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So far, efforts by the private sector and US government interventions (yeah, so much for US government intervention) have not been successful in getting people to be more fit and active. It doesn't help that we have a social movement that wants to push us in the completely opposite direction.
If only we were still living in the 1980s, this would be easier to reverse. Is this how humanity is going to evolve? If so, the future state of humanity looks very depressing. Think about it. A world without active and fit people.
Is there any guaranteed way of stopping this epidemic that nobody has realized yet. Or is the inexorable technology we created going to screw us all?
For individuals it's easy, just eat less and exercise more. As a population it's harder, maybe encouraging less car based city development and encouraging walking/biking will help people get more exercise on a daily basis. Also better education could help, it seems like more educated individuals are skinnier on average compared to less educated people.
For individuals it's easy, just eat less and exercise more. As a population it's harder, maybe encouraging less car based city development and encouraging walking/biking will help people get more exercise on a daily basis. Also better education could help, it seems like more educated individuals are skinnier on average compared to less educated people.
Richer people have more food options compared to poor people. Carbs are cheaper than protein! Many young people have no idea how to actually cook, schools have done away with home economics/ cooking. Parents that don't know how to cook can't teach their children something they themselves don't know. So fast food becomes the default option.
One of the main problems is antibiotics in the meat. Antibiotics in the meat are worse than the hormones. The antibiotics kill off beneficial gut bacteria and leave gut yeast behind. Since we consume meat full of antibiotics, we end up with a lot of gut yeast. If we want to stop obesity, we need to feed our animals what they are supposed to eat, and stop pumping them full of drugs. Physical activity isn't enough if the food supply is unhealthy.
Richer people have more food options compared to poor people. Carbs are cheaper than protein! Many young people have no idea how to actually cook, schools have done away with home economics/ cooking. Parents that don't know how to cook can't teach their children something they themselves don't know. So fast food becomes the default option.
Yep, fast food and preservatives as opposed to home cooked meals, plus a sedentary lifestyle have proved a deadly combination.
First, it won't be about "the only sure way." This is a many-faceted issue.
Portion sizes are a start. Not much we can collectively do there....though I've found it helpful that my city requires chains to publish calories on their menus, which has caused me to rethink my orders (not practical for mom & pops unfortunately).
Easting fake stuff that changes your body chemistry is a big one. The FDA should be controlling more of that.
Education helps. When the public learned about high-fructose corn syrup the backlash caused a lot of products to delete it...so much that the chemical companies responded with a big ad campaign. It's still in a lot of things (note to self...look at ingredient lists!).
Living in a walkable area and walking to work is a big help. In my case it means at least 15 minutes of walking even on the laziest day, and typically more. That's (a) burning calories on the walk, (b) improving your body so you burn calories at other times, and (c) an incentive to make better choices.
I like stairs too. I work on 4 and live on 6, and rarely use an elevator. Little moments of cardio have an outsized effect.
Easy access to a gym is another one. And a basic truth about gyms would help a lot of people: nobody is judging you, and while most people don't say much, if they did it would be encouragement.
Working an excessive amount of hours to the detriment of everything else in life (but not necessarily getting more done) is a risk factor for eating poorly, and gaining weight:
We've had a lack of national leadership to steer this country in a better direction for decades (it seems to have steered us in the other wrong direction), which has only compounded the problem. There's plenty of finger wagging blaming people for being obese, but not looking at how society has put unreasonable, inhumane demands on peoples' lives, compared to other industrialized nations that have a more healthily balanced view of work and leisure, but nobody seems to be talking about how being stressed and overworked can contribute to people leading unhealthy lifestyles that lead to obesity.
Of course, communities and individuals share some the responsibility as well. In certain communities, proper eating, exercise and weight management aren't prioritized or publicized, and the same issue seems to affect certain families that pass down bad habits from generation to generation.
Also, people (most disturbingly kids) spend way too long on electronic devices and not enough time doing physical activities.
Easy, stop subsidizing obesity related diseases. Obese people should pay a higher tax rate and higher insurance rate.
Not subsidizing corn to the extend we do which leads to more production of corn than we really need, and less production of healthier crops is one way obesity could be addressed. Corn has its place, but we're eating way too much of it and its derivatives in place of other healthier foods. The Iowa agribusiness corn lobby is way too powerful and needs to be put in its place.
Our cars and other smaller engines would be healthier without all that ethanol garbage as well, but I realize that's another post.
Easy, stop subsidizing obesity related diseases. Obese people should pay a higher tax rate and higher insurance rate.
This is somewhat limited because of Obamacare however a consumption tax on "unhealthy" foods to at least bring them on par to healthy foods would be a great idea. In many scenarios the reason why we see this epidemic is partly cause of costs.
Lots of Americans don't exercise. For most people it's as much as walking from house to car, car to work, work to car, car to house. So it's important to address that as well. At one point I was walking almost five miles a day when I lived on my college campus (not too mention I was carrying textbooks) and my classes were the opposite side of campus from where I lived, and I lost weight from that. Cities should work on promoting things like bike lanes and trails which are free to the public that would help with this. We could promote walkable areas in general, many if they had a grocery store within walking distance (or a short public transit ride) I think would make these areas more sufficient, however people prefer Super-Walmarts with almost a width of a block for car parking so that ruins it.
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