Obesity In America

PriusGuy04,

The way you wrote it, sounds like you grew up outside America. Had a Londoner say America is the most obese nation in 1977. Also on London, I noticed the portions were not as generous as a typical American restaurant...

I will get around to making a long-distance runner/hybrid analogy - it's pretty tight

Food for thought: if we had horses instead of cars - animal abuse reports would be off the chart.



<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(priusguy04 @ Nov 2 2006, 08:07 AM) [snapback]342442[/snapback]</div>

 

Obesity is a serious problem, not only in the US, but throughout much of the world. In fact, I think it has become or is on the way to becoming the leading cause of premature death in the developed world.

Basically, the only way to lose weight is to burn more calories each day than you consume. You have to exercise more and eat less. I have lost 5 pounds in the last 2 weeks by walking 4 miles per day and reducing my calorie intake. I am now just within the normal range of the Body Mass Index at 24.9. If your BMI is 25 or over, you are overweight. To calculate, here is a good online BMI calculator:

http://www.halls.md/body-mass-index/av.htm

It woud be interesting to see how many are above or below 25.

 

21.6, 35th percentile of people my height and age. that's one of the better calculators i've seen.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(galaxee @ Nov 2 2006, 12:06 PM) [snapback]342591[/snapback]</div>

Wow. I hope you aren't anorexic!


It just occured to me that this thread is one of the very few that discusses something we can actually do something about. Let's face it, we have about as much influence on geo-politics as we have on hurricanes or earthquakes. But this is something that is important and we can do something about.

 

Unfortunately, that doesn't really cover the concept of obesity. In order to do that, you also have to figure out your body fat percentage. Personally, i lift every day, run 5 miles, play soccer, softball, volleyball, ski (both downhill and cross country) and kayak, all on a very regular basis (season/weather permitting).

Given all that, i'm in excellent shape, and yet according to that my BMI is 24.5. From the point of view of "fat" or obese, i'm no where close.

The BMI is generally used more from a cardiovascular point of view. The higher the number, the more your heart has to work to pump your blood through all that mass. So regardless of how your weight is distributed (muscle or fat), you tax your heart more with a higher weight.

On to the subject of obesity:
I wouldn't cause obesity a disease. I can't "pick it up" from my neighbor. rather, i would call it a disorder. It could stem from genetics - some people are predispositioned to storing fat (I know at least one person who tends to actually eat less than me and yet is much larger). This would clearly be a sort of genetic disorder. Others are in a poor environment - here i'm thinking of kids whose parents give them snacks and candy and sugar all the time. they aren't in an environment where they can receive proper nutrition. in this case i would say the disorder lies with the parents. Others stem purely from personal choices and habits. These could be thought of as mental disorders.

Yes, obesity is a huge problem. yes, there are those who can do something about it and choose not to. but there are also those who try to and can't. i'm thinking of Eddie Murphy in "The Nutty Professor". at the end of the movie he's talking with Jada Pinkett Smith (the hot professor) and says that he'll lose weight, but he's always going to be big. It's true - for many people there's only so much they can do.

So, should being obese cost you more (in terms of healthcare, and life insurance)? We all know it does. And these companies look through their histories at similar people and see the risk is higher. So yes, it should - they offer risk mitigation, and the higher the risk the more it should cost.

It really is up to society to provide the pressure and the incentives for these people to lose weight and lead healthier life styles. My work here offers several incentives along these same lines, which is why i love it so much. If you don't smoke, you get a small bonus each week (10 bucks, i think). if you do, they'll pay for you to join a program to stop. If you fill out health evaluation stuff online every year, you get another small bonus (plus advise on how to improve your lifestyle). now, these incentives won't help those who refuse to be helped. But they do help prod people who are on the edge into improving their lifestyles - i've seen it happen.

Not really sure where i'm going with all this. But i do think it's important for everyone to help their neighbors, so to speak, into leading healthier lifestyles.

 

"If you fill out health evaluation stuff online every year"

This sounds a little coercive to me. Do they do drug tests?

 

Nope - the evaluation is just like that BMI calculator, except it adds in some more information about lifestyle choices and how they effect different parts of your life - i was skeptical and worried at first, but it's completely optional (i can choose not to fill it out and not receive the 10 bucks a month) and really isn't at all invasive.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jared2 @ Nov 2 2006, 12:14 PM) [snapback]342593[/snapback]</div>

nowhere near! :lol:


<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Nov 2 2006, 12:20 PM) [snapback]342606[/snapback]</div>

well, to get into semantics about disease vs disorder doesn't really carry much of a point... but for example parkinson's disease or alzheimer's disease are heavily reliant on genetic factors.

anyway. lifestyle choices and genetics play their own roles in this particular case. the body was designed to fight to keep fat reserves for times of hardship. hence most people's natural taste for stuff that leads to fat storage. so if you overeat and top off at obesity, then realize you're unhealthy and lose the weight, your body is fighting with you to keep the fat on. this happens even when underlying medical problems are causing the weight gain. the fight can be lifelong.

now speaking of underlying medical issues... well i suppose we can just refer to this as metabolic syndrome of some sort... sure there are lots of folks out there who are predisposed to those too. these people have to be even more careful in their choices or face the consequences.

i think a big problem here is the culture we live in values quick over healthy, driving over walking, tv over exercise.

wow, that sounds like a nice program. i agree that more workplaces should offer such benefits, there are lots of people out there who are trying to change their lifestyles but maybe just don't know where to start or what to change to. not everyone can afford a nutritionist or a personal trainer, but just some good free tips could be enough to start them off on a healthier path.

 

"not everyone can afford a nutritionist or a personal trainer"

1.Go to Target (or similar store)
2.Get a pedometer (about $12.00)
3. Walk 4 miles or 10,000 steps a day. (I do it on my lunch break)
4. Watch what you put in your mouth. (I even use coffee cream, but just a bit)
5. Weigh yourself each day with a decent electronic scale, and watch the pounds go.
6. Think of all the money you will save on nutritionists and personal trainers.

You will have more energy too.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jared2 @ Nov 2 2006, 03:03 PM) [snapback]342778[/snapback]</div>

It's great that you can do it this way. Unfortunately, many people don't have the same force of will to follow such a lifestyle. Many people need the encouragement and support of others, such as a personal trainer, in order to effect real change in their lives.

3 years ago, myself and a fraternity brother took it on ourselves to see another one of our brothers get in shape. his family had a history of heart problems, and he was known around the fraternity as "the belly". enough said. Well, through our concerted efforts, and his acknowledgment that he needed to get in better shape, he ran two marathons last year. It wasn't easy. He would go to the gym and running with us when we came and got him, but he wouldn't go himself. If we got sick or bogged down with school or work and couldn't go to the gym, then he wouldn't either. I'm very proud to say that he's now a better runner than I am, and even though he lives down in Pittsburgh now, he's keeping up with it. it only took a couple of years for us to turn his running into a habit he could continue by himself. And yes, he does have more energy, is more confident, and is generally a happier person because of it.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Nov 2 2006, 04:24 PM) [snapback]342809[/snapback]</div>

Or having a goal you can actually invest yourself in. Long, boring personal story to follow ...

My old employer had a gym available for employees. It was staffed by a trainer who would help members with the machines and in configuring a workout, but it wasn't 1-on-1. I joined the gym, but never went consistently. Until they started a program where they measured you in a few areas (flexibility/body fat/heart rate/push ups/sit ups) in May and would measure you again in September. That gave me something to really shoot for. Especially since my flexibility score was below poor.

Now I'm back to being inconsistent in my workouts. I have access to good facilities (I work at a University), but I have a hard time motivating myself.

 

It doesn't take a great deal of "force of will". It takes a little self control. It is as though your mind has to develop the habit of telling the body what to do, instead of indulging the body.

Body: I want a Krispy Cream donut!
Mind: No, you would really like an apple.
Body: I want to lay around in front of the TV.
Mind: You are going for a 4 mile walk! You will feel a lot better than if you ate a donut.
Body: (doubtful). Ok, I'll try.

This is what Descartes called the mind/body problem, although I don't think he ever had to deal with Krispy Cream donuts.

 

It is hard to deal with Krispy Cream... wish i could find one up here in MN, but it's probably better that i don't

What i call will power you call self control - they're both aspects of the same thing.

As for the mind/body problem, i think applying it in this situation belittles it somewhat. In reality, it's the big question of consciousness. Does it exist as some physical center (the "body"), or is it some spiritual soul (the "mind")? Extending it, you ask the question of monoism versus dualism. dualism is the belief you were targeting - that the mind and the body are separate - one is physical while the other spiritual. the opposing view holds that everything is physical (the mind is part of the body, and has a physical location). Of course, the third view is that everything is spiritual - there is no physical reality, what we think of as a physical reality is simply a construct our spirits create to interpret our interactions with other spirits.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(priusguy04 @ Nov 2 2006, 08:07 AM) [snapback]342442[/snapback]</div>

Yes!!! The disease thing is out of control. But we are entering an age of reduced personal responsibility, after all...

I wonder at what point the idea of personal freedom will be supplanted by the idea that we need a bit more incentive to help people not make bad choices.

I'm not talking about education or public service campaigns...I'm talking about hitting them in the pocketbook, where it hurts.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Nov 2 2006, 04:59 PM) [snapback]342840[/snapback]</div>

The mind is willing but the flesh is weak. It is always my intention to avoid the donuts, cookies, etc but it is hard. I am probably only 5 - 10 pounds overweight. My biking, walking, crunches, etc keep it where it is at. Like many of us, if I was only stronger minded I could get back my slim trim figure.

As far as obesity being a disease, maybe we need to shutdown and destroy all contributors - ice cream, candy, chips, McD's etc - we could be like those brave epidemiologists who put their lives on the line tracking down the sources of diseases. Ours however are right in front of us.

 

I think our efforts are also being thwarted by our Government's subsidizing the production of meat, dairy, and other products.

Meat, for example, is currently artificially cheap in price. It also keeps the working folk full so they can roll the ball up the hill again the next day; and it has that high fat content that triggers our ancestral instincts to save up nutrition for the next famine.

Also, our rush-rush lifestyles seem to preclude eating healthy...it takes so much longer to prep...and there just aren't many healthy, cheap, fast food options out there.

Also, when I was young, there was a large push by the dairy industry and the government to get kids to drink milk and eat cheese...previous generations had suffered from ricketts (sp?) which is due to inadequate intake of these products. Now, however, we're overcompensating far in the other direction.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(prius biker @ Nov 2 2006, 08:21 PM) [snapback]342935[/snapback]</div>

You might be putting your life on the line if you step between the hordes and their contributors.