Everything you know about obesity is wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t have credit card debt and I have lots of emergency savings, although I’m not high income. But I don’t go into um the finance forum to trash people struggling with debt or low income.

This is because I’m not a jerk.

It would be lovely if those who don’t struggle with eating to refrain from unhelpful “advice” regarding the success rate of diets.

There is a difference between helpful, well-meaning advice and "trashing." I don't go on there to tell everyone, "You suckers will never be rich! Why bother with hand-wringing over where to invest your measly $100k? It doesn't matter, you'll always lose in the end because you innately don't have what it takes to make it rich. And by the way, the rest of you people giving actual helpful advice should be quiet and not make the poor feel bad about being poor."

But have you given us any helpful advice beyond “eat real foods, not junk, in moderation”? Do you think that’s helpful advice? If so, why?

I need a solution to bring fried and burnt out that will make me feel as good as a big ass cookie. That would be helpful advice.

It is helpful for some, because it works for some! Look at this diet forum - all kinds of people asking for diet advice to lose weight. Plenty of people responding with ideas and what worked for them - different kinds of foods, eating windows, types of exercises. What is wrong with that?

I don't know what solution will work for you, but eating cookies is your choice.

Well that’s just it. Like the entire point of the article, there isn’t a solution! Because it’s a systemic problem. My “solution” is to periodically lose 10-15 pounds and then attempt to maintain but inevitably regain. I mean, I guess it’s a solution that I’ve been able to remain in the overweight category thus far.

It’s a problem of food engineered to be irresistible and people required to do too much.

When you decide that you're not going to eat the cookies, you'll find a significant change. I had to do this recently as I was 170lbs and feeling it. Now I am 149 lbs and can run up the stairs two at a time like I did decades ago, AND I'm in my 50's with a long term disease. There are no excuses. It's mental will, really that's all it is - making the decision to change how you eat and doing it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Unbelievable how Americans like to blame individuals and think that everything is an individual fault but never hold corporations and government for creating a system that supports profits over human health and well-being responsible. Obesity will continue to grow in this country til food supply is fixed which will never happen in my lifetime for certain.

+1 well said

This is true and I mentioned this in another post in this thread. I teach my kids about healthy eating but I worry about how their friends eat and the messages out in the world. Their are people who work at companies who are paid to make food as palatable and addictive as possible. Marketing, advertising, and product placement all play a role.

No companies will voluntarily make their food less palatable and addictive. And is that what we really want? I don't think so.

Yes, it’s what we want. Why would you want food to be overly sugary/fatty/addictive. And of course if wouldn’t be voluntary. It would require a legislative solution.

People can still cook whatever they want at home but something needs to be done about the food supply and what’s available. Individuals are unable to handle it. Our family is fine and I enjoy the convenience of some of this stuff from time to time, but I’m willing to give it up if it helps with the terrible problem of obesity. We need to do what’s best for most people and most people are now obese.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Unbelievable how Americans like to blame individuals and think that everything is an individual fault but never hold corporations and government for creating a system that supports profits over human health and well-being responsible. Obesity will continue to grow in this country til food supply is fixed which will never happen in my lifetime for certain.

+1 well said

This is true and I mentioned this in another post in this thread. I teach my kids about healthy eating but I worry about how their friends eat and the messages out in the world. Their are people who work at companies who are paid to make food as palatable and addictive as possible. Marketing, advertising, and product placement all play a role.

No companies will voluntarily make their food less palatable and addictive. And is that what we really want? I don't think so.

Yes, it’s what we want. Why would you want food to be overly sugary/fatty/addictive. And of course if wouldn’t be voluntary. It would require a legislative solution.

People can still cook whatever they want at home but something needs to be done about the food supply and what’s available. Individuals are unable to handle it. Our family is fine and I enjoy the convenience of some of this stuff from time to time, but I’m willing to give it up if it helps with the terrible problem of obesity. We need to do what’s best for most people and most people are now obese.

OMG you don't have to eat it! Just because it's in the store, you don't have to buy it! For cryin' out loud. This right here is it. We need the government to force our companies to make food that tastes worse??! Get real. Just make better choices, like people have been saying for 60+ pages!

There is plenty of healthy food in the food supply. I eat it and so does my family. Once in a while we like to eat treats, and I don't want only fat-free, sugar-free crap on the shelves when I want to the good stuff.

The key is MODERATION.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t have credit card debt and I have lots of emergency savings, although I’m not high income. But I don’t go into um the finance forum to trash people struggling with debt or low income.

This is because I’m not a jerk.

It would be lovely if those who don’t struggle with eating to refrain from unhelpful “advice” regarding the success rate of diets.

There is a difference between helpful, well-meaning advice and "trashing." I don't go on there to tell everyone, "You suckers will never be rich! Why bother with hand-wringing over where to invest your measly $100k? It doesn't matter, you'll always lose in the end because you innately don't have what it takes to make it rich. And by the way, the rest of you people giving actual helpful advice should be quiet and not make the poor feel bad about being poor."

But have you given us any helpful advice beyond “eat real foods, not junk, in moderation”? Do you think that’s helpful advice? If so, why?

I need a solution to bring fried and burnt out that will make me feel as good as a big ass cookie. That would be helpful advice.

It is helpful for some, because it works for some! Look at this diet forum - all kinds of people asking for diet advice to lose weight. Plenty of people responding with ideas and what worked for them - different kinds of foods, eating windows, types of exercises. What is wrong with that?

I don't know what solution will work for you, but eating cookies is your choice.

Well that’s just it. Like the entire point of the article, there isn’t a solution! Because it’s a systemic problem. My “solution” is to periodically lose 10-15 pounds and then attempt to maintain but inevitably regain. I mean, I guess it’s a solution that I’ve been able to remain in the overweight category thus far.

It’s a problem of food engineered to be irresistible and people required to do too much.

You regain because you increase your food intake or start going back to old habits?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Unbelievable how Americans like to blame individuals and think that everything is an individual fault but never hold corporations and government for creating a system that supports profits over human health and well-being responsible. Obesity will continue to grow in this country til food supply is fixed which will never happen in my lifetime for certain.

+1 well said

This is true and I mentioned this in another post in this thread. I teach my kids about healthy eating but I worry about how their friends eat and the messages out in the world. Their are people who work at companies who are paid to make food as palatable and addictive as possible. Marketing, advertising, and product placement all play a role.

No companies will voluntarily make their food less palatable and addictive. And is that what we really want? I don't think so.

Yes, it’s what we want. Why would you want food to be overly sugary/fatty/addictive. And of course if wouldn’t be voluntary. It would require a legislative solution.

People can still cook whatever they want at home but something needs to be done about the food supply and what’s available. Individuals are unable to handle it. Our family is fine and I enjoy the convenience of some of this stuff from time to time, but I’m willing to give it up if it helps with the terrible problem of obesity. We need to do what’s best for most people and most people are now obese.

OMG you don't have to eat it! Just because it's in the store, you don't have to buy it! For cryin' out loud. This right here is it. We need the government to force our companies to make food that tastes worse??! Get real. Just make better choices, like people have been saying for 60+ pages!

There is plenty of healthy food in the food supply. I eat it and so does my family. Once in a while we like to eat treats, and I don't want only fat-free, sugar-free crap on the shelves when I want to the good stuff.

The key is MODERATION.

What a sad world when the government regulates all the taste our of our food.

[Anonymous]

Even USA Today gets it. Good on them for taking this information to the wider audiences of the popular press.


https://www.yahoo.com/news/obesity-long-considered-personal-failing-090204825.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Unbelievable how Americans like to blame individuals and think that everything is an individual fault but never hold corporations and government for creating a system that supports profits over human health and well-being responsible. Obesity will continue to grow in this country til food supply is fixed which will never happen in my lifetime for certain.

+1 well said

This is true and I mentioned this in another post in this thread. I teach my kids about healthy eating but I worry about how their friends eat and the messages out in the world. Their are people who work at companies who are paid to make food as palatable and addictive as possible. Marketing, advertising, and product placement all play a role.

No companies will voluntarily make their food less palatable and addictive. And is that what we really want? I don't think so.

Yes, it’s what we want. Why would you want food to be overly sugary/fatty/addictive. And of course if wouldn’t be voluntary. It would require a legislative solution.

People can still cook whatever they want at home but something needs to be done about the food supply and what’s available. Individuals are unable to handle it. Our family is fine and I enjoy the convenience of some of this stuff from time to time, but I’m willing to give it up if it helps with the terrible problem of obesity. We need to do what’s best for most people and most people are now obese.

OMG you don't have to eat it! Just because it's in the store, you don't have to buy it! For cryin' out loud. This right here is it. We need the government to force our companies to make food that tastes worse??! Get real. Just make better choices, like people have been saying for 60+ pages!

There is plenty of healthy food in the food supply. I eat it and so does my family. Once in a while we like to eat treats, and I don't want only fat-free, sugar-free crap on the shelves when I want to the good stuff.

The key is MODERATION.

DP. Just be aware that your desire to keep junk food available whenever you want it personally comes with an enormous price tag of public health costs. You can scream about MODERATION all you want and stamp your feet but it’s not going to change anything.

So long as the food chain remains the way it is, and no governmental action like the PP suggests is taken (which is, of course, the sensible option), obesity will continue to grow. We will continue to pay the massive public health price we pay. Your taxes will continue to pay for social services related to obesity. You won’t get timely medical treatment because people with obesity will need it. Your insurance premiums will remain high. Your kids and grandkids will themselves be at sharply higher risk of obesity (even though they know you’ll hate them).

So you, and all the people in this thread who believe that they, personally, have solved a societal problem that has stumped public health for decades, you all have a choice. You can continue to prioritize your own access to junk food and keep food companies and food production the way it is. You can keep the massive subsidies to the sugar and corn industries because you, personally, want to buy junk food when you want it. But understand that desire you have is going to cost you an enormous amount over your lifetime. You’ll have to wait for healthcare, you’ll have to pay more in taxes, you’ll have to essentially live with the societal costs of obesity (which are only getting higher and higher).

We could use government to have a huge positive impact. Just reducing sugar and corn subsidies alone would have an impact. But no, god forbid you might not be able to buy engineered food products whenever you want.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Even USA Today gets it. Good on them for taking this information to the wider audiences of the popular press.


https://www.yahoo.com/news/obesity-long-considered-personal-failing-090204825.html

I’m sure that article has the food lobbyists upset. Removing the myth of personal responsibility is the first step to making them stop poisoning the food chain.

[Anonymous]

We do have personal choices. Have ya'll ever looked at the shopping carts in the grocery section of Walmart. There are not a lot of shoppers selecting apples from the apple bin of the produce department. Most shoppers are loading their carts with 2 liter sodas, chips, and processed foods. As a shopper you have to walk through the produce section with your cart to check out.

[Anonymous]

You have to wonder about people whose response to research showing that fat shaming does not work for weight loss is to double down on the fact shaming. Are they intellectually incapable of learning new information, or is the real motivation malice?

[Anonymous]

The only way to fix obesity across society as a whole is through governance. But that won’t happen in the US because the food lobby is too entrenched.

Personally I think the first (and only) real successes the world will see to reduce obesity will be in an authoritarian country with central controls like China. Some authoritarian leader will eventually decide the junk food industry in their country is no longer favored. My guess is that sometime in the next two decades we will see the first real example of obesity amelioration or even reduction in a country. Definitely not in the US.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You have to wonder about people whose response to research showing that fat shaming does not work for weight loss is to double down on the fact shaming. Are they intellectually incapable of learning new information, or is the real motivation malice?

One of the PPs explained that she doesn’t believe in science. They are like antivaxxers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Unbelievable how Americans like to blame individuals and think that everything is an individual fault but never hold corporations and government for creating a system that supports profits over human health and well-being responsible. Obesity will continue to grow in this country til food supply is fixed which will never happen in my lifetime for certain.

+1 well said

This is true and I mentioned this in another post in this thread. I teach my kids about healthy eating but I worry about how their friends eat and the messages out in the world. Their are people who work at companies who are paid to make food as palatable and addictive as possible. Marketing, advertising, and product placement all play a role.

No companies will voluntarily make their food less palatable and addictive. And is that what we really want? I don't think so.

Yes, it’s what we want. Why would you want food to be overly sugary/fatty/addictive. And of course if wouldn’t be voluntary. It would require a legislative solution.

People can still cook whatever they want at home but something needs to be done about the food supply and what’s available. Individuals are unable to handle it. Our family is fine and I enjoy the convenience of some of this stuff from time to time, but I’m willing to give it up if it helps with the terrible problem of obesity. We need to do what’s best for most people and most people are now obese.

OMG you don't have to eat it! Just because it's in the store, you don't have to buy it! For cryin' out loud. This right here is it. We need the government to force our companies to make food that tastes worse??! Get real. Just make better choices, like people have been saying for 60+ pages!

There is plenty of healthy food in the food supply. I eat it and so does my family. Once in a while we like to eat treats, and I don't want only fat-free, sugar-free crap on the shelves when I want to the good stuff.

The key is MODERATION.

I’m not eating it- or at least very rarely. My family has only gone through the drive-thru twice this year, for example. We are slim by any measure. But guess what? Most people aren’t. It’s not about making food “taste worse.” It’s about adding less sugar/salt/fat, and ending certain subsidies or subsidizing different things. It’s cute that you don’t believe corporations and industries shape our lives and health. Are you 12?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You have to wonder about people whose response to research showing that fat shaming does not work for weight loss is to double down on the fact shaming. Are they intellectually incapable of learning new information, or is the real motivation malice?

One of the PPs explained that she doesn’t believe in science. They are like antivaxxers.

Both. Plus they think they did something and are better. See 50 year old above- I cut out cookies and lost 21lb! You either needed to be eating 1000 of calories in cookies or you lose weight easily and/or both. There are people who do not eat 1000 of calories in cookies and do get moderation- only cake or cookies at parties or 1/week small ice cream cone- and they are overweight or obese.

My brother and I are completely different builds, he has my moms genetics (skinny and tall) I have my Dads genetics (shorter and muscular). My brother cannot gain weight. He cant. He would need to force feed himself to gain weight but he still eats at or beyond a normal amount- say 2500-3000k a day. He is 6'3'' and 160lbs.

I cannot lose weight easily, even, at my TDEE which I have calculated. I have hypothyroidism- he doesnt. I workout and lift weights more than he does, which is not at all. I walk more than he does. He is a single 30s dude with a job where he drives around all day. I am married with a kid and a full-time job, a dog that gets walked every day, and a 4 year old kid who thinks he is Superman/Black Panther that I chase all day. My brother eats Taco Bell and lots of DoorDash delivery. We eat out rarely and I home cook almost everything. I have 6-10 vegetables and 5-8 fruits in our fridge at all times. I make turkey veggie chili for dinner or spaghetti with meat sauce and spinach, except I eat mine over broccoli vs pasta.

My other brother who has my same genetics- shorter with muscle- has the same issues. He can navigate it a bit better because he doesnt have hypothyroid and to be frank, I developed hypothyroid during pregnancy and it took 2 years to medicate. Previously, it was harder but not excruciatingly slow like it is now to lose weight. I have a FitBit and I have more daily activity compared to pre-pregnancy.

People are different and if the person who lose 21lbs from cutting out cookies thinks its because of their "optimal choices" then they will always judge others because in their mind if you they were eating cookies and lost 21lbs what must you be eating to be 50-60 lbs overweight. Unfortunately, it is not that linear for most people and thats why the drugs work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Unbelievable how Americans like to blame individuals and think that everything is an individual fault but never hold corporations and government for creating a system that supports profits over human health and well-being responsible. Obesity will continue to grow in this country til food supply is fixed which will never happen in my lifetime for certain.

Look around you in the grocery store. Majority of carts filled to the brim with complete garbage. While fresh produce, milk, meats, whole grains are all around. People DONT WANT to eat heathy