Obesity becomes worldwide epidemic, US is the fattest

[Lucy Hamilton]

What is an alternative? The Fast Foods are cheaper and no time is needed to prepare them, people just pick them up. So while there is that situation, already fat and also already obese people are going to continue to eat that crap and even worse feed it to their children.

That's part of living in a free society. People have the choice to be glutenous pigs and ruin their health if they want to. The way to change it is through education.

Educating people to eat healthily and not fill their body with crap has been happening for a long time, so I'm not sure if the education is the issue, I think it's more they are just lazy, what they need is motivation to eat better foods and also to exercise and I'm not for a kid gloves approach with fat lazy people, I'm for hitting them with a 2x4 approach.

I would support full on Fat Shaming even, make them feel ashamed at how they look as part of a motivation to lose weight.

And none of that works. Fat Shaming only makes them hungry but they will hide it. My mother was grossly obese. It killed her. No amount of fat shaming, ridicule, nagging, cajoling or threatening moved her one iota. When she died, she had both legs amputated. It STILL did not stop her from eating. It did not stop my dad from being her enabler. Eating healthy had no meaning. All obese people believe they are eating healthy.

Well first of all, I'm sorry about your mother.

I'm not sure if all obese people think they are eating healthily.

I think there are several issues, one is that some people have a food addiction, which like all addictions drugs, alcohol, gambling etc they are unable to control because the addiction controls them. These people have a clinical illness, a psychological addiction to eating, like with other addictions, they know it's going to destroy their life eventually, but they are unable to stop this self-destructive behaviour.

Another issue is that some people are basically pigs and will eat anything and everything if it tastes sweet or if it's cheap.

There also are different types of obesity, there's obesity which is very overweight and then there's morbid obesity, which is if they don't stop eating to the degree they do it is going to literally kill them.

I have been extremely interested in obesity since my mom died. Even the people who are basically pigs that will eat anything just cannot stop. There is nothing you can do or say that will cause the fat person to stop eating. I'd look at my mother stuffing food in her face with both hands (the truly obese stop using utensils, they can't fill their face fast enough with forks or spoons). I would look at her and say "Just stop. Just stop doing it." And of course she couldn't. At that weight the stomach of the obese person is as big as a watermelon. They cannot get full. Ever. They are in a perpetual stage of starvation.

You don't have to answer this if it's too intrusive, but when did your mother start eating in an out of control way? Was there some type of Trigger ie. a traumatic experience or depression or something?

It sounds like she was addicted to eating and although the eating was detrimental to her, she was getting comfort from doing it, which is like most addictions, comforting yet ultimately self-destructive.

 

[MaryL]

If obesity is an epidemic among the poor in America when other poor counties have pot bellied kids with their ribs all sticking out. We get rich white vegetarians that are exercise freaks that cycle 20 miles a day, I only cycle 10 miles a day.I see nobody cycling, but I see all these homeless people and even more wetbacks packed into homes and with 10 cars per house. Got to love it.

 

[IsaacNewton]

"I drive by and I'm like, welll I don't wanna lose money on this, I'll get 80 of 'em"

 

[EvilCat Breath]

That's part of living in a free society. People have the choice to be glutenous pigs and ruin their health if they want to. The way to change it is through education.

Educating people to eat healthily and not fill their body with crap has been happening for a long time, so I'm not sure if the education is the issue, I think it's more they are just lazy, what they need is motivation to eat better foods and also to exercise and I'm not for a kid gloves approach with fat lazy people, I'm for hitting them with a 2x4 approach.

I would support full on Fat Shaming even, make them feel ashamed at how they look as part of a motivation to lose weight.

And none of that works. Fat Shaming only makes them hungry but they will hide it. My mother was grossly obese. It killed her. No amount of fat shaming, ridicule, nagging, cajoling or threatening moved her one iota. When she died, she had both legs amputated. It STILL did not stop her from eating. It did not stop my dad from being her enabler. Eating healthy had no meaning. All obese people believe they are eating healthy.

Well first of all, I'm sorry about your mother.

I'm not sure if all obese people think they are eating healthily.

I think there are several issues, one is that some people have a food addiction, which like all addictions drugs, alcohol, gambling etc they are unable to control because the addiction controls them. These people have a clinical illness, a psychological addiction to eating, like with other addictions, they know it's going to destroy their life eventually, but they are unable to stop this self-destructive behaviour.

Another issue is that some people are basically pigs and will eat anything and everything if it tastes sweet or if it's cheap.

There also are different types of obesity, there's obesity which is very overweight and then there's morbid obesity, which is if they don't stop eating to the degree they do it is going to literally kill them.

I have been extremely interested in obesity since my mom died. Even the people who are basically pigs that will eat anything just cannot stop. There is nothing you can do or say that will cause the fat person to stop eating. I'd look at my mother stuffing food in her face with both hands (the truly obese stop using utensils, they can't fill their face fast enough with forks or spoons). I would look at her and say "Just stop. Just stop doing it." And of course she couldn't. At that weight the stomach of the obese person is as big as a watermelon. They cannot get full. Ever. They are in a perpetual stage of starvation.

You don't have to answer this if it's too intrusive, but when did your mother start eating in an out of control way? Was there some type of Trigger ie. a traumatic experience or depression or something?

It sounds like she was addicted to eating and although the eating was detrimental to her, she was getting comfort from doing it, which is like most addictions, comforting yet ultimately self-destructive.

There were times when we were homeless and starving living on the streets. None of us were over eating, we sometimes had nothing. Maybe that triggered her. After various incidents, my dad, step father really, was forced to get a job and they were forced to get a stable place to live, that's when she started really digging in. Which doesn't seem to make a lot of sense because she often said that those days of homelessness were the happiest days of her life. It was perfect freedom.

I've been watching "My 600 pound life" trying to get some answers as to why she was the way she was and why she chose to die.

When she died, I just quit eating altogether. I almost died. It was very hard for me to eat anything. Healthy food was a joke. I wouldn't eat that either. But, I got involved with the gym life and weight lifting. There was a huge emphasis on nutrition so that saved me. I still have some problems. For instance, I can have a piece of pie, or cake, but if I see the whole pie or cake, I won't touch it. Not even a slice.

Obesity is a hard subject to understand. Merely eating fast food doesn't make one obese. It will make them chubby, but not obese. If anything, the rate of obesity is just part of the suffering of mental illness that we have spreading like a stain over the whole country. We have more alcoholism, drug addiction, overdoses, sexually transmitted diseases, AND obesity, than ever before. It's not a separation condition. It's the same condition, different aspect.

 

[CarlinAnnArbor]

Watching this board over the last 10+ years....learned that one simply does not get in the way of con-servatives and their junk food.

Michael Moore's a conservative?

 

[CarlinAnnArbor]

What is an alternative? The Fast Foods are cheaper and no time is needed to prepare them, people just pick them up. So while there is that situation, already fat and also already obese people are going to continue to eat that crap and even worse feed it to their children

I've never found that to be true. The problem is, too many get used to the taste of these manmade foods, and they become addicting.

I load up on fresh fruits and vegetables and lean meats. It's no more expensive, and you don't have to spend a lot of time. It's just the diet most Americans have become addicted to. Most Westerners are following down that path.

I have to admit, most Americans are disgustingly obese. I just choose not to go thru life looking like that.

 

[basquebromance]

i want every single human being to be in extremely good physical condition.

if i were president of a country, i would mandate it and deport all the fat people!

 

[CarlinAnnArbor]

i want every single human being to be in extremely good physical condition.

if i were president of a country, i would mandate it and deport all the fat people

Well, the Founders gave us a country where we're free to live our lives as WE choose, not a dictator who thinks he knows what's best for you.

I prefer their vision.

 

[basquebromance]

i want every single human being to be in extremely good physical condition.

if i were president of a country, i would mandate it and deport all the fat people

Well, the Founders gave us a country where we're free to live our lives as WE choose, not a dictator who thinks he knows what's best for you.

I prefer their vision.

i would be a libertarian president on everything except this point.

 

[Bonzi]

Convenience and lack of discipline is the root of the problem. Unless people learn to deny themselves, nothing will change