Obesity

[Pete]

So I got this idea from the other thread. We all know obesity is an epidemic that's resulting in fun things like diabetes, heart attacks and man boobs. Now granted, some of it is actually genetic and caused by things like glands and hormone levels. I'm not talking about them; I'm talking about people who are obese by their own doing.

Now my question is, what do you think the main cause for it is, and do you think that if people had no sense of taste, would they opt for the healthier choices, since all food would taste the same?

[che]

I definitely think it has to do with the education offered on it, mixed with social influences. Commercials make it "the norm", and because it's so convenient to eat at McDonalds on your lunch break make it a controlling aspect of a lot of people's lives.

Not a lot of people read up on what our food really contains. There's an issue with the amount of preservatives and such and how we grow/maintain our food, I believe. I'd say it should be regulated by the government, but then people would still just be blindly uninformed. I think education is definitely the answer, but how do you make people care about what they're eating?

Nice sig btw, lol.

[kupo]

Now my question is, what do you think the main cause for it is

not including genetics, could be many - the diet their parents raised them on, depression, health problems (ex. bad asthma that limited their exercise time), just not giving a rats arse....lifestyle...and so on.
although, its probably a poor diet. our society is constantly being bombarded by ads on television for fast food restaurant meals where you get a bunch of crap between 2 buns for $5 or so; and its easy to give into that temptation because they can go down the street and grab a quick meal instead of taking the time to make food at home. there is also the fact that people who are on a low income budget usually can not afford to constantly buy "better" food.

do you think that if people had no sense of taste, would they opt for the healthier choices, since all food would taste the same?

interesting question....off the top of my head i'd say yes. sounds like a poll question.

[CloudvsLightning]

not including genetics, could be many - the diet their parents raised them on, depression, health problems (ex. bad asthma that limited their exercise time), just not giving a rats arse....lifestyle...and so on.
although, its probably a poor diet. our society is constantly being bombarded by ads on television for fast food restaurant meals where you get a bunch of crap between 2 buns for $5 or so; and its easy to give into that temptation because they can go down the street and grab a quick meal instead of taking the time to make food at home. there is also the fact that people who are on a low income budget usually can not afford to constantly buy "better" food.



interesting question....off the top of my head i'd say yes. sounds like a poll question.

That is exactly what I think. I mean there are so many people out there that don't take the time to make a meal out home so they go to McDonalds and grab a hamburger or that Double Down thing from KFC. Depression is also a major connection as my godmother is depressed and she never takes the time to make a meal at home and is always overeating. She will eat a whole package of cookies or bag of chocolate which is sad. When I was little all my parents could afford really was fast food but now we never eat it because we have the time and money to make proper meals. There are so many things that affect and cause obesity.

[Dodie16]

Originally Posted by kupo
there is also the fact that people who are on a low income budget usually can not afford to constantly buy "better" food.

I agree with this. I was talking to Telegraph about this not too long ago, about how it seems to cost more to eat healthier foods than "junk". However, I'm sure in the long run of things, it's better to spend that bit of extra cash now than to have to deal with hospital bills and the like because of having a poor diet.

If people had no sense of taste, I'm not sure if that would necessarily mean that people would eat better in the sense of having better food. Maybe less though, since they wouldn't eat just because something tastes good.

[smurphy]

The main problem as I see it is laziness. Not in the way people wont exercise or anything else but peoples refusal to lay aside some time to cook a healthy hearty meal. The only alternatives to a cooked meal are either fastfood or readymade meals, both of which are extremely fatty and unhealthy.I believe that people who cook themselves for themselves or others from scratch are much more unlikely to end up obese.

I dont think that if you were to take away taste out of the equation it would make much of a difference. These foods have so many chemicals pumped into them that one of them has to be addictive, so people may get a craving for unhealthy food.

[RagnaToad]

Taste is a factor because a lot of food that tastes good has to be eaten with limits, which not everyone is equally capable of.

But I think the fact that food is so easily obtained these day plays a role too, and I'm not just talking about what we call fast food. Food that can be acquired quickly is often not the healthiest food out there, and because it's acquired easily, you can eat a lot of it in less time, with practically no physical effort.

(VS hunting for game, killing it and preparing it yourself like back in the day)

[Zargabaath]

Now my question is, what do you think the main cause for it is, and do you think that if people had no sense of taste, would they opt for the healthier choices, since all food would taste the same?

Suicide.


For a more serious take on the matter. It is not necessarily the food that is causing obesity but the lifestyle. Back in the day people ate unhealthy food, my grandmother has told me that there would be fat covering a pork roast over a pit that would be dripping. That had a lot more fat than what is currently accustomed. The catch back in the day was their physical activities were a lot more taxing causing calories, fat, & any other bad thing to burn off.

With cars in abundance and the American economy becoming more service oriented than manufacturing there are less jobs that are physically demanding. Television makes people sit around which does not provide exercise. Maybe humans should always work out while watching tv, like boxing or sumo wrestling. Instead of walking to the park to see live football, people stay home or go to a sport's club to watch the game. With the internet a person doesn't really need to even go to a store to shop for certain merchandise; they got to make groceries but that is not everyday. So with the general lifestyle humans can not eat as they once did. Unless they want to start walking to work, in the snow, uphill, & the walk back home, in the snow & uphill (they just keep getting higher till the break the atmosphere).

[GypsyElder]

For a more serious take on the matter. It is not necessarily the food that is causing obesity but the lifestyle. ....

With cars in abundance and the American economy becoming more service oriented than manufacturing there are less jobs that are physically demanding. Television makes people sit around which does not provide exercise. Maybe humans should always work out while watching tv, like boxing or sumo wrestling. Instead of walking to the park to see live football, people stay home or go to a sport's club to watch the game. With the internet a person doesn't really need to even go to a store to shop for certain merchandise; they got to make groceries but that is not everyday. So with the general lifestyle humans can not eat as they once did. Unless they want to start walking to work, in the snow, uphill, & the walk back home, in the snow & uphill (they just keep getting higher till the break the atmosphere).

This. I think it has more to do with lifestyle and lack of activity. The question should be "if we took away cars, television and the internet would people lose weight?"

On the taste thing:
Even if we lost sense of taste, the food that's easiest to get is what we would probably eat. Why would you spend extra money on something healthier, or go out of your way for food that all taste the same? Taste does have a lot to do with unhealthy food choices since the food that taste the best is usually the most unhealthy, but imo losing your sense of taste would probably make it worse since you wouldn't even have preferences anymore. (unless you based food consumed off of smell) and even then, I don't think vegetables smell better than double fudge chocolate cake. At least with taste you probably have some food preferences that are healthy. If you take that away it's all just food, eat whatever to survive.

[Meier Link]

Lack of self discipline, lack of motivation and pure laziness are the three main contributing factors to the obesity problem (outside of medical reasoning) haunting this world; it is that simple.

With a sense of self control and the will to do so, most obese people could actually loose the weight if they felt like it. In stead they opt for the easy way out, if they can afford it, and go with surgery or choose to nothing about it at all.

People can use the excuses "I like the taste of food", "I enjoy eating way to much", "my parents taught me my poor eating habits" and similar lines but in the end those are just excuses.

As for the loosing the sense of taste. This could help the epidemic but it is not going to detour people's stomachs from feeling hungry.

I know I am going to catch some flack for say this but down to the core reasons, what I stated are the most detrimental and rational reasons people are obese.

[Pete]

I really have to agree with you guys. I feel that laziness is a key factor, but it spreads to so many more reasons. It's really a bunch of excuses to me.

I'm too lazy to take the time to buy healthy ingredients.

I'm too lazy to cook healthy meals.

I'm too lazy to go to the gym, or even do simple exercises.

It's just a bunch of excuses to me, because even if you're working or going to school 8 hours a day, there are still several hours for you to spend at least one of them exercising, and time to prepare healthy meals... or at least eating a healthier option from a restaurant. I know that a dollar burger is appealing for its price, but you can go to the store and buy an apple and some peanut butter, or have some grilled chicken breast instead.

I feel like laziness is the real epidemic, because it's not difficult to learn how to live a healthy lifestyle. Sure it may be hard to find the time to squeeze in a workout, but yknow, a little bit of effort everyday will save a lot of trouble later in life.

Plus, it's been medically proven that exercise releases endorphins which help to alleviate depression. It's really a whole cycle; you start to exercise a little bit, you feel better; you start to eat healthier; you see results; you feel more confident; you ease out of your depression.

[Josh_R]

Now my question is, what do you think the main cause for it is,

There could be several causes of obesity. It could be stress. I know back when I was very overweight I ate cause I was constantly stressed out. I had no other way to really deal with my feelings and shit so I ate food. This was just my situation. Since I started working at McDonald's on the side I have seen people that seem as if they have zero intention of trying to become healthy. I have people coming through drive-thru, and ordering $50 worth of food. Now it could be to maybe the food is to feed his family(which is still bad), but when he gets to the window, and it is one giant man..come on now.

and do you think that if people had no sense of taste, would they opt for the healthier choices, since all food would taste the same?

I would say they probably would. Cause I have seen several people that simply eat bad food, cause it taste good. I mean there is no denying that bad foods tastes good.


Financial situations play a role in how healthy you eat. You can get a f*cking feast at McDonald's, Taco Bell, or other fast food places for $10. Eating healthy can get pricey.

[Rocky]

Financial situations play a role in how healthy you eat. You can get a f*cking feast at McDonald's, Taco Bell, or other fast food places for $10. Eating healthy can get pricey.

True this. I think if we all had no taste we would simply go with whatever is the cheapest at the moment. The incentive to eat healthier would still be low, as many people would save money by eating whatever would be the cheapest to eat.

An interesting theory comes to mind though. Would McDonald's still keep their food prices low if no one had any sense of taste, or would they raise the prices, knowing that they are on the lower end of food expenses?

[che]

True this. I think if we all had no taste we would simply go with whatever is the cheapest at the moment. The incentive to eat healthier would still be low, as many people would save money by eating whatever would be the cheapest to eat.

An interesting theory comes to mind though. Would McDonald's still keep their food prices low if no one had any sense of taste, or would they raise the prices, knowing that they are on the lower end of food expenses?

I'm not sure if people would just eat the cheapest food. Different foods make you feel differently after eating them, and provide different benefits. We'd probably choose to eat foods based on actual nutrition value instead of just "the cheapest" (if it was affordable for your budget).

As for McDonalds, they'd have to lower them because less people would eat there. They'd have to give some sort of actual incentive to eat there at all other than it just being convenient. More people would be packing turkey sandwiches for lunch.

[GypsyElder]

^ I'm not even sure less people would eat fast food if they lost their sense of taste. If I lost mine, I would probably go for the food that's the easiest to get and "fast food" would most likely be one of them along with junk food and other unhealthy snacks.

[che]

^ I'm not even sure less people would eat fast food if they lost their sense of taste. If I lost mine, I would probably go for the food that's the easiest to get and "fast food" would most likely be one of them along with junk food and other unhealthy snacks.

Which brings me back to the education I was talking about in my first post!

[DragonHeart]

Mindless eating is a huge factor, imo. This is just one example, but a lot of people will sit down with a bag of chips or whatever to watch TV. Munching away thoughtlessly, before they know it the bag is empty. Factor in all the calories in the soda that inevitably accompanies the snacks and we're talking an entire day's worth of food. My stepfather does this all the time and when my mom makes him recount all the snacks he had all day he's usually amazed and disgusted that he ate so much without even realizing it. Some chips here, a handful of candy there, a couple of cookies, soda, etc. It adds up fast. It's also all low quality, over-processed food that our bodies are not really equipped to process in large quantities. I did this myself, keeping track just to see and I was surprised at how many snacks I ate. I make a conscious effort not to, or to at least plan snack and mealtimes so I don't revert to grab and go snacking.

Portion sizes is another big factor. Quite frankly, most people just plain eat too much food. I know when I was younger I wasn't allowed to leave the table until I had eaten everything on my plate, even if I didn't want it or wasn't hungry. The plate was always full, heaping mounds of everything. I still struggle sometimes with knowing if I'm full or not because I've been literally trained that I'm not satisfied until there's nothing on the plate. Restaurant portions in particular are out of control, I've gotten to the point where I take half of whatever home with me for a meal the next day.

One last thought I want to throw in tonight, people are being taught the useless food pyramid like it's the absolute final say of what humans require for daily nutrition. It's a bunch of BS, pretty much. People should be taught to listen to their bodies, not to some color-coded chart on the wall. According to the pyramid, I eat way too much meat/protein, but you know what? I feel terrible when I don't eat some form of meat at least once a day. I'm an unapologetic carnivore because it's what I need to eat to be healthy. I also can't eat fast food at all, every time I do it literally makes me sick for two days straight. So I don't. If I eat something and it makes me feel gross, I don't shrug and go oh well, it's what I've got so I'll eat it anyways. I remove it from my diet completely. If I waste a bit of money here and there, I don't care.

It's pretty tough for me but I am actually learning how to make everything from scratch. I prefer knowing exactly what is in my food and I really, honestly don't like processed food all that much. I'll eat it if there's nothing else but I really just want real food.

~DragonHeart~

[Unknown Entity]

Portion sizes is another big factor. Quite frankly, most people just plain eat too much food. I know when I was younger I wasn't allowed to leave the table until I had eaten everything on my plate, even if I didn't want it or wasn't hungry. The plate was always full, heaping mounds of everything. I still struggle sometimes with knowing if I'm full or not because I've been literally trained that I'm not satisfied until there's nothing on the plate. Restaurant portions in particular are out of control, I've gotten to the point where I take half of whatever home with me for a meal the next day.

Portion size is a huge thing in my house. We always make too much food, and if we're hungry, we'll have bigger eyes than our bellies. However, on Tuesday, we cooked a huge pot of spaghetti bolognese, but we weren't that hungry, and so we stored it in the fridge. That sorted me and my brother for lunch, and one of my dinners this week. If we were starving, we'd probably have eaten a bit more and the leftovers wouldn't have lasted as long.

When I was younger, that wasn't always the problem - my mum worked, and my nan did all our dinners. Mum usually is the one to make too much food, but nan used to force every last lump of food on our plate into our mouths, no matter how big or small the portion. She was a little traditional I think, and that there shouldn't ever be waste.

Eating healthy is a step to being healthy, but that doesn't mean you'll be healthy. Sure, we have a lot of vegetables in our fridge, fruit in the fruit bowl, brown bread instead of white, grainy cereals, etc... but you could be eating healthily and still gain weight or be overweight. Portion size is still a factor if you're eating healthier foods too. For example, if I have toast in the morning, I'll take two slices and my brother will take four. I think it's greedy. Two slices is more than enough to keep you full for a few hours, especially if it's brown or seedy bread. It also insures that you're hungry when it gets to lunch time (I tend to only eat when I'm hungry).

I've also found that you should never go food shopping on an empty stomach - your mental shopping list of things you need evaporates into wanting something to eat. So you'll buy more snacks to munch in the car than actual food shopping. Also, in food stores, you get meal deals and the like - buy a sandwich, packet of crisps, and a drink for something stupid like £2 or £3. Sure, it can be healthy, but bacon and salad sounds better to my empty stomach than tuna and sweetcorn, the bigger pack of crisps than a healthier pack, and a fizzy drink than water or juice.

As for exercise... it can be fun. I don't see the fun in going to a gym, plugging in my iPod, and jogging on a machine for an hour, then rotating to weights, then to the pool, then to... etc. I see more fun in grabbing a football and playing a game or two with friends, or going swimming but just fooling about in the pool over doing laps. But then you have to fit it in with friends, who might not want to play everyday. With a job (or schooling) lasting from 9am to 5pm everyday, exercise and making a healthy dinner, and getting to bed at a good time for the same shit the next day is tricky too.

Also, for those saying healthy food is more expensive... you don't know how wrong you can be. The spag bol we made the other day was made using healthy ingredients which costed me no more than £8. We didn't use red meat, and opted for quorn instead. The sauce, the quorn and the pasta can be stored for months, so it's good to have some laying around. Like I said, it was a huge pot, and served up: six dinners and four lunches. £8? That's the price of two McDonalds meals, and a pack of gum to get the after-taste out of your mouth.

[Furore]

The main causes as far as I can tell are a lack of giving a damn, a desire to eat more than the body needs (food's that tasty I sure can't blame 'em) and the fact that often the unhealthier foods taste a ton better then the alternatives.

But then again, some people also try to maintain a bit of fat for other reasons. It can give your body more weight, protects the organs and insulates against the cold. Granted they're likely the minority, but it is possible to be both fat and fit. All that takes is a regular exercise regime and enough food intake. And might actually be healthier then trying to remove all body fat in some cases. Too little can also be detrimental to one's health.

[DragonHeart]

Excellent point, Gemma. It doesn't matter how healthy or not the food is, if you eat too much of it, you're no better off than if it were all trips to McD's. Even moreso now, when no one wants to make time for things like exercise, even in the form of a pick up sports game or going out dancing or whatever. Why go out and do it yourself when you can plunk in front of the TV with friends and snacks? Meh. I think most people spend way too much time in front of the idiot box.

Silver, that's a good counterpoint. I actually saw a news story awhile back about a guy who is both fat and uberhealthy, to the point where he runs marathons and such. It's just that his body, for whatever reason, will not metabolize his belly away. They called him the healthiest fat guy in the world or something like that.

But again, if anything I can see that being used as an excuse, not a legit reason. I'm sure there are people out there who practice it, but not in large enough numbers to explain away the skyrocketing obesity rates, in America at least.

Now, thinking about this topic a bit more, I can't help but wonder how much of the depression people suffer these days comes from this lack of physical activity and by proxy, a healthy lifestyle. Think about this for a moment, if you will. Exercise releases endorphins, as mentioned upthread, that alleviate depression and promote positive attitude. I'd be interested in seeing studies about when depression started becoming an epidemic in itself; these days it seems like half the population is depressed to some degree or another. I bet you'll find it's not advances in doctors' abilities to diagnosis and treat depression but the rise of self- and family- enforced isolationism, indoor hobbies and cheap, processed foods. The price of technology seems to be one's personal and mental health, if one is not proactive about themselves.

I'll use my stepfather as an example again, cause he lends himself well to it. He denies it constantly but he is depressed all the time. It's to the point where he literally has no hobbies, he just gets home from work and plops down on the couch, snacks and soda in hand. He never wants to do anything because he's too tired, and he'd go to bed at 6:00 if my mom would let him. He is a chronic overeater and is the type to add salt to his salt and candy is a meal, not an optional food group. All the sugar, salt and overconsumption of calories has been wreaking havoc on his body and he's been gaining weight. This makes him more depressed, so he eats more and watches more TV and goes out less. He's in a vicious, self-destructive cycle.

My mom and I, on the other hand, have been actively trying to make healthier decisions in our lives. My mom has to, she has RA and is pursuing a healthier lifestyle to slow the disease down. I'm coming along for the ride because I'm genetically predisposed to diabetes, arthritis and heart disease, two of which can be prevented with diet and exercise. As soon as I started exercising and not snacking so much, I started making all kinds of better choices. I felt better and more confident about where I wanted to go in life. Started going to college, reading more, going out to do things with friends instead of staying in on weekends. Every time I stop getting my daily workout in, I go into a horrible slump where I start acting exactly like my stepfather, only less abrasive about it. And minus the TV, cause I can't stand watching it anymore.

I won't attribute all of that solely to exercise and eating less crap, but I do think it's interesting how different I feel in each situation. Not to mention seeing the effects of a high salt, high sugar diet and little exercise in someone else.

~DragonHeart~

[Sean]

I think the single largest contributing factor to obesity is America's growing sedentary lifestyle coupled with the incredible ease of obtaining high-fat low-nutrient foods.

It's easier to run down to McDs or Jack in the Box and order a burger and fries than it is to hit a grocery store, buy ingredients, come home, cook them, etc.

When I was working 40-50 hours/week cooking the last thing I ever wanted to do was come home and cook for myself, so I did a lot of drive throughs or made myself something quick and less than healthy at work before leaving.

In my education before college, nutrition was NEVER a subject of conversation, much less education. Not until I took a nutrition class when working towards my culinary degree did I get a thorough explanation of nutrition, calories, vitamins, nutrients, etc, and learned how to judge the nutrition quality of food quickly.

However, even knowing that now, my diet still sucks, though I'm not terribly overweight. =\



Also; fat = flavor. Something we always said in culinary.



I will, however, never understand why people despise exercise so much. I personally LIKE feeling it. I like the feeling of being worn out, getting a good night's sleep, the chemicals released in the brain due to exercise that balance the mood, and seeing the results, not to mention FEELING the results. Less pain, less fatigue, more energy, more stamina, and more strength, just for doing very little exercise 2-3 times a week.