Unusual Explanations for the Obesity Epidemic

[Chef Jim]

It's much more expensive to eat healthy than it is to eat unhealthy and as Jack said, a lot of people don't know how to buy healthy anyway. Not everyone's a chef, you know.

 

Why are you getting so bent out of shape with the "!@#{:content:}quot; comments, anyway? Would you say the same thing about someone with anorexia? "Just get off your bony ass and eat a damn sandwich!"

 

If you honestly believe that society/advertising/companies have no impact at all, then you're living in a dream world. There's blame to go all around.

 

Oh for crying out loud it's not that difficult. Sure I'm a chef (or was anyway) but cooking is not that hard. Buy a book, take a class, read a magazine. It's either that or your going to be unhealthy and sick. And would I tell someone with anorexia to eat a sandwich? Damn !@#$ing straight. That's even worse. If people learned how to cook or bought a salad every now and then they'd realize it's not that much more expensive and many times it's cheaper. I had a real nice salad from the salad bar in the cafe in my building and it cost me $4.50.

[Chef Jim]

Exactly. Think about it, you're a poor parent walking into a grocery store. There, sitting right at the end of an aisle, are 2-liters of coke, for a dollar apiece. Then you head over to the frozen foods aisle, and there are frozen pizzas for 5 bucks apiece. There, food for your family for one meal.

Now if they had the money, it would be a lot easier to buy the package of chicken breasts for however much per pound that is, then buy a vegetable at a per-pound price, then buy potatoes at a per-pound price. Bottom line is, these people can't afford to do that.

 

Oy vey, they can buy $5.00 pizzas but they can't afford a package of chicken breasts. They buy 2-liters of coke for a dollar? Hell for a dollar I can get about a billion gallons of filtered water from my tap.

[Just Jack]

Oh for crying out loud it's not that difficult. Sure I'm a chef (or was anyway) but cooking is not that hard. Buy a book, take a class, read a magazine. It's either that or your going to be unhealthy and sick.

I think we all know how some people find it difficult to boil pasta compared to just throwing something in the microwave for 3 minutes.

[Fezmid]

Oh for crying out loud it's not that difficult. Sure I'm a chef (or was anyway) but cooking is not that hard. Buy a book, take a class, read a magazine. It's either that or your going to be unhealthy and sick. And would I tell someone with anorexia to eat a sandwich? Damn !@#$ing straight. That's even worse. If people learned how to cook or bought a salad every now and then they'd realize it's not that much more expensive and many times it's cheaper. I had a real nice salad from the salad bar in the cafe in my building and it cost me $4.50.

 

Well if you honestly believe that it's easy, isn't more expensive, and that the entire obesity issue is simply caused by laziness, I hate to say it, but you're ignorant as it's much more complex an issue than that.

[PushthePile]

Well if you honestly believe that it's easy, isn't more expensive, and that the entire obesity issue is simply caused by laziness, I hate to say it, but you're ignorant as it's much more complex an issue than that.

You can eat healthy at a comparable price if you want to. Chicken breast is only one example of an inexpensive alternative. How about tuna fish, eggs, salad, wheat bread, orandge juice, milk, some fruits, and some veggies. Their are also a whole assortment of microwave options that are way healthier and equal in price to the pizza. How about cheerios or oatmeal instead of Lucky Charms and Count Chocula.

 

The majority of overweight people have themselves to blame. It is pure laziness and lack of discipline. Who the hell doesn't know that fast food and ice cream aren't bad for you? I'm not buying it. When posed with the choice of healthy living or gluttony, many choose gluttony. Some people would rather live, eating whatever they want to. The best tasting foods are often bad for you. I like many others have gone a little to far at times and had to get back on track. The severely obese don't have the discipline or interest in some cases.

[Fezmid]

You can eat healthy at a comparable price if you want to. Chicken breast is only one example of an inexpensive alternative. How about tuna fish, eggs, salad, wheat bread, orandge juice, milk, some fruits, and some veggies. Their are also a whole assortment of microwave options that are way healthier and equal in price to the pizza. How about cheerios or oatmeal instead of Lucky Charms and Count Chocula.

 

The majority of overweight people have themselves to blame. It is pure laziness and lack of discipline. Who the hell doesn't know that fast food and ice cream aren't bad for you? I'm not buying it. When posed with the choice of healthy living or gluttony, many choose gluttony. Some people would rather live, eating whatever they want to. The best tasting foods are often bad for you. I like many others have gone a little to far at times and had to get back on track. The severely obese don't have the discipline or interest in some cases.

You might want to do some research on the topic before spouting out - yes, part of it can definitely be attributed to the individual. But there are MANY outside factors invovled as well. Obesity has increased dramatically in the past 30 years -- you're saying that half the planet just "became lazy," end of discussion???

 

And if you think you can serve a well rounded healthy meal for the same price as processed food, you haven't done much comparison shopping. But maybe you know more than actual doctors who have done real scientific studies...? Read:

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/04/health/n...ion/04well.html

 

"Studies show that junk foods tend to cost less than fruits, vegetables and other healthful foods, whose prices continue to rise."

 

"Last year, Dr. Drewnowski led a study, published in The Journal of the American Dietetic Association, comparing the prices of 370 foods sold at supermarkets in the Seattle area. The study showed that "energy dense" junk foods, which pack the most calories and fewest nutrients per gram, were far less expensive than nutrient-rich, lower-calorie foods like fruits and vegetables. The prices of the most healthful foods surged 19.5 percent over the two-year study period, while the junk food prices dropped 1.8 percent."

[KD in CA]

You might want to do some research on the topic before spouting out - yes, part of it can definitely be attributed to the individual. But there are MANY outside factors invovled as well. Obesity has increased dramatically in the past 30 years -- you're saying that half the planet just "became lazy," end of discussion???

 

Very true. And the most important outside factor? The PC police making it illegal to ridicule fat people. 30 years ago they would have been mocked mercilessly until they dropped some tonnage.

[Fezmid]

Very true. And the most important outside factor? The PC police making it illegal to ridicule fat people. 30 years ago they would have been mocked mercilessly until they dropped some tonnage.

Funny, I see no lack of mocking in this thread. Or other threads on TSW.

[ans4e64]

Cut down on the high-fructose corn syrup, eat moderate portions, and excercise. WTF is with folks looking to blame sh--.

 

 

Anything to mask the real causes of 99% of obesity: sloth and gluttony.

 

 

Is walking to the door the extent of your daily workout? .... excluding the beer lifts of course.

 

I met a couple that came over here from China. I asked them about Americans being fat. I was surprised to hear them say, "it's not their fault." I asked why.

 

They told me that when they knew they were coming over, they didn't want to get wrapped up in the fatty foods and bad habits over here and didn't want to gain weight, so they decided they were just going to buy the same food and cook the same food that they do over in China.

 

In 8 months, the guy gained 30 lbs and the woman 12 lbs. All from eating the same food they do in China.

 

I asked how that could be possible, assuming they must have strayed from their goals not to eat crap. They said they buy and eat the same food here, but with American food, it is all sprayed with chemicals to either make the crops get larger, or the animal get larger, to produce more from each single entity. They said the chemicals and all the crap they put on the products here have a dramatic effect in the human body.

 

Even though I'd say most of Americans, hell, probably almost all Americans, eat like schit on a daily basis, I'm not surprised to see an article like this.

[Kevbeau]

Obesity has increased dramatically in the past 30 years -- you're saying that half the planet just "became lazy," end of discussion???

 

Also, the reduction in manual labor has to play some part, no? Not to mention, suburban sprawl has reduced the amount of daily walking for most Americans....we drive everywhere.

 

Having said that, I have no sympathy for the "Lean Cuisine Army" that also takes the elevator for one floor and spends 5 minutes looking for a closer parking spot to the health club door.

[John Adams]

It's much more expensive to eat healthy than it is to eat unhealthy and as Jack said, a lot of people don't know how to buy healthy anyway. Not everyone's a chef, you know.

 

Why are you getting so bent out of shape with the "!@#{:content:}quot; comments, anyway? Would you say the same thing about someone with anorexia? "Just get off your bony ass and eat a damn sandwich!"

 

If you honestly believe that society/advertising/companies have no impact at all, then you're living in a dream world. There's blame to go all around.

 

Assuming you don't have a mental disorder, which is a different category of people, it actually IS simple. If you're a fat !@#$, eat less and exercise more. If your weight doesn't go down, eat even less and exercise even more.

 

So even if you can't count calories, which is pretty !@#$ing easy, losing weight is not that hard. It's more about self-control than brains.

 

Anyone who can make it to this website--or any website--has gads of calorie counting information at their fingertips. GADS. Screw the kitschy diets. Eat less than you burn. Lbs go away. Unless you have a REAL medical problem, it's that simple.

 

Here's a decent website.

 

http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/

 

The iPhone app Lose it is better because you carry it around.

 

And that's just a couple programs. Or you can do a crazy thing and just add up the calories during the day. Most fat people know who is to blame.

[Kevbeau]

Most fat people know who is to blame.

 

Dolly Madison?

[Pete]

You might want to do some research on the topic before spouting out - yes, part of it can definitely be attributed to the individual. But there are MANY outside factors invovled as well. Obesity has increased dramatically in the past 30 years -- you're saying that half the planet just "became lazy," end of discussion???

 

And if you think you can serve a well rounded healthy meal for the same price as processed food, you haven't done much comparison shopping. But maybe you know more than actual doctors who have done real scientific studies...? Read:

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/04/health/n...ion/04well.html

 

"Studies show that junk foods tend to cost less than fruits, vegetables and other healthful foods, whose prices continue to rise."

 

"Last year, Dr. Drewnowski led a study, published in The Journal of the American Dietetic Association, comparing the prices of 370 foods sold at supermarkets in the Seattle area. The study showed that "energy dense" junk foods, which pack the most calories and fewest nutrients per gram, were far less expensive than nutrient-rich, lower-calorie foods like fruits and vegetables. The prices of the most healthful foods surged 19.5 percent over the two-year study period, while the junk food prices dropped 1.8 percent."

try kale, beans and oatmeal. Saying it is too expensive to eat healthy is a cop out

[The Dean]

try kale, beans and oatmeal. Saying it is too expensive to eat healthy is a cop out

 

 

It is far harder to cook those (and make them taste good) than it is to eat cheaply. I don't think the argument was you CAN'T eat healthy for little money, just that it is harder to do so.

[KD in CA]

And if you think you can serve a well rounded healthy meal for the same price as processed food, you haven't done much comparison shopping.

 

So because it's slightly cheaper to eat unhealthy food, that's just a blanket excuse for people to be hundreds of pounds overweight? I guess asking someone to spend a couple extra bucks on their own health is just too much to ask.

 

And aside from that, your statement is not entirely true. Sure, the organic yellow peppers are $7/lb, but there are plenty of fresh fruits and veggies that are reasonably priced. You can easily feed four people a meal of skinless chicken breast, brown rice, salad and milk for under $20. Which is less than 4 'value meals' at a fast food joint; where people eat probably half of their unhealthy meals.

[ans4e64]

So because it's slightly cheaper to eat unhealthy food, that's just a blanket excuse for people to be hundreds of pounds overweight?

 

Yes.

[BuffaloBill]

Oh for crying out loud it's not that difficult. Sure I'm a chef (or was anyway) but cooking is not that hard. Buy a book, take a class, read a magazine. It's either that or your going to be unhealthy and sick. And would I tell someone with anorexia to eat a sandwich? Damn !@#$ing straight. That's even worse. If people learned how to cook or bought a salad every now and then they'd realize it's not that much more expensive and many times it's cheaper. I had a real nice salad from the salad bar in the cafe in my building and it cost me $4.50.

 

 

Actually as a volunteer activity my mother used to teach a class on how to shop for and prepare very healthy low cost meals. She did this for single moms or other people who had very limited budgets. It does take a bit of planning and flexibility but to your point it is easily done. Her goal was to show how to feed a family of four a very good meal for $10 or less. Her mother (my grandmother) grew up during the depression and she was a master at feeding masses with nearly nothing. We have simply lost touch with these skills because too many of us want food that is semi-prepared and can be "cooked" in the microwave or toaster oven.

[ans4e64]

Oh for crying out loud it's not that difficult. Sure I'm a chef (or was anyway) but cooking is not that hard. Buy a book, take a class, read a magazine. It's either that or your going to be unhealthy and sick. And would I tell someone with anorexia to eat a sandwich? Damn !@#$ing straight. That's even worse. If people learned how to cook or bought a salad every now and then they'd realize it's not that much more expensive and many times it's cheaper. I had a real nice salad from the salad bar in the cafe in my building and it cost me $4.50.

 

Explain to the single mother with 3 kids that when her children are crying because they are hungry, she should either go buy a book with money she doesn't have, take a class that requires her to spend money she doesn't have as well as take time off or work, or buy 3 salads for a meal of around $14.00. She's going to go through the drive through and take the cheap ass McDonalds every time, and save on money, convenience and time.

[Chef Jim]

It is far harder to cook those (and make them taste good) than it is to eat cheaply. I don't think the argument was you CAN'T eat healthy for little money, just that it is harder to do so.

 

You're right, boiling water is a B word. You do realize that that is the process for cooking all three of those right?

[Chef Jim]

Explain to the single mother with 3 kids that when her children are crying because they are hungry, she should either go buy a book with money she doesn't have, take a class that requires her to spend money she doesn't have as well as take time off or work, or buy 3 salads for a meal of around $14.00. She's going to go through the drive through and take the cheap ass McDonalds every time, and save on money, convenience and time.

 

Explain to me why a single mother who can't afford to have three kids has three kids.