Obesity is only a "problem" because...

[Anonymous]

Obesity catches up with you eventually. Before it does in a big way, it often does impact movement and endurance, makes you tired. Then it impacts joints, leads to diabetes, heart issues. It did for my mom when she hit 60. She’s not American and always ate farm fresh food btw, so it’s not even a processed food issue/capitalism issue. She was born heavy and stayed heavy. She’s on diabetes/weight loss meds now and they have helped tremendously but her health follow ups are intense and constant and she is not very mobile. I do not want this for myself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

I drive 45 minutes each way, to an office where I sit for 9+ hours, 5 days a week, and I am not even remotely close to overweight. Take responsibility for your choices.

DP

When the vast majority of the population is overweight (I am actually not overweight so spare me your "advice"), there is something systemic that is wrong. Obviously people have agency, but many people struggle to lose weight because our bodies did not evolve to lose weight, rather to gain it.

People struggle to loose weight because their diet is crap and they don't get exercise. All you need to do is walk 10K steps per day (done in 45 -60 mins total) and eat healthier. Cut out crap and eat Whole Foods and ditch carbs that are not from fruits and veggies.
People also don't want to fix their issues, they just want a pill, which typically has other side effects, so they need another pill, etc........

This is not true. I walked more than 10k steps for years, ate very healthy and could not lose weight. Finally got diagnosed with hypothyroidism, got treatment and am back to my healthy pre-baby weight (19 BMI). Medical conditions can play a huge role.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

I drive 45 minutes each way, to an office where I sit for 9+ hours, 5 days a week, and I am not even remotely close to overweight. Take responsibility for your choices.

DP

When the vast majority of the population is overweight (I am actually not overweight so spare me your "advice"), there is something systemic that is wrong. Obviously people have agency, but many people struggle to lose weight because our bodies did not evolve to lose weight, rather to gain it.

People struggle to loose weight because their diet is crap and they don't get exercise. All you need to do is walk 10K steps per day (done in 45 -60 mins total) and eat healthier. Cut out crap and eat Whole Foods and ditch carbs that are not from fruits and veggies.
People also don't want to fix their issues, they just want a pill, which typically has other side effects, so they need another pill, etc........

This is not true. I walked more than 10k steps for years, ate very healthy and could not lose weight. Finally got diagnosed with hypothyroidism, got treatment and am back to my healthy pre-baby weight (19 BMI). Medical conditions can play a huge role.

Np how did you get diagnosed? This is interesting bc my mil has always been a size 2, until she hit 50 or so and she went up to an 8 (I know this because she has mentioned it and how upset she was!) I know she takes thyroid meds so I wonder if this is what fixed things for her (I have only known her very thin)

[Anonymous]

It puts stress on every other part of your body. My mom isn’t overweight but all of her friends are. They’ve all gone through hip and knee replacements.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

I drive 45 minutes each way, to an office where I sit for 9+ hours, 5 days a week, and I am not even remotely close to overweight. Take responsibility for your choices.

DP

When the vast majority of the population is overweight (I am actually not overweight so spare me your "advice"), there is something systemic that is wrong. Obviously people have agency, but many people struggle to lose weight because our bodies did not evolve to lose weight, rather to gain it.

People struggle to loose weight because their diet is crap and they don't get exercise. All you need to do is walk 10K steps per day (done in 45 -60 mins total) and eat healthier. Cut out crap and eat Whole Foods and ditch carbs that are not from fruits and veggies.
People also don't want to fix their issues, they just want a pill, which typically has other side effects, so they need another pill, etc........

This is not true. I walked more than 10k steps for years, ate very healthy and could not lose weight. Finally got diagnosed with hypothyroidism, got treatment and am back to my healthy pre-baby weight (19 BMI). Medical conditions can play a huge role.

As a server, I walk 15k steps a day easily. I take my salad and steak home as I have no time to eat at work. At 47, the scale hasn't moved. Last time I lost weight easily was when I worked on a farm at age 20, and again when I did 12-hour shifts at 26. I had lost my appetite completely and that's when the weight came down. I don't eat junk. It didn't exist in the old country. That cereal aisle can go to heck for all I care. I think it's cortisol for me. Got to eat only meat and veggies and within 6-hour window.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

I drive 45 minutes each way, to an office where I sit for 9+ hours, 5 days a week, and I am not even remotely close to overweight. Take responsibility for your choices.

DP

When the vast majority of the population is overweight (I am actually not overweight so spare me your "advice"), there is something systemic that is wrong. Obviously people have agency, but many people struggle to lose weight because our bodies did not evolve to lose weight, rather to gain it.

People struggle to loose weight because their diet is crap and they don't get exercise. All you need to do is walk 10K steps per day (done in 45 -60 mins total) and eat healthier. Cut out crap and eat Whole Foods and ditch carbs that are not from fruits and veggies.
People also don't want to fix their issues, they just want a pill, which typically has other side effects, so they need another pill, etc........

Are Americans as a whole less willing to "fix their issues" than Europeans who have much lower obesity rates? Why?

I have no answer on “why” but we are different culture. We prioritize wealth/capitalism, work, convenience, cheap goods, among things. While you see elements of this around the world, it’s to a much lesser extent.

The aspects of our "culture" that you describe are fundamental elements of our economic system. So you agree that the issue is systemic.

I am the PP you are responding to but not the poster you seem to be fighting with. This is both a systemic and individual issue. It’s not either/or and it makes no sense to talk about it that way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

I drive 45 minutes each way, to an office where I sit for 9+ hours, 5 days a week, and I am not even remotely close to overweight. Take responsibility for your choices.

DP

When the vast majority of the population is overweight (I am actually not overweight so spare me your "advice"), there is something systemic that is wrong. Obviously people have agency, but many people struggle to lose weight because our bodies did not evolve to lose weight, rather to gain it.

People struggle to loose weight because their diet is crap and they don't get exercise. All you need to do is walk 10K steps per day (done in 45 -60 mins total) and eat healthier. Cut out crap and eat Whole Foods and ditch carbs that are not from fruits and veggies.
People also don't want to fix their issues, they just want a pill, which typically has other side effects, so they need another pill, etc........

Are Americans as a whole less willing to "fix their issues" than Europeans who have much lower obesity rates? Why?

I have no answer on “why” but we are different culture. We prioritize wealth/capitalism, work, convenience, cheap goods, among things. While you see elements of this around the world, it’s to a much lesser extent.

The aspects of our "culture" that you describe are fundamental elements of our economic system. So you agree that the issue is systemic.

I am the PP you are responding to but not the poster you seem to be fighting with. This is both a systemic and individual issue. It’s not either/or and it makes no sense to talk about it that way.

Pretty much exactly this. The “systemic” view that entirely abandons any personal agency might as well be brave new world where humans have no control over anything and we are all taking soma (GLP-1s).

You can recognize systemic issues while simultaneously also appreciating that there is a non insubstantial portion of the population that are willingly crashing themselves against the rocks - the difference now being that it’s much easier.

[Anonymous]

My Dad's heart attack was definitely linked to his obesity. Since losing the weight his back and knee pain has improved significantly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

+1 70% of US adults are overweight or obese. Adults are surrounded by ultra processed sugary foods and have sedentary jobs and limited time to cook or exercise. What did folks think was going to happen?

are you a goose bred for pate? do you not control what goes in your mouth?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

+1 70% of US adults are overweight or obese. Adults are surrounded by ultra processed sugary foods and have sedentary jobs and limited time to cook or exercise. What did folks think was going to happen?

are you a goose bred for pate? do you not control what goes in your mouth?

You sound triggered

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

I drive 45 minutes each way, to an office where I sit for 9+ hours, 5 days a week, and I am not even remotely close to overweight. Take responsibility for your choices.

DP

When the vast majority of the population is overweight (I am actually not overweight so spare me your "advice"), there is something systemic that is wrong. Obviously people have agency, but many people struggle to lose weight because our bodies did not evolve to lose weight, rather to gain it.

People struggle to loose weight because their diet is crap and they don't get exercise. All you need to do is walk 10K steps per day (done in 45 -60 mins total) and eat healthier. Cut out crap and eat Whole Foods and ditch carbs that are not from fruits and veggies.
People also don't want to fix their issues, they just want a pill, which typically has other side effects, so they need another pill, etc........

Are Americans as a whole less willing to "fix their issues" than Europeans who have much lower obesity rates? Why?

I have no answer on “why” but we are different culture. We prioritize wealth/capitalism, work, convenience, cheap goods, among things. While you see elements of this around the world, it’s to a much lesser extent.

The aspects of our "culture" that you describe are fundamental elements of our economic system. So you agree that the issue is systemic.

I am the PP you are responding to but not the poster you seem to be fighting with. This is both a systemic and individual issue. It’s not either/or and it makes no sense to talk about it that way.

Pretty much exactly this. The “systemic” view that entirely abandons any personal agency might as well be brave new world where humans have no control over anything and we are all taking soma (GLP-1s).

You can recognize systemic issues while simultaneously also appreciating that there is a non insubstantial portion of the population that are willingly crashing themselves against the rocks - the difference now being that it’s much easier.

This thread should be taught in medical school. Why obese people consistently get worse care.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

I drive 45 minutes each way, to an office where I sit for 9+ hours, 5 days a week, and I am not even remotely close to overweight. Take responsibility for your choices.

DP

When the vast majority of the population is overweight (I am actually not overweight so spare me your "advice"), there is something systemic that is wrong. Obviously people have agency, but many people struggle to lose weight because our bodies did not evolve to lose weight, rather to gain it.

People struggle to loose weight because their diet is crap and they don't get exercise. All you need to do is walk 10K steps per day (done in 45 -60 mins total) and eat healthier. Cut out crap and eat Whole Foods and ditch carbs that are not from fruits and veggies.
People also don't want to fix their issues, they just want a pill, which typically has other side effects, so they need another pill, etc........

Are Americans as a whole less willing to "fix their issues" than Europeans who have much lower obesity rates? Why?

Most europeans walk way more than we do. They also routinely eat much better---Whole Foods and a lot less crap is eaten in Europe.
Just go look at portion sizes at restaurants---you rarely will need a carryout box in Europe.

And yes, most Americans are not willing to "fix their issues". They complain complain complain but don't want to address the real issues. I get it, it's hard to do once you are 50lbs+ overweight. I just don't get how you let yourself get there. If I got 10lbs over my ideal weight, I adjust my diet and focus on walking more. In the office, I take the stairs, as long as I'm not carrying a ton. You can get 2-4K steps during the day from just doing that. I get out to walk for 10 mins with lunch and I make an effort to eat healthy

[Anonymous]

It's funny how the US, the land of "personal responsibility" compared so poorly to the welfare states on personal responsibility.

That, or maybe our economic system and food supply are fundamentally unhealthy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

I drive 45 minutes each way, to an office where I sit for 9+ hours, 5 days a week, and I am not even remotely close to overweight. Take responsibility for your choices.

DP

When the vast majority of the population is overweight (I am actually not overweight so spare me your "advice"), there is something systemic that is wrong. Obviously people have agency, but many people struggle to lose weight because our bodies did not evolve to lose weight, rather to gain it.

People struggle to loose weight because their diet is crap and they don't get exercise. All you need to do is walk 10K steps per day (done in 45 -60 mins total) and eat healthier. Cut out crap and eat Whole Foods and ditch carbs that are not from fruits and veggies.
People also don't want to fix their issues, they just want a pill, which typically has other side effects, so they need another pill, etc........

This is not true. I walked more than 10k steps for years, ate very healthy and could not lose weight. Finally got diagnosed with hypothyroidism, got treatment and am back to my healthy pre-baby weight (19 BMI). Medical conditions can play a huge role.

So address those. I also have thyroid issues. I treated it with diet and supplements, healed my gut and feel so much better. So treat it, don't use it as an excuse. I've had Hashimoto's for almost 10 years now and manage it without actual medication. it's amazing what diet can do to help us in so many ways. But if I needed meds I would take those in conjunction with everything else. But I won't just pop pills---I'm going to actively work to address my issues and treat them with diet/exercise/supplements to live as long as I can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a problem because inevitably non obese shell out billions of dollars to compensate for the incredible drain obese people are on our society.

We get obese working long hours at assigned seats in office buildings that we can't walk to from where we live. But we produce plenty of market value before interventions are required.

Eating garbage food also fattens the profits of the fast food industry and most food conglomerates. This also has contributed to economic growth as the agriculture sector has been transformed by this change in consumer habits.

You're only looking at the externalities and not the full accounting.

RTO takes personal commute time people could devote to exercise and reassign it to a polluting, sedentary pastime. Yet many conservatives believe RTO is "productive".

You cannot blame people for every consequence of our obesogenic culture.

I drive 45 minutes each way, to an office where I sit for 9+ hours, 5 days a week, and I am not even remotely close to overweight. Take responsibility for your choices.

DP

When the vast majority of the population is overweight (I am actually not overweight so spare me your "advice"), there is something systemic that is wrong. Obviously people have agency, but many people struggle to lose weight because our bodies did not evolve to lose weight, rather to gain it.

People struggle to loose weight because their diet is crap and they don't get exercise. All you need to do is walk 10K steps per day (done in 45 -60 mins total) and eat healthier. Cut out crap and eat Whole Foods and ditch carbs that are not from fruits and veggies.
People also don't want to fix their issues, they just want a pill, which typically has other side effects, so they need another pill, etc........

Are Americans as a whole less willing to "fix their issues" than Europeans who have much lower obesity rates? Why?

Most europeans walk way more than we do. They also routinely eat much better---Whole Foods and a lot less crap is eaten in Europe.
Just go look at portion sizes at restaurants---you rarely will need a carryout box in Europe.

And yes, most Americans are not willing to "fix their issues". They complain complain complain but don't want to address the real issues. I get it, it's hard to do once you are 50lbs+ overweight. I just don't get how you let yourself get there. If I got 10lbs over my ideal weight, I adjust my diet and focus on walking more. In the office, I take the stairs, as long as I'm not carrying a ton. You can get 2-4K steps during the day from just doing that. I get out to walk for 10 mins with lunch and I make an effort to eat healthy

Btw I am not obese so spare me your "advice" - and btw people have been giving this advice for decades and the obesity crisis has only grown so maybe save your breath.

I totally agree that the US should look to Europe. They walk more because their cities are designed differently. They eat better because their food supply is more regulated and people work fewer hours, so they have more time to cook. I would love for the US to be more like Europe but we designed our communities to be car dependent and let the food industry guide our health guidance.