Combating the obesity crisis

[Mistelten]

Here is somewhere we can take this discussion:
1. I don't have this stats: who are the "fat" people in America? Race, gender, social class, etc etc etc...
2. I notice that my weight tend to go up a lot when I eat out frequently or eat other fast food such as instant noodle, craft dinner. Why is that? Who tend to eat out more and why? Who can afford the time and money to cook nutriential and healthy meals three times a day?

1. Race: I'm not going to touch that one.
Women automatically have a higher level of body fat than men, and they are less likely to have a menial labor job, they are also more likely to go on eating binges.
People in the lower income 'class' are more likely to be overweight. They're also more likely to be drunks, and these two are connected.

2. You just need to pick the right things when you eat out. The low carb fad isn't the answer, but staying away from greasy stuff(like fries) is a good start.
Instant noodles have almost nothing for you, plus they're full of the real enemy-saturated fat.
Instant foods and preserved foods you really need to look out for. Learn the ingredients you don't want, and start reading the labels.

[robbyjo]

Nice stats from here:

Nearly one-third of U.S. adults are obese (BMI > 30).[8]

All adults (20+ years old): 61.3 million (30.5 percent)
Women (20+ years old): 34.7 million (33.4 percent)
Men (20+ years old): 26.6 million (27.5 percent)

Less than half of U.S. adults have a healthy weight (BMI > 18.5 to < 25).[9]

All adults (20-74 years old): 67.3 million (33.5 percent)
Women (20-74 years old): 36.7 million (35.3 percent)
Men (20-74 years old): 30.6 million (31.8 percent)

The prevalence has steadily increased over the years among both genders, all ages, all racial/ethnic groups, all educational levels, and all smoking levels.10 From 1960 to 2000, the prevalence of overweight (BMI > 25 to < 30) increased from 31.5 to 33.6 percent in U.S. adults aged 20 to 74.[9]The prevalence of obesity (BMI > 30) during this same time period more than doubled from 13.3 to 30.9 percent, with most of this rise occurring in the past 20 years.8 From 1988 to 2000, the prevalence of extreme obesity (BMI > 40) increased from 2.9 to 4.7 percent, up from 0.8 percent in 1960.3,8 In 1991, four states had obesity rates of 15 percent or higher, and none had obesity rates above 16 percent. By 2000, every state except Colorado had obesity rates of 15 percent or more, and 22 states had obesity rates of 20 percent or more.11 The prevalence of overweight and obesity generally increases with advancing age, then starts to decline among people over 60.[3]

The age-adjusted prevalence of combined overweight and obesity (BMI > 25) in racial/ethnic minorities—especially minority women—is generally higher than in whites in the United States.[8]

Non-Hispanic Black women: 77.3%
Mexican American women: 71.9%
Non-Hispanic White women: 57.3%
Non-Hispanic Black men: 60.7%
Mexican American men: 74.7%
Non-Hispanic White men: 67.4%

(Statistics are for populations 20+ years old)

Studies using this definition of overweight and obesity provide ethnicity-specific data only for these three racial-ethnic groups. Studies using definitions of overweight and obesity from NHANES II have reported a high prevalence of overweight and obesity among Hispanics and American Indians. The prevalence of overweight (BMI > 25) and obesity (BMI > 30) in Asian Americans is lower than in the population as a whole.[1]

-- Rob

[Xiao Gui]

Thanks for the stats!

So I have a question: are half of Americans in US all lazy and unhealthy? or are there other explainations for the national phenomon for obesity?

And to make it more interesting: are all lazy and unhealthy Americans fat? No, and why is that? So can laziness with poor diet explains obesity?

[Mistelten]

I don't know that any stat can really get you into a view of most Americans. It isn't like you go down the street and see mostly fat people though. It's a quagmire. You want a healthy population, but you don't want to have a chauvinist population. There are a lot of problems contributing to it, but I think simple decadence(which isn't condemned by pop culture) and child abuse(which is what it is to let your kid grow up eating crap all the time) are the biggest problems.

[Exar Kun]

Peopl should take responsibility for their own health.
Amazingly enough the "put down the fork" diet works amazingly well if combined with the "get off the couch" action programme has been known to work wonders.

There are a few unlucky mesomorphs that have serious problems at a genetic level but most people just need to exercise some willpower and decide that their health is more important than the last piece of cheesecake.

I have absolutely no sympathy for anybody who doesn't take the right road.Yeah,it's hard but gimmicks and blaming others will get you nowhere.

[Iain]

I wonder how many of those overweight people on that list are computer users, I find these darn machines can be the biggest cause for inactivity. Time just flys by when you are online chatting to friends.

[urbanterrorist]

Obesity has become turned into epidemic size proportions. I think the thing to blame is technology and all of it's stupid little perks. I've seen people both fat and skinny blow away hours and hours in front of the TV, or gazing at the internet.

[Mistelten]

Agreed, agreed, and agreed. All good points. TV or internet can waste you away if you let it. At least you're learning something sometimes, but you have to keep it moderated. I like internet, so I sort of jump/check in between whatever activities I'm doing. If I sat at it for hours straight though, my eyes would probably pop out.
TV is more conducive to weight gain because your hands are free, and you know what that leads to. I'm not innocent of habits. I tend to want to do something when I watch TV and I have an oral fixation(thanks to an old tobacco habit), so I ussually just chew on straws/plackers/etc when I'm watching movies or whatever.

I do like that 'get of the couch' program. Another thing that's amazing is products aimed at lazy people(like a remote control for the lightswitch). And I'm not talking about the elderly. They can find a use for such thing, but we know they're not the only patrons of these products.

[Emperor Sun Quan]

In the end the only person who can help you is yourself, this applies to a lot of things in life especially losing weight imho.

[Frank Benedetto]

As a current "sufferer" of this "epidemic", I must say that I enjoyed reading the responses in this topic.

I also agree with what's being said. The only thing that's really keeping anyone hefty is themselves. And yes, a healthy diet and regular exercise are great ways to lose the weight and help keep it off.

However, if I may, I'd also like to add a couple more things to the list: positive thinking and encouragement. I'll admit that you tend to care more about trying to lose the weight when someone isn't insulting you every 15 minutes. I'm sorry, but calling me and every other overweight person out there "Fat (verb/adjective)" isn't going to inspire a lot of us to do something about it. It may actually lead to you having to pick up all your teeth off of the ground with one eye.

Seriously, though. While you should always believe in yourself, I'll admit that it's hard to get in shape when it seems that you're the only one who does. My point: a little positive encouragement might go a long way in helping some of us hefty folk overcome that which ails us. But, whatever. I'm just spouting off.