If eating trash makes us sick, why do we keep eating it?

LAWoman72 wrote: »

I don't know why people go so militantly on either side of the fence with this when it's obvious both factors - outside influences, and our own personal choice - come into play.

Thanks for this refreshingly balanced contribution.

dbmata wrote: »

Francl27 wrote: »

Haven't read the thread, but no food makes me sick or lethargic.

I ate a dodgy crawfish once, that did.

Well yeah, but those are exceptions!

Ok, I had the runs after I had a Rita's sundae, but it was still totally worth it... once a year or something.

dbmata wrote: »

Sounds like a not so friendly Friendlys.

Oh Friendly's butter crunch ice cream sounds good right now

KylaDenay wrote: »

dbmata wrote: »

Sounds like a not so friendly Friendlys.

Oh Friendly's butter crunch ice cream sounds good right now

Is that like Butter Brickle? I am on a mission to find Butter Brickle, the ice cream of my childhood... Some brand made a seasonal version, but I didn't have that anywhere near me.

+1
I think this is the correct answer to the OP's question.

andreavan28 wrote: »

the carbs and crap in the food actually make you crave more of it, it is a vicious cycle.

andrejjorje wrote: »

+1
I think this is the correct answer to the OP's question.

andreavan28 wrote: »

the carbs and crap in the food actually make you crave more of it, it is a vicious cycle.

It doesn't impact everyone in such a manner. You are responsible for your own actions at the end of the day.

Must admit I haven't read the thread and just did a very quick flick through and one of the things that struck me was the comments "just don't eat it!" or "haven't you heard of willpower?." etc etc

Now I know a lot of wonderful strong minded people who are busy and active but are still fat. So I know it is not that easy. I saw through the thread the familiar "calories in - calories out plus exercise and there you have it - a solution." But I know from a lifetime of watching people go on strict diets and hit the gym five days a week that it does not work. I have also been along that track myself in my younger days but found eventually life gets in the way. Too busy, too tired, it's raining, it's too hot, kids are sick, I'mmmm SICK!! Any excuse and this theory goes down the drain.

I came across this article by Dr. Arya M. Sharma, MD/PhD, FRCPC is Professor of Medicine & Chair in Obesity Research and Management at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. (I hope his credentials are up to MFP's high standards as I haven't done a credibility check on him.)

Obesity Is Not About Lack Of Willpower

Feb 2014 "As I prepare to spend the rest of this week educating health professionals in Ontario on how to better manage obesity in their practice, it is perhaps appropriate to remind ourselves that Canada is not alone in attempting to tackle this problem.

Indeed, we need to look no further than the Australian Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Overweight and Obesity in Adults, Adolescents and Children for a succinct summary of reasons just why obesity management is so difficult:

- Regulation of body weight involves complicated feedback systems that result in changes in appetite, energy intake and energy expenditure.

- While excess weight in individuals usually results from a prolonged period of energy imbalance, the causes of overweight and obesity are complex.

- Diet and physical activity are central to the energy balance equation, but are directly and indirectly influenced by a wide range of social, environmental, behavioural, genetic and physiological factors—the relationships between which are not yet fully understood.

- Individuals may be at greater risk of weight gain at particular stages in their lives.

The guidelines remind practitioners of the fact that body weight underlies tight regulation through a complex homeostatic system:

“While this system defends against weight gain as well as weight loss under normal circumstances, energy balance cannot be maintained when an energy surplus is sufficiently large and sustained. Weight gain will begin and usually continue until a new weight results in increased energy expenditure and energy balance is re-established. The same physiological mechanisms then seek to maintain energy balance at the higher weight, and will defend against weight loss by increasing appetite and reducing energy expenditure) if there is an energy deficit. As a result, most overweight and obesity results from upward resetting of the defended level of body weight, rather than the passive accumulation of excess body fat.”

This acknowledgement is a vast step forward from previous simplistic views of obesity which falsely view it as just a matter of “calories in” and “calories out”, which falsely imply that individuals should be able to achieve any desired weight simply by volitionally changing this balance through willpower alone.

Indeed, the reality is that the vast majority of individual attempting this “balance” approach to weight management will fail miserably only to gain the weight back.

Thus, the Australian guidelines are not shy about declaring a better need for pharmacological treatments and promoting the more extensive use of bariatric surgery for individuals with severe obesity related health problems.

A clear reminder to all of us that current treatments for obesity are insufficient and better, safer and more accessible treatments are urgently needed".

DrSharma
Toronto, ON

So anyway I believe weight is not about "willpower," people are not good or bad people because of their weight, and shaming overweight or obese people in hopes of changing their behaviour isn't just cruel; it's completely ineffective. I believe we are on the brink of a revolution to change the way people think about food as, certainly here in Australia, people are looking more and more at the types of food they eat and are starting to turn their backs on processed food because they are concerned about the additives and chemicals that are in that food.

And in answer to OP's original question - For me, I think andreavan28 nailed it "the carbs and crap in the food actually make you crave more of it, it is a vicious cycle."

Francl27 wrote: »

Haven't read the thread, but no food makes me sick or lethargic.

Do you really want to miss out?

LeenaGee wrote: »

back.[/b]

I believe we are on the brink of a revolution to change the way people think about food as, certainly here in Australia, people are looking more and more at the types of food they eat and are starting to turn their backs on processed food because they are concerned about the additives and chemicals that are in that food.

."

really?

I havent noticed people in Australia doing that.

Honeymoon100 wrote: »

We have been biologically programed from the beginning of time to be attracted to the easy fast calories and not to expend calories on tasks that is not needed for survival. Fast forward to this generation where food is easy to get, high in calories, and hits our pleasure centers and you have the perfect storm. Everything we eat and think has memory and those memories have a way of programing us to return to those easy pleasurable events.

Am I a computer? Am I a computer program? Why do people keep saying I've been "programmed"? I'm having South Park anxiety now