What do you think of the obesity epidemic in the U.S.?

keem88

I was born and raised in France which is why I am very critical about this whole thing.

I blame it on the lack of food education. When I was about 10 years old, we had several nutrition classes where we learned about protein, fiber and so on. Which foods to avoid and which to enjoy.

I have never been overweight in my life until I got depressed and stopped moving two years ago.

I don't blame children, of course, but parents. You have access to internet and you can educate yourself as to what good choices are.

In Paris once, a daughter of one of my father's friend from the US came to stay with us. She had never tasted asparagus, fennel and so on in her life!

I read something not too long ago about public school nutrition and France was the country used as the example of how to do it right. The program explained that schools send home menus of what is being served in school along with suggestions for dinner at home. Additionally, lunch in school was presented as being more of an actual meal, where the kids actually get to sit down and enjoy what they are eating rather than the marathon sprint the lunch minutes have become in many U.S. schools. I totally get why kids choose the fast food options because they only get a few minutes to wolf down their food before they are off to class again.

that's awesome. france knows what's up

keem88

I think it needs to start being considered child abuse. Especially in their younger years, kids eat what their parents let them eat. Parents are giving their kids sickness and rewarding with laziness. I was slim as a child because we weren't allowed to eat junk. We rarely ate out. It wasn't until I got a job at McDonalds that I started packing on the pounds and it got out of hand when I got a desk job. Ultimately, it is my fault I'm fat, but those kids don't even have a say in it.

I also feel bad because a lot of overweight people are that way because of unresolved mental issues. It doesn't excuse them, but they need to fix their brain before they can fix their body.

On the other end, the morbidly obese are babied way too much. Sure as a society we tend to look down on them, but giving them handicapped parking spots and access to wheel chairs is the last thing we do. When my 88 year old grandmother who is on oxygen and can barely breath can't park close to the store, she risks collapsing before she finds a place to rest. She can't to her shopping without a chair, but a few times I've taken her and there were no spits available and no chairs (they only provide 2) and when I got her wheel chair and brought it in, the few inside were taken by obese 40-50 year olds. Maybe if they had to park further back and walk through a store it'd help them more than anything.

Complete 100% agree.

I'm so sad for your grandmother. That makes me so mad I could spit.

agreed. your poor grandma, that makes me sad as well to hear.

Queen_JessieA

It's sad. Obviously, we do have an issue. And I for one applaud NY for taking matters into their own hands trying to cut back on large sized drinks. They need to take sugar out of all the processed crap they serve people.

I wish everyone would feel convicted about getting healthy. It is an embarrassment to America, imo, to be so large!

Acg67

It's sad. Obviously, we do have an issue. And I for one applaud NY for taking matters into their own hands trying to cut back on large sized drinks. They need to take sugar out of all the processed crap they serve people.

I wish everyone would feel convicted about getting healthy. It is an embarrassment to America, imo, to be so large!

You applaud the nanny state? :sigh:

kelly_e_montana

I think it's pretty much all due to automation, automobile, and TV. People didn't have to work out because they were busting their tails to raise crops, build houses, walk to school or church, etc. We have sedentary lifestyles for the most part. We drive everywhere instead of walking. We don't raise our own food for the most part and what is "food" and what is something manufactured in a lab to stimulate our appetites and thus sales are two different things. I'm not judging. Also, ads on TV are on there because they work. Food sellers want us to see visual images of food and want to eat those foods, and largely, we do. Also, time that we spend on the internet or watching TV is generally more lethargic time.

So to this I say:

1) If you can have a job where you're not at your desk all day, do it!
2) Throw away your TV.
3) Walk more instead of driving.
4) Develop fitness hobbies you enjoy that de-stress you and add fun to your life.
and finally 5) Grow at least some of your own food so you develop an appreciation and reverence for how life gives life. (It's also a good lifestyle activity for mobility and stress relief).

Re Fat Is A Feminist Issue: I actually did gain weight while I was bartending on purpose several times to take some sexual attention off myself and make the job more tolerable. I totally understand the idea of using fat to protect yourself so that people focus on your mind and personality, not your body. However, some people can't get past your fat and write you off as stupid or lazy. So it's a Catch 22: slim and too sexual or fat and lazy. ???

nebslp

You should hear the complaints at my school about the food they are given to to eat this year. It's supposed to be healthier with smaller portions. No one is used to eating more fruit and vegetables and just want more cheese and ice cream. I also heard this morning that England is trying to ban cereal that is more than 30% sugar and people were afraid the government was taking over. Health concerns are costing us plenty already. Education is the only way to change things, not mandates, but somebody needs to do something. I guess we can start in our own homes and inspire others to do the same. Let's keep getting positive results!

dixiewhiskey

I don't understand why people keep pointing their fingers at restaurant portion sizes as a reason for obesity. That implies that everyone eats out 2-3 meals a day and have no other choice, and must always clean their plates.

Instead you should be asking: Why do people eat out so much, if they do? Why do people clean their plates even if the amount of food is too much? Why do people make poor choices at restaurants?

People can binge on bad food without going to a restaurant. People can make poor choices at a grocery store instead of a restaurant. People can eat out too much because they don't have the time to cook, or the knowledge.

Blaming obesity on the fact that the Big Gulp or the Baconator exists is a huge leap from the more academic question of "why do they exist?"

The answer is more like higher stress, harder work for lower wages, less time for shopping and cooking and lack of education...among other things.

You can't deny that portions have a role with it. Not many people have the skill or willpower to stop when they're not hungry anymore. If you have a big portion of good food available, you'll be more likely to eat more of it than if you had a small portion. It's basic logic.

I think people would make smarter choices at the restaurant if they were aware of the calories of the things they are eating, personally. But you don't. Even the 'healthy menu' has meals with 35g of fat or something at times.

As for eating out more than Europeans? Nope. I worked in 5 different places in Paris and only one had a cafeteria. Everyone else ate out for lunch 5 days a week. None of those places even had a fridge or microwave and nobody brought their own lunch.

I agree with your other points though!

F that.. portions can't be to blame.. it's the American attitude that stinks. Not saying everyone has it but most do..

staciej0

There is also a lack of nutritional information out there. Admittedly I have fallen for a lot of the fad diets over time but look at our own food pyramid. How many times has that changed since it came out? There is a lot of old information that people hold onto as the written word and in the next ten years imagine what they'll come out with.

Regarding lack of information - there is also false information. We can't even believe some of the food labels. I forget the exact numbers, but manufacturers have leeway in being off a certain percentage for numbers and weight of product. Other times, we are tricked by certain words such as low fat or "no trans fats" when really its a horrible processed sugar-laden food. Other times restaurants have been called on the carpet for inaccurate publishing of nutritional values. Hmmm isn't the food pyramid made by the USDA? I think I heard that in one of the movies I watched -- "Hungry for Change" I think or maybe Forks over Knives.

jenilla1

I don't really know what to feel about obese people. It saddens, disgusts and angers me all at the same time. There are resources to get healthy and lose weight on almost any budget or lifestyle and people just don't do it. They are either fine with the way they are, to uninformed to seek a way out or too lazy to try. Possibly a combination of all three. It has a lot to do with how accessible unheatlhy foods are, and how flavorful they are in comparison to other foods because of all the added sugars, sodium and fat...

I know both normal and overweight people and the biggest difference between the groups I've noticed is attitude. The slim ones go out of their way to make healthy choices, and the fat ones go out of their way to make excuses. I know only one overweight person who is fat due to a medical condition, and that's not her fault. Everyone else is fat due to poor choices, selfishness, and laziness. (And most will admit to it.)

I blame PEOPLE themselves for the obesity epidemic. We need a cultural shift away from the slob mentality.

Queen_JessieA

It's sad. Obviously, we do have an issue. And I for one applaud NY for taking matters into their own hands trying to cut back on large sized drinks. They need to take sugar out of all the processed crap they serve people.

I wish everyone would feel convicted about getting healthy. It is an embarrassment to America, imo, to be so large!

You applaud the nanny state? :sigh:

Yes, I do....otherwise, I am a Southern gal who doesn't care for NY.

dixiewhiskey

I don't really know what to feel about obese people. It saddens, disgusts and angers me all at the same time. There are resources to get healthy and lose weight on almost any budget or lifestyle and people just don't do it. They are either fine with the way they are, to uninformed to seek a way out or too lazy to try. Possibly a combination of all three. It has a lot to do with how accessible unheatlhy foods are, and how flavorful they are in comparison to other foods because of all the added sugars, sodium and fat...

I know both normal and overweight people and the biggest difference between the groups I've noticed is attitude. The slim ones go out of their way to make healthy choices, and the fat ones go out of their way to make excuses. I know only one overweight person who is fat due to a medical condition, and that's not her fault. Everyone else is fat due to poor choices, selfishness, and laziness. (And most will admit to it.)

I blame PEOPLE themselves for the obesity epidemic. We need a cultural shift away from the slob mentality.

Wow, very well stated!

hiyomi

prolly gonna get reported for this and have people yell at me
but obese people piss me off.
stop being a fat lazy piece of *kitten*. i shouldn't have to look at that.

i think it's ridiculous, and causing more problems than it's worth (with insurance, equipment that hopsitals have to but bc people are larger, people on the clock getting injured trying to lift fattys at hospitals).

seriosuly, it really makes me angry.

You know there are people with thyroid problems that can't help being fat? Skinny people piss me off too though. ^^

So majority of Obese people have thyroid problems? Come on now, lets get real here. Skinny people piss you off? Thats fresh too. :explode:

lol I never said all obese people have thyroid problems, but there are some that do and cannot do anything about it. And skinny people don't piss me off, was just being fair. ^^ Though they do piss me off when they weigh 105 pounds and I'm right next to them and they speak of how fat they are. THAT pisses me off ;D

peacemongernc

That is not the message I took home from Fat Is A Feminist Issue. The author ran groups helping women to lose weight and looked at why women might choose to stay fat. She writes about how extra weight protects us from unwanted sexual attention and can therefore be comforting and serve a purpose. Some of her points now seem out of date, but the book helped me to make the necessary mental shift to lose weight and keep it off. I had not wanted to read the book because I thought it must be an apology or excuse for being overweight, but it isn't.

This is what I got out of that book, too. And the interesting thing is that years ago when I read it, I wasn't sure that aspect of it applied to me. However, I can see glimpses of it now that I've started shedding pounds. It dawned on me one day that maybe the reason I've been successful this time, but never in the past, is that I'm old enough now (44) that I don't feel like I'm in that sexual race anymore. I can't decide if there is anything to it, but there is something about it that rings true. It reminds me of another book, one of my favorites, "Where The Girls Are" by Susan Douglas. She talks about how the female characters in Disney's older movies fall into categories: Snow White is the budding sexual girl, but innocent, The Evil Queen is on her way to being washed up and it has made her mad as hell, and the "post menopausal fairies" are completely out of the running, and therefore able to be kind and helpful (so that they have value by being associated with youth and beauty). FUNNY book!

I find childhood attitudes to food very interesting and I am fascinated as to the effect they have on national obesity statistics. My 5 year old doesn't have to clear his plate, but he does have to finish most of any protein source or vegetables. Food is never, ever a reward. He would rather play, read, colour-in than eat. If he is full, he stops eating and even turns down dessert sometimes. By contrast, the two children he spends the most time with both love food passionately and fantasise about receiving it. Why? I'm not sure. Genetics? Upbringing? He was demand breast fed and then we did baby-led weaning, so food was never ever about finishing what he was given, rather it was under his control. We have been to a coffee shop and gotten cake for ourselves while he has chosen fruit, so it's not a lack of opportunity, just a preference, and long may it stay that way!

I have a 17 year old son, a 14 year old son and an 11 year old daughter. All were breastfed, on demand, until past toddlerhood, and the younger two were started on table food when they demanded it. The oldest was my practice run and he is the only one who had jars of babyfood. They all prefer healthy foods and are typically luke warm on sweets. However, my middle son was/is crazy about food and didn't seem to have an off button. We limited processed foods and they ate a pretty "crunchy" diet, free of most food dyes, preservatives and artificial things, and mostly ate local, organic and homemade. But left to his own devices, he would eat fruit until it was all gone. He once ate most of a bushel of oranges in just a few days before we realized how many of them were gone! He was only about 4 when he did this, and it was my first clue that I might need to restrict access. Up until then I assumed that free access to only nutrient dense foods would result in some reasonable self-regulation. When he was 5 he went to spend 10 days with my in-laws, who thought I was crazy for not buying candy and soda and kool-aid for my kids, His older brother was there, too. In 10 days, he gained 9 pounds.

Nine pounds!!

He went from 45 to 54 pounds. When he walked in the door, he was obviously bigger... it wasn't that I was waiting for him at home with a scale.. it was shocking. I even called his doctor about it I was so shocked! I was about 275 at the time, so I was trying hard to make choices in parenting that would result in their ability to make natural, wise decisions. My older son gained 3 pounds during this time. The doctor said to just go back to the way we used to eat, and the weight would likely fall off when things were back to normal. My older son had lost it all before his next well check 6 months later. My younger son lost ONE pound, and started spiraling towards obesity that summer. He weighed more and so it took more effort to move as much as he had, so he started moving less. I tried to not make a big deal out of it, but encouraged sports and portion control at meals.

So now he is an obese 14 year old. He has been inspired by my weight loss and is making plans to join the gym over summer vacation.

I suspect that if it hadn't been for the awful introduction to what kids are "supposed to eat" by my in laws, it would have happened another time, some other way. I knew from the time he was an infant, that whatever it is that makes me have a tendency to be heavy, he has it too. I could just tell. There IS something different about him and me and what food means to us and the power it has over us.

I'm guessing it is genetics, based on my experience, and it takes some extra education to know how to navigate a world full of faux foods and time-saving devices.

I come from a long line of obese people... people who lived on the frontier when the frontier was east of the Mississippi, who raised babies and all their food and were still fat. But I'm figuring this out and we're going to get this under control.

But the next serious famine that comes along, my 14-year-old son and I have got the goods, I tell you what. We can last days on some sticks and twigs!!

hiyomi

I have always wondered why unhealthy foods are so cheap and healthy foods are god awfully expensive. Analysts are always saying the government needs to implement programs for health and all this stuff. I think just switching the prices around would save us all! 4 bags of chips for a dollar. A tiny bag of 10 asparagus sticks for $5.....Drives me nuts! Its to the point where my parents tell me not to buy "healthy food" because its too expensive.....

If you compare fresh fruit and vegies to processed food...pound for pound...fresh will ALWAYS be less expensive. For example...compare a potato to the same weight of potato chips. It's simple math.

thank you, someone who isn't ignorant.
to reiterate. i had no problem on food stamps buying fresh produce and making well balanced vegetarian meals (after i graduated college and didn't find a ft job for a few months, then was able to get off assistance. which is another thing that pisses me off, people who use the system long term instead of actually trying. nothing wrong with temporary assistance, but no need to leech all the tax payers money. that's for another discussion board i suppose)

I enjoy people who call others ignorant because they ask a question. ^^ Seems like someone needs to pull a stick out of their butt, you seem angry. Also, if you don't want to be judged then don't judge an entire community. If you would like an award for never being fat, I don't have any. And stop taking any comment so literal. Yes, I meant EVERY single person in the world that is fat has a thyroid problem. ^^

LilEmm

Lady, you've got it.

I know this is why I gained weight - fat seemed to be the only boundary that pigs respected.

I think it's pretty much all due to automation, automobile, and TV. People didn't have to work out because they were busting their tails to raise crops, build houses, walk to school or church, etc. We have sedentary lifestyles for the most part. We drive everywhere instead of walking. We don't raise our own food for the most part and what is "food" and what is something manufactured in a lab to stimulate our appetites and thus sales are two different things. I'm not judging. Also, ads on TV are on there because they work. Food sellers want us to see visual images of food and want to eat those foods, and largely, we do. Also, time that we spend on the internet or watching TV is generally more lethargic time.

So to this I say:

1) If you can have a job where you're not at your desk all day, do it!
2) Throw away your TV.
3) Walk more instead of driving.
4) Develop fitness hobbies you enjoy that de-stress you and add fun to your life.
and finally 5) Grow at least some of your own food so you develop an appreciation and reverence for how life gives life. (It's also a good lifestyle activity for mobility and stress relief).

Re Fat Is A Feminist Issue: I actually did gain weight while I was bartending on purpose several times to take some sexual attention off myself and make the job more tolerable. I totally understand the idea of using fat to protect yourself so that people focus on your mind and personality, not your body. However, some people can't get past your fat and write you off as stupid or lazy. So it's a Catch 22: slim and too sexual or fat and lazy. ???

c_faulkenburg

I don't understand why people keep pointing their fingers at restaurant portion sizes as a reason for obesity. That implies that everyone eats out 2-3 meals a day and have no other choice, and must always clean their plates.

Instead you should be asking: Why do people eat out so much, if they do? Why do people clean their plates even if the amount of food is too much? Why do people make poor choices at restaurants?

Apart from the addiction of processed food and the lack of education and healthy options, my guess is that many people, often the poor with little security net, perceive the need to conform to those around them as far most pressing than the more distant consequences of picking up potential pounds. When parents urgently pack pounds on their children, it may well stem from a wish to have them reach a certain height and size to fit in socially the sooner the better and ask questions later. People don't take home the second half of the over-sized restaurant dish because they are afraid no one else is doing it. When they in public pop the straw of a giant Coke-labeled bottle into the mouth of their six month old baby, these parents signal to the group around them that they are a part of the community and as such hope for their approval and support. Surrendering themselves to feel safe within the identity of the norm is beyond why. In their scared mindset, the slightest hesitation to do so might leave them being viewed as, well, un-American!

I know lots of parents and none of them would give them soda because everyone else was doing it. I think it comes down to the fact that children mimic their parents eating habits. I used to love Coca Cola. When I drank it, my kids wanted to drink it (especially at restaurants). I gave it up, they don't see me drink it anymore.. They don't want it.

NewLIFEstyle4ME

I don't understand why people keep pointing their fingers at restaurant portion sizes as a reason for obesity. That implies that everyone eats out 2-3 meals a day and have no other choice, and must always clean their plates.

Instead you should be asking: Why do people eat out so much, if they do? Why do people clean their plates even if the amount of food is too much? Why do people make poor choices at resturants?

Apart from the addiction of processed food and the lack of education and healthy options, my guess is that many people, often the poor with little security net, perceive the need to conform to those around them as far most pressing than the more distant consequences of picking up potential pounds. When parents urgently pack pounds on their children, it may well stem from a wish to have them reach a certain height and size to fit in socially the sooner the better and ask questions later. People don't take home the second half of the over-sized restaurant dish because they are afraid no one else is doing it. When they in public pop the straw of a giant Coke-labeled bottle into the mouth of their six month old baby, these parents signal to the group around them that they are a part of the community and as such hope for their approval and support. Surrendering themselves to feel safe within the identity of the norm is beyond why. In their scared mindset, the slightest hesitation to do so might leave them being viewed as, well, un-American!

I know lots of parents and none of them would give them soda because everyone else was doing it. I think it comes down to the fact that children mimic their parents eating habits. I used to love Coca Cola. When I drank it, my kids wanted to drink it (especially at restaurants). I gave it up, they don't see me drink it anymore.. They don't want it.

Youre right! My children do absolutely "follow" me. When I eat and drink healthy things, they want it too. The more I think about it, I had to almost force my children to eat junk. When they were babies and young children, they didn't like sweets and junk...it's only when they saw me eating it that they wanted it too. When I'm NOT eating junk...they don't want it either!!!!

dawnna76

This is what I got out of that book, too. And the interesting thing is that years ago when I read it, I wasn't sure that aspect of it applied to me. However, I can see glimpses of it now that I've started shedding pounds. It dawned on me one day that maybe the reason I've been successful this time, but never in the past, is that I'm old enough now (44) that I don't feel like I'm in that sexual race anymore. I can't decide if there is anything to it, but there is something about it that rings true. It reminds me of another book, one of my favorites, "Where The Girls Are" by Susan Douglas. She talks about how the female characters in Disney's older movies fall into categories: Snow White is the budding sexual girl, but innocent, The Evil Queen is on her way to being washed up and it has made her mad as hell, and the "post menopausal fairies" are completely out of the running, and therefore able to be kind and helpful (so that they have value by being associated with youth and beauty).

And in Disney movies all the moms are dead and gone. Really? WTF Disney

TravelBunnyGirl

i had a similar realization while at Disney World, it was scary. i have about 50 pounds to lose, but felt horribly thin in comparison to most of the tourists...let's lose weight and feel better about ourselves and hope to inspire someone, anyone!

Selunca

This thread has just reeterated my desire to move to England. I've wanted to move there since I was 19 or so, but my husband won't move because of a mirade of reasons.
But I want my daughter to grow up learning about healthy eating, and while I can show it to her at home, I'm afraid that peer pressure and poor food choices at school later in her life will ruin what I've tried to instill.