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.

Yeah that’s what I was going to say. Obesity is a huge factor of most chronic health issues. WE as a society pay for that when their care drives up healthcare costs for all.

I feel that way about smoking and vaping. And unlike consumption of food, it’s not necessary. But if we cared about health care costs we’d ban all this and extreme processed foods. It’s easier to blame individuals than take meaningful action so there is no need for “discipline” (which is bullshit as we are not all equal when it comes to addiction)

I’m 50 and so obviously I have seen attitudes towards smoking change since I was a kid. Even when smoking was commonplace, I don’t recall people blaming society or structures for smoking. Was that happening?

Then you don't understand what happened with smoking. The shift against smoking was driven by government action -- municipalities banning smoking, state AGs filing lawsuits against cigarette manufacturers for lying to the public about the addictive qualities of cigarettes and the impacts on health. Federal and state health agencies also launched campaigns to educate the public on the dangers if smoking, and the marketing of cigarettes was heavily regulated to force companies to disclose the risks and to eliminate advertising that targeted children.

The shift away from smoking was almost entirely due to societal factors, not individuals taking personal responsibility and changing behavior.

What you have described is deceptive advertising. Are you telling me that people are deceived today about the food and movement?

Come on, we all grew up being told we should eat a ton of carbs and that fat was our worst enemy. We are surrounded by ultra processed foods marketed as "healthy". Of course there is deceptive advertising.

So the US is fat because they were perceptive enough to be paying attention but stopped around the year 2000?

The problems with consuming processed carbohydrates is exceptionally well known and expressed everywhere. It’s all over media. The pamphlet at every GP physical says it in bold letters and I am confident your GP and every other one on the planet repeats that line - even with their sometimes poor understanding of nutrition.

It’s not a grand conspiracy. People don’t care and don’t want to put in the effort if they are privileged enough to avoid it. Preferring instead to dose themselves all day. Others are in a financial or socioeconomic circumstance that fights against them - that’s not the DCUM demographic for the majority of participants here.

Whoosh

The response that we grew up thinking it was good to eat ultra processed food is both incorrect and dumb. How many decades have we known to eat fruits and vegetables and lean protein? Is any doctor who has counseled otherwise in decades? What is the deception today? I understand the convience issue in the U.S. in 2025. But deception?

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.

Yeah that’s what I was going to say. Obesity is a huge factor of most chronic health issues. WE as a society pay for that when their care drives up healthcare costs for all.

I feel that way about smoking and vaping. And unlike consumption of food, it’s not necessary. But if we cared about health care costs we’d ban all this and extreme processed foods. It’s easier to blame individuals than take meaningful action so there is no need for “discipline” (which is bullshit as we are not all equal when it comes to addiction)

And salt, sugar, and meat. We need to put together a master list of things which the government should ban to improve the health of all Americans! We could have a utopia

Meat and salt can be very healthy. Lots of people have reversed multiple health conditions on an animal based diet.

The current food pyramid is what is unhealthy and it tracks with an explosion in obesity and insulin becoming a huge money maker.

+1

The food pyramid is wrong. We don't need grains, it lead to this obesity epidemic. Cut them out and see what it does to your body. You won't know until you give it a try

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.

Yeah that’s what I was going to say. Obesity is a huge factor of most chronic health issues. WE as a society pay for that when their care drives up healthcare costs for all.

I feel that way about smoking and vaping. And unlike consumption of food, it’s not necessary. But if we cared about health care costs we’d ban all this and extreme processed foods. It’s easier to blame individuals than take meaningful action so there is no need for “discipline” (which is bullshit as we are not all equal when it comes to addiction)

+1
We also need to eliminate food deserts and redesign our communities so we are less car dependent. Also change work culture, and ultra wealthy agree to fund universal basic income so folks don't need to work multiple jobs just to get by.

I’m all for high taxes in exchange for healthcare and education and environmental things, but universal income just doesn’t work with human nature. Jobs need to pay people a living wage instead. Why should a corporation get rich paying folks $7/hr when the govt then has to pay them too?

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.

Another DP and I agree with you that obesity is happening due to systemic issues and not just lack of personal responsibility by each individual obese person.

Which is why OP's premise is exactly backwards. OP is arguing that obesity is fine but there's a conspiracy among the powers that be to try and convince us that obesity is bad so that they can more effectively starve us and force us to do physical work.

In reality, "the powers that be" are likely responsible for obesity, creating a food supply loaded with hyper-processed foods.

Bolded part = Food Pyramid. Created decades ago by government. That will make you think, if you are capable of reflection.

Italics part = backwards. You meant a conspiracy to make people think obesity is ok. "big is beautiful" propangada.

Picture show a morbidly obese and unhealthy woman, yet the "powers that be" are gaslighting gullible people into thinking that's ok.

So we started celebrating obese people and the.ln people became obese

Pretty much it. Telling everyone it is "cool" to be fat just makes the lazy people in society get even fatter.

Remember when Rosie O'Donnell and John Candy were considered hilariously obese and put in fat character roles? Now they look smaller than the average person you see waddling around in public.

the fatshaming in this post is extreme.

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.

Yeah that’s what I was going to say. Obesity is a huge factor of most chronic health issues. WE as a society pay for that when their care drives up healthcare costs for all.

I feel that way about smoking and vaping. And unlike consumption of food, it’s not necessary. But if we cared about health care costs we’d ban all this and extreme processed foods. It’s easier to blame individuals than take meaningful action so there is no need for “discipline” (which is bullshit as we are not all equal when it comes to addiction)

And salt, sugar, and meat. We need to put together a master list of things which the government should ban to improve the health of all Americans! We could have a utopia

Meat and salt can be very healthy. Lots of people have reversed multiple health conditions on an animal based diet.

The current food pyramid is what is unhealthy and it tracks with an explosion in obesity and insulin becoming a huge money maker.

+1

The food pyramid is wrong. We don't need grains, it lead to this obesity epidemic. Cut them out and see what it does to your body. You won't know until you give it a try

First, no, the food pyramid recommendations (which no one has ever followed anyway) did not lead to the obesity epidemic. Second, the word you are looking for in this context is “led” - I assume you also don’t understand the difference between “loose” and “lose”.

Exactly - the idea that the 40% of Americans that are obese are that way because they meticulously followed some food pyramid guidelines is so intellectually dishonest its impossible to know where to start.

The sad part is the rush to blame externalities in all this ends up neutering the ability of people from taking control of their own health. Any time you speak any form of actual truth its too mean and its shaming. The opposite of the empowerment.

Imagine being arrogant enough to think you, and only you, know "the actual truth" about the complexities of a stranger's physical health. What an AH.

Imagine being so dishonest that you decide obesity on a population level is all about elaborate exceptions and narrow medical conditions. Its impossible to even have this discussion because people always wade in here with some elaborate tale that is not at all a reflection of what is actually happening on a population level.

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.

Yeah that’s what I was going to say. Obesity is a huge factor of most chronic health issues. WE as a society pay for that when their care drives up healthcare costs for all.

I feel that way about smoking and vaping. And unlike consumption of food, it’s not necessary. But if we cared about health care costs we’d ban all this and extreme processed foods. It’s easier to blame individuals than take meaningful action so there is no need for “discipline” (which is bullshit as we are not all equal when it comes to addiction)

I’m 50 and so obviously I have seen attitudes towards smoking change since I was a kid. Even when smoking was commonplace, I don’t recall people blaming society or structures for smoking. Was that happening?

Then you don't understand what happened with smoking. The shift against smoking was driven by government action -- municipalities banning smoking, state AGs filing lawsuits against cigarette manufacturers for lying to the public about the addictive qualities of cigarettes and the impacts on health. Federal and state health agencies also launched campaigns to educate the public on the dangers if smoking, and the marketing of cigarettes was heavily regulated to force companies to disclose the risks and to eliminate advertising that targeted children.

The shift away from smoking was almost entirely due to societal factors, not individuals taking personal responsibility and changing behavior.

What you have described is deceptive advertising. Are you telling me that people are deceived today about the food and movement?

Come on, we all grew up being told we should eat a ton of carbs and that fat was our worst enemy. We are surrounded by ultra processed foods marketed as "healthy". Of course there is deceptive advertising.

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.

Yeah that’s what I was going to say. Obesity is a huge factor of most chronic health issues. WE as a society pay for that when their care drives up healthcare costs for all.

I feel that way about smoking and vaping. And unlike consumption of food, it’s not necessary. But if we cared about health care costs we’d ban all this and extreme processed foods. It’s easier to blame individuals than take meaningful action so there is no need for “discipline” (which is bullshit as we are not all equal when it comes to addiction)

I’m 50 and so obviously I have seen attitudes towards smoking change since I was a kid. Even when smoking was commonplace, I don’t recall people blaming society or structures for smoking. Was that happening?

Then you don't understand what happened with smoking. The shift against smoking was driven by government action -- municipalities banning smoking, state AGs filing lawsuits against cigarette manufacturers for lying to the public about the addictive qualities of cigarettes and the impacts on health. Federal and state health agencies also launched campaigns to educate the public on the dangers if smoking, and the marketing of cigarettes was heavily regulated to force companies to disclose the risks and to eliminate advertising that targeted children.

The shift away from smoking was almost entirely due to societal factors, not individuals taking personal responsibility and changing behavior.

What you have described is deceptive advertising. Are you telling me that people are deceived today about the food and movement?

Come on, we all grew up being told we should eat a ton of carbs and that fat was our worst enemy. We are surrounded by ultra processed foods marketed as "healthy". Of course there is deceptive advertising.

So the US is fat because they were perceptive enough to be paying attention but stopped around the year 2000?

The problems with consuming processed carbohydrates is exceptionally well known and expressed everywhere. It’s all over media. The pamphlet at every GP physical says it in bold letters and I am confident your GP and every other one on the planet repeats that line - even with their sometimes poor understanding of nutrition.

It’s not a grand conspiracy. People don’t care and don’t want to put in the effort if they are privileged enough to avoid it. Preferring instead to dose themselves all day. Others are in a financial or socioeconomic circumstance that fights against them - that’s not the DCUM demographic for the majority of participants here.

Whoosh

The response that we grew up thinking it was good to eat ultra processed food is both incorrect and dumb. How many decades have we known to eat fruits and vegetables and lean protein? Is any doctor who has counseled otherwise in decades? What is the deception today? I understand the convience issue in the U.S. in 2025. But deception?