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June 29th, 2010
11:02 AM ET
Obesity rising; Southern states have highest ratesThe Southern states of the U.S. have some of the highest rates of obesity in the country, according to a new report from the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The report found that adult obesity rates rose in 28 states over the past year, with Washington, D.C. as the only area that showed a decline. Ten out of 11 states with the highest rates are located in the South; Mississippi has the highest for the sixth year in a row. Income disparities may contribute to this trend of obesity being prevalent in the South, said Angela Glover Blackwell, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of PolicyLink. The issue of access and affordability of healthy food is also a factor, said Dr. James Marks, senior vice president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The analysis, "F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America’s Future 2010," is the seventh annual report on obesity from these organizations. The newest report looked at average rates from 2007 to 2009, compared to 2006 to 2008. Obesity rates are above 25 percent in 38 states, and above 30 percent in eight states. Back in 1991, no state had an obesity rate above 20 percent, and the national average was only 15 percent in 1980. In 12 states, the number of adults who say they do not engage in any physical activity rose. Washington D.C. and two states had declines in this area. Diabetes rates have gone up 19 percent in adults in the past year, the report found. Diabetes and hypertension are strongly associated with obesity. The report found a strong association between socioeconomic status and adult obesity rates. About 35 percent of those earning less than $15,000 a year were obese, compared to 24.5 percent of adults earning $50,000 or more per year. There are also racial disparities in the picture of obesity in the U.S. Blacks and latinos have higher obesity rates than whites in nearly every state. More than one third of children and teens are obese or overweight, even though over 80 percent of parents believe that their children are of normal weight. "We’re in danger of raising the first generation who could live sicker and die younger than the generation before them," said Marks. But there are signs of progress, he said. Twenty states and Washington D.C. have nutritional standards for school lunches that are stricter than USDA standards. There are also 20 states that have passed requirements for body mass index assessments or other weight evaluations in schools. iReport: Follow 10-year-old child's obesity challenge Policy interventions that experts think about on the community level address adults as well as kids, said Jeff Levi, executive director of Trust for America’s Health. Making supermarkets more readily available, reducing the number of fast food restaurants, and redesigning neighborhoods to create more opportunities for exercise would be positive interventions for both adults and children, he said. Here's the states with highest rates: 1. Mississippi (33.8%)
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Now that the health Nazis have lowered the standard of "obesity" to 30 BMI, we have an "obesity epidemic." I suggest that we lower the standard of obesity to 15 BMI so the health Nazis can really freak out when most of us qualify. It's ironic that no one cares about Americans' lack of MENTAL exercise, but, then again, we all know that our masters want healthy slaves and would prefer if we didn't think at all. Our "leaders" are hypocrites; they say that we are lowering our life expectancy by being obese, and then, when it suits them, they tell us the retirement age must be raised because our life expectancies are higher than when Social Security was initiated. They tell us whatever they want whenever they want to control us.
I don't have the time to sift through all the "fat hate" here, but as someone who LOST 70 pounds and is now a personal trainer, I can tell all you fat haters with your opinions that, from my education AND my experience, many, MANY factors figure into what makes a person become obese, and there is no "one-size-fits-all" (no pun intended, seriously) approach to weight control. Telling someone who struggles with their weight that they're a "fail" because they're emotionally attached to food is so, so misguided... and telling someone who has a hard time exercising that they're making excuses is also off-base. And sometimes, people struggle with their weight simply because they've got their family history and genetics working against them – like me. I also blame the industries that market fad diets and magical weight loss "solutions" (like acai, hoodia, etc.) and prey upon those who could be better spending their time and money towards something actually useful. I truly believe that the number one factor in healthy, permanent weight loss is EDUCATION about healthy living; tune in to your body to figure out what your own personal challenges are, and then do the homework to help you overcome them. I have to wonder if mandatory health education classes for kids all throughout their compulsory school attendance years would help – or perhaps add a nutrition education component to phys ed classes.
I am not overweight, 175lbs for a 5'10" 47 year old man.
My believe is that you don't even need to exercise to lose weight, just simply CUT YOUR PORTIONS DOWN! Your body does not need that much food, and that's why you are all carrying that extra weight. I do agree with a writer who said: "Big is NOT beautiful... it is unhealthy and, frankly, disgusting."
WOW, the excuses for being obese amaze me. 'It's hot so I have NO choice but to be obese'...geez, cry me a river. Ok, if you don't want to exercise, how about cutting your calorie intake?
I recently dropped 25-30 pounds in the past 6-8 months just from cutting back on portions. I was 175-185, now I am 145-155, which is the weight I should be. I was not obese, but I was definitely overweight.
Some tips which worked for me:
1. Leave some food on your plate (you don't have to finish everything)
2. Instead of eating a big dinner every day, try taking a couple days off each week by eating cereal, salad or something else light
3. The DIET COKE is not helping you, you just ordered a meal with 1200+ calories and you top if off with a DIET COKE?? Yeah, that is going to help. Try ordering a different meal.
4. Fight the urges by drinking water or eating fruit, your appetite will subside eventually
I am not saying this is easy and it does take a conscience effort, but losing weight without exercise is very very doable.
I don't know if it is a result of my recent weight loss, but now I notice, more than ever, just HOW MANY obese people there are in my area, Saint Louis MO.
There is only one way a person can lose weight. Calorie intake MUST be below your calories burned. This can be achieved through diet or exercise. There is no shortcut to weight loss.
Y'all sound like a bunch of bickering school kids! We just cook better down here....so don't be haters!
man, reading everyone's comments on obesity is making me hungry.
I could go for a double-cheeseburger, a large order of garlic fries, and an ice cold pitcher of beer!
Personal responsibility does play a role, but there is also a psychological factor that is extremely difficult for many people to overcome. Our society is one that thrives on instant gratification. What makes us happy right now is what is best. So, our willingness to spend $50 a month on morning drive-thru coffee rather than invest that $50 in a retirement account or a gym membership. Thus, our willingness to eat platefulls of mac and cheese because the calorie density, texture and taste is comforting, rather than think of a thin and healthy future for inspiration to put down the fork.
So, people who make little money and feel like the dregs of society succumb to instant gratification. So, people who feel unattractive because they're overwieght succumb to instant gratification.
This is not an excuse, and this behavior is unacceptable. But it IS understandable. It just takes more than willpower – it takes a change in priorities, a complete shift in mindset to overcome. But it definitely can be done.
Just one more way, among others, in which the generation we are raising will be worse off than we are. And the notion that eating healthy is more expensive than otherwise is completely false. Please visit http://www.cookforgood.com/ for more information.
But if all the southerners were to follow your advice and get skinny, then to whom could you feel superior? Oh wait, I'm sure you'd have no difficulty finding new targets.
I'm fat. I got fat after I had my 2 kids and was too lazy to do anything about it for 9 years. That changed 3 months ago when I did something simple: got off my fat ass and started walking my fat dog. It was painful and hard to do for several weeks, even my dog couldn't make it. But eventually it got better. I now walk my still fat self and dog every morning and evening for 2 miles each time. And we are getting thinner. And I feel better. But if you look at me, I'm still fat. But that's ok, but I'm changing. Slowly and with no support but from my dog, but that's ok.
It's simple to see the cause of fatness day to day.. just look at what people have in their grocery carts. Fat people who aren't changing their life like me have all processed foods in boxes for meals. Thin people and changing fat people like me have whole ingredients to make meals.
what do fat pple do in the summer????? STINK.......Im from north carolina..played sports OUTSIDE at all times of the year and am in good shape...hearing ppl say its too hot is just lazy.....move if you dont like the weather or stop eating junk. minorities make up the majority of the population and the majority of that group in the south dont have the financial backing to eat healthy expensive food...look at mcdonalds ads and the proof is right infront of you...in high school you would watch ppl get free lunch and then pay for like 5 cookies and a bag of chips while drinking a soda or "red drink".....ppl stop making exuses and workout and stop costing me so much money...
Then it is so we propose a Nat. HC fat reduction system for WIC recip. 3 prong system: 1) Mental (to help w/ job loss) 2) Ed. (to inform of the changes they are about to go through) 3) Physical (to keep the "citizen" in shape) all for the grEATer good!! Happy, Healthy, & Informed. and if they don't do the system they are cut from the system immediatly and kicked out of the family citizen group... (sound familiar people..)
Think twice about this approach for it sounds good and fansy but it is a sure shot way to lose your rights as quick as lighting!
To Cold Hard Reality...do you really want the government meddling in your personal business? BTW, the monies spent on Medicare/Medicaid are already more than a single payer health system would cost us in the long run. America is going broke trying to pay for all the elderly that are living longer...perhaps obesity is just nature culling the population.
Just walking around the block a couple of times a day is exercise. Most of what I'm reading is a bunch of excuses. The people who are glorifying an unhealthful lifestyle are in kidding themselves. Being overweight is not sexy, it's not healthy and it's really not okay. It's dangerous to your health and life expectancy. If overweight people woke up one morning slimmed down I doubt they'd be unhappy.
America in general is too fat. Period. And please people, if you're carrying too much weight stop trying to tell us it's okay.
Climate IS a factor with obesity. I've lived in four U.S. states: TX, CA, GA, and MT in that order. I was of normal weight everywhere I lived EXCEPT Georgia. You cannot venture outdoors from mid April until early November. It's oppressive. If the heat index doesn't get you (even at night), the mosquitoes will (especially at night). I was never a fan of fried food, so that wasn't the problem. It's much easier to lose weight or stay thin in comfortable to cold climates where more calories are required just to maintain yourl body temperature. Thanks Montana for bringing me back to normal.
I'm from Alabama, but every so often I travel to many different places to work and I can assure you this problem while maybe worse in the south it's a problem all over the country. My wife and I have never really been overweight but like everyone our age (53) we had put on a few extra pounds over the years. A couple of years ago we bought one of those exercise programs we saw on T.V. (P90X) and to be honest I wasn't sure I was up to it but after about 4 weeks I learned to enjoy it . We both lost 25lbs and we're still doing it, but I think the best part of the program is the cook book that came with it, we've learned to cook a whole new way and believe me we we loved our southern food but after we found out how much better we felt when we ate healthy , we won't ever go back. All I'm saying is find a program and give it a try and I think you will find out this weight thing is not as hard to beat as you think.
being overweight is never good, however.....
for the first time in my life, i experienced the pain of weight gain and i see things with a little more compassion now.
growing up in california i was always very active. i'm also naturally a very happy person with a lot of energy.... i was raised to eat healthy, i worked in several gyms during college, loving playing sports and surrounded myself with like-minded people. in california, most people are in very good shape and value their health, it's just a way of life.
fast forward to the recession.... after a bad break up with a good friend (which left me deeply wounded) i was also laid off when the economy went south. being a career girl in the city, it affected every aspect of my life and devastated me more than anything in my life ever had. it got worse when i had to give up my beautiful condo and move in with my parents (who had relocated out of state to phoenix) because i could no longer afford living in san francisco.
all of this spiraled me into a depression which i had never experienced before.... my way of coping was to eat. i was very out of my head at this time and before i knew it, i had put on 50-60 lbs. i'm 5'2" so this looks WAY bigger than it sounds. so in addition to all of my woes, people started treating me differently (because i was now fat) and men stopped looking at me the same way (even women gave me a "pity" look). after feeling sorry for myself for awhile i finally got mad.
stifled by the 110 degree oven-fire weather of phoenix, i forced myself to go out in the morning and evening for walks. my legs hurt at first because of the extra weight but i persisted. i stopped eating ALL sugary foods. i also lowered my carbs while upping my protein and veggies. i drank NOTHING but water.
i'm finally back down to my original weight, feeling happier and back on track to finding a new job.
while i will NEVER judge another person for being overweight AGAIN– i do wish anyone who is overweight all the strength i can muster to drive them to help themselves. i'm not saying you have to be skinny or even in perfect shape.... just change your lifestyle a little. even if it's uncomfortable (and hot) sometimes. mostly because you ARE loved, and no one want's to see you suffer or be in poor health.
do it for you : ) good luck!
PS: sorry for the long post, i never even usually even post things online. haha
I live in the south, and I am 100 pounds overweight. My mama knew how to cook, and that is the case wth most here in the south. We know how to cook, and we know how to eat. It was 104 degrees today. Yeah, i'm gonna go exercise. Sure I am. I'm proud of my weight, and my girlfriends says there's more of me to love, so I'm proud. (my chest hurts)
That literally made me LOL. (Hopefully you ARE joking)
Obviously the South has problems with obesity. I have lived in the North and now am in the South and am in the overweight category. I take responsibility for my weight problem and make no excuses. I am also taking measures to lose weight and have dropped some. However, I am appalled by many of the crass, sanctimonious comments by many who want to belittle Southerners and overweight people in general. Some of your comments are bigoted to say the very least. You people act like your sh** doesn't stink. Why so much hate for people just because they weigh more than you think they should weigh or live in a region different from yours? Who appointed you as the judge and jury of weight control? I understand the stuff about no excuses, and many people are indeed lazy and unmotivated, but do you all have to be such hatemongers? And by the way, obesity is a NATIONAL PROBLEM on the rise nearly everywhere (though it is consistently worse in the South). That means some of you pointing your fingers at Southerners are probably heavier than you should be too. Pot calling the Kettle Black?
All the time spent commenting on this article could have been spent e x e r c i s i n g !
)
A major part of the overweight/obesity issue is the cost of buying healthy foods. It is much cheaper to buy food off of any menu at a fastfood restaurant, then it is to buy fresh fish or chicken and vegetables. Also, many inner cities do not have grocery stores and instead rely on a corner store to buy their groceries and many of these do not carry fesh produce.
The South has risen again!!!!!! Well the South has risen again in gaining weight all across the board. What an embarrassment that the whole planet knows where most of the "heavies" are located. You all need to put the fork down and get away from the TV. Stop watching the soaps and world cup and you can start with just having one portions instead of three!!! OMG are you kidding me??? Well doubt you all will listen because football season is around the corner and we all know how much you love tailgating and consuming lots of fried whatever. I am betting this region of the country has the most obese people in the entire planet by far!!! How shameful. I know I know that weight scales stop at a certain weight and most of you are well past the numbers on the scale. Oh what to do. Fat people rule.
I wish Sonia would shut her fat mouth! Do you have nothing better to do than to reply to everybody's post on her.....must be nice to have all the free time in the world to hang out on CNN. Your probably obese yourself.....
This article intrigued me, but what really drew me in were the woefully ignorant, misspelled and grammatically incorrect comments. I don't usually read them, nor do I participate, but I felt compelled because some of them are just so darn bad. I believe that this problem can first be addressed by education and a revisit to 9th grade English class. As Americans, we should not only take responsibility for our health, but for how we communicate with each other. It is obvious that we are failing as a society because we are not getting the education that is so desperately needed - in English or in health.
It might not be an actual education issue. Maybe they are just fat fingering on the keyboard.
Native southern gal here. I had my chunky phase in middle school, and I'm pretty genetically inclined to be on the heavy side. My mom has to work out constantly to just be "avergage" and my dad is slightly over weight. Genetics DOES have a lot to do with it. I work out for 1 hour or more nearly every day and eat small portions and lots of all natural fruits, veggies and proteins but it is literally a CONTSTANT struggle for me. It's hard not to be envious of those who can just cut a few carbs and be supermodel skinny. Some of us have to work INCREDIBLY hard just to avoid being obese. I look great now and have a low BMI, but I am by no means a skinny gal. Not everyone is chunky for the same reasons.
If your over weight, and your health is failing, something you can do is start to eat good organic food, Stop eating junk food, and start cleansing your body. Drink good spring water, 22 glasses a day, if you can afford it start taking supliments to help your body heal itself, Vit C, E Cal Mag, Q10, Ginko Biloba, Billberry.
Love yourselves people, Love your bodies, and heal yourselves.
I just moved to The South from the West and my main issue with exercising here is that the air quality is so poor...the heat is no bother, but we have air alert days frequently which prohibits exercise unless you want lung disease later on...
I joined the cheapest health club at a church that I could find....
Everyone's life styles are very busy, and its easier to go to a fast food place and grab dinner for the whole family on your way home from work or off to an event. When you finally get home all you really wanna do is relax sit down and watch some tv. . I get it, I feel the same way to. Also it is easier to let your kids play with the xbox and the ds and what other electronic games are out there today. But that is also the problem, kids dont know how to play outside and use their imagination. I understand people dont like to run or go to the gym, but there are small changes you can make to your everyday life to help improve the quality. If you want a snack try grabbing a apple instead of a bag of chips. Park your car farther away form a building and take the few extra steps. Make small changes and small goals, celebrate the small goals and keep making those small changes to a better life style. Roam was not built in a day and a healthy life and a better quality life wont be accomplished in one day either. Encourage kids to play outside!!
To all of you who are yelling or complaining about people who are overweight STOP!! People have different reasons as to why they are obese, not everyone is lazy, some one could be obese because at some point in their life time someone made fun of them for they way they looked.
Wow! Mention homosexuality and the bigots show up with Bibles in hand pointing out chapter and verse how gays are sinners. Where are they now pointing out what the Bible has to say about gluttony???
Hello??? (crickets chirping)
Wow, first they were blaming it on genetics, then they were blaming it on processed foods and those that sell it, then they were blaming it on depression, then they were blaming it on "everyone else" for ridiculing them and forcing them to eat comfort food (what a contemptible term!), now they're blaming it on the weather!
I'm impressed, though. I always thought fat people had so little energy, but they apparently have a lot–and they devote a good deal of it to making excuses. If excuses were sit-ups, the obesity epidemic in this country would vanish.
I live in South Carolina and have LOST 75 pounds in the last 9 months.
You can blame it on fast food restaurants or the weather or school lunchs (total BS) or god or the tooth fairy or whatever you want but the bottom line is obesity is a problem in this COUNTRY (and many other countries) because of the extreme lack of nutritional and fitness knowledge (and/or concern) in PARENTS. Period.
To all of you accusing me of being fat and lazy. I'm not fat or lazy and I don't live in the South. I live in D.C.. Geez. Just talking about reasons why maybe there is so much obesity in some Southern states. Why don't you people go attack people who really deserve it... like criminals.
JDT you are pretty ignorant. Some people get fat but not by choice. I use to be one of those people until I told myself no more. There are mental Diseases that people can't help unless they get help. I'm an emotional eater. When I get nervouse I eat, when something bad happens I eat. I just took control of the issue. I'm still considered obese, but I've lost 90 lbs in the last 18 months and I'm still losing. Exercise is not always the answer and not always easy. It's the culture here in the states, when kids do well at something they are rewarded with food, and that also carries onto adulthood and then these people pass it down to their kids. Another factor are some of the meds people are on. I have asthma, I'm on a steriod for it, this steroid makes me gain weight. Yes you are disabled and you work out, but not everyone is like you. You're right the easiest thing to do is walk and you're right that's a great start. But before you get upset that people are obese think there could be a reason for it, and the reason might not be just the love of food.
I don't get the argument that being fat is tied to income (at least the causal argument). The last time I checked (which was yesterday), vegetables and fruits are way cheaper than going to the drive through or buying a big slab of meat. I think people are just lazy and uninitiated. If that's how they want to be, fine. Let's stop worrying about them, this country is too crowded as it is.
Yeah I dont get it, either. People say that healthy food is expensive. Yeah, it has a higher sticker price, but I bet a 10-pack of lean chicken breasts last a lot longer than a Big Mac combo lol.
Welcome to The United States of America, Land of the Fat!
It's time for a fat tax. Like the taxes on cigarettes, it won't do any good, but in addition to eating, fat people love to complain.
Oh, please. Now fat people from the South are solely responsible for higher health insurance rates and rising medical costs? What about all of the welfare and medicaid recipients and bushel loads of illegitimate children and illegal immigrants who are draining our system. Let's also not forget about the massive amount of prisoners who demand and receive excellent health care. I am a Southern lady, 5'4" at 118 lbs. I AM NOT obese and I do not appreciate being stereotyped into being fat, lazy and a drain on our health care system. I have a full-time job and pay my taxes like everyone else and I resent having to pay higher taxes, medical costs and insurance rates for all of the above plus more. I have no children but I pay school taxes for every child who attends public school. Do you hear me asking the government to sterilize parents so that I won't have to pay school taxes for their children? Of course not. This is life. Get over it. Mind your own business and stop whining about fat people. Maybe their only enjoyment in life is to eat a piece of fried chicken. They know what they are doing to their bodies. They know they are shortening their life span. It's their choice and perhaps they are too depressed trying to make a living to care what they look like. Maybe they don't want to live to be a ripe old age to see this once wonderful country crumbling around us with snarling, sinfult and hateful citizens doing everything in their power to eradicate any sense of Christianity, morals, ethics and common decency. Our country has gone to Hades in a hand basket and all you people can whine about is fat people? God have mercy on us all.
When Santa goes on a Diet I'll go on a diet! In lolli-pop land it is hard to lose the weight....(give me a break people, if I can get off my keister, u can too. Excuses are like..(fill in blank)) just move thy feet & u can get petite.
Computers, Video Games and other electronic baby sitters. A whole generation effected.
When I was a kid, Mom had to make us come in the house after dark. Now it's not safe for any small kids to be out without supervision.
you also forgot to mention pedifilles, drug dealers, and so on. Kids are not the same as they used to be but their environment isn't the same either.
I'm from Los Angeles but my work would take my all over the South. Man, the food is delicious but it is fatty as heck and there were a lot of obese people around. I also wondered how the heck they dealt with those humid Southern summers.
I am a native Southerner and this is why I think they are all so fat. First, the south has the most uneducated people in the country. Second, the south has the highest number of born again religious nuts who are looking forward to the end of the world. That is why they support over development, ecological pollution, off shore drilling, deregulation of everything. They want Jesus to come back soon so they destroy everything and eat like pigs because they think they are going to their reward in heaven as soon as they have finished making the planet a garbage dump. I moved to the South again after 20 years in other parts of the country and it was like falling into a black hole of stupidity and hatred. On top of it, many fat, stupid, religious freaks from the rest of the country have have moved to the Sunbelt to retire. I had to move away again because the ignorance and hatred was disgusting and my spouse and kids just couldn't deal with it either. When I tell a relative my small child is not to be introduced to specific junk foods or restaurants under any circumstances and they go out and buy the crap for my kid, I know I am dealing with hateful morons who will not be allowed to be alone in a room with my kid ever again. I was even ot accused of using "big words" at work to embarrass people at my job in a bank when I was using everyday English. Sure, there are SOME people in the south who are smart and educated and not religious freaks but they are outnumbered. Southerners are full of self hatred and can;t stand to see someone healthy and fit so they push gross fried foods at you and act offended if you won't eat crap or refuse to go to disgusting restaurants like McDs or Red Lobster or Taco Hell. I don;t care how many people I just offended or how angry I sound- the south sucks and I am glad I was able to escape a second time. Whew!
ALL Right Big Ball'in Bobbie! Way to clumped all that anger into one rant! i hope you breathed inbetween all that. You need a glass of water you are looning a bit red there. Funny you missed all the racial slurs and sexual orn. people. You need a hug Bobbie and then a square kick in the as*.
You are right Elf Snacks – I did forget to mention that in the south people will use the n- word with reference to the president or their neighbors or co-workers and tell homosexuals they are going to hell in public – this is people of all ages and economic levels – You may have misread my post if you expected me to think that way.
The physics of weight loss is simple: you have to take in less energy from food than you use. It's the mental aspect of weight loss that's difficult to control and understand. Everyone is living under different circumstances, so what may work for one person may not work for another. But the physics of weight loss still holds true, which is why some people get so frustrated with obese people and can't understand why someone just can't lose weight. The big challenge is getting the brain and thyroid working together so it's not a struggle to reduce our food consumption to the appropriate levels.
BTW, I've never seen an overweight person who seems to defy the basic physics of weight gain/loss. I've heard "but I don't eat that much!" and sat down to dinner with them and watch them spread 200 calories of butter on a single slice of toast. If you honestly count calories in both your intake and honestly count your calories burned from exercise and sitting idle, you can do the math to learn how to lose weight. It's not rocket science, but then again, it's not as entertaining as texting or watching TV and so nobody does it.
The reason why we have so many obese people in the US is multifold:
We live in a society that thrives on unnecessary consumption, with corporations designing food and products for their ability to produce a profit rather than benefiting the population as a whole. Fast foods are designed to appeal to the palate rather than supply our nutritional needs. Fat, salt, and carbs are cheap and addictive. In a way, the fast food industry is no different than common drug peddlers; they both profit from taking advantage of addiction, and for every dollar they earn, tax payers have to spend a dollar on health care.
Some of the least healthy foods are the cheapest in terms of dollars per calorie. Notice how the worst foods ultimately come from the cheap crops, which are a product of government subsidized farming. If we didn't subsidize the production of corn, corn syrup (which is in nearly every processed food these days) would be more expensive and sodas and cookies would become more expensive. Corn is also fed to cows now, which were meant to eat grass. The corn makes the cows fatter, which is ultimately passed onto consumers and onto your hips. Ranchers love using corn because it's cheap feed and it's easier than moving a herd to fresh grasslands and their cows grow faster on corn. Profit is more important than producing food that's healthy for you.
Our physical landscape has been transformed for moving cars rather than people, and we have trained ourselves to not physically move enough to sustain a healthy body weight. We also have less physical exercise from our work as we have moved away from physical labor. I have to admit, some places in the US are so walking/cycling unfriendly that I refuse to visit them. Kids need to have more play places and spend more time outdoors.
Unfortunately, due to profit motives, political corruption and a willfully ignorant populations, Americans will stay fat. Suggest fewer cars and more government spending on sidewalks/cycling lanes and you'll get laughed at if you get noticed at all. Suggest a tax on fatty foods and you'll hear arguments about big government controlling you and what you eat. Suggest reducing subsidized farming and Monsanto/flyover states will sponsor a billion commercials about how your food prices will skyrocket. Most Americans can't even define what a calorie is, so to expect them to understand how they are being manipulated is unrealistic.
I'm skinny at age 39, but how I do that is simply out of reach for most americans. I bike to work (i can wear exercise clothing at work if I want to) and eat veggies grown from a small garden and I'm very picky about what I eat. I don't have kids, so I can spend my extra time getting exercise or playing in the garden. I'm skinny because I get exercise, I focus on nutritional density in what I eat and I naturally seem to eat the right number of calories.
The big picture here is that we have created a society that values your health and your environment last, which is why it is such a struggle for so many to stay healthy. It won't last...we can become so unhealthy that it will affect our national productivity and quality of life. Until we honestly focus on health and environment, fatties are here to stay.
Good luck!
well put. i'm also not overweight—a 38 y/o married mom of a five y/o boy, normal BMI, size 4-6. However, I was 236lbs after I delivered my son, and a size 18. I took up walking, then speed walking then running. I ran up to 8-9mi, sometimes 10 miles and participated in my first 5K last year. now i stay lean and fit with lots of core strengthening and training. No excuses...i even run in the single digits in the winter and at 4AM-5AM in the summer.
There's no magic formula but one has to recognize the good habits from bad and make a decision to stick to a healthy lifestyle. I walk whenever i can, I take the stairs instead of elevators of escalators. I stay away from processed foods and when i do splurge on a burger, pizza or dessert, i recognize that i'll just have to negate that guilty pleasure in the days to come. not rocket science people.
And for those who say, "I can't run..." BS! I did, with weak ankles and knees and as a heavy woman. If i can, so can anybody. It's not easy, but it's so doable.
Some forum we got here. Most people want to bash fat people and make themselves feel better. Maybe most obese people don't know any better, or that, for them, fresh vegetables are expensive, or maybe they have a food fixation, or they have to eat on the run, or they have too much on their plate to deal with, usually thanks to family, or a million other factors.
Calling them "lazy asses" makes YOU feel good but doesn't solve crap. Also spouting "take responsibility" doesn't solve anything if these obese people don't know how. We have to educate and give them a hand up to help them take responsibility. If it means, OMG, having government PAY for the poor ones to go to a doctor or therapist as needed (because many of them can't afford it themselves) until they get on track to deal with their obesity or babysitting for a neighbor for an hour or so to allow him/her to get a decent workout 3 times a week or etc....then maybe we can make a dent in this mess. Imagine, people helping people.....
Nah, that won't work. That wouldn't give us an ego boost that name calling gives, right?
Very well said bob
The problem they are discussing is entire states of people who are overweight. Calling one person lazy or stupid is pointless and overtly incorrect and nasty. This really is an epidemic, which means even those not genetically inclined to weight issues are feeling the effect. I do know that economics, lifestyle choices, genetics and depression from Katrina, job loss, and even the newer oil issues, as well as the ongoing war is affecting the numbers of people tipping the scales now. I am genetically inclined to be overweight, I don't make a lot of money, I'm raising 2 boys alone since my ex can't find a job and won't pay child support. So I am working all the time and have little time for sit ups. I do try to buy fresh food (that quite frankly isn't as readily available in poorer neighborhoods). I try to spend time playing with my kids outdoors and I do not let them have video games (although this may end up being detrimental to them socially). I don't have the time for either of these things. Having time to have the perfect home, perfect body, unchipped nail polish, perfectly balanced checkbook and perfectly balanced children is a myth when you are a single parent trying to make ends meet. Something has got to give. But that's just me. Each story is different. Poorer neighborhoods in the South don't just have one or two kids that are perfectly healthy. These kids don't have cable, credit cards, access to a gym, fresh foods often and parents or caregivers have to make choices like do I pay the electric bill or the phone bill this month. For them buying a bag of chicken nuggets for $3 that will feed the kids for 2 weeks is more desirable than a bag of apples or frozen broccoli for the same $$, but just doesn't go the distance. These people often don’t have a choice but to buy the kids new school clothes at used clothing stores. Not that all the overweight people are in that tax bracket. But often the hardest working people I know are the poorest and most of them don’t have time to go to a gym. When working more than one job to buy toothpaste and get their kids vaccinations up to date – with no insurance. Anyone who believes the weight problems is just about being lazy and says so in a negative way, is just adding to the problem. It doesn't help call overweight people names and making the children hate themselves. But to appease the haters, I’m sure there are a percentage of the overweight population, that have a good job, no obligations to anyone else, access to the right foods, no pre-disposition to being overweight and they still sit on their couch, eat bad foods and do nothing about there weight. I just happen to think that percentage of people is a lot smaller than you think.
I blame the PC and the internet. There was a time when you had to get up and walk around for books, and you had to write things and walk them to another office, now it just sit hear and click away, answer you phone, send an email, you really don't need to get up or move for a whole 8 hours. I use to work in restaurants where i would stay busy, but then you are surrounded by food and the urge to grab something unhealthy on the go is always there.
Of course, I'm from the south and I can tell you we've got the best tasting food on the planet and we've got plenty of buffets so you can eat all you like. Any one can move to the south and be obese in no time if they aren't careful. There is a good balance that people must find but in the south even if you are watching your weight you are still likely to be slightly overweight. The food is just too good to pass up.
I used to be overweight, tipping to obese. I was in denial... saying things like Big Is Beautiful, and oh, it's just the times....Marilyn Monroe was the sexiest woman of her time and she was a size 16. But I was hiding how I actually felt. (And I think sizing has prob changed anyway, her size 16 isn't our 16) I got a job at a weight loss clinic, where being on the program was mandatory. After I lost two pounds in two days (when it used to take me four weeks to lose two pounds) I got encouraged. Now, I've moved on from that job, but I'm still living healthy and now almost in the healthy weight zone for my height!!!
It feels good to sweat, it feels good to drink water wth lemon instead of pop. (I'm Canadian, pop=soda here) It feels good when people you haven't seen in a long time say "Wow, you look amazing! Can you give me some tips?" It feels good when you discover all the ways you can make a healthy, tasty meal. There are SO many fresh foods you can buy, and now we're in modern times, fruit doesn't have to be apples, orange and pears. It can be guava, mango, pomegrantes! Go for a walk with your friends, or significant other or family after dinner when it's cooler. Go for runs in the morning-- it gives you an amazing zap of energy for work. I did so much more work on days that I exercised in the morning, I swear. Legit, slim doens't equal healthy. My husband, is BARELY normal weight, bordering on underweight, and he smokes, used to drink, eats junk and take out. But since Im the prmary cook in the house, he is slowly eating better and living healthier. But I'm so happy now that I've made a change. I swear, the hardest part was admitting I needed to change.I fit in non-Walmart jeans. I can wear a size XS at Old Navy. I get whistled at lol. I feel sexy again. And best of all..... as a long time sufferer of infertility (having a natural period maybe twice a YEAR) I now am regular, getting a period every month, and going for treatments. And I know that if/when I do get pregnant, I will be healthy and stronger. And hopefully have a healthy, strong baby.
We all have things we need to change. We just have to have the strength to change it.
Here is the reason: sweet tea. Contains pure karo syrup. Get rid of it!
Earlier I saw a sign at a McDonalds in SO. CA for sweet tea, $1.00. Fast food outlets are going to kill America.
As an Alabama resident, I can personally speak to the heat and humidity. As others have said, it can be unbearable. However, I would say that a major part of the problem has to do with the number of rural areas on the South and the inability of most people to walk to even the most routine of locations. I lived in D.C. for a while, and it was amazing to me to see how few overweight people I came across every day, if for no other reason than the fact that they were forced to walk to and from the Metro (subway) for work, school, shopping, etc. That's hard to do in many states where the towns are so spread out that a simple walk to the grocery store would require hours...
The United States if the only country in the world where poor people are fat!! That says a lot!!