Anonymous wrote:

However, at 46 with a BMI of 18.8, I don’t know if I’d be bragging you are the picture of good health. 18.5 is clinically underweight. No one is THAT close to being clinically underweight in their 40s unless they are ill or purposely eating (or not eating) to be extra thin

DP (bmi 18.72), you're wrong. A low bmi most often is the result of consistent, reasonable, healthy food intake, through out the years (decades rather). It's cumulative, just as much as gaining 200 lbs is cumulative, it didn't just happen overnight.
I've had people telling me to "eat a burger" my whole life and never once I've heard any doctor telling me to gain weight or change my diet.
Normal BMI that's low is still normal, that's what medicine says. Believe it.

However, at 46 with a BMI of 18.8, I don’t know if I’d be bragging you are the picture of good health. 18.5 is clinically underweight. No one is THAT close to being clinically underweight in their 40s unless they are ill or purposely eating (or not eating) to be extra thin

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've lived overseas quite a lot. I think what happens in some of these countries, I am thinking Eastern Europe/post Soviet space, is that women really do starve themselves (coffee and a piece of fruit for lunch/coffee and cigarettes to tide over, drinking/smoking vs. eating)and then boom, they hit 40 and it's like a switch goes off and all the damage they've done to their bodies means they rapidly gain weight. That's not everyone, of course, but very very many women.

I also lived in Eastern Europe for several years and this is spot on. (It’s been awhile so things may have changed.) But in my experience…Most young women did not have a healthy relationship with food. They smoked a lot to curb their appetite. They starved most of the time. They didn’t do anything athletic or exercise; there was a ton of fat shaming. The trend was to be very thin— not healthy.

This is the crux. Americans think of us as having disordered eating because we watch the quality and quantity of the food we eat. We think of Americans as having a very unhealthy relationship with food because you use food as a band-aid for emotional problems. Americans eat when they are sad, tired, stressed, bored. They always celebrate with food. They eat all the time, sometimes hourly. Food is the legal drug addiction in the US and it shows. I don't think we're very thin. For example, most of my life I've been 120 lbs at 5'7, which is not even at the limit of the NORMAL HEALTHY BMI. If you put me next to the average American woman, who is is 3 inches shorter and 50 lbs heavier, I probably look skeletal. But I'm the normal, healthy one. I'm 46 y/o and I can run 5 miles effortlessly, hike 15 miles easily, and I've never had problems sleeping and my blood work and blood pressure are picture perfect. I got pregnant easily, even at 41 y/o and I carried two perfectly healthy boys to term. I've never had menstrual problems, fibroids etc. I've never smoked and women smokers are still the minority in EE. But even with the higher smoking rates, we still live longer and healthier lives. For example, Greece has a pretty high smoking rate even for Europe and a life expectancy that is 10 years longer than yours. So your addiction to food is worse than smoking.

I agree with most of your points. However, at 46 with a BMI of 18.8, I don’t know if I’d be bragging you are the picture of good health. 18.5 is clinically underweight. No one is THAT close to being clinically underweight in their 40s unless they are ill or purposely eating (or not eating) to be extra thin

Or it’s genetic. I’m the same weight but three inches shorter, so in the middle of healthy BMI which is skinny in America. I lived in Eastern Europe and I saw as many women with her build as I did with my build, and some women slightly bigger but still not overweight, and these women would try to diet for vanity reasons. I don’t really have any fat to lose, but my bones are set wider than PPs, just a wider hips and a wide rib cage like an opera singer. So I’m lean but not lanky or petite.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've lived overseas quite a lot. I think what happens in some of these countries, I am thinking Eastern Europe/post Soviet space, is that women really do starve themselves (coffee and a piece of fruit for lunch/coffee and cigarettes to tide over, drinking/smoking vs. eating)and then boom, they hit 40 and it's like a switch goes off and all the damage they've done to their bodies means they rapidly gain weight. That's not everyone, of course, but very very many women.

I also lived in Eastern Europe for several years and this is spot on. (It’s been awhile so things may have changed.) But in my experience…Most young women did not have a healthy relationship with food. They smoked a lot to curb their appetite. They starved most of the time. They didn’t do anything athletic or exercise; there was a ton of fat shaming. The trend was to be very thin— not healthy.

This is the crux. Americans think of us as having disordered eating because we watch the quality and quantity of the food we eat. We think of Americans as having a very unhealthy relationship with food because you use food as a band-aid for emotional problems. Americans eat when they are sad, tired, stressed, bored. They always celebrate with food. They eat all the time, sometimes hourly. Food is the legal drug addiction in the US and it shows. I don't think we're very thin. For example, most of my life I've been 120 lbs at 5'7, which is not even at the limit of the NORMAL HEALTHY BMI. If you put me next to the average American woman, who is is 3 inches shorter and 50 lbs heavier, I probably look skeletal. But I'm the normal, healthy one. I'm 46 y/o and I can run 5 miles effortlessly, hike 15 miles easily, and I've never had problems sleeping and my blood work and blood pressure are picture perfect. I got pregnant easily, even at 41 y/o and I carried two perfectly healthy boys to term. I've never had menstrual problems, fibroids etc. I've never smoked and women smokers are still the minority in EE. But even with the higher smoking rates, we still live longer and healthier lives. For example, Greece has a pretty high smoking rate even for Europe and a life expectancy that is 10 years longer than yours. So your addiction to food is worse than smoking.

I agree with most of your points. However, at 46 with a BMI of 18.8, I don’t know if I’d be bragging you are the picture of good health. 18.5 is clinically underweight. No one is THAT close to being clinically underweight in their 40s unless they are ill or purposely eating (or not eating) to be extra thin

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've lived overseas quite a lot. I think what happens in some of these countries, I am thinking Eastern Europe/post Soviet space, is that women really do starve themselves (coffee and a piece of fruit for lunch/coffee and cigarettes to tide over, drinking/smoking vs. eating)and then boom, they hit 40 and it's like a switch goes off and all the damage they've done to their bodies means they rapidly gain weight. That's not everyone, of course, but very very many women.

I also lived in Eastern Europe for several years and this is spot on. (It’s been awhile so things may have changed.) But in my experience…Most young women did not have a healthy relationship with food. They smoked a lot to curb their appetite. They starved most of the time. They didn’t do anything athletic or exercise; there was a ton of fat shaming. The trend was to be very thin— not healthy.

This is the crux. Americans think of us as having disordered eating because we watch the quality and quantity of the food we eat. We think of Americans as having a very unhealthy relationship with food because you use food as a band-aid for emotional problems. Americans eat when they are sad, tired, stressed, bored. They always celebrate with food. They eat all the time, sometimes hourly. Food is the legal drug addiction in the US and it shows. I don't think we're very thin. For example, most of my life I've been 120 lbs at 5'7, which is not even at the limit of the NORMAL HEALTHY BMI. If you put me next to the average American woman, who is is 3 inches shorter and 50 lbs heavier, I probably look skeletal. But I'm the normal, healthy one. I'm 46 y/o and I can run 5 miles effortlessly, hike 15 miles easily, and I've never had problems sleeping and my blood work and blood pressure are picture perfect. I got pregnant easily, even at 41 y/o and I carried two perfectly healthy boys to term. I've never had menstrual problems, fibroids etc. I've never smoked and women smokers are still the minority in EE. But even with the higher smoking rates, we still live longer and healthier lives. For example, Greece has a pretty high smoking rate even for Europe and a life expectancy that is 10 years longer than yours. So your addiction to food is worse than smoking.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've lived overseas quite a lot. I think what happens in some of these countries, I am thinking Eastern Europe/post Soviet space, is that women really do starve themselves (coffee and a piece of fruit for lunch/coffee and cigarettes to tide over, drinking/smoking vs. eating)and then boom, they hit 40 and it's like a switch goes off and all the damage they've done to their bodies means they rapidly gain weight. That's not everyone, of course, but very very many women.

I also lived in Eastern Europe for several years and this is spot on. (It’s been awhile so things may have changed.) But in my experience…Most young women did not have a healthy relationship with food. They smoked a lot to curb their appetite. They starved most of the time. They didn’t do anything athletic or exercise; there was a ton of fat shaming. The trend was to be very thin— not healthy.

This is the crux. Americans think of us as having disordered eating because we watch the quality and quantity of the food we eat. We think of Americans as having a very unhealthy relationship with food because you use food as a band-aid for emotional problems. Americans eat when they are sad, tired, stressed, bored. They always celebrate with food. They eat all the time, sometimes hourly. Food is the legal drug addiction in the US and it shows. I don't think we're very thin. For example, most of my life I've been 120 lbs at 5'7, which is not even at the limit of the NORMAL HEALTHY BMI. If you put me next to the average American woman, who is is 3 inches shorter and 50 lbs heavier, I probably look skeletal. But I'm the normal, healthy one. I'm 46 y/o and I can run 5 miles effortlessly, hike 15 miles easily, and I've never had problems sleeping and my blood work and blood pressure are picture perfect. I got pregnant easily, even at 41 y/o and I carried two perfectly healthy boys to term. I've never had menstrual problems, fibroids etc. I've never smoked and women smokers are still the minority in EE. But even with the higher smoking rates, we still live longer and healthier lives. For example, Greece has a pretty high smoking rate even for Europe and a life expectancy that is 10 years longer than yours. So your addiction to food is worse than smoking.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've lived overseas quite a lot. I think what happens in some of these countries, I am thinking Eastern Europe/post Soviet space, is that women really do starve themselves (coffee and a piece of fruit for lunch/coffee and cigarettes to tide over, drinking/smoking vs. eating)and then boom, they hit 40 and it's like a switch goes off and all the damage they've done to their bodies means they rapidly gain weight. That's not everyone, of course, but very very many women.

I also lived in Eastern Europe for several years and this is spot on. (It’s been awhile so things may have changed.) But in my experience…Most young women did not have a healthy relationship with food. They smoked a lot to curb their appetite. They starved most of the time. They didn’t do anything athletic or exercise; there was a ton of fat shaming. The trend was to be very thin— not healthy.

Anonymous wrote:European foods are a higher quality. Just Google all of the chemicals and additives that are in our packaged foods that are not allowed in Europe.

My SIL & BIL moved to Germany for his work in 2021. Since then, both my SIL's and nephew's stomach issues have been cleared up. They don't eat differently than they did in the US. They do, however, now eat the same products without a bunch of the additives and chemicals that are present in the US versions.

Here's a good article w/ products and their nutrition label comps to UK products. Very interesting.

https://foodbabe.com/food-in-america-compared-to-the-u-k-why-is-it-so-different/

Anonymous wrote:These discussions always make me chuckle. The many scientists who study this for a living can’t figure out why we’ve become so fat, but every skinny broad on DCUM thinks they have the answer.

Anonymous wrote:These discussions always make me chuckle. The many scientists who study this for a living can’t figure out why we’ve become so fat, but every skinny broad on DCUM thinks they have the answer.

Anonymous wrote:I've lived overseas quite a lot. I think what happens in some of these countries, I am thinking Eastern Europe/post Soviet space, is that women really do starve themselves (coffee and a piece of fruit for lunch/coffee and cigarettes to tide over, drinking/smoking vs. eating)and then boom, they hit 40 and it's like a switch goes off and all the damage they've done to their bodies means they rapidly gain weight. That's not everyone, of course, but very very many women.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These discussions always make me chuckle. The many scientists who study this for a living can’t figure out why we’ve become so fat, but every skinny broad on DCUM thinks they have the answer.

No…we all know why so many people are fat. Go to any restaurant and observe the portions consumed, look at what’s in the grocery cart of people shopping, look at the massive ice cream cones people consume as a “treat” except they have them on the regular, look at what most people are ordering in Starbucks (hint, not coffee). It is very obvious what is going on. But go ahead, play clueless

That doesn’t explain why there are people who eat this way and never get fat, or people who never eat this way and still get and stay fat.