We’re in a new age of obesity. How did it happen? You’d be surprised (tooth, expensive)

[mountainrose]

I grew up in the 50-60s when you rarely saw an obese person. So many big changes have taken place regarding food since then.

Grocery stores were small and filled with just the basics for cooking at home.
Now there’s been a huge change in the availability of ready made convenience food. Everywhere you go there’s junk food shoved at you — you go into a gas station and most of the shelves have chips, candy, sugar drinks, hot dogs,and even the cash register area is loaded with junk food and candy seductions. Our grocery stores are humongous now — the size of department stores with so many food choices and seductions at each corner plus ready made deli food for easy take out.
And even the check out limes try last ditch to sell you some sugary junk.

People don’t cook that much anymore we’ve become so dependent on convenience food.
Stop at any red light with the windows down and you can smell all the fast food burger and fry smells.

[LittleDolphin]

Originally Posted by Mikala43

My Mom used to send me a half mile to the store for her cigarettes when I was 6.

Same here -- but I rode my bike so I didn't mind. Her cigs cost $.25/pack -- I remember that so clearly.

[PamelaIamela]

Originally Posted by oh-eve

"It’s not that we’re eating more, that we exercise less, or that we lack willpower. The shaming of overweight people has to stop"


I call out BS.


- people with self- discipline can be slim
- we drive more, walk less
- eating more and eating more of the bad stuff
- portions are bigger
- cooking less, eating more out
- more crappy food choices
- better advertisement of crappy food
- telling people it is ok to be huge leads to more people to be big.
- no war that makes food scarce
- not much manual labor anymore
- too many all you can eat buffets
- too many accommodations for the big - bigger cars/chairs/beds/clothes/even coffins!
- sizes get adjusted, people who used to be XXL are now L so they get delusional about their weight.
- bad food choices in schools and kindergartens
- wife's don't stay home anymore and cook healthy - everyone works, is overworked, has no time to cook
- people work too much, no time to exercise
- too many channels on tv, you'll never run out of stuff to watch
- videogames instead of playing outside, burning calories
- technology overall - you don't even have to get up to go somewhere, you can socialize online and buy everything you need.
- doctors don't tell people anymore when they get too big so they are in denial.
- everyone is on some sort of pain/depression/anxiety pills that make you retain water
... and so on ...

Nah. I call BS on this glib rehash of every popular but unscientific reason why obesity is on the rise.

It started coincidentally when the anti-fat food craze began thirty years ago and more sugar was added to prepared foods which began a vicious cycle of insulin resistance, leading to more carbohydrate loading leading to greater insulin resistance!

Eat more fat from a wide variety of animals and vegetables, and sugar/simple carb intake will plummet, relieving the stress of over-production of insulin. This has been shown to often reverse the insensitivity that cause weight gain and which is a precursor to type-2 diabetes, which is also on the rise.

[ClaraC]

I'm thin, my husband is thin, all my three sons and their partners are a healthy weight/slender weight.

My parents were slim.

My siblings are slim.

*shrugs shoulders* It does seem to run in families. Genetics and family eating choices and lifestyle.

[RustinginSeattle]

I tried coupon clipping for a bit, until I discovered that it was all for crap food that I shouldn't be feeding my family. And all with new and improved FLAVORS!

Better living by chemicals! ;-)

I don't buy the calories in, calories out theory. A calorie of sugar does not equal the calorie of lettuce. I quit Diet Coke cold turkey in my 20's and immediately lost 5 lbs (I'm pretty thin). No other changes in my eating. We should all be very, very leery of eating the chemicals that "food" companies are selling us.

[steiconi]

Originally Posted by ClaraC

I'm thin, my husband is thin, all my three sons and their partners are a healthy weight/slender weight.

My parents were slim.

My siblings are slim.

*shrugs shoulders* It does seem to run in families. Genetics and family eating choices and lifestyle.

Maybe kinda sorta.
Three of the siblings in my family are slim, three are plump.

[Rocko20]

We all know athletes/cheerleaders from high school and college in the best shape of their lives who completely blow up out of no where.

It is NOT easy to be or stay in shape in this country. You have endless junk food at your disposal but at the end of the day the only person responsible for what goes into their body is... You.

I'm 5'10" athletic build with muscle, at my worst I was 20% body fat 200 pounds and I felt like dog crap, trapped into the endless cycle of depression eating. At my best I'm around 12% body fat 178 pounds, going to the gym daily, eating clean, and restricting my portion sizes.

A life of overweight or obesity is not one worth living.

[Mikala43]

Originally Posted by Rocko20

A life of overweight or obesity is not one worth living.

For you.

[Serious Conversation]

Originally Posted by mountainrose

I grew up in the 50-60s when you rarely saw an obese person. So many big changes have taken place regarding food since then.

Grocery stores were small and filled with just the basics for cooking at home.
Now there’s been a huge change in the availability of ready made convenience food. Everywhere you go there’s junk food shoved at you — you go into a gas station and most of the shelves have chips, candy, sugar drinks, hot dogs,and even the cash register area is loaded with junk food and candy seductions. Our grocery stores are humongous now — the size of department stores with so many food choices and seductions at each corner plus ready made deli food for easy take out.
And even the check out limes try last ditch to sell you some sugary junk.

People don’t cook that much anymore we’ve become so dependent on convenience food.
Stop at any red light with the windows down and you can smell all the fast food burger and fry smells.

In poor or rural areas, it's often dififcult to find healthy food, and it's expensive.

[ClaraC]

Originally Posted by Serious Conversation

In poor or rural areas, it's often dififcult to find healthy food, and it's expensive.

But in rural areas, you can grow your own very healthy food.