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I am beginning to think that there is just something in American food in general that shouldn't be there. It can't be that most Americans are fat b/c they ALL are eating fries everyday.
I am beginning to think that there is just something in American food in general that shouldn't be there. It can't be that most Americans are fat b/c they ALL are eating fries everyday.
Of course not!!
When my sister arrived from Europe to visit with us, she was absolutely shocked at how little my husband eats for his size. He is a tall, 6'4" man, in very good shape, but he always makes sure not to eat too much so he won't put on weight. He eats horribly little for a man his size, also low fat, etc. Sometimes I really worry that he doesn't take in enough nutrients.
Do you really think that people from other cultures don't like to eat and that they don't overeat? Oh, Lord!
But you don't get THAT fat from "loving to eat" or "eating a lot".
It depends on what you put in your body - and yes, there is something very, very weird going on with American food.
and yes, there is something very, very weird going on with American food.
It's what I've been thinking for awhile but wanted to see if anyone else would draw the same conclusion.
If it's not that, could it be that we've ruined our metabolism with processed foods? I used to be a total sweetaholic and not as much anymore--in fact I went for 4 years one time w/o eating any and could lose weight to a certain point and then no more, though I wasn't eating much at all. When we traveled non-stop for a year I dropped weight pretty rapidly though still not all I would have liked to have, but I was eating some sweets. Lots of exercise from walking and climbing mountains and such. But I eat no sweets here and exercise every day and weigh more than I did then, 3 years ago. Well I'm not what you'd call fat but I would def look a lot better if I lost 20 lbs.
If it's not that, could it be that we've ruined our metabolism with processed foods?
Who knows for sure? But something is happening here in America with the food. My children are genetically half American (father, born and raised in the South, many generations in the US, very skinny as a baby, tall, thin as a man too) and half Eastern-European.
Both born and raised in the US so far.
My daughter is the spitting image of myself when I was her age - except she is clearly rounder, plumpier, more solid (though not fat) than I was. I was skinnier, thinner at her age; and Lord knows I guard what they eat with a vengeance. I cook from scratch, buy lots of organic, hunt for "corn syrup" on labels as if it was pure poison, the whole nine yards.
She also has a very high appetite as if she's never ever getting enough - though her body clearly states otherwise, because she looks anything but emaciated.
So again, who knows what's REALLY with the food, but IT IS something. Given my kids' health and body image are at stake, it bugs me to no end.
Unfortunately, I can't get a job in the South of France or wherever the food may still be nice and pure.
I only skimmed the other responses - but I think they key here (in addition to the change in diet) is that your student is used to eating every 2 hrs.
When you eat more often, your metabolism has to keep active. Your body has less time to store extra calories, plus you don't often get the feeling of hunger. So in addition to trying to eat the best foods possible (whole grains, veggies, lean protein, ect), perhaps try to eat more small meals in a day as opposed to 3 'large' meals.
And definitely throw in more exercise. We drive everywhere and sit a lot at home - not the norm in the rest of the world. Go for walks, go play tennis, anything (and bring along good snacks (almonds, apples) to help prevent indulging/gorging after activity)
There's nothing mysterious going on here--no weird substances in American food or anything like that. It's still simply calories in versus calories out.
In the early 80's I was an exchange student in Peru. I lived with a family where the mother prided herself on her cooking and cooked everything from scratch. You literally could not even buy the processed food we ate here. She made everything herself, including things we take for granted like mayonnaise. Even though I was technically a paying "boarder" she treated me like a guest and most meals were very impressive. In addition, all the restaurant food was homemade and delicious.
But guess what? Even though I walked and took public transportation everywhere, I GAINED 15 POUNDS IN 6 MONTHS. The simple reason was that the food was new to me, fresh, delicious and abundant in the setting in which I lived. I ate too much of it.
When I came back home and went back to fending for myself, I didn't gain any more weight. Later that year I went through a sad breakup, was miserable and lost the 15 pounds. I assure you that I lost most of the weight on Taco Bell and Whataburger. But I was eating less because I was stressed and unhappy.
Remember Occam's Razor: The simplest explanation is most likely the correct one.
Chances are, in Korea she eats very, very little meat. Many Koreans eat almost none at all, or as a weekly treat, because it is prohibitively expensive there. One wouldn't think that meat would be overly fattening, but meat generally contains quite a bit of fat, which her body is having to learn to process in new ways.
Also, there is a pretty strong cultural emphasis in modern Korea for girls to be extremely thin. Maybe she is just relaxing her standards, in the absence of that peer pressure.
If there is a Korean restaurant or market in your town, you might ask one of the Koreans there if they have any ideas that might explain this.
There's nothing mysterious going on here--no weird substances in American food or anything like that. It's still simply calories in versus calories out.
In the early 80's I was an exchange student in Peru. I lived with a family where the mother prided herself on her cooking and cooked everything from scratch. You literally could not even buy the processed food we ate here. She made everything herself, including things we take for granted like mayonnaise. Even though I was technically a paying "boarder" she treated me like a guest and most meals were very impressive. In addition, all the restaurant food was homemade and delicious.
But guess what? Even though I walked and took public transportation everywhere, I GAINED 15 POUNDS IN 6 MONTHS. The simple reason was that the food was new to me, fresh, delicious and abundant in the setting in which I lived. I ate too much of it.
When I came back home and went back to fending for myself, I didn't gain any more weight. Later that year I went through a sad breakup, was miserable and lost the 15 pounds. I assure you that I lost most of the weight on Taco Bell and Whataburger. But I was eating less because I was stressed and unhappy.
Remember Occam's Razor: The simplest explanation is most likely the correct one.
When she got here in mid-January, she was 5'4" and around 100 lbs. Now she has gained at least 10 lbs, and maybe more. She looks great to me, but her folks are very concerned about how round she looks. I cook fairly healthy food, and I never supply soda or chips or much of any sweets. My dd and I are both overweight, though not obese. Anyway, the girl was saying the other day that she's always hungry here, even after a meal, and she is shocked by how little we eat. I'm thinking I'd better learn to cook some Korean food, even though she seems to like my cooking--maybe we'd all be better for it. Oh, and in Korea, they eat every 2 hours or so, and though her parents do struggle with their weight, I don't think it's as much as we do. Kim Chee anyone?
It's definitely American food.
In India, people eat more, exercise less (almost nothing), if anyone opens a gym, it will fail owing to lack of membership, yet people are thin and healthy.
Chances are, in Korea she eats very, very little meat. Many Koreans eat almost none at all, or as a weekly treat, because it is prohibitively expensive there. One wouldn't think that meat would be overly fattening, but meat generally contains quite a bit of fat, which her body is having to learn to process in new ways.
Also, there is a pretty strong cultural emphasis in modern Korea for girls to be extremely thin. Maybe she is just relaxing her standards, in the absence of that peer pressure.
If there is a Korean restaurant or market in your town, you might ask one of the Koreans there if they have any ideas that might explain this.
Please stop. Your stereotypes and misinformation are killing me. It is insulting to say she is "relaxing her standards". You don't know the girl personally.
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It can't be that most Americans are fat b/c they ALL are eating fries everyday.
