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In my mind, there's no question but that our food supply is mostly contaminated by all the junk they feed to the chickens and cows, and all the pesticides they use on the crops.
I suppose if a person tried, they could avoid all that and eat real food. No hormones, no antibiotics, no pesticides. It should be hard to do and would cost more, but i think it could be done.
This article shows that even with exercising and eating the same in terms of calories/fat/protein as they did in the 1980's, people have a higher BMI by a couple of points and 10% more weight. It seems to be due a lot to chemicals (pesticides/hormones in meat, chemicals in clothing, prescription drugs like antidepressants, artificial sugars, and so on). The author points out that instead of fat-bashing, people need to understand that many people have put on the pounds due to factors beyond their control and that a young person today has to eat less and exercise more just to be the weight their parents were at their age.
I don't like fat-bashing, but I do think some of the contributing factors are beyond people's control. Perhaps if they would eat less meat and cook more whole foods, some of the detrimental effects of living in today's world could be lessened.
Can't say I dig your post, bro. Cuz it might make some overweight person reading it go, like, "Oh..yeah. THATS why I'm tubby, all the crap they put in my food. So it's not my fault! Think I'll have me another slice of pizza!" (fart). LOL
Sure, there's alot a food out there that's bad, but here's the deal: you don't gotta eat it. Jus' like ya dont gotta take drugs.
Exercise is as easy now as it was in the 80s. Actually easier, since we know a lot more about it, info for anybody who wants to begin, and more resources too, with all the gyms and health clubs and stuff. Also with the info age you can get more learning on nutrition and know what food to avoid.
No excuses. Get off the couch and quit snortin' the Prozac--just read a article where this is becoming a popular soccer mom thing--and hit the gym and then have some lean organic chicken and a salad for dinner.
No excuses. Get off the couch and quit snortin' the Prozac--just read a article where this is becoming a popular soccer mom thing--and hit the gym and then have some lean organic chicken and a salad for dinner.
LOL
No kidding.
This is a off-topic rant. But as a mom of young kids I hang out on mommy boards and fb a bit, and I'm repeatedly SHOCKED at how blase of an attitude people have towards brain-chemistry-altering drugs, with doctors giving them out at the mere mention of being a bit tired, and people popping them like candy! The second someone mentions being tired, not getting enough sleep and difficulty waking up in the early morning, finding it challenging to deal with young kids, or feeling a bit down - all extremely normal human experiences! - the response is usually OMG you're depressed go get some drugs. The mention of being a bit worried about your kids, or your health, or your finances - again, NORMAL feelings, esp when there's reason for it! - gets advice of anti-anxiety meds. It's absolutely ridiculous, this American notion that if you're not floating around singing and farting rainbows each moment of the day 24/7, you're depressed and need drugs. Look at European and Asian nations, most of them don't feel the need to have a constant fake smile on their face 24/7 like we do (and thus are often considered rude by Americans).
People are ignoring the fact that these are very very harsh medications with serious side effects. That should be the absolute last resort, after therapy and lifestyle changes have been exhausted and failed. In fact it's really scary how often women would say they're wary of taking meds due to side effects, and others. not medical professionals, are quick to reassure them that any side effects are mild and are more than worth it, or that they didn't have any. I want to scream at them, that the weight gain or constipation you're experiencing are only the surface things you can see! You have NO idea what is actually going on in your body and brain and how it's being affected by these drugs, and it can't be mild because again, this is a drug that is messing with your brain function, and that is SERIOUS.
Yes, if you're losing it in severe hormonally-induced PPD, you're crying non-stop and are about to down a bottle of pills or toss your newborn out of the window - by all means, get yourself over to the shrink, get the drugs ASAP to get through it. But if, like me, you're swearing as you need to crawl out of bed in the morning to get your older kid ready for school after getting up several times at night with your baby, and you're grumpy and exhausted and hating life at that moment - then maybe all you need is a few hours' uninterrupted sleep and a nutritious meal for things to be good again. Differentiation, people.
No kidding.
This is a off-topic rant. But as a mom of young kids I hang out on mommy boards and fb a bit, and I'm repeatedly SHOCKED at how blase of an attitude people have towards brain-chemistry-altering drugs, with doctors giving them out at the mere mention of being a bit tired, and people popping them like candy! The second someone mentions being tired, not getting enough sleep and difficulty waking up in the early morning, finding it challenging to deal with young kids, or feeling a bit down - all extremely normal human experiences! - the response is usually OMG you're depressed go get some drugs. The mention of being a bit worried about your kids, or your health, or your finances - again, NORMAL feelings, esp when there's reason for it! - gets advice of anti-anxiety meds. It's absolutely ridiculous, this American notion that if you're not floating around singing and farting rainbows each moment of the day 24/7, you're depressed and need drugs. Look at European and Asian nations, most of them don't feel the need to have a constant fake smile on their face 24/7 like we do (and thus are often considered rude by Americans).
People are ignoring the fact that these are very very harsh medications with serious side effects. That should be the absolute last resort, after therapy and lifestyle changes have been exhausted and failed. In fact it's really scary how often women would say they're wary of taking meds due to side effects, and others. not medical professionals, are quick to reassure them that any side effects are mild and are more than worth it, or that they didn't have any. I want to scream at them, that the weight gain or constipation you're experiencing are only the surface things you can see! You have NO idea what is actually going on in your body and brain and how it's being affected by these drugs, and it can't be mild because again, this is a drug that is messing with your brain function, and that is SERIOUS.
Yes, if you're losing it in severe hormonally-induced PPD, you're crying non-stop and are about to down a bottle of pills or toss your newborn out of the window - by all means, get yourself over to the shrink, get the drugs ASAP to get through it. But if, like me, you're swearing as you need to crawl out of bed in the morning to get your older kid ready for school after getting up several times at night with your baby, and you're grumpy and exhausted and hating life at that moment - then maybe all you need is a few hours' uninterrupted sleep and a nutritious meal for things to be good again. Differentiation, people.
Good post. I agree all the way.
My sister is a psychiatrist up in Dallas. I'm a former Navy SEAL, and saw several combat skirmishes during my six years. I got out four years ago.
When I returned from Afghanistan, I had some mental health issues. Nightmares; what we call "hyper-vigilance" when I was in crowded public places; and some mood swings. So the shrinks at the VA said I had PTSD and tried to put me on psych drugs. Like three different ones: one to sleep (seroquel)...one for my hyper-vigilance (Xanax), and one for my mood swings, (Lithium).
Wary of this,,,since I never had taken drugs in my life, as I was an athlete in h.s. and college--I barely even drank--I talked to my sister. She said the VA is notorious for giving out drugs like skittles. And that I was just going through normal re-adjustment issues. She said all the things I experienced when returning to stateside civilian life were normal, after being in a place like the tribal mountain regions of Afghanistan where we would sneak around behind rocks and shoot people, and also be stalked by them. She said to NOT have any re-adjustment issues back home would be abnormal.
She calls all those psych drugs "necessary poisons" for those who truly need them. And she said that the side-effects of most of them are drastically under-represented. Some of them WILL turn a sane and balanced person insane and UNbalanced over time. These being the folks who take them when they really don't have the chemical imbalance in the brain that necessitates their usage.
So I told the VA docs "no thanks." I went to some group therapy with other vets, began working out, running marathons---the Runner's High Endorphin Rush was MY PTSD drug! LOL. Nowadays I feel great and suffer zero psych issues from my time in combat.
Just another article to give the fatties some mental comfort so they can convince themselves that they can't do anything about it... see, it's not me, it's all these delicious evil food that I can't stop eating... Amazing how simply eating less does wonders to your body and everyone that has tried it has seen the results.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bpollen
Well, you and the poster you responded to are male. The male metabolism is different from the female one.
Adjustments to food intake is very helpful, but in reality, some females would have to eat an unrealistically low amount of calories, in order to maintain weight. The only thing to counter that is to do strength training, becaues that increases muscle mass (making them closer to the male metabolism), coupled with eating less than 1,200 calories a day, for a normal height female getting older. Many women can't do that, just as most men would not be able to do that.
Hu, no, they don't have to "eat an unrealistically low amount of calories, in order to maintain weight". Adjusting one's diet and eating a few less calories than what you need is not the same as what you just wrote, you make it sound like the only way to lose weight is to unhealthily starve yourself, not true, that's just an excuse not to do it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Velocity_Boy
... So I told the VA docs "no thanks." I went to some group therapy with other vets, began working out, running marathons---the Runner's High Endorphin Rush was MY PTSD drug! LOL. Nowadays I feel great and suffer zero psych issues from my time in combat.
The reason people are fatter now is due to the prevalence of fast food and people eating out at restaurants more. Portion sizes are out of control. Grocery stores have a larger selection of junk food than they do of healthy food.
On top of ingesting more calories than we did previously, we are much more sedentary. Most of our leisure time and work time is spent sitting.
You can eat the cleanest diet possible and still be fat, if you eat too many calories. It is possible to eat the worst diet imaginable, laden with chemicals and be thin.
If you want to be thin...Use common sense, make the healthiest choices that make sense to you, and be active. (Do this within your calorie limit)
The full-text of the study is hidden behind a pay wall, but I'm curious about their methodology and data collection. If it's self-reported, I'd take it with a grain of salt because people do tend to have a rather biased view of their own behaviors.
This! Self reporting is not reliable. Also, people were more active in the eighties without factoring in exercise. Did they self report the extra steps they took in the day? The time they spent on the job that wasn't behind a computer screen? It's doubtful, because they didn't see that as exercise. It was just living life.
I guess there's no shortage of justifications for those want to cling to them. IDK, but I just don't see it; I drink tap water, eat conventionally grown/raised foods, am not the slightest bit concerned over the potential for lingering "chemicals" on my clothing, and guess what? Any changes to my body comp have been achieved through adjusting my workouts and caloric intake. It comes down to a combination of lifestyle and genetic predisposition, until empirical evidence supports otherwise.
The study has some relevancy but doesn't lead me to any of the conclusions the OP came up with. It's not harder to be thin these days, not at all.
A prior post described some clean-eating ideas and I agree with nearly all of them. Cut out Beef and Pork and in fact most if not all meat out of your diet and you will see noticeable changes in your size and shape within a month. If you combine that with elimination of processed foods based upon grain (food which comes in a box), bread, anything with HFCS, and pasta, the pounds will melt off nearly twice as fast and you will feel healthier and think clearer.
If you incorporate exercise and smaller eating portions into your lifestyle, even more health benefits are to be gained.
None of what I've stated above is difficult to understand, defend as healthy, nor challenging to implement if you are in charge of the food you buy. Hormones or pollution in the environment indeed is mostly out of our control, but obese people are the way they are in general due to their dietary and lifestyle choices.
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