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Yes, but the poblem is that proper diet and exercise is not something that humans evolved to give much thought about.
Before industrialization, people worked hard to stay alive every day and ate what was available.
Nowadays, with the abundance of food, it takes a conscious effort to eat healthy and exercise.
Fruits and vegetables make up maybe 10% of a supermarket, while in ancient times this was the basis of our diet.
It feels like running the gauntlet if you want to eat healthy.
Also, what exacerbates the problem is the addictive nature of sugar, fat and salt.
These things were scarce and highly valuable in the stone age, that's why they taste so good on our tongues.
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I wonder what would happen if we were to take the money that treating obese people cost and gave it to them as a reward for living healthier. Could be interesting...
Edit : Looking up some number, that is 147 billion $ for 2008 in the US, 100 million obese. That's 1470 $ per person per year. How is that for an incentive... I know this is not doable, but still an interesting figure imo.
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On May 30 2014 04:44 Cynry wrote:
I wonder what would happen if we were to take the money that treating obese people cost and gave it to them as a reward for living healthier. Could be interesting...
Edit : Looking up some number, that is 147 billion $ for 2008 in the US, 10 million obese. That's 14700 $ per person per year. How is that for an incentive... I know this is not doable, but still an interesting figure imo.
You're off by an order of magnitude buddy. Do you honestly think there are just 10 million obese people in the US?
The real problem is how easy it is to overeat on our modern diet, and the inability of people to exercise self-discipline when it comes to what they eat. All this is compounded by the time and effort saved to go out to eat even though it's possible to eat quite healthily for a pretty low monthly amount (easily less than $200/month for a single person).
Personally I am the lighter side of "normal weight" (per BMI) but I am skinnyfat due to lack of exercise and overconsumption of sugars. I'm trying to work on it, but it's hard. I can't imagine what it's like for legitimately fat people.
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Haha, turns out I looked too quickly and watched the figure for 17/24 years olds. Seems like it's more like 100 million.
Seemed like a lot of money, should have checked...
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In Austria we have in fact such a system.
Although it's only for self-employed people.
The idea is that you first have to visit the doctor to get a health check.
The doctor then gives you some health milestones that you have to reach after half a year.
If you are able to reach them, you will have to spend less money on future medical treatments.
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not gonna happen, if we ban all fast food like Macdonald and etc...
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On May 30 2014 05:31 urboss wrote:
In Austria we have in fact such a system.
Although it's only for self-employed people.
The idea is that you first have to visit the doctor to get a health check.
The doctor then gives you some health milestones that you have to reach after half a year.
If you are able to reach them, you will have to spend less money on future medical treatments.
I'd love to know more about that. Any hint ?
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Bad food is just too cheap and easy, for all us lazy asses...
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Plenty of good and decent food that's also really cheap.
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I don't think prices are a good explanation for this. Most people act irrational with their money all the time, be it food, drugs, phones/cars or any other items they don't need. I think it all comes down to addiction and anxiety.
I mean, most western countries have alarming suicide rates, it's getting very hard to make sense of anything that's happening in the world, less so of our lifes. If you can eat your way out of the anxiety that all this creates, you can be sure people will eat a lot.
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Why would anybody eat healthy when they're too busy wrapped up in their own melancholy after work and could get a massive burger for a dollar in under a minute?
Obesity is a product of our culture, and it sucks; but we all should have seen it coming. I'm not that surprised.
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On May 30 2014 04:13 Zealously wrote:Show nested quote +On May 30 2014 03:56 danl9rm wrote:
"Junk" food does not cause obesity. Obesity is caused by eating too much food. Obesity is caused by not properly burning the excess calories you get from eating too much food, if I'm not mistaken. Trust me, I eat a lot of food (not always good food), but it isn't a problem because I exercise properly. This isn't just an issue of too much food or bad food, it's a combination of factors.
Fair enough on your first point, but to me, you're not saying anything different. Either way, you're eating too much food. No one can burn infinite calories. Your body has some allowance for "extra" calories when it is introduced to it, and can burn them accordingly, but if you eat too much, you will gain weight. It really is that simple.
For example, and I'm pulling these numbers out of my rear, if my body can live off 1800 calories and I eat 1900, I still may not necessarily gain weight. For one, I'd probably eat less the next day because I'd be less hungry. Even if I habitually ate 1900 but only needed 1800, I may not gain weight. However, if I ate, here it comes, too much food, I would gain weight. My body can't handle anything and everything I throw at it. There is a limit.
What it comes down to is physics. If you aren't eating the food, you will not be gaining the weight. I know some people hate simplistic statements, but I hate to complicate things unnecessarily.
edit: grammr
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On May 30 2014 06:23 danl9rm wrote:Show nested quote +On May 30 2014 04:13 Zealously wrote:On May 30 2014 03:56 danl9rm wrote:
"Junk" food does not cause obesity. Obesity is caused by eating too much food. Obesity is caused by not properly burning the excess calories you get from eating too much food, if I'm not mistaken. Trust me, I eat a lot of food (not always good food), but it isn't a problem because I exercise properly. This isn't just an issue of too much food or bad food, it's a combination of factors. Fair enough on your first point, but to me, you're not saying anything different. Either way, you're eating too much food. No one can burn infinite calories. Your body has some allowance for "extra" calories when it is introduced to it, and can burn them accordingly, but if you eat too much, you will gain weight. It really is that simple. For example, and I'm pulling these numbers out of my rear, if my body can live off 1800 calories and I eat 1900, I still may not necessarily gain weight. For one, I'd probably eat less the next day because I'd be less hungry. Even if I habitually ate 1900 but only needed 1800, I may not gain weight. However, if I ate, here it comes, too much food, I would gain weight. My body can't handle anything and everything I throw at it. There is a limit. What it comes down to is physics. If you aren't eating the food, you will not be gaining the weight. I know some people hate simplistic statements, but I hate to complicate things unnecessarily. edit: grammr
You both miss the point though. Of course obesity manifest itself through some physiological process, but that doesn't explain why people eat too much/exercize too little in the first place.
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The best way to avoid it is to avoid having junk/fast food around you. That way you don't think about it or are unable to get it when you have that craving :D
Also BMI isn't exactly the best way to calculate obesity...
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On May 30 2014 06:31 Cynry wrote:Show nested quote +On May 30 2014 06:23 danl9rm wrote:On May 30 2014 04:13 Zealously wrote:On May 30 2014 03:56 danl9rm wrote:
"Junk" food does not cause obesity. Obesity is caused by eating too much food. Obesity is caused by not properly burning the excess calories you get from eating too much food, if I'm not mistaken. Trust me, I eat a lot of food (not always good food), but it isn't a problem because I exercise properly. This isn't just an issue of too much food or bad food, it's a combination of factors. Fair enough on your first point, but to me, you're not saying anything different. Either way, you're eating too much food. No one can burn infinite calories. Your body has some allowance for "extra" calories when it is introduced to it, and can burn them accordingly, but if you eat too much, you will gain weight. It really is that simple. For example, and I'm pulling these numbers out of my rear, if my body can live off 1800 calories and I eat 1900, I still may not necessarily gain weight. For one, I'd probably eat less the next day because I'd be less hungry. Even if I habitually ate 1900 but only needed 1800, I may not gain weight. However, if I ate, here it comes, too much food, I would gain weight. My body can't handle anything and everything I throw at it. There is a limit. What it comes down to is physics. If you aren't eating the food, you will not be gaining the weight. I know some people hate simplistic statements, but I hate to complicate things unnecessarily. edit: grammr You both miss the point though. Of course obesity manifest itself through some physiological process, but that doesn't explain why people eat too much/exercize too little in the first place.
stress. +cost
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On May 30 2014 06:35 CorsairHero wrote:Show nested quote +On May 30 2014 06:31 Cynry wrote:On May 30 2014 06:23 danl9rm wrote:On May 30 2014 04:13 Zealously wrote:On May 30 2014 03:56 danl9rm wrote:
"Junk" food does not cause obesity. Obesity is caused by eating too much food. Obesity is caused by not properly burning the excess calories you get from eating too much food, if I'm not mistaken. Trust me, I eat a lot of food (not always good food), but it isn't a problem because I exercise properly. This isn't just an issue of too much food or bad food, it's a combination of factors. Fair enough on your first point, but to me, you're not saying anything different. Either way, you're eating too much food. No one can burn infinite calories. Your body has some allowance for "extra" calories when it is introduced to it, and can burn them accordingly, but if you eat too much, you will gain weight. It really is that simple. For example, and I'm pulling these numbers out of my rear, if my body can live off 1800 calories and I eat 1900, I still may not necessarily gain weight. For one, I'd probably eat less the next day because I'd be less hungry. Even if I habitually ate 1900 but only needed 1800, I may not gain weight. However, if I ate, here it comes, too much food, I would gain weight. My body can't handle anything and everything I throw at it. There is a limit. What it comes down to is physics. If you aren't eating the food, you will not be gaining the weight. I know some people hate simplistic statements, but I hate to complicate things unnecessarily. edit: grammr You both miss the point though. Of course obesity manifest itself through some physiological process, but that doesn't explain why people eat too much/exercize too little in the first place. stress. +cost
I'm pretty sure it is mostly just laziness and a lack of giving sufficient fucks about it.
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Laziness is pretty much an empty concept nowadays. It's an easy label that hides much deeper issues imo.
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On May 30 2014 06:31 Cynry wrote:Show nested quote +On May 30 2014 06:23 danl9rm wrote:On May 30 2014 04:13 Zealously wrote:On May 30 2014 03:56 danl9rm wrote:
"Junk" food does not cause obesity. Obesity is caused by eating too much food. Obesity is caused by not properly burning the excess calories you get from eating too much food, if I'm not mistaken. Trust me, I eat a lot of food (not always good food), but it isn't a problem because I exercise properly. This isn't just an issue of too much food or bad food, it's a combination of factors. Fair enough on your first point, but to me, you're not saying anything different. Either way, you're eating too much food. No one can burn infinite calories. Your body has some allowance for "extra" calories when it is introduced to it, and can burn them accordingly, but if you eat too much, you will gain weight. It really is that simple. For example, and I'm pulling these numbers out of my rear, if my body can live off 1800 calories and I eat 1900, I still may not necessarily gain weight. For one, I'd probably eat less the next day because I'd be less hungry. Even if I habitually ate 1900 but only needed 1800, I may not gain weight. However, if I ate, here it comes, too much food, I would gain weight. My body can't handle anything and everything I throw at it. There is a limit. What it comes down to is physics. If you aren't eating the food, you will not be gaining the weight. I know some people hate simplistic statements, but I hate to complicate things unnecessarily. edit: grammr You both miss the point though. Of course obesity manifest itself through some physiological process, but that doesn't explain why people eat too much/exercize too little in the first place.
The problem isn't that we eat too much but that what we eat is too dense in calories. Our bodies simply haven't adopted to the fact that a glass of soda contains as much sugar as it does, or that a little bit of chocolate can easily cover 10% of your daily energy requirement.
That's why people achieve very good results by simply cutting out "processed" food or simply eat more natural. Everything that our ancestors ate is a lot less calorie-rich than what we eat today.
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The higher the animal fat consumption, the higher the rates of obesity. The China Study is still relevant, and provides a working, proven solution to the problem.
Now if we could just get people to eat rice and vegetables instead of beef and cheese we would be doing fine.
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@Nyxisto Still wrong imo. Not the phenomen you describe, but seeing that as the issue. There are ways to take care of yourself, people just won't do it for some reason.
Too much stress/anxiety would be my guess, as I already said.
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EPT
