
Now, we don't use them every day, DH washes the plastic kids plates by hand from breakfast and use them for lunch and dinner. But sometimes we don't do dishes EVERY day, or we are in a hurry and the dishwasher is still running at dinner time, or we are just having sandwiches.
We plan to buy more plates eventually, I'd like to get a set that matches what we have. We DID buy additional silverware and haven't had to use plastic silverware since.
MIL uses plastic silverware, she can taste the metal (she isn't crazy, it's legit, most people just filter it out). I suggested some washable plasticware for her, but I don't think she got it.
Yep, our kids are at school now but when we homeschooled, we used a ton of dishes every day just for eating - and I cook mostly from scratch so there are all those dishes too, though I really do try to be efficient with my dish usage. Even now we run our high-capacity dishwasher at least once per day and handwash a sinkful of dishes besides - when they were always home, we often ran it twice, sometimes three times!
Our dishes and cutlery have mostly been gifts or hand-me-downs and we have service for 12, though we rarely use the large dinner plates and just do the small lunch plates instead.2 -
penguinmama87 wrote: »ExistingFish wrote: »I use paper plates every week.
I have a family of 5 - I work from home and my kids homeschool, so we are home all day. I think this is the difference. I don't see how families get by not using them, unless they wash dishes all the time.
We have service for 4 (8, 7 plates, one shattered) of actual dishes, and 2 sets of resuable plastic children's plates.
If we eat three meals, that is 15 plates each day. We wash dishes once a day. You do the math, it isn't enough.
Now, we don't use them every day, DH washes the plastic kids plates by hand from breakfast and use them for lunch and dinner. But sometimes we don't do dishes EVERY day, or we are in a hurry and the dishwasher is still running at dinner time, or we are just having sandwiches.
We plan to buy more plates eventually, I'd like to get a set that matches what we have. We DID buy additional silverware and haven't had to use plastic silverware since.
MIL uses plastic silverware, she can taste the metal (she isn't crazy, it's legit, most people just filter it out). I suggested some washable plasticware for her, but I don't think she got it.
Yep, our kids are at school now but when we homeschooled, we used a ton of dishes every day just for eating - and I cook mostly from scratch so there are all those dishes too, though I really do try to be efficient with my dish usage. Even now we run our high-capacity dishwasher at least once per day and handwash a sinkful of dishes besides - when they were always home, we often ran it twice, sometimes three times!
Our dishes and cutlery have mostly been gifts or hand-me-downs and we have service for 12, though we rarely use the large dinner plates and just do the small lunch plates instead.
My dishes are the original set we got when we got married, and there were two of us...we fed the kids on high chair trays and toddler plates for a long time, but they are now bigger and eat more!
DH doesn't eat vegetables, so I get the dinner plates to load up with veggies for dinner and he gets the small ones for protein and calorie dense carbs
Nothing like filling a big dinner plate with lots of broccoli for very few calories! 1 -
I use paper plates in the microwave because it makes regular plates too hot. I sometimes will use them for snacks but not dinner. I use disposable cutlery with my lunch at work. I could bring silverware. I have not watched that show but if they are not very mobile washing dishes might be an issue.0
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ExistingFish wrote: »MIL uses plastic silverware, she can taste the metal (she isn't crazy, it's legit, most people just filter it out). I suggested some washable plasticware for her, but I don't think she got it.
No, she's not crazy. I don't use metal water bottles because I can taste it. I can taste real silver silverware but fortunately not the stainless steel kind.
Chiming in from Canada. Disposable plates and cutlery aren't the norm for anyone I know although you do see them at large gatherings because no one wants to be saddled with dishwashing and miss out on the festivities. Also for event type things where catered meals are brought in and there aren't dishwashing facilities on site.
I've attended these sorts of functions in recent eco-conscious times and been provided with bamboo utensils instead of plastic. I can't stand the feeling of bamboo so I will have to start carrying portable silverware when group functions resume.
Having seen 600 Lb Life and knowing that a lot of the participants have significant mobility issues, particularly with standing for periods of time (some are completely bedbound), my guess would be that it's just easier to use disposable dishes. Most live with someone else, require assistance with personal care and aren't really performing any household chores so eliminating one chore is probably helpful for the carer.
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As a kid, my family only ever used disposable plates/utensils if there was a large picnic or party where we didn't have enough dishes to cover the people there, or on a very rare occasion like a pizza night or something similar. My mom didn't get a dishwasher until I was a Junior in high school, so we all took our part in washing dishes.
Near the end of last summer we had to use them quite often because our(DH and mine) well had dried up and we had to shower at my in-laws or my mother's. At the time there just wasn't enough wiggle room in our budget to fix it, so we had to make do. There just wasn't any water to wash dishes, let alone ourselves. I did, however, take my pyrex containers with me to work, and washed them out in our break room, dried them and brought them back home, so I was only using 1 plate at home for the most part. I try to be very environmentally conscious-I compost, try to grow a majority of my own food, buy from local farms vs. supermarkets when I can, use canvas/reusable bags, use a reusable water bottle, donate things I no longer need/use instead of throwing away, and limit the amount of plastic that is brought into the house which is quite difficult these days. There's just so much waste, and we are trying our best as a house to keep our footprint down. Having to rely on paper plates definitely upset me a little bit.
I am happy to say that this summer, we have had an abundance of rain and our well is holding steady. We still plan on expanding it, but it was not an issue this summer.3 -
Typically, I'd say that they're mainly just used for outdoor gatherings & picnics. Or indoors for a party with quick-cheap-takeouty-type things like pizza and wings.
Although lately, I'm finding that more and more people get various takeout or buy pre-prepared foods at the grocery on a daily basis... using paper plates for the things not already in eating containers would probably be somewhat more common versus using them for meals cooked at home.
Ive never come across that here either - do you mean you would get something like takeaway chinese or noodles and than plate them onto paper plates when you got home/after they were delivered?
in that scenario, I would plate them on to my regular washable plates - as has everyone else i have been in that scenario with (say, extended family or friends group all chip in for pizza)
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I hadn't thought about it, but I can certainly see the argument for disposable plates and utensils if you have mobility, stability, gripping strength, or other issues that make breakable dishes and loading and unloading a dishwasher (or washing by hand) problematic. I have some inexpensive plastic plates I bought for serving heavier or damp/greasy things like burgers at cookouts so I didn't have to worry about paper plates collapsing, but that would only help with the breakage issue.
I get the logic in not using breakable plates if you might drop and break them - but my solution in that situation ( and with young children) would be to use melamine plates.
although admittedly you still have to wash them after wards.2 -
paperpudding wrote: »Typically, I'd say that they're mainly just used for outdoor gatherings & picnics. Or indoors for a party with quick-cheap-takeouty-type things like pizza and wings.
Although lately, I'm finding that more and more people get various takeout or buy pre-prepared foods at the grocery on a daily basis... using paper plates for the things not already in eating containers would probably be somewhat more common versus using them for meals cooked at home.
Ive never come across that here either - do you mean you would get something like takeaway chinese or noodles and than plate them onto paper plates when you got home/after they were delivered?
in that scenario, I would plate them on to my regular washable plates - as has everyone else i have been in that scenario with (say, extended family or friends group all chip in for pizza)
A lot of grocery stores do things like precooked chicken or potatoes in plastic containers or bags. they're not for one meal for one person but an entire chicken or something similar. So they sometimes get plated onto paper plates when in a situation like being in a hotel or eating at a picnic table.0 -
wunderkindking wrote: »paperpudding wrote: »Typically, I'd say that they're mainly just used for outdoor gatherings & picnics. Or indoors for a party with quick-cheap-takeouty-type things like pizza and wings.
Although lately, I'm finding that more and more people get various takeout or buy pre-prepared foods at the grocery on a daily basis... using paper plates for the things not already in eating containers would probably be somewhat more common versus using them for meals cooked at home.
Ive never come across that here either - do you mean you would get something like takeaway chinese or noodles and than plate them onto paper plates when you got home/after they were delivered?
in that scenario, I would plate them on to my regular washable plates - as has everyone else i have been in that scenario with (say, extended family or friends group all chip in for pizza)
A lot of grocery stores do things like precooked chicken or potatoes in plastic containers or bags. they're not for one meal for one person but an entire chicken or something similar. So they sometimes get plated onto paper plates when in a situation like being in a hotel or eating at a picnic table.
yes those are the sort of things i thought poster meant - a cooked chicken or a pizza or chinese and rice, to share.
in a picnic situation we might use paper plates to dish out such portions here too - but unlikely if eating them at home.
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paperpudding wrote: »Typically, I'd say that they're mainly just used for outdoor gatherings & picnics. Or indoors for a party with quick-cheap-takeouty-type things like pizza and wings.
Although lately, I'm finding that more and more people get various takeout or buy pre-prepared foods at the grocery on a daily basis... using paper plates for the things not already in eating containers would probably be somewhat more common versus using them for meals cooked at home.
Ive never come across that here either - do you mean you would get something like takeaway chinese or noodles and than plate them onto paper plates when you got home/after they were delivered?
in that scenario, I would plate them on to my regular washable plates - as has everyone else i have been in that scenarios with (say, extended family or friends group all chip in for pizza)
As an adult I dish up carryout onto regular china/pottery etc. dishes, but I remember in college when we ordered subs or pizza or Chinese delivery at the dorm, they always packed paper or (in those long ago days) Styrofoam disposable plates. It was a situation with one kitchen being shared by more than 50 people, so most of us tired pretty quickly of depending on it to prepare food or wash dishes, because you could never know how long you might have to wait for your turn.
The ice cream place that delivered hand-packed pints only included plastic spoons and napkins. They knew their college student audience well, as we each got our own pint and planned to eat it in one sitting.1 -
I’ve only bought paper plates when I was too depressed to keep my house clean and wash dishes regularly. I’m willing to bet a lot of obese people lack the energy to stand at a sink to wash up, or load and unload a dishwasher. Of course I associate paper plates with struggle so I might be biased.8
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People with chronic pain and limitations on their ability to stand for long periods tend to use disposable plates/flatware because that way they don't have to stand in the kitchen to wash them.3
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I guess I'm the odd one out. We use paper plates all the time unless it's a meal that is more "soupy". Personally, I despise paper plates but I'm outnumbered 3 to 1. We do, however, use real silverware.1
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paperpudding wrote: »Typically, I'd say that they're mainly just used for outdoor gatherings & picnics. Or indoors for a party with quick-cheap-takeouty-type things like pizza and wings.
Although lately, I'm finding that more and more people get various takeout or buy pre-prepared foods at the grocery on a daily basis... using paper plates for the things not already in eating containers would probably be somewhat more common versus using them for meals cooked at home.
Ive never come across that here either - do you mean you would get something like takeaway chinese or noodles and than plate them onto paper plates when you got home/after they were delivered?
in that scenario, I would plate them on to my regular washable plates - as has everyone else i have been in that scenario with (say, extended family or friends group all chip in for pizza)
Typically, I would say most people traditionally dish those onto real plates (excepting pizza fairly often as that is usually more of a party item for a larger number of people especially if a kid party or more of a super-lazy-drunken-day order for 1-2), but it seems that more and more people have gotten a bit lazier (for lack of being able to think of a better word at the moment) in recent days.. so I wouldn't be surprised if they weren't dished out on paper plates as often or more often now.
Several groups I'm part of use them fairly frequently to 'tailgate' after rides (outdoors). I usually keep some, along with plastic wine glasses (and, of course, a bottle opener and cap) in the car (along with 2 bikes). I normally have a folding knife and titanium spork with my gear. I've been meaning to add some cutlery for group use.0 -
lynn_glenmont wrote: »paperpudding wrote: »Typically, I'd say that they're mainly just used for outdoor gatherings & picnics. Or indoors for a party with quick-cheap-takeouty-type things like pizza and wings.
Although lately, I'm finding that more and more people get various takeout or buy pre-prepared foods at the grocery on a daily basis... using paper plates for the things not already in eating containers would probably be somewhat more common versus using them for meals cooked at home.
Ive never come across that here either - do you mean you would get something like takeaway chinese or noodles and than plate them onto paper plates when you got home/after they were delivered?
in that scenario, I would plate them on to my regular washable plates - as has everyone else i have been in that scenarios with (say, extended family or friends group all chip in for pizza)
As an adult I dish up carryout onto regular china/pottery etc. dishes, but I remember in college when we ordered subs or pizza or Chinese delivery at the dorm, they always packed paper or (in those long ago days) Styrofoam disposable plates. It was a situation with one kitchen being shared by more than 50 people, so most of us tired pretty quickly of depending on it to prepare food or wash dishes, because you could never know how long you might have to wait for your turn.
The ice cream place that delivered hand-packed pints only included plastic spoons and napkins. They knew their college student audience well, as we each got our own pint and planned to eat it in one sitting.
I remember those dorm kitchens. Dear God! I mostly did packet cooking in foil and ate from the foil. The state of the microwave was usually downright terrifying. Thankfully, Since most of the residents had been babied by their parents and didn't know how to use the oven, that was fairly clean and not, for instance, full of exploded eggs.1
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