Dying To Overeat: The Increasing Prevalence Of Obesity And Overweight Americans; Adults And Children. (bloody, lose weight)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Pittston2Sarasota ~~ I really think this thread belongs in the Health section because the issue is one of education/nutrition and the epidemic of obesity does impact ones health in a very negative way.
I am agreeing with you mostly~ except IMHO obesity is the result of FOOD ~~~~~ eating way too much of unhealthy man-made processed food rather than natural foods of the earth. Exercise is important but it does not reverse the danger of bad food, chemicals, artificial everything, more chemicals, some pesticide, preservatives, more artificial fake foods, etc.
I think I posted it in the wrong forum too as I mentioned earlier.....and wish the moderators would move it to the Health Forum(hint...LOL). But I still disagree about the food.....IMO....food was just as bad when I grew up as it is now; except we had NO/FEW reduced calorie/fat foods in the sixties and seventies. Today these foods are prevalent yet the trend towards obesity continues unabated. I even have trouble finding "normal" food that is not altered to reduce fat and calories and subsequently taste..
I don't know P2S.....
Since I grew up going to the beach, I spend most of my latter teen years, 20's and 30's so obsessed with trying to look good until I never enjoyed a meal without feeling guilty. Finally, in my 40's...then into my 50's....I decided no one had the right to tell me what my body was supposed to look like. There was a time when fuller women were considered sexy and the norm.
I work with several woman who are middle aged and more than chunky....and they are completely happy and healthy. Not all kids are born with a bean pole body either.
So, it's not that I don't care about people, but I don't think I'm going to spend too much time worrying what everyone eats or what they weigh or if they jogged today. It isn't my business.
And I'm not sure it is the government's business either.
It's none of my business either; just like it's nobody's business that I smoke; but people jump on the latter bandwagon to the point of banning outdoor smoking on the beach as I'm sure you too may have in your city. Plus to be honest it does take more jet fuel for example to haul my 125 pound rear into the air than say someone that's 250 pounds; yet we pay the same airfare.
I mainly worry about the additional health care costs(same thing can be said of smokers) and loss of quality of life. I'm a Nurse so I see what obese people give up.....health and mobility; as well as injuring Nursing personnel when we try to move them etc.
I'm mainly concerned with our youth, we are about the same age and I just don't remember there being many large kids. Being obese as a child greatly increases your chances of never achieving ideal body weight as an adult along with increasing health problems at an early age as evidenced by the pictoral from Scientific American magazine..
The increasing prevalence of obesity, seems to be mostly in children. Perhaps because many of them, don't play as much as we did.
I've also seen more fat MEN, than ever these days. Back when I was growing up, men mostly had just pot bellies, if that. But now, I see quite a few men, that could be considered to be morbidly obese. I wonder if men are less involved in athletics, scarfing down more junk food, or both these days?
I have to disagree about the MEN part.....they don't have "dibs" on obesity......I see plenty of obese women with large "cabooses".....the rest I agree with especially overweight kids who are destined in general to be mordidly obese adults.
I think I posted it in the wrong forum too as I mentioned earlier.....and wish the moderators would move it to the Health Forum(hint...LOL). But I still disagree about the food.....IMO....food was just as bad when I grew up as it is now; except we had NO/FEW reduced calorie/fat foods in the sixties and seventies. Today these foods are prevalent yet the trend towards obesity continues unabated. I even have trouble finding "normal" food that is not altered to reduce fat and calories and subsequently taste..
FAKE FOOD ~~ artificial sweeteners, no fat, reduced fat, etc. etc. etc. When the processed food manufacturers take something away, they put something back in the food to replace the missing ingredient and it is usually something FAKE JUST THIS LAST WEEK I saw a report on television which said it is exactly those ingredients that lead to diabetes, obesity, lower immunity, etc. The reporter said to avoid any processed food or drink with the word "diet" in it
What I meant was, that there seems to be MORE morbidly obese men now, than in past decades. I was comparing the number of hugely fat men today, to men when I was growing up in the 60s. Back then, I saw more men, who were lean, or at worst, had merely a beer gut.
I almost NEVER saw a male in the 60s, who was a morbidly obese behemouth. I wasn't comparing the number of obese men these days, to the number of obese women. My comparison, was of the vast increase of hugely fat men today, with the lean, and slightly paunchy males, that were more prevalent before the 80s.
What I meant was, that there seems to be MORE morbidly obese men now, than in past decades. I was comparing the number of hugely fat men today, to men when I was growing up in the 60s. Back then, I saw more men, who were lean, or at worst, had merely a beer gut.
I almost NEVER saw a male in the 60s, who was a morbidly obese behemouth. I wasn't comparing the number of obese men these days, to the number of obese women. My comparison, was of the vast increase of hugely fat men today, with the lean, and slightly paunchy males, that were more prevalent before the 80s.
I understand what you meant now...I misinterpreted your intent with your post.....and I basically agree.....this problem seems to pervade all segments and age/gender cohorts of our society.
FAKE FOOD ~~ artificial sweeteners, no fat, reduced fat, etc. etc. etc. When the processed food manufacturers take something away, they put something back in the food to replace the missing ingredient and it is usually something FAKE JUST THIS LAST WEEK I saw a report on television which said it is exactly those ingredients that lead to diabetes, obesity, lower immunity, etc. The reporter said to avoid any processed food or drink with the word "diet" in it
ROFL......most "fake" foods have little to no calories; hence the terminology low fat.......no fat........low calorie etc........I still stand by my opinion that obesity is more a lack of exercise and unhealthy/sedate lifestyles rather than processed foods...
It's FAR easier to blame food rather than our lifestyles...where people feel like they are "too good" to walk or bicycle.....so instead of searching within ourselves for answers, we blame food or external forces....the easy "cop out".
IF it was mainly a food problem than...IMHO....almost everyone would be overweight.....I eat tons of food and processed foods too...yet I still maintain an ideal body weight and I'm over 50 years old now....but I walk and bicycle and have a physical job as a Nurse on the floor..
FAKE FOOD ~~ artificial sweeteners, no fat, reduced fat, etc. etc. etc. When the processed food manufacturers take something away, they put something back in the food to replace the missing ingredient and it is usually something FAKE JUST THIS LAST WEEK I saw a report on television which said it is exactly those ingredients that lead to diabetes, obesity, lower immunity, etc. The reporter said to avoid any processed food or drink with the word "diet" in it
I have become convinced of this. I moved to Europe a few months ago, and although I really haven't changed my eating habits much, I have lost at least 10 pounds (I needed to!) I am certain the reason is that I am eating "real" food that is not overly processed or preserved. I shop every day because there are no preservatives in anything--even packaged food. It spoils fast I tell ya.
Nothing is sweetened with HFCS, just real sugar.
I lived in the UK about 20 years ago, and people were on average of normal weight (they ate like I do now) I get SKY TV and am amazed at how things have changed. Junk food and processed food everywhere! McDonalds, KFC...and Brits are now having the same problems with obesity.
I'm 30-something, have 4 kids, live in the suburbs and I REFUSE to let my children live an unhealthy lifestyle. Not all kids are living a sedentary lifestyle in front of videogame consoles and a lot of the parents in our cul-de-sac are on the same page with me.
My kids are always outside...ALWAYS! In the rain, snow, freezing cold, dark. I have to drag them in at night for dinner and then they bargain with me to go back outside ("I'll get up early and shower", "finish my homework in the morning", "I'll clean my room"...etc).
My kids play organized sports as well. Soccer, baseball and ice hockey are on the agenda for fall. EVERY night we are running from one field to another or multiple fields (try having soccer, hockey AND baseball all in the same day, multiple kids, multiple fields).
We never say "no" to sports...never. BUT, they have to learn how to prioritize their time with homework, friends and sports.
I will also say that I am a stay at home mom so they have ample time for activity. I stayed at home when I had my first in 1999 and then returned to work 3 years ago. After 2 years of that nonsense I decided that it was not working for our family. Getting them to and from activities was a hassel and they never had time to play outside. When I came home from work it was late and they only had time for homework, dinner and a shower before bed. I quit my job, not only because it was dead-end and did not benefit my family, but because my kids were losing out on opportunities I had as a child.
BUT, with that said, I can imagine some parents MUST have a dual income and that will limit what their children can do as far as sports, outside time..etc. It makes me wonder if a lot of the problem is that family dynamics have changed. Kids are in before-school and after-school care and don't have the opportunity to play sports or be outside.
edited to add: I agree with the "fake food" too. That's what we call it in this house as well. I will not buy pre-packaged convenience items BUT, I do have time to cook from scratch most days.
edited to add: I agree with the "fake food" too. That's what we call it in this house as well. I will not buy pre-packaged convenience items BUT, I do have time to cook from scratch most days.
I don't have kids, but most of my friends and family do, some of them, like justthe6ofus are on top of what the kids eat. A lot of them, however, seem to cop out and feed their kids crap. "Oh, Mikey will only eat tater tots." It just seems like kids should be eating well from the get-go, rather than being fed countless chicken nuggets and french fries and fruit snacks, none of which is healthy. Lots of kids are finicky, I get that, but there has to be a happy medium that's better than teaching them bad habits.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
.
You hit the nail on the head !
...where people feel like they are "too good" to walk or bicycle.....so instead of searching within ourselves for answers, we blame food or external forces....the easy "cop out".
