What do you think of the obesity epidemic in the U.S.?
Replies
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Once a week I work at Meijer and all health issues aside (besides the people that actually NEED them) I cringe when I see an obese person in one of those motorized shopping carts.0
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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.
My experience eating school lunch in the British public schools suggests that it may not be the place to teach her about healthy food choices either. This is the country that offered me a "chip butty" for lunch on a daily basis. Brought to you by the people who invented the Deep Fried Mars Bar. I moved from an American school with mandatory gym class every day (with real exercise) to a school that had gym once a week and didn't require girls to dress out or work up a sweat.
I think the only reason my classmates weren't all much fatter than their American counterparts was that no one got a drivers license at 16, no one got driven to school in the morning, and so everyone walked several miles a day.0 -
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.
France is actually quite good about all this. We usually have at least one hour for lunch, and it's good food. It starts from a VERY young age: in kindergarden, and after that and very strict about eating what's on your plate. I remember a few times having to stay with a Teacher assistant because I did not want to eat my meat or fish. It would usually end up with me crying because I didn't want anymore. Traumatising, yes slightly but you need to eat something 3 times in order for it ot maybe become enjoyable.
I remember having lots of vegetables, fruits, water and meat. It was not necessarily amazing food but it was fresh. Now, I loooove vegetables and have almost no foods that I dislike. And, I don't love fast food because I hate how heavy I feel after eating them. Try googling France's school lunches, you'll see how it's done
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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.
If you're so perfect, how come you're here to lose weight at all? Fat is fat, doesn't matter if it's 20 pounds or 200. And I could judge you for being on food stamps, but I'm not hateful like you are.
and i never said i was perfect. i just said fat people piss me off and are gross to look at. so sue me
Do ugly people piss you off to look at? Going off of your profile /avatar pic it looks like you have a pretty big schnoz. Like it looks out of proportion in the rest of your face... :-/
Just curious
You seem like the type of person that regardless of how skinny they are will never really be attractive, inside or out (especially out)
To each their own though:flowerforyou:0 -
It is scary. I was walking around New York last summer and saw a tour group of kids. Sadly, I knew they were not American as they all looked athletic and ready to run. Turned out they were French. Not one overweight kid in the bunch.
French kids are crazy athletic in comparison to the USA/UK in my opinion from living here. Also, they eat a lot of fresh foods here still and french women are SO weight conscious it tends to get passed on to their kids.
My friends and I genuinely try to spot fat french people when we are out, as 9 times out of 10 an overweight person here is a tourist.
(Would like to point out I'm talking exclusively about Paris for this, I can't speak for the south of France but I imagine it's much the same.)0 -
"Well, that's the theory anyway. In practice, it just doesn't work that well. Take the influenza vaccine for example. Sometimes it misses the mark completely (because the "guesstimate" of which microbe would be the prevalent one was wrong). But even if they guess right, those who are most vulnerable to influenza and its complications (the very young and the elderly) are often unable to respond appropriately to the vaccine and get influenza anyway. Some experts have judged influenza vaccines to be "97% ineffective"---so tell me again, why are we continuing to line up for them every fall? Couldn't be that we have been sold a bill of goods, could it? "
We continue to line up for them every year because the influenza virus mutates and changes enough that every year they need to come out with a new vaccine.
But when some vaccine experts have estimated that the influenza vaccines are 97% ineffective, why take them?0 -
:noway:
WOW! I just watched a cbs news spot on called:
What French School Children Eat and it's is absolutely incredible. To say it puts our school eating program to utter shame would be a gross understatement
:brokenheart: :sick: ...L@@K at this---WOW. Also, please keep in mind, these are PUBLIC schools NOT private school children that eat and live this way daily!
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6902333n&tag=mncol;lst;1
Absolutely WOW!
ETA: I also didn't see one obese child NOR adult at all0 -
:noway:
WOW! I just watched a cbs news spot on called:
What French School Children Eat and it's is absolutely incredible. To say it puts our school eating program to utter shame would be a gross understatement:brokenheart: :sick: ...L@@K at this---WOW. Also, please keep in mind, these are PUBLIC schools NOT private school children that eat and live this way daily!
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6902333n&tag=mncol;lst;1
Absolutely WOW!
The school lunch and breakfast program is already a huge boondoggle, why spend even more on it?0 -
I've noticed that it's definitely related to family income. I drive around a lot for my job and I go to the high-end and low-end areas. In the more affluent areas, obese people are not the norm. I got stuck a school crosswalk the other day in a better neighborhood and had about 150 kids pass in front of my car, and I didn't see a single fat one. But if I'm in an area with cheaper housing, more than half would be chubby or bigger. It's cultural as much as anything. I have a theory that kids tend to be about the same size as their mom, and financially successful men don't generally marry obese women.
From a public health perspective: Access to healthy food is an issue. Crap is cheap, Organic Kale and Beets aren't. Your observations are backed up by statistics. In fact, some very hard-hit areas economically (inner city Detroit is one example), many grocery stores have moved to the suburbs and all that remains is mini-marts and liquor stores with their high-fat, high-sugar, high-sodium options. Safety is also an issue: If you live in a safe neighborhood, going out for a run is easy, if you don't feel that safe in your neighborhood, you have to find another place to go, which makes exercise harder. You probably also have to work longer hours, making a gym or community center difficult to go to (let alone the extra fees).
If you are on this site and in an economically difficult situation, keep fighting the fight! You have the power to turn this around for yourself and by extension your family.0 -
:noway:
WOW! I just watched a cbs news spot on called:
What French School Children Eat and it's is absolutely incredible. To say it puts our school eating program to utter shame would be a gross understatement:brokenheart: :sick: ...L@@K at this---WOW. Also, please keep in mind, these are PUBLIC schools NOT private school children that eat and live this way daily!
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6902333n&tag=mncol;lst;1
Absolutely WOW!
Did the US not do a big "crack down" on school lunches?
They did in the UK when I was at school which was a good 6-7 years ago now and took out all the junk, replacing it with healthy foods to encourage us to get our 5 a day and stay away from fast food type meals (e.g. burgers & chips).0 -
I'm sick of all the whining about school lunches in U.S. public schools. It is your responsibility to feed your kids, not the school's, not society's at large. If you don't like what the school offers, you have a crap ton of options, ranging from sending your kid to school with his own lunch all the way up to getting involved with the school board so you can play a role in determining what food the school brings in. The last thing we need is more levels of government stealing more money from taxpayers that can be further mismanaged by a bunch of institutions that are mostly just glorified daycare centers anyway.0
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I've noticed that it's definitely related to family income. I drive around a lot for my job and I go to the high-end and low-end areas. In the more affluent areas, obese people are not the norm. I got stuck a school crosswalk the other day in a better neighborhood and had about 150 kids pass in front of my car, and I didn't see a single fat one. But if I'm in an area with cheaper housing, more than half would be chubby or bigger. It's cultural as much as anything. I have a theory that kids tend to be about the same size as their mom, and financially successful men don't generally marry obese women.
From a public health perspective: Access to healthy food is an issue. Crap is cheap, Organic Kale and Beets aren't. Your observations are backed up by statistics. In fact, some very hard-hit areas economically (inner city Detroit is one example), many grocery stores have moved to the suburbs and all that remains is mini-marts and liquor stores with their high-fat, high-sugar, high-sodium options. Safety is also an issue: If you live in a safe neighborhood, going out for a run is easy, if you don't feel that safe in your neighborhood, you have to find another place to go, which makes exercise harder. You probably also have to work longer hours, making a gym or community center difficult to go to (let alone the extra fees).
If you are on this site and in an economically difficult situation, keep fighting the fight! You have the power to turn this around for yourself and by extension your family.
I have to agree that it is related to income to an extent.
When I lived at home I gained weight quickly as a teen because I had a single working mother who only ever had the money and resources to cook us pasta/rice for dinner or beans on toast. We ended up having a lot of snack foods e.g yoghurts, cookies, etc. as she would arrive home late and then cook us something that is cheap to buy in bulk.
After I left home, I did lose a little weight as I couldn't afford snack foods but I was still cooking what I'd been taught to cook and what is cheap and affordable to cook with, which unfortunately tends to be foods that are bad for you.
However, since I've begun this journey I've realised I can make a low calorie dinner out of ham, eggs, tomatoes, just about anything that isn't expensive. It may not appear as appetising and it did cause me to go against everything I'd ever been taught (and it's still a more expensive meal overall than a bag of pasta and some cheese would cost you and feed you 3-4 nights in a row rather than 1) but it's what I've learnt to do now.0 -
I'm sick of all the whining about school lunches in U.S. public schools. It is your responsibility to feed your kids, not the school's, not society's at large. If you don't like what the school offers, you have a crap ton of options, ranging from sending your kid to school with his own lunch all the way up to getting involved with the school board so you can play a role in determining what food the school brings in. The last thing we need is more levels of government stealing more money from taxpayers that can be further mismanaged by a bunch of institutions that are mostly just glorified daycare centers anyway.
How many kids actually go home and tell their parents what their school lunch options are? Or what they ate that day?
How many parents actually ask?
I know mine never did. It's the assumption that as it's an institution for children, it'd have their best interests at the forefront of everything they do/provide. Which IS the way it should be.
However, school lunches are no way to blame for overweight kids. What about the other 2-3 meals a day they eat? And what they eat at weekends?0 -
:noway:
WOW! I just watched a cbs news spot on called:
What French School Children Eat and it's is absolutely incredible. To say it puts our school eating program to utter shame would be a gross understatement:brokenheart: :sick: ...L@@K at this---WOW. Also, please keep in mind, these are PUBLIC schools NOT private school children that eat and live this way daily!
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6902333n&tag=mncol;lst;1
Absolutely WOW!
Did the US not do a big "crack down" on school lunches?
They did in the UK when I was at school which was a good 6-7 years ago now and took out all the junk, replacing it with healthy foods to encourage us to get our 5 a day and stay away from fast food type meals (e.g. burgers & chips).
Yes, but the TLC the chef takes with making sure all the foods are fresh and handmade is nothing less than tremendous to me! I LOVE that!!!!0 -
I'm sick of all the whining about school lunches in U.S. public schools. It is your responsibility to feed your kids, not the school's, not society's at large. If you don't like what the school offers, you have a crap ton of options, ranging from sending your kid to school with his own lunch all the way up to getting involved with the school board so you can play a role in determining what food the school brings in. The last thing we need is more levels of government stealing more money from taxpayers that can be further mismanaged by a bunch of institutions that are mostly just glorified daycare centers anyway.
I agree with you 100% and none of my children ever attended public schools (and never will--not that public schools are bad or anything. just not for us) and none of my children are overweight nor obese either..I'm the only one with a weight problem in my entire immediate family But I'm handling that now--EVERYONE else in my family is slim and trim/so-called "normal" if not on the healthy slim side. I'm not one that is whining about the public school foods-- not at all...exposing, maybe
and actually shocked, because I would have NEVER even thought to look at what the school children in France are eating, except from this thread. 0 -
I've noticed that it's definitely related to family income. I drive around a lot for my job and I go to the high-end and low-end areas. In the more affluent areas, obese people are not the norm. I got stuck a school crosswalk the other day in a better neighborhood and had about 150 kids pass in front of my car, and I didn't see a single fat one. But if I'm in an area with cheaper housing, more than half would be chubby or bigger. It's cultural as much as anything. I have a theory that kids tend to be about the same size as their mom, and financially successful men don't generally marry obese women.
I don't make much money, but I am educated, and I am an perfectionist. I get very irritated with those poeple who do use income as an excuse to be overweight. You can't tell me that healthy food costs more when an apple costs less than a candy bar. Eating healthy on a budget is about planning. I did it 8 years ago when I had just had a baby, was a single mom, and lost my job. I still do it now, although I am better off than I was at that time. Exercise can be cheap too. You don't need to spend a lot of money to work out at home or take a walk!
One of the problems among the very poor is that they frequently have no working kitchens, even if they are not homeless. The other problem is that a great many of the "working poor" couples are working several jobs each and they neither have the knowledge or the energy to cook healthy meals. One couple that I was helping thought that a healthy meal was a hotdog and boxed macaroni finished by a serving of jello with canned fruit in it. While not awful, it was hardly nutritionally complete. They neither liked nor knew how to cook vegetables. Cooperative community gardens might be quite helpful for those folks but there is little help in getting them going.
i had no problem eating vegetarian and healthy while on food stamps. people are just lazy and make up excuses
It definitely does take work to be healthy when time and money are limited. I don't make that much money, and I am a single mother. I do, however, plan my meals and follow the ads at the grocery stores. I stock up on healthy foods that last while they are on sale (tuna, frozen veggies, etc), and I plan meals around them. I don't waste food. I exercise frequently, and I don't spend much money on it. I grew up with people who taught me the common sense that eating healthy and exercising will actually save me money because I hardly ever get sick, and taught me the difference between healthy foods (not a hotdog, jello, and boxed macaroni), and maybe some other people didn't get that like I did. I don't know. I treat saving money like a third job (yes, I have two jobs and I have time to eat heatly and excerise and be a mom). That means planning healthy and economical meals to save money both on food and health care costs. (Also, I don't buy many clothes because I still fit in the ones I have had for years!).
As for the obesity epidemic in general. I don't know how to feel. On one hand, I do feel great about myself for being healthy, and it really doesn't matter to me how other people look. On the other hand, I just want to tell people who treat their bodies badly how great they would feel if they were healthy! I would like to point out that I do, however, know some larger people who are very healthy, but happen to be built bigger, and I know some "skinny" people who are very unhealthy because they are naturally thin but don't take care of themselves.0 -
:noway:
WOW! I just watched a cbs news spot on called:
What French School Children Eat and it's is absolutely incredible. To say it puts our school eating program to utter shame would be a gross understatement:brokenheart: :sick: ...L@@K at this---WOW. Also, please keep in mind, these are PUBLIC schools NOT private school children that eat and live this way daily!
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6902333n&tag=mncol;lst;1
Absolutely WOW!
The school lunch and breakfast program is already a huge boondoggle, why spend even more on it?
I agree, I say not one red cent more...now if it were done like that report in France's school system--that's another ball game!0 -
It breaks my heart honestly! Without reading all of the other posts....
I work in a Bariatric and Weight Loss Clinic and the folks I see, it just breaks my heart.....I used to be one of them and parts of me still are because I've been there and done that.
I find myself though, at times, urging/wanting to help sooooo much because I know how good life can be and how good it is yet still met with resistance. Sometimes the "familiar" is a "safer" way to be, because change can sometimes = SCARY. Sometimes the lack of education about nutrition and exercise, knowing no different way of life = SCARY. The fear of the unknown because they've never had a taste of how healthy feels.
Since I've lost the weight and become a Therapeutic Coach®, I now understand the "WHY" behind what I once was. I now understand I had the power to change my "genetic/pre-determined" life. (no one is going to tell me the way I'm going to be).
I just had this instance yesterday when I got SOOOOO frustrated because someone who had had surgery wasn't coming in for their follow-up. What this means to me is they were not ready emotionally or mentally to get honest with themselves about the route cause of their obesity and they still aren't ready and I can not want it more than they do.
As far as children go - I do believe in their case obesity is a learned behavior, they at their young age no not have the brain power to make the change. It is not until we are adults, can we heal whatever it is that is wounded and want a healthy life, in whatever way that makes sense to each individual and move forward.
My heartbreaks for the folks that want it, want change, want it so badly, yet will not succeed. The big book says "There are those unfortuneates" and I have to keep reminding myself of that daily so I myself, don't go crazy.0 -
i hurt for them, i want them to be healthy.
Thats a nice thing to say0 -
It breaks my heart honestly! Without reading all of the other posts....
I work in a Bariatric and Weight Loss Clinic and the folks I see, it just breaks my heart.....I used to be one of them and parts of me still are because I've been there and done that.
I find myself though, at times, urging/wanting to help sooooo much because I know how good life can be and how good it is yet still met with resistance. Sometimes the "familiar" is a "safer" way to be, because change can sometimes = SCARY. Sometimes the lack of education about nutrition and exercise, knowing no different way of life = SCARY. The fear of the unknown because they've never had a taste of how healthy feels.
Since I've lost the weight and become a Therapeutic Coach®, I now understand the "WHY" behind what I once was. I now understand I had the power to change my "genetic/pre-determined" life. (no one is going to tell me the way I'm going to be).
I just had this instance yesterday when I got SOOOOO frustrated because someone who had had surgery wasn't coming in for their follow-up. What this means to me is they were not ready emotionally or mentally to get honest with themselves about the route cause of their obesity and they still aren't ready and I can not want it more than they do.
As far as children go - I do believe in their case obesity is a learned behavior, they at their young age no not have the brain power to make the change. It is not until we are adults, can we heal whatever it is that is wounded and want a healthy life, in whatever way that makes sense to each individual and move forward.
My heartbreaks for the folks that want it, want change, want it so badly, yet will not succeed. The big book says "There are those unfortuneates" and I have to keep reminding myself of that daily so I myself, don't go crazy.
Beautiful and excellent post...I especially love this part:
"I work in a Bariatric and Weight Loss Clinic and the folks I see, it just breaks my heart.....I used to be one of them and parts of me still are because I've been there and done that."0 -
bump0
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Insane.0
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I live in an area with about a 27% obesity rate. In the fancier neighborhoods, most people aren't fat, in the poorer areas tons of people are fat. There is a ridiculous amount of fast food places and restaurants here. Within walking distance from my house, there is a McDonald's, a Wendy's, a KFC, two Burger Kings, a Subway, a Pizza Hut and another local pizza place.
I went to an organic grocery store once(too expensive to ever return to) and it was very crowded. It felt strange being the only obese person at the store. At Meijer or Walmart(I really hate Walmart), people give me strange looks because my basket is full of fresh produce.
I don't see the future ever getting better in terms of obesity rates. It's easy to brainwash people into buying useless junk food, but nearly impossible to brainwash them into buying broccoli. If there was a way of changing the mindset of 50% of the country, we could solve many problems other than high obesity rates0 -
lol I never said all obese people have thyroid problems, but there are some that do and cannot do anything about it.
So majority of Obese people have thyroid problems? Come on now, lets get real here.You know there are people with thyroid problems that can't help being fat? ...
Which thyroid problems result in weight gain that you can do nothing about?
My son had thyroid cancer last year. They removed his thyroid completely and irradiated any residual. Now he takes a little pill every morning.
No massive weight gain.
I read this (uncontrollable weight gain due to "thyroid problems") a lot here on MFP and I don't understand it.0 -
lol I never said all obese people have thyroid problems, but there are some that do and cannot do anything about it.
So majority of Obese people have thyroid problems? Come on now, lets get real here.You know there are people with thyroid problems that can't help being fat? ...
Which thyroid problems result in weight gain that you can do nothing about?
My son had thyroid cancer last year. They removed his thyroid completely and irradiated any residual. Now he takes a little pill every morning.
No massive weight gain.
I read this (uncontrollable weight gain due to "thyroid problems") a lot here on MFP and I don't understand it.
I have the fat gene, just so you know.
Yeah, really... sorry to hear about previous poster's son's health problems.. I can totally understand why that would boggle your mind0 -
It's not a good thing, but it's swept under the rug like everything else.
People hav to take action themselves to better themselves they can't expect someone else to do it for them.
Imagine what it would be like if high density foods became illegal to sell...
I agree.
That would never happen though.. the United States would be in an uproar about how that is "unAmerican" and how it's "communist" :grumble:
I don't know much about Bloomberg but I applaud his effort in trying to get a ban on soda in large amounts (over 16oz). Too bad most people in the US won't/don't support a noble and bold move.0 -
Exactly why I switched to whole food, plant based 2 months ago - no meat, no dairy and no oil. My son (10 yrs) asked if he could eat as we did -they liked some things but I could not switch them fully (ages 10 and 6) to full WFPB - he had a Rips Big Bowl today and whole wheat pasta with the 365 organic pasta sauce - lots of fruit, homemade ice cream with frozen bananas - cannot believe he is eating as we are - I worry so much with the food they eat b/c oil is in everything among other things - my daughter is more adventurous with fruit and vegges so we are getting there 0
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I'm not sure about America but in Australia there is barely any nutritional information given in schools. Except the food pyramid as a kid, which isn't that great but that's another kettle of fish.
When I started gaining weight it was due to an end in exercise but still eating the same. I literally had no idea the food was bad for me, until I started researching on the internet. Was it partially my parents fault? Maybe but they didn't know these things either.
Education plays a big part.0 -
I just had the same xperience. I live in a rural area now but I went to the city to the mall and it was so hard to find healthy weight people. It really scared me too.0
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government subsidies to corn, soy and wheat are out of control. fruit and vegetables get about 2% of our subsidies. I think this plays a huge role in it. large corporations getting huge subsidies from our government, small, sustainable farms get very little. harumph.0
This discussion has been closed.
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