Are the poor fat?

Pinkraynedrop and misskittyninj, thank you for demonstrating perfect examples of smug posts so soon after I posted.

You can do it so everyone can do it. Nobody has any issues or barriers because you don't.

I love the simplicity in your little bubbles

I think you need to google the definition of smug. Unless you think me saying how it is great that I'm finally on track with my life, though finding my own way to buy food and that I did do it with out a gym membership and without high priced food, so it can indeed be done... is somehow smug. In that case I'd like to hope you stay away from the success story's forum as you will rage at everyone. I'd like to think saying that would have given some people hope.

I listed how much it costs. FOR ME. Where I LIVE. How much I have saved...And the difference of buying from a growers market compared to a super market, despite being in the most secluded capt city in the world. My reason for posting this was to show even where I live you can indeed find cheaper food and places that sell food cheaper. It just requires a little time and effort. I also think people need to be educated about nutrition as I was not and I think if we educate the next generation this will help prevent obesity in the future, even teaching people to cook would be a step! Yes not everyone is in the same position as me, they're not all going to find a growers market in cycling distance. Not everyone is the same body type, have the same health issues or at the same fitness level. But that doesn't mean I shouldn't have posted my chart. It's still useful for those who might not realise how different food prices can vary.

Sometimes reading things off the internet, you take from it what you want to take from it. I'm not trying to be smug, I'm just tyring to show with some searching, effort, education and dedication it was possible for me to lose weight and I'm sure many poor people out there can find their way too.

Thank you :flowerforyou:

I was just thinking, too, that it could be the environment around you. For me, I grew up in a household where EVERYONE was fat. All of my family members - Mom, Dad, brothers, sisters, cousins, Grandma - literally, EVERYONE. So you learn from what you see. I saw my parents, grandparents, making really unhealthy things, going back for seconds and thirds, etc., etc., so naturally that's what you see every day and you're going to think that it's normal. It's when you get out in the world that you realize... "Oh, hey, uh, maybe this isn't quite right here?"

It's not to put the BLAME on anyone, you know? Even when I eventually knew better (and we all find that out at one point), I still overate, still had bad habits, just didn't care to change. I have no one to blame but MYSELF for the way I am/was. I totally accept that.

But I do think that we learn by observation. If your parents don't know any better, how would they teach you better? And the cycle continues when those kids have kids, etc. That's why I really wish they'd teach nutrition in school - more than just the basic "5 food group" stuff. I can't recall EVER learning about nutrition and what a calorie was (other than a scientific term in physics class, etc.) and how too many calories can do this, that, the other to you, so on and so on. I think today's kids have a much better shot at keeping themselves healthy because there's so much more awareness now of the issue.

As a 5th grade teacher in a low-income school I can tell you that it's astonishing how little kids know about food. There's one activity where it really hits home. When teaching food chains it's fun to "deconstruct" a meal and trace it back to the beginning. So my kiddos might draw a picture of a cheeseburger, then draw the arrows accordingly (hamburger, cow, grass, sun). The first time I did this I was SHOCKED beyond belief at what my kids DIDN'T know. They didn't know hamburger came from a cow. Or that a ketchup comes from tomatoes, and that those grew on a plant. Or that their chips came from potatoes that grow underground. It shocked me senseless. If I asked them to tell me where the bun came from I got "Walmart" as an answer. Show them a picture of stalks of wheat and all I got was blank looks.

My personal opinion is that it comes down to education. I've had times where I scraped by on very little. After I had already cut the phone, tv, new clothes, conditioner, light bulbs (you get the idea) from my budget, I still had to get by on very little for food. Can it be done cheaply? Sure. Packs of ramen are 17 cents. But a bag of dried beans is $1. A bag of dried beans & bag of brown rice gets me a couple weeks worth of meals. "Splurge" and throw some spices in with the beans and it's actually pretty good.

But if mom and dad only buy Hamburger Helper - and that's ALL you ever see them "cook" - then the nutrition cycle gets broken. If mom and dad have never grown food in their lives, then kids don't experience where food actually comes from. From there perspective food comes two sources: in a box/bag or in shrink wrap from the store. So while cheap, "healthy" alternatives are right next to the cheap processed junk, they have no idea that better options even exist, much less how to cook them. If mom and dad aren't educated about nutrition, then they don't know how to shop the sales and make use of bulk cooking & the freezer for healthy, cheap meals. If they don't know, their kids definitely won't.

I'm fortunate in that I DO have an education and grew up with a mom who loved to cook. I've been "ramen noodle poor." Doesn't mean I ate that way.

(Edited: for the other teachers out there, yeah, I know, arrows go FROM the sun and my post has it backwards. But I just meant it as a deconstruct example. My kids think hamburger comes from the plastic package in the cold part of Walmart. Ask them where the package comes from and get blank looks. Tell them an animal that went "moo" and they accuse me of lying!)

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I have not met many lazy poor people some work harder(& longer) than most people ever have just to stay alive.That is not lazy that is surviving and no one has the right to shame that. no one

If they work so hard and are just staying alive, how are they fat?

Good discussion but you win the prize as far as I'm concerned. No doubt it's cheaper and easier to eat sugar laden, high fat and heavily processed foods, especially if one has a large family and is working two jobs just to get by. I also agree with another person who commented that sometimes the pleasure of having something that simply tastes good is one form of entertainment, and it absolutely is entertainment, still available to the poor. I live in an area known for wide spread poverty and I just read an article where the only large grocery store within a 25 mile radius is closing. Food sold at smaller stores is notoriously more costly and there is less variety, less fresh produce, and often less than the best quality of meat. As another person said, hotdogs and hamburger are relatively cheap and while oatmeal is still a bargain, parents are beseiged by commercials that constantly imply that if they loved their children they'd buy them "Sugar-Os". Perhaps when some parents feel that they can't buy their children the latest gadget they can at least buy them their favorite junk food. I am not defending this behavior but I agree with you that when there is little or no discretionary spending, then food becomes the most likely form of comfort and "entertainment". Being poor is not a testament to poor character and being fat is not just about poor character either.

I was brought up poor to lower middle class. My mother stretched food with water and potatoes. We didn't whine or blame others for our situation. We were taught that we should rely on ourselves (especially not government, which is equal to relying on your neighbor) and not blame others. We should rise up and work harder to rely on our own hard work.

In the Safeway where I shop, the most expensive "foods" are the ready to eat or frozen ones whose main ingredients are salt, sugar, canola oil. By contrast, potatoes, carrots, spinach , and broccoli seem relatively cheap. Many people complain about the cost of real food because they don't want to spend time cooking and preparing them because they are so tired from sitting in their cars.

Not necessary, its matter of knowledge and desire. If one desire to be fit and have knowledge about food and exercise he/she may keep herself/himself fit. there are cheap health foods, there are thousands of exercises which need no gym, no treadmill, no other fitness machines. Though the task is difficult but not impossible. Most of cases the problem is with overeating which can affect rich as well as poor both.

Responding to a snippet from the dissertation posted earlier. Re: poor people driving older, less fuel efficient cars that use up more gas. My 14 year old car I used to drive cost maybe about 1-2 of my current car payments to maintain in maybe a 1 or 2 year span. The idea of spending 30 grand just for a more fuel efficient vehicle doesn't always pay off financially unless you commute a ton. Ultimately some of those cars are simply making a statement, and not necessarily saving the owners money. I can see where an unreliable car could mean you'd lose your job but overall I'd say an older car would cost less to own and maintain.

There were a lot of other comments I could respond to , but they seemed to be answering the question "are the poor lazy", no doubt due to some of the harsh statements on this topic. Interesting read, though.

okay a bag of spinach is $2.99 and boneless skinless chicken is $8 for 8 pieces and frozen broccoli is 1.97 and feeds my family of 5. This does not include herbs and spices which can be expensive. Five burgers Five fries and five drinks is $15. So you are only saving some change but in the long run you will know what went into your food and it will be much healthier for you. However a box of mac n cheese costs 50 cent to $2 depending on brand and hot dogs $1, buns, $1.You do the math on that and unhealthy is definitely cheaper. I think good quality healthy food should be accessible and available with reasonable prices. I for one have to budget and stretch my pennies until they scream. The cost of living is skyrocketing and jobs aren't available and who gets a raise..?Not me! My gym membership is $60 for my family and since I have gotten back on the healthy band wagon my food bill is twice as much! I am not poor but I am fat.The government will do and say anything to gain more control of our freedom and making such comments about the poor are fat is just such a case. A year or so ago there was a push for food stamps to be accepted at fast food restaurants because it was much cheaper for the recipient. Now a 360 and thanks to obamacare, insurance companies want everyone to be healthy so they do not have to pay out any claims on sickness and disease. Or they will charge you for unhealthy behaviors and lifestyles such as being overweight or smoking. Meanwhile pharmaceutical companies want to make money off of you with diet aids. It is all hype and propaganda and at the end of the day who really cares if the poor are fat?