# How do women in poverty become obese? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 12, 2017, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123 "2017-07-12T20:14:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Contemplation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Contemplation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contemplation)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/1 "2017-07-12T20:14:14Z")
How do women in poverty afford to eat enough food to become obese? I notice that homeless people, both men and women (though mostly men) are very skinny. However, people that can barely afford to have some place to live in are more likely to become obese if they’re a woman. Poor men are not more likely to become fat than wealthy men. Poor women are more likely to be fat than wealthy women. Some of you have probably seen obese women with skinny children. So how does this happen? ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/2 "2017-07-12T20:18:49Z")
Calories are incredibly inexpensive in our society. Gym memberships are not. ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/3 "2017-07-12T20:25:59Z")
The stress, and often depression, associated with poverty can lead to unhealthy habits, such as smoking, drinking and overeating. At least in some people. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/4 "2017-07-12T20:28:09Z")
Eating can become a way to relieve boredom. Many high calorie foods are amazingly cheap. I checked Walmart and a box of Kraft Mac & cheese is 98 cents. There has to be a few thousand calories in that box. I am surprised that so many people can afford a large bag of Chips. That’s five or six bucks. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/5 "2017-07-12T20:29:32Z")
> [@](#): > > How do women in poverty afford to eat enough food to become obese? Simple…food, especially bad food is very cheap and available to basically everyone (assuming you mean in America). We have a very sedentary society, and so very few people labor hard enough daily to burn off the excess calories created by the abundant amounts of food available to everyone. Those things and stress are probably the biggest reasons. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/6 "2017-07-12T20:30:57Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Eating can become a way to relieve boredom. > > Many high calorie foods are amazingly cheap. I checked Walmart and a box of Kraft Mac & cheese is 98 cents. There has to be a few thousand calories in that box. 1387 calories for a box, 27% fat. And I still eat it sometimes. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/7 "2017-07-12T20:31:21Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Many high calorie foods are amazingly cheap. I checked Walmart and a box of Kraft Mac & cheese is 98 cents. There has to be a few thousand calories in that box. Or approx. 900. It’s easy to underestimate the caloric impact of the food we eat, but let’s not swing the pendulum too far in the other direction. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/8 "2017-07-12T20:37:43Z")
Wealthy men tend to favor pretty women. So that would explain a significant portion of wealthy women being thin. Also, as stated above: Cheap food is loaded with calories. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/9 "2017-07-12T20:38:20Z")
Healthy food – fresh vegetables & fruit, etc. – is quite expensive compared to high-calorie ‘junk’ food. Also, preparing meals from such food takes more time than tossing a frozen pizza into the oven – impoverished people often are working long hours at low-wage job(s), and don’t have time or energy to prepare good meals. Also, I don’t know if your assertion that this only applies to poor women is true. I’ve seen a lot of impoverished guys who don’t have six-pack abs – they look to have a whole keg in that beer belly! ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/10 "2017-07-12T20:48:39Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > …impoverished people often are working long hours at low-wage job(s), and don’t have time or energy to prepare good meals. As this is GQ, I will correct the above - somewhere around 74% of poor households in the US do not have one year-round, full time worker. ([Cite](http://www.heritage.org/jobs-and-labor/commentary/the-myth-the-idle-rich).) Unless “impoverished” doesn’t mean “poor” or “often” doesn’t mean “about a quarter of the time” or “long hours” doesn’t mean full time. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/11 "2017-07-12T20:51:16Z")
Most women I know gained some or a lot of weight in pregnancy. And it takes a lot of time and effort for them to take it off - if they ever manage to take it off at all. And this is middle-class and upper-middle-class women I know. If you have a baby, or two, or three and put on some baby pounds each time and after the child/children are born don’t have the time, means or energy to devote to taking the weight off because you are either suddenly or \*still \*poor… well, I can see that turning in to obesity real quick. And not really with a clear avenue to change. ---
**Author:** ![D18](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@D18](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D18)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/12 "2017-07-12T20:53:57Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Calories are incredibly inexpensive in our society. Gym memberships are not. Here is a [good overview](https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/12/05/a-high-price-for-healthy-food/?mcubz=2) of the incredibly large difference between the cost of a calorie of junk food vs. healthy food. And why do you think is a problem that doesn’t affect poor men? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/13 "2017-07-12T20:57:36Z")
Many of us have been in line at the grocery store. I’ve seen EBT used for large carts of junk food many times. It’s often an obese lady. The guy may he big too but I usually only see the mom shopping. One of the writers at Cracked came from a poor background. He’s written several articles. I recall he mentions learning to cook eat better food after he had a better income. A lot of people never learn to cook. A big Mac and fries is their daily meal. Washed down with a Big Gulp. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/14 "2017-07-12T21:06:42Z")
Guy maybe big too. Cook and eat better. Typing on phone and time out got me. ---
**Author:** ![Orwell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/dfb087/32.png) [@Orwell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orwell)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/15 "2017-07-12T21:07:55Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > As this is GQ, I will correct the above - somewhere around 74% of poor households in the US do not have one year-round, full time worker. ([Cite](http://www.heritage.org/jobs-and-labor/commentary/the-myth-the-idle-rich).) Unless “impoverished” doesn’t mean “poor” or “often” doesn’t mean “about a quarter of the time” or “long hours” doesn’t mean full time. > > Regards, > Shodan I agree. I’m not buying the noble, busy poor people who can only afford boxed mac-n-cheese. It’s about poor food choices. Lots of poor people get food stamps, and could spend it on produce and meat and prepare decent meals rather than potato chips and processed food. Fat people, whether rich or poor, are eating too much and too much of the wrong thing. I strongly suspect that fast food, sodas and snacks are the worst culprits. Now, if you are talking about eating out at restaurants, then there is some validity to the idea that cheaper restaurant meals are less healthy. It costs more to eat healthy at restaurants. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/16 "2017-07-12T21:10:22Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > As this is GQ, I will correct the above - somewhere around 74% of poor households in the US do not have one year-round, full time worker. ([Cite](http://www.heritage.org/jobs-and-labor/commentary/the-myth-the-idle-rich).) Is this an excerpt from a book or something? It has no cites, and it refers to figures that aren’t there. I’m curious to know how part-time work hours are factored into these stats. ---
**Author:** ![Nansbread1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Nansbread1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nansbread1)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/17 "2017-07-12T21:14:30Z")
This thread appears to relate more to USA. I will provide a contrary view. In Indian cities many women are quite large. They dont appreciate the fact that they are obese as their usual attire, the Saree, covers most of their body. They are mostly from familes with steady income. They mostly always cook at home and eat at home. Usually carbohydrates laden food. And the women, much more than men, pile on the pounds. Its probably a age related and child birth issue. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/18 "2017-07-12T21:16:07Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I checked Walmart and a box of Kraft Mac & cheese is 98 cents. Sure, if you’re rich enough to afford the name brand stuff… ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/19 "2017-07-12T21:16:34Z")
The Frontline episode [Poor Kids](http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/poor-kids/) is a great look at poverty. I highly recommend you watch it. It’s available on PBS streaming. They showed poverty from the view of the kids, including their diet. None of the kids went without food–food is way too cheap–but the food they ate was terrible. Their dinners consisted of $1 frozen pizzas and soda. Basically, their diet was lots of fats and empty carbs. It’s easy to put on weight that way. One thing that is not clear is why they are eating such low-quality foods rather than more nutritious but still cheap foods, like beans rice, and homemade tortillas. Their food costs could still be pretty low, but they’d have a much better diet. I’m sure the reasons are complex. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123/20 "2017-07-12T21:20:00Z")
> [@Orwell](#): > > I’m not buying the noble, busy poor people who can only afford boxed mac-n-cheese. It’s about poor food choices. Lots of poor people get food stamps, and could spend it on produce and meat and prepare decent meals rather than potato chips and processed food. I don’t deny that poor food choices may be involved, but poor people often have fewer choices available to them. For example, too many poor people live in [food deserts](http://americannutritionassociation.org/newsletter/usda-defines-food-deserts) where things like fresh fruits and vegetables aren’t readily available. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-women-in-poverty-become-obese/791123.md?page=2)