Back to the childhood concerns of the OP, do y’all think its appropriate for parents to stop their kids from eating as much as they want? I mean, assume the parents prepare healthy food for their kids and don’t allow them to snack on junk. But if the kids want seconds (or thirds, fourths) on their vegetables, what then? What about if they – perhaps more realistically – just want more meat?
My inner libertarian has always resented being told what to do, and desired anything “forbidden” so I tend to think that prohibiting them from eating might just exacerbate the problem, not to mention potentially instilling the type of mindset that can lead to anorexia. On the other hand, kids certainly can get fat off of Good For You food consumed in sufficient quantities, so I am torn.
Wow, this is more complicated than I thought. It is amazing how many reasons there are to be overweight.
[ul]
[li]Books about nutrition are confusing and misleading.[/li][li]Websites on nutrition are confusing and misleading.[/li][li]I have a disease.[/li][li]The government lies to us about nutrition.[/li][li]I have a slow metabolism.[/li][li]I am poorly educated.[/li][li]I don’t have a car.[/li][li]I don’t have a local grocery store.[/li][li]Healthy food is expensive.[/li][li]Healthy food take too long to prepare.[/li][li]Food labels are misleading.[/li][li]I don’t have a kitchen.[/li][li]My school doesn’t make me exercise.[/li][li]I have a sedentary job.[/li][li]Portion sizes are too large.[/li][/ul]
No matter how many times someone says “eat fewer calories than you burn” there is always another reason not to.
kimera,
You’re not really denying the link between poverty** (pdf warning)** and obesity are you? Raising a family in poverty is not really like being young, single and poor. It’s only a part of the problem, but it does contribute.
OK- here you’re saying that it makes you unhappy to eat healthy foods, and if that’s the way you feel, fine. But in your earlier post- the one I previously quoted- you said that you can’t understand why anyone would waste time eating a salad. Please tell me that you can at least *recognize * that eating a salad is more beneficial to ones health, and may be more desirable to some people than eating ice cream, and that those people don’t consider it a waste of time. Surely you can understand why a healthy person might prefer to eat healthy food rather than Cheetos and Twinkies, even if you choose not to.
Regardless of how many fat people there are, the recipe for weight loss is *extremely * simple: eat less, eat better, and exercise. Works 100% of the time.
Of course. Until you get into the nuts and bolts of what it means to eat better. Then it becomes extraordinarily complicated. Add in emotional factors, poverty factors, and a dozen other factors, and things aren’t so simple anymore.
The recipe for overcoming depression is simple as well: Just be happy.
A number of people were saying that they can’t get their mind around someone being able to eat a large ice cream, or wanting to eat that much ice cream in a sitting. I was merely stating that my mind can’t get around someone being able to eat a large salad or wanting to eat a large salad.
That’s all I meant.
That’s not always a fair assessment of fat people. Compulsive overeaters report trying every diet out there.
I was hoping my sarcasm would have been more obvious.
Yes, if there are learned sages about weight loss, it’s fat people. They are the undisputed experts on every diet out there. Which is why when some smarty-pants know-it-all comes along and says “It’s simple, eat less and exercise more”, you just have to say “Wow, you have no fucking clue.”
Actually, for most people, it’s not complicated. It may not be easy but that doesn’t make it too complicated for people to understand.
There are the occasional pitfalls, like “low fat” treats that are actually high calorie, and “health” muffins with twice the calories of a cheese danish, but the vast majority of overweight people would see results if they were more active and ate fewer calories.
It really is just that simple, instead of going to coldstone and shovelling a pound of ice cream and candy in your face, go for a walk. It may not be easy for people to make the choice, but don’t pretend they don’t know the choice exists.
Interesting. So, when the obesity problem recently hit this country, what knowledge did we lose?? What did our ancestors know that we lost when the internet arrived?
Please please don’t take this the wrong way, as I don’t mean this next bit to be critical at all.
Your post stuck out to me because that does not seem like a healthy relationship with food. Eating something should never determine your happiness. Going out with friends and eating at a restaurant- sure, that’s ok to make you happy. Having a particularly good meal might raise your spirits, sure.
But if every single time you eat a certain item, your mood changes, well, that isn’t good. The fact that you say not eating something you like is “devastating and intensely uncomfortable to my body and spirit” is a huge sign of a problem.
Have you ever considered talking to a dietician or a psychologist about that relationship?
Unless, of course, you were just exaggerating to make a point. In which case, I’ll go back to my turnips.
My point is-you had a situation that prevented you from losing that weight. Other people may have something that prevents them from doing the same. Ideally, our bodies WOULD burn fuel properly, but sometimes things get fucked up. It would be nice if you didn’t automatically assume that everyone else is just fat and lazy, but when YOU have trouble losing weight, it’s for a LEGIT REASON.
Malacandra, I’m amazed you remember that throw away remark. BTW, I said I only did that once in a while, if there were a bunch of broken chips left, and I didn’t want to toss them out. (My dad brought me up to feel EXTREMELY guilty about throwing food away.) Fuck off.
And salads don’t taste good? Ice cream tastes great, yeah, but it’s also very rich-I would get full way before I could finish the entire pint. (Yuck).
Salads ARE tasty. Maybe not as good as Ben and Jerry’s, but I love salads. I always have. Lots of dark leafy greens-I love spinach!-tomatos, some chick peas, mushrooms, onions, a wee bit of cheese and a tasty, zesty dressing. Maybe something crunchy on top, like a few croutons. (Making your own from stale bread is pretty simple). It’s crunchy, spicy, and full of different flavors and textures-what’s not to love?
MogTM, if they want seconds on the veggies-well, GREAT! Veggies are good! Let them have some more peas, or more carrots.
As for it being “easy” to lose weight, well, it may be easy in theory, but in practice, it’s hard to change one’s life style habits.
That was kind of my point: I have it once, maybe twice a year. For the rest of the year I can have a dessert that doesn’t involve getting a backhoe out to load the marshmellows without feeling deprived. I can eat a lot of food. Whether it’s ice cream, tofu or anything in between, I can eat a huge amount of it. That doesnt’ mean that I do. Except for a couple of times a year. And I’m not fooling myself into thinking at every pay day = twice a year.
It also does not mean that I have a questionable relationship with food. I think I have a pretty good relationship with food if I can indulge every once in a while without obsessing over the calories and thinking about it non-stop. And that I can make healthy choices without getting out the calorie counting book to check.
As far as “eating OK” goes, of course I’d like to say that I eat only whole grains and organically grown vegetables with the exception of a delicately steamed fish. But I’m not a liar so I won’t. When I say “eat OK” I mean don’t eat anything like those kids on Maury or even half of what I see when I eat out - the deep fried, extra cheese, extra meat people. I eat sensibly but also within my budget. That means canned vegetables, hamburgers, fruit, pancakes, and lots of frozen chicken.
I know there is a choice between going to coldstone and shovelling ice cream and taking a walk. I choose to shovel the ice cream very occasionally. It’s not going to kill me.
And as far as eating healthy being complicated: I’m no rocket scientist and I’m on a very tight budget. If I can do it and have healthy, normal weight, active, thriving kids I would think anyone can.
Finally (whew!) I am logging out for the weekend (no home computer, there’s that strict budget) so I am not ignoring your replies or doing the internet equivalent of “la la la I can’t hear you”. **Bippy ** - that wasn’t all directed at you, I just kinda got on a roll. A whole wheat one.
**Swan ** - I haven’t read the whole thread (guilty as charged) so I may be answering the wrong question. But what did we lose with the advent of the internet that our ancestors had? The desire to get off our asses, I’m guessing.
Yes, many chronically poor people are fat. But correlation does not prove causation… often there is a third variable that causes both effects. (See this link for more info on *post hoc * reasoning.)
So why are chronically poor people fat? IMO the root cause is laziness. A lazy person is more likely to be poor (vs. a disciplined and motivated person). A lazy person is also more likely to sit around and eat. Ergo, chronically poor people also tend to be fat.
