Anonymous wrote: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.

Ahh but you’ve unwittingly pointed out how the American food system is broken!

Let’s talk apples, since you brought them up. It seems, from my brief European experiences and reading (I lack personal experience elsewhere in the world), that European food systems still tend toward seasonal eating as well as local eating. Apples, as summer to fall (and into winter depending on the storability of various varieties) should just now be starting to come back into the stores. But they’re not, they’ve been there all year. From Chile. From elsewhere overseas.

And is there a lot of nutrition in those traveled and stored apples? Not so much. Is there a lot of flavor? Is there a lot of choice? Depending on what store you go to. But why has America lost most of its local producers of apples with the varieties that we used to grow? It’s corporate food choices made with corporate needs in mind. You won’t find a lot of Esopus Spitzenbergs or Limbertwigs or Pearmains.

Our food is corporate. The flavors are banal and one dimensional and quite frankly, even our fruits and vegetables are no longer as healthy as they were even a few years ago and are far less nutritious than they were a hundred years ago. You were trying to take a swipe at those fatties making poor choices but you instead managed to point out one of the major failings of our food system.

Anonymous wrote:

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?

It’s malice.

Saying individuals are responsible for their food choices and habits isn’t “fat shaming.”

It is truth. It is the only way to avoid obesity unless you are incapable of making heathy choices, in which case drugs or surgery are available. Sorry but wheat crackers aren’t going to be banned. Pizza isn’t going to be govt regulated.

So what role do you believe hormones have in weight gain?

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?

It’s malice.

Saying individuals are responsible for their food choices and habits isn’t “fat shaming.”

It is truth. It is the only way to avoid obesity unless you are incapable of making heathy choices, in which case drugs or surgery are available. Sorry but wheat crackers aren’t going to be banned. Pizza isn’t going to be govt regulated.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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.

I see obese people in the produce section of my Whole Foods every time I grocery shop.

Whole Foods has amazing cookies

I wouldn’t know. I do love their spicy guacamole though.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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.

I see obese people in the produce section of my Whole Foods every time I grocery shop.

Whole Foods has amazing cookies

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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.

I haven’t eaten a cookie in more years than I can count. Same for candy bars and ice cream. I’m sorry you used to eat junk, but if you really believe in CICO, you know junk is not necessary to become or remain obese.

Anonymous wrote: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.

I see obese people in the produce section of my Whole Foods every time I grocery shop.

The article is neither well written or well researched. It’s pandering to people who feel ostracized or bullied because they are fat. It’s feeding into their insecurity and pain at being fat and giving them an out by blaming things they can’t control. Fat people are not fat because people shame them though normal people may not be fat due to the shame. I agree that fat shaming doesn’t help people who already are fat but it certainly helps many from getting there.

Regardless, public health people are widely unsuccessful at influencing behavior.

What might help would be greater availability and insurance coverage for quality mental health professionals. Obesity in many cases is a consequence of mental health problems whether it’s emotional eating, impulse control, or motivation. Mental health comes into play when people want to change and their behavior is keeping them from being functional which being fat does.

Some people also just do not care and any money spent chasing after them is completely wasted. Look at the high correlation of obesity and Trump supporters. The common connection is anger, anxiety, TV habits, and intentional disregard for their own health. Whether it’s refusing vaccines or stuffing their faces to death, they won’t change because some dippy public health official created a poster.

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?

It’s malice.

Anonymous wrote:It’s a lobbying issue. While companies can pay for political votes to push their own interests, we will not be able to get rid of the processed crap. Organic farmers don’t have the time or money to be lobbying politicians.

Yes. This is how companies got pizza to count as a vegetable in school lunch programs. They lobbied that tomato sauce on pizza meant pizza should count as a serving of vegetables.

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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

And let’s assume that’s true. We should still address the food supply. Even if you don’t care about the health of your fellow human beings, the social and economic costs affect us all. And if all these smug people on here are eating as healthy as they say, they won’t miss the garbage at the store.

No one has to buy it. But good luck getting all food with carbs and sugar banned.

Are you ok with regulating guns, drugs, etc? Are you against regulations in general?

It’s a lobbying issue. While companies can pay for political votes to push their own interests, we will not be able to get rid of the processed crap. Organic farmers don’t have the time or money to be lobbying politicians.

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.

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

And let’s assume that’s true. We should still address the food supply. Even if you don’t care about the health of your fellow human beings, the social and economic costs affect us all. And if all these smug people on here are eating as healthy as they say, they won’t miss the garbage at the store.

No one has to buy it. But good luck getting all food with carbs and sugar banned.

It’s not about banning everything and carbs aren’t even the enemy (that’s a marketing scheme you have fallen prey to, friend). It’s about getting some common-sense regulations to move the needle.

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.

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

And let’s assume that’s true. We should still address the food supply. Even if you don’t care about the health of your fellow human beings, the social and economic costs affect us all. And if all these smug people on here are eating as healthy as they say, they won’t miss the garbage at the store.

No one has to buy it. But good luck getting all food with carbs and sugar banned.

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.

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

And let’s assume that’s true. We should still address the food supply. Even if you don’t care about the health of your fellow human beings, the social and economic costs affect us all. And if all these smug people on here are eating as healthy as they say, they won’t miss the garbage at the store.