Top List of 10 Most Obese Countries

jmv7117

We were discussing this at work the other day, and the fact that most people refuse to eat healthy and exercise. They just want magic pills.

That mindset is apparent even on MFP

umer76

It is not Fast food in Pakistan that is making people obese. The main culprits for us are the traditional eating habits i.e. white rice and whole wheat roti/Nan bread which are part of every meal. Lots and lots of carbs and sodium in them. Fast food is also catching up fast in bigger cities! Eating habits and genetics are to be blamed equally.

Eating habits and GENETICS are not equally to blame. Only a very small percentage of the human population is affected by genes that control metabolic and lipid storage. Genes do not mutate this way.

Okay eating habits are more to be blamed and not having active/sporty life style is also resulting in obesity.

jmv7117

other than brazil, these don't surprise me. i do think that genetics plays a big part in this, especially for south asians. add to that the fact that these countries all have rapidly developing economies and growing middle classes (which eat out more, buy lots of fried/junk food, etc) and there you go...

Genetics plays a role in body statue (eg. height, bone size) but has little to do with obesity. Obesity tends to run in some families simply because that is what they learned and they continue to teach overeating to the next generation. The teaching may be subtle but it is there. Granted there is a socioeconomic aspect to obesity but that too is used as an excuse.

Heatherybit

It is not Fast food in Pakistan that is making people obese. The main culprits for us are the traditional eating habits i.e. white rice and whole wheat roti/Nan bread which are part of every meal. Lots and lots of carbs and sodium in them. Fast food is also catching up fast in bigger cities! Eating habits and genetics are to be blamed equally.

Eating habits and GENETICS are not equally to blame. Only a very small percentage of the human population is affected by genes that control metabolic and lipid storage. Genes do not mutate this way.

Okay eating habits are more to be blamed and not having active/sporty life style is also resulting in obesity.

YES!

albayin

I have been wondering about this for a while...is it possible being bigger and heavier become part of the evolution? Our ancestors were living through much harder times when food supply was scarce and they had to work harder given technology was so advanced. We see obesity being big health threat but also trends that younger generations become taller and heavier overall...I don't know just wondering...please don't bash me~:flowerforyou:

ninerbuff

The various genes that scientists have so far identified that could have an impact on weight is miniscule. There are "thrifty" genes that may affect a person's ability to get obese, but these genes in themselves do not make them obese. Just like genes that affect alcoholism doesn't make one an alcoholic.

I find it difficult to accept the continual blame game of the obesity epidemic on genetics. The percentage of those that are affected by "Thrifty" genes have not increased, but the percentage of the obese in the population has spiked.

Therefore, unless the metabolic genes themselves have started mutating on their own to become "thrifty" genes, blaming genetics is not acceptable answer to the increase in the obesity percentage.

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/obesity-prevention-source/obesity-causes/genes-and-obesity/

THIS. I would propose that the obesity issue lies more with environmental and habitual issues. Industry in the countries mentioned in the article have increased, which usually means an increase in income for the people that live there. More income brings more businesses and a lot of those businesses will be food related (restaurants). Also more income means that more food can be bought and stored and usually when open access to food happens, people have a tendency to eat much more than they are used to.

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jmv7117

It is not Fast food in Pakistan that is making people obese. The main culprits for us are the traditional eating habits i.e. white rice and whole wheat roti/Nan bread which are part of every meal. Lots and lots of carbs and sodium in them. Fast food is also catching up fast in bigger cities! Eating habits and genetics are to be blamed equally.

The finger is often pointed at the fast food industry and while I rarely eat at a fast food restaurant, I don't feel they are solely to blame in the obesity issue. Yes, they play a role via marketing, folks have a choice to not eat there. I would hazard a guess that in a country such as Pakistan the culprit is a combination of eating more and moving less. Carbs only matter if you are eating more than you should if you adhere to the calories in vs calories out. Sodium affects water weight. I agree that eating habits are to blame but not genetics.

Heatherybit

I have been wondering about this for a while...is it possible being bigger and heavier become part of the evolution? Our ancestors were living through much harder times when food supply was scarce and they had to work harder given technology was so advanced. We see obesity being big health threat but also trends that younger generations become taller and heavier overall...I don't know just wondering...please don't bash me~:flowerforyou:

Not bashing, completely understand how the statistics seem to show this.
1. Evolution doesn't work this fast
2. We are taller because of the amount of early childhood nutrients
3. 30 years in the US and even less than 10 years in other countries, trend, is not supported human evolution being the cause.

I truly believe it's our lifestyle. I've seen it reflected in my personal weight gain. Sitting my rear all day, coding, glued to a monitor 12 hours pushing code through, and eating McNuggets because I could easily stuff them in my face while not skipping a beat.

sk_pirate

they don't surprise me at all..

Glad Canada isn't on the list..must have been from all the shovelling we did this winter.

Haha! YUP!!

..so much winter...

ChristinaOrtiz23

damn US smh!!

bethlaf

147 BILLION dollar diet industry.. and related health care -...
hmmm.... im missing a serious revenue stream ...

AglaeaC

I have been wondering about this for a while...is it possible being bigger and heavier become part of the evolution? Our ancestors were living through much harder times when food supply was scarce and they had to work harder given technology was so advanced. We see obesity being big health threat but also trends that younger generations become taller and heavier overall...I don't know just wondering...please don't bash me~:flowerforyou:

The only benefit of overweight is increasing bone mass, which is counteracting osteoporosis. Otherwise I see nothing but cons to being overweight/obese.

The reason we create such monstrous fat layers when overeating is obviously because it was a good thing, those capabilities were favoured; there was something to live on when food was scarce. But today, when people keep shoving increasing portion sizes, humongous amounts of excess calories down their throats, it still goes to where it can be stored.

ETA
Height: take Asian countries for instance. Food has slowly changed and kids might become much taller than their parents, who are still alive. It's all in the nutrition and the parents would have grown as tall as the kids, had they had the same supplies.

leggup

We're number 1! We're number 1!

Wait...

Matrix_Dragon

Glad to see Canada isn't on there. I guess it's the fact that our seasons are completely whack ( It was 39 degrees yesterday... )

As I grew up Indian food and my parents parents etc. The reason is that ALOT of Indian food is HEAVY in fat and calories. Butter chicken for example; gets its creamy texture/taste from the tomato sauce ( which is ok ) the 2-3 cups of yogurt, the cup of butter etc.
It all adds up in the end. Throw in the fact that roti, naan, pronta etc are all white flour ( and most people eat at least 2-4 per meal ) and that's easily a ton of calories.

Finally throw in that most people drive and have office jobs, and it eventually adds up.

Regardless; it's almost impossible to change a country; you can only really do what YOU can to stay fit, as well as encourage your family and friends.

ChristinaOrtiz23

We're number 1! We're number 1!

Wait...

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

AglaeaC

I have been wondering about this for a while...is it possible being bigger and heavier become part of the evolution? Our ancestors were living through much harder times when food supply was scarce and they had to work harder given technology was so advanced. We see obesity being big health threat but also trends that younger generations become taller and heavier overall...I don't know just wondering...please don't bash me~:flowerforyou:

Not bashing, completely understand how the statistics seem to show this.
1. Evolution doesn't work this fast
2. We are taller because of the amount of early childhood nutrients
3. 30 years in the US and even less than 10 years in other countries, trend, is not supported human evolution being the cause.

I truly believe it's our lifestyle. I've seen it reflected in my personal weight gain. Sitting my rear all day, coding, glued to a monitor 12 hours pushing code through, and eating McNuggets because I could easily stuff them in my face while not skipping a beat.

People don't work as much with their hands as they do knowledge work these days. It's not too long ago when offices didn't even exist. (A sidetrack is how information and knowledge is treated in schools; in general there isn't much being taught how to learn but you're supposed to figure it out on your own.)

jmv7117

I have been wondering about this for a while...is it possible being bigger and heavier become part of the evolution? Our ancestors were living through much harder times when food supply was scarce and they had to work harder given technology was so advanced. We see obesity being big health threat but also trends that younger generations become taller and heavier overall...I don't know just wondering...please don't bash me~:flowerforyou:

We know that the life expectancy has increased and there is evidence of increased height. However, we might actually be seeing natural selection. Obesity presents numerous health problems including a shortened lifespan and reduced fertility. In terms of reproduction, there is a lowered chance of conceiving which equates to lowered chance of passing on your genes. If an individual is obese before they reach the age where reproduction is possible which is what we are seeing with the increasing level of childhood obesity there will be a lowered fecundity. In the big picture, it becomes human population control through over eating.

eddiesmith1

It's good to see Canada isn't on there, but I think it's more to do with this measuring top # of obese people versus a percentage of population.. Statistically the only valid comparison of countries would be percentages, but that doens't drive the same amount of click throughs to web sites

lemurcat12

This isn't a list of countries based on their percentages of obese people, though. It says, "More than half of the 671 million obese people in the world live in 10 countries, and America tops the list." I.e., it's skewed based on total population -- meaning even worse news for the US, which has far fewer people than China or India -- and potentially omitting countries with smaller populations (perhaps the UK, as was mentioned above).

Right--it's actually quite misleading unless you pay attention to what it's measuring. If you cross reference with the information about obesity rates (these are from the FAO and a little out of date (2008), but consistent with the population-based numbers), you see:

US-- 31.8% (we kick a** on any scale)
China -- 5.6%
India -- 1.9%
Russia -- 24.9%
Brazil -- 19.5%
Mexico -- 32.8%
Egypt -- 34.6%
Germany -- 21.3%
Pakistan -- 5.9%
Indonesia -- 4.7%

Some others worth noting, but ignored due to smaller populations

Kuwait -- 42.8%
South Africa -- 33.5%
Bahrain -- 32.6%
Argentina -- 29.4%
New Zealand -- 27%
Czech Republic -- 28.7%
Ireland -- 24.5%
UK -- 24.9%
Canada -- 24.3%

Also, re fast food, the dramatic increase in the US is supposed to have occurred especially since 1990, and fast food was well established before then. (I haven't looked at the numbers, though.)

omma_to_3

This isn't a list of countries based on their percentages of obese people, though. It says, "More than half of the 671 million obese people in the world live in 10 countries, and America tops the list." I.e., it's skewed based on total population -- meaning even worse news for the US, which has far fewer people than China or India -- and potentially omitting countries with smaller populations (perhaps the UK, as was mentioned above).

This. If it was based on population, I believe Somoa usually ends up on top.