Very Fat Americans

Mexico has passed the USA in obesity rates:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obesity_in_Mexico

Vietnam is the least obese nation in the world.

The lifetime smokers, drug abusers, and drinkers are doing the same. Amazing what we are doing in cardiac surgery for these folks to continue abusing themselves. I know we don’t like to talk about that in forums like this tho

Yup it's a good point fish. Ive read articles by people in health care who have patients who are begging for relief from whatever ailment but when they are told they need to stop smoking before surgery, or that they have to change their diet and suddenly those same patients are indignant and want different options. 

Abusing food or abusing drugs, alcohol and nicotine can all lead to hospitalization and illness. That puts a burden on our health care system and it's from ailments that the patient has seemingly brought upon themselves. 

Definitely a good point.  I can't help but shake my head when I see a ~300 lb homeless person begging for food outside.  I generally have a bleeding heart on most social issues but I'm sick of the panhandlers on my street.  Last month I watched one urinate on the tree on the corner in broad daylight.  I see the same people on the same corners every day- they put in time like a job.  Just fucking work.  I'd have more respect if you had a hustle (say, flowers) or were passing out resumes.  

I also heard a stat when I was in drunk driving classes that 90% of the liquor in this country is consumed by 10% of drinkers.  Seems about right.

>>>> is someone forcing these obese folks to stuff their faces with crap food and sugar ladden drinks? 

Lots of advertising dollars behind these unhealthy foods. 

<<What changed?>>
 

Hydrogenated oils and HF Corn syrup is what has changed.   

the obvious one word answer to OP's question is addiction

i recognize i dont have the evidence or backing of the scientific community on my side, but as someone who has been very invested in psychoactive drugs for their whole adult life, has lots of current experience with drugs like opiate painkillers or amphetamines, has studied drug dependency, mostly opiate dependency for about a decade, and has many friends who have unfortunately fallen victim to opiate or amphetamine addiction, and am incredibly skeptical that the subjective experience of being "addicted" to things like food, porn, or gambling in any way rival the subjective experience of being addicted to psychoactive drugs that cause any degree of physical dependence.

not saying its not possible - just that i am very skeptical of the claim.

<<What changed?>>
 

Hydrogenated oils and HF Corn syrup is what has changed.   

<<<<<

For sure.  Mass bad food for the masses.

We also live in a time where body shaming is shunned, leading to more of a tolerance for different norms.

Ideally, eating good foods and feeling healthy should be a goal for all.  I recall it being part of the grade school curriculum. "4-4-3 and 2" and learning how to stretch and exercise.

>>>>  I recall it being part of the grade school curriculum. "4-4-3 and 2" and learning how to stretch and exercise.

i think that and the "president's physical fitness test" have been determined to be sharia law/deep state propaganda-related and hence eliminated lest the kids be indoctrinated 

https://www.onepeloton.com/

I just checked, at 6' 2'', I'll have to drop down to 195 to be in the "normal" range.  

You can calculate your BMI here.  

https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/educational/lose_wt/BMI/bmicalc.htm

    BMI

Underweight    Below 18.5

Normal    18.5–24.9

Overweight    25.0–29.9

Obesity    30.0 and Above

I just dropped 30+ pounds since last summer, but still have a 30.8 BMI.  I've still got work to do.

Global problem.  

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight

In 2016, more than 1.9 billion adults aged 18 years and older were overweight. Of these over 650 million adults were obese.
In 2016, 39% of adults aged 18 years and over (39% of men and 40% of women) were overweight.
Overall, about 13% of the world’s adult population (11% of men and 15% of women) were obese in 2016.
The worldwide prevalence of obesity nearly tripled between 1975 and 2016.

And then there's tobacco.

https://www.who.int/gho/tobacco/use/en/

In 2015, over 1.1 billion people smoked tobacco. Far more males than females smoked tobacco. Although it is declining worldwide and in many countries, the prevalence of tobacco smoking appears to be increasing in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region and the African Region.

Humans Are DUMBER These days Too.

LOL

Fast food and less shitting.

Thought this was a new Dave Schools band

Have noodler and weird Steve met?

BMI is a joke, and shouldn't even be a thing.

The fact that many Americans don't exercise and generally eat like shit is a thing.

I recently watched a piece of the Woodstock movie, and perused the crowd specifically for fat kids, and was hard-pressed to see ANY.

Oh, tie-dye either, on a non-related note.

People around here stay in shape or they have to move to Sacramento. 

Hydrogenated oils and HF Corn syrup is what has changed.  <<

DING!

Avoid these and walk more than once in a while.  Our bodies were not designed to process that crap and walking is essential in maintaining various systems, both woody and tinny.

Thank God

No one blamed this on a Trump Casino

All you can eat buffet after you lost all your kids college fund.

One thing I know running from the cops I burned a couple of calories

Laborers burn calories but labor don't pay. 

At least you don’t have to pay for a gym membership.

Did anyone forfeit their tix because the sight of Jerry's fat ass offended them?

So many factors. Metabolism, hormone disrupting chemicals, depression, the advent of refined sugars and flours, people who have fucking given up completely on being healthy due to x, y or z

Our hero was one of them and he died that way. A fat ass addict. 

Jerry Nadler lost weight.

I was never caught,no jail time for me.

One thing I've learned in this life. 

Everything in moderation, moderation, moderation,after you have over indulged.

Easier said than done.

No Elbow. Sounds like a change of life style.

Has anyone written a book on this subject or is it self explanatory?

how many women are left on the zone?

Alan. No offense intended but you don't know shit when it comes to weight gain/loss.

It is true that all obese people have reasons/excuses for being over weight but an elbow problem? God are you that naive?

There are many reasons for obesity but to simply blame the person is cruel & stupid.

Obesity is a chronic disease just like diabetes.

Some people's bodies, due to many different reasons, have different (higher) set-points for the body's' desired weight.

Yes I said the body's not the brain. Not willful behavior.

Picture this analogy. Picture holding an elastic band with both hands. It is 18" long & 5" wide. Hold it by 1 end with your right hand up to your shoulders & the other end with your left hand down below. Now stretch the band so your right hand is above your head & your left hand is below your waist. Feel the tension? Now  hold it for 5 minutes. How do you feel now. Are you tired? Now hold it for 5 more minutes. Now how do you feel? Hold it for 5 more. How do you feel? & so on...

What happens is the band wants to return to its original set-point, not being stretched.

Our bodies & subconscious brains work against us when it is perceived that we are underweight and force us to gain weight back to our set-point.

This a chronic disease.

A person with this condition can control their weight but not as easy as not bending their elbow. It takes profession help & counseling to overcome this condition just like other chronic diseases.

After the obese person loses weight  their disease is in remission but can always return if the brain/body conspiracy wins.

With as much as obesity costs our economy we might be well served to have society help disabled people.

Or should we just blame the fat motherfuckers?

Fat motherfucker here.

>>> is someone forcing these obese folks to stuff their faces with crap food and sugar ladden drinks? They are dragging down the health care system.

... isn't it really in most cases a "character flaw" ?  A learned behavior (everyone else around me is fat) or a stress reduction technique (It makes me feel good) that becomes an addiction (I can't stop even if i wanted to)? <<<

Alan, your premises seem to stem from buying into some ideas that have basis in popular culture or something, but not in reality. I am a fat person who has never eaten crap food or sugar laden drinks, never had a fast food anything, etc, not even as a child. My family was/is into fresh, healthy whole foods, no crap, no sugar, and that's what I eat today. Blah blah blah.

Assigning a "character flaw" to me or anyone else who is fat/obese is (ignorant) bullshit. It's buying into/perpetuating the idea that as a fat person I'm a slob, I don't care, I can't control myself, I'm stupid, I'm lazy, more blah blah blah. I am none of those things, but I am fat. Hmmm.

Back to back, chicken scratch?

https://www.wired.com/2016/12/mysterious-virus-cause-obesity/​

A food desert is an area that has limited access to affordable and nutritious food, in contrast with an area with higher access to supermarkets or vegetable shops with fresh foods, which is called a food oasis. 

The designation considers the type and quality of food available to the population, in addition to the accessibility of the food through the size and proximity of the food stores.

In 2010, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported that 23.5 million Americans live in "food deserts".

Food deserts tend to be inhabited by low-income residents with reduced mobility, this makes them a less-attractive market for large supermarket chains.

Food deserts lack suppliers of fresh foods, such as: meats, fruits and vegetables. Instead, the available foods are often processed and high in sugar and fats, which are known contributors to the United States' obesity epidemic.

I had a very overweight / obese friend (been gone 10-11 years now) and she liked to eat and drink a lot.  Let's say if we went to the taqueria she would have 3 tacos plus a burrito and a side of rice and beans,  plus some take-out for later.  Compared to skinny me eating two tacos and one for later.

She eventually had that surgery where they cut out part of your intestine (her sister had done that and lost lots of weight).  Well, the surgeon up in rural Podunk Washington state messed up,  and almost killed her.  She got better after some repairs,  but that was really the first rung on the ladder to Death.

She couldn't eat as much anymore,  so lost some pounds.  However she still consumed copious amounts of beer,  booze and wine,  which could not be metabolized as well compared to her former system (normal length intestine).  She also consumed 8 or ten Diet Coke per day every day at work (I worked at the Winery with her and observed that).

The Aspartame is known to be a neurotoxin,  even if not heated and converted to formaldehyde.  Of all the stuff she consumed,  I think the Diet Coke was the most toxic and addictive poison.  Eventually she died of liver cirrhosis,  usually associated with chronic alcohol overdose.  I tend to believe that the Aspartame was a co-factor in her downward spiral.  Not a professional pathologist with petri dishes of tissue samples,  so I can't prove anything.

Assigning a "character flaw" to me or anyone else who is fat/obese is (ignorant) bullshit<<<

Agreed!

Food if far more insidious than any drug IMO, because you don't have to have the drug to survive (in vast majority of cases).  Ben Franklin offered up words of wisdom, but the inherent underlying truth of why he even came up with something like this ought to be self-evident (paraphrased):

"Eat to live, don't live to eat."

While the answer for those who have issues related to eating rests "inside", so too is the locus of the issue for those who are quick to assign blame on others (i.e. character flaw).  I know it's kind of a paradox, but such is life. 

Research says that our brains are hardwired for pleasure and sugar works like many addictive drugs. So, are we sugar fiends? Here’s something to think about the next time you’re craving something sweet: it could be more than just a sweet tooth. It could be an addictive itch begging to be scratched.

Brain scans have confirmed that intermittent sugar consumption affects the brain in ways similar to certain drugs .A highly cited study in the journal Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews found that sugar—as pervasive as it is—meets the criteria for a substance of abuse and may be addictive to those who binge on it. It does this by affecting the chemistry of the limbic system, the part of the brain that’s associated with emotional control.

The study found that “intermittent access to sugar can lead to behavioral and neurochemical changes that resemble the effects of a substance of abuse. ”It’s these findings that spurred Paul van der Velpen, head of Amsterdam's health services, to warn people that sugar is a drug, “just like alcohol and tobacco.”  He wrote a column on the city’s public health website Tuesday calling for stronger government action regarding sugar. Actions he proposed included regulating the amount allowed in foods and also banning soft drinks in schools 

“This may seem exaggerated and far-fetched, but sugar is the most dangerous drug of this time and can still be easily acquired everywhere,” he wrote. Dr. David Sack, CEO of Elements Behavioral Health, which operates Promises Treatment Centers, echoed these comments. Sack said that the prevalence and promotion of sugary foods and beverages, coupled with how it affects our brains, make addiction an issue.

“The truth is that not every one exposed to high-sugar foods is going to become addicted and seek it out regularly. The same is true with drugs like cocaine or alcohol,” he told Healthline. “The difference is that we don’t sell alcohol to anyone under the age of 21, but you can buy high-sugar content foods at any age.”

Jumped to the bottom to make a comment about/after reading AlanR's  elbow method statement.

 Surfdead's wife Justina

Many of us baby boomers had parents that lived through the depression and world war 2. This caused our parents to live through low food and a large amount of stress esp if they were in any camp. In this case the epigenetics from this stress can be part of the problem. Because of the stress suffered by the low food of their parents led  their children to have the ability to absorb as much nutrients, sugars and fats as possible from any food available. Now enter the age of fast foods with high fructose corn syrup and many refined grains. Now they have abundance of food and gain weight. Then add to this that many people do not walk to what they need to do. There are many reasons for people being over weight. Stress in itself can cause people to hold onto weight.

(Hi Justina)

Alan, I read the article, most of which you had posted in the OP. I was responding to your own comments.

Thanks for the generational perspective justina. That's some astute reasoning.

>>>>>Unfortunately, many people think because x = y, then y = x ; and scientifically that's not always the case

Not so.

If x = y, y always = x.

What is true is that if x is a member of set y, not all of y can be assumed to be  x. 

Surfdead, you are not only correct but that is fun.

Alan, work on your own problems.

Stiff elbows could further enhance  the attempts of those that like to walk like the Frankenstein monster.

Alan has inspired me to try and take some control over my sugar addiction.  whos got the plaster of paris?

I am serious about the sugar thing tho  I am a fuckin junkie and its not cool when you put in the perspective that Alan presents.  I agree its an incredibly selfish way to live and something i need to change about myself stat.  cant imagine its gonna be easy but its fucking disgusting not to at least try and curb the sweets/sweet drinks etc.  god knows there is no reason but addiction for eating any of it on a consistent basis.

I Am In Still Great Shape = Move Around - Eat Good not Too Much -- Keep Your Body Clean and Good Sleep ! and Drink Water.

This thread is an excellent example of how one ill-advised word or phrase can steer the focus completely off the point of an otherwise serious subject.

""Character flaw"

IMO if Alan had not used that one phrase (and maybe found a different, less silly yet on-point image of self-indulgence than the elbow deal) some of the responses to his real questions/thread topic would have gone differently, and this thread would be more discussion and less argument.

As to why our country is fatter than ever before, obviously there are a number of different & complex reasons, but for me this cuts right to the chase...

THAT is how America eats in the 21st century.

WHY we eat that way is the discussion.

Carry on.

BTW, it's good to see you back on the black screen Alan.

How's the air up there?

Hmm, I don't post that many pix. Not sure about Budview - sounds vaguely familiar but I don't know where it is - sorry.