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Here in North Carolina you see a lot of obesity in the rural parts. Johnston county is a good example. A lot of good ole' boys drinkin bud lite and eating lots of tasty but artery clogging fried foods. Lots of fat grandmas in the country too (that can COOK)
Obesity is definitely a huge problem in the US, but it's more complex than the stats alone suggest. For one, obesity varies regionally, with the south and midwest having it the worst. The western and northeastern states tend to be healthier for various reasons, whether it be better diets, better weather, more physically active cultures, etc. The absurdly obese people you'll see in Walmart photos, or whatever, the ones who look like they shouldn't be able to walk or ride around in scooters, are unusual. At least around Portland, you're unlikely to see many people who are obviously morbidly obese.
Something else to consider is that the Body Mass Index determines weight status by a simple ratio of height to weight. It doesn't account for muscle mass, bone density, or other factors, so it probably skews the stats quite a bit by labeling some people as overweight or obese when they really aren't.
Here in North Carolina you see a lot of obesity in the rural parts. Johnston county is a good example. A lot of good ole' boys drinkin bud lite and eating lots of tasty but artery clogging fried foods. Lots of fat grandmas in the country too (that can COOK)
I'm in NC. I started thinking about all the men I know today and it seems like 70% are overweight. Some of those guys don't stick out as being "fat guys" but with their shirt off you can clearly see the gut, boobs and love handles. Perhaps I don't really notice the true amount of overweight people because my perception of "average" has been skewed. For example, a 5'9/200lb/27% body fat guy looks average around here but is actually ~25lbs overweight. If you're a man in shape at say 150lbs a lot of people in the south think you're skinny/weak.
It's sorta true, but sorta not too. We obsess over weight in this country. We have the highest rate of anorexia and bulimia in the western world. Until the last 8 or 10 years we had the highest rates in the world, but India and China seem to have surpassed us now in this regard.
True, there are an awful lot of actually obese people running around. But there are an awful lot of people who get called obese who are anything but, because we have stupid ideas about what the proper weight is. Just the other day I responded to a poster who thought he/she was too fat at 5' 7.5" and 120 lbs. I'm 6" shorter than that and 120 lbs is my ideal weight, with a super-small frame (and muscles, which are often not accounted for in weight charts for women - because muscle tissues weighs more than fat tissue and women are not "expected" or encouraged to have much muscle mass).
Soft drinks are the main culprit. Other junk foods and fast food aren't far behind. People rarely mean to end up fat, but they're too busy (or think they are) to cook and fast food is just that, fast, and tasty. It is engineered - literally ENGINEERED - to appeal to taste and cravings. In particular, there is the Horror of the Cheetoh, which was literally concocted in a calculated way to be as ADDICTIVE a food as they could manage.
The fact that many soft drink users are drinking the "sugar-free" varieties that use artificial sweeteners doesn't help. There is increasing evidence that over-consumption of artificial sweeteners is just as bad as, and possibly worse than, consuming real sugar. Not low or "normal" (whatever that means) usages, but over-consumption in particular seems to set up a dynamic whereby the overload of fake sweeteners actually trips off craving for the real thing - which then sets up the indulger to intake even more fake sugar items, which increases the craving for the real thing, and there you are stuck in a vicious cycle.
Artificial sweeteners are not a license to slug back all the sugar free coke and sugar free candy you can get your hands on. So-called sugar free hard candy I have found is actually HIGHER in carbs than the same stuff made with real sugar. So when I get the rare desire for a bit of butterscotch candy I don't even bother with the "sugar free" version because it has MORE carbs and costs more than the regular stuff. This is at least partly due to the fact that "sugar alcohols" are not required to be listed under carbs as carbs-due-to-sugar. So something that is "sugar free" is probably making up for it at least in part with "sugar alcohols" and its still high carb.
Those packets of splenda are not carb-free either. They use maltodextrose as a filler. Each packet has 1 carb. You have to get liquid sucralose to get the actually totally carb free stuff.
So - lots of reasons. Plus the whole idea that being fat is somehow a sign of moral turpitude. "The sin of gluttony" and all that. The truth is that obesity is higher among poor people not because they are stupid and lazy but because they are poor - and all the cheapest and most filling foods are full of sugars, carbs and fat. You can feed 2 or 3 kids on one 50c box of mac 'n cheese. You can buy 25 lbs of rice for as little as $8. You can use that as filler in every kind of soup. All the things that stretch your dollar also stretch your waistline.
We need to get off the moral high horse about obesity, stop obsessing about weight, and deal with the realities of the situation.
Last edited by Pyewackette; 08-15-2017 at 02:20 AM..
Doesn't everything depend upon, like others have said? If you hang out at a local fair, mall food court, all you can eat restaurants, bars, movie theaters, ice cream parlors, fast food places where there are plenty of treats, that's where you'll find people who eat fatty, sugary foods & tend to be on the heavier size, because that food encourages feeling full & heavy & sedentary & the lifestyle follows suit... or vice versa.
Thinner and/or fitter people are generally more active, so they're not hanging out as much, they're doing something, so you're less likely to see them unless you're also on a hiking trail, walking or rollerblading at the beach, skiing, biking, running, at they gym, etc. & there are plenty of them, too.
I've also recently noticed the same in my local markets... the processed & frozen food sections, deli & bakery always have over-sized people milling about, so much so, that it's often hard to get passed them & their packed shopping carts. I don't see them lingering near the produce, fresh juice, gourmet or organic food sections. Take a glance down the chips, cereal or candy aisle... not many yoga buffs.
Some stats say that 30% of all Americans are considered obese... not just overweight, obese. That means 1 out of 3 who pass us by daily are severely overweight... or does it? I don't see that, but since I'm not at fast food joints, the doughnut shop & the ice cream aisle, I just don't see them cuz I'm busy doing things. We now have far more elderly than before, so if a large % are considered obese, given their age & possible ailments, it's also unlikely we'd cross paths as they're indoors more than they are walking around the local park.
Also, certain cultures tend to be heavier & have a preference for larger bodies... so how much of that 1 in 3 figure do all of the above make up? I've also lived all across the country & certain regions place less emphasis on fitness, health and/or thinness, so if you live or visit there, you'll notice more large sizes & shapes.
I see far more heavy people, mostly children today. In the 60/70/80s, it wasn't common to see chunky kids in school. Now larger bodies are favored by many & media seems to encourage it (or at least, tell us it's okay), so there's less incentive for those to be concerned with weight, unless they reach a point where the dr says it's a health issue, akin to decades long smokers I've known.
Still, I don't personally see that 1 in 3 is obese, given that it's defined as a BMI over 30. But, then again, I'm not hanging out where obese people tend to gather, so perhaps that's why. Additionally, I'm not judgmental. None of us has any idea idea how someone became overweight... could be bad health, depression or other issues aside from bad food choices. When I see someone walking with a great deal of difficulty, struggling with weight, I wish them well & am silently glad I'm mobile.
Lastly, I've traveled extensively, especially the last 3-yrs. Those in the UK & France who like to fat shame Yanks, often weren't in the condition to do so. I noticed plenty of chubby Europeans... not more or less than I see here. Processed foods with high sugar/salt/fat & sedentary lifestyles, often due to working/commuting too many hours has not benefited many populations, from what I've seen.
Something else to consider is that the Body Mass Index determines weight status by a simple ratio of height to weight. It doesn't account for muscle mass, bone density, or other factors, so it probably skews the stats quite a bit by labeling some people as overweight or obese when they really aren't.
"quite a bit" is a massive stretch. BMI is perfectly adequate for a population. Person to person, it's fine for 99.999% of people. People carrying excessive muscle mass is a very, very, very small portion of the population.
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Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth
I don't see it on the West Coast. In the Southwest, I see it only among young Hispanic women. From my perspective, it's mostly a mid-west and southern thing.
Our view has skewed. Even the skinniest state today is fatter than the fattest state in 1985.
Colorado is the skinniest state today - 20.2% of adults are obese.
In 1995, Mississippi was the fattest state - 19.4% of adults were obese.
In 95, 10.4% of Colorado was obese. Today, Mississippi is 35.6% obese. Louisiana is fatter though - 36.2% obese.
There are 4 states that have over 35% of adults obese: LA, MS, Alabama and West Virginia
There are only 7 states (inc DC) that are under 25% obese: CO, DC, California, Hawaii, Utah, Montana, and Massachusetts.
Honestly it's global - obesity rates are going up across the globe, both in developed and underdeveloped countries. In the areas I've lived some have had a higher percentage of obese people, usually correlated with a higher level of poverty and lower quality food. But even the wealthy communities are seeing an upward trend.
Dunkin donuts and Starbucks aren't going out of business anytime soon.
So true. Sugar is as addictive as nicotine, and we have numerous companies that serve it up to the masses in the guise of a "I deserve it" reward or an "energy" boost.
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