Americans keep getting fatter

[223790]

Hum, I do not know all areas of work, I am in academia.
In this area I believe that US americans put a lot of emphasis on the fact that they work. In reality it seems to me that they are very much 9 to 5 including the meal time at noon. In Zurich we do 8 to 7 with 45 min break at noon (plus work at home).
It is true that many US laborers have 2 or 3 jobs: I remember my super in NYC who had 3 jobs, He for sure managed to gather more money, but the overall quality of his work and his reliability was poor.

It's true in Canada. I work 2 jobs to earn a good living. Unfortunately, we are taxed so heavily here that after working a certain amount, it's not worth working anymore because you might as well have your paycheque forwarded to Ottawa! The more you earn, the more tax you pay (called the progressive tax system). It doesn't give you much of an incentive to work more. :frown1:

 

[Hotrocker]

I think the divide is mostly poor/wealthy. Poor people are more likely to be obese/fat than the affluent. Reason being that bad/empty calories are a whole lot cheaper than calories derived from good, healthy stuff like fruits, veggies, lean meats, etc.

This. Also, the affluent have the money to get a trainer and usually have the time to work out when they're out of the office (but that is, of course, a generalization).

 

[Horaven]

Food isn’t to blame for the fattening of America. It is laziness, greed and competition. Everything has changed in the past 30 years, single income households are now at an all time low of 7-10% of the population. Now granted I’m not talking about the poor, obviously there are people that need to work multiple jobs just to survive. I am speaking about the plump middle lower through middle upper class.

People are consumed by having the same TV, the same SUV the same size house as the people around them and they will work themselves to death and reach into the bowels of debt that run deeper than the Vajayjay of a Tiger Woods’ mistress.

What ends up happening is that along with the lowest % of single income homes of all time, you also obviously, have the lowest percentage of a stay at home parent of all time. So, yes the foods that are offered are getting worse, tons of salt, fats, carbs but all made to taste good. But the key is speed, not the taste. When you have two parents working 40-60 hours a week each the last thing they are going to do is spend any time over dinner. A microwave button is a lot easier to press than chopping up raw produce. Cost doesn’t even come into play, if you shop smart you can by fresh products even cheaper and have it stretch farther than a vast majority of fast foods.
In reality, if people in the middle class range can buy a smaller home with only one garage and not have a plasma TV in every room, there is no reason why you can’t survive on one income, or one income and perhaps a part-time job.

As a kid our junk food was the occasional pizza, mom would always make something. May not be the best thing in the world all the time, but it was “made and prepared” not popped out of a can, picked up at a drive-thru, or heated in a magic box. We had one TV, if Dad was watching something, too bad go outside and play. We had one radio, if Mom was listening to it when she was cooking, too bad go outside and play.

I remember getting an Atari in 1977, I was allowed to play for like 30 minutes and then my ass was forced to go outside so “my brain didn’t rot”. Instead of pacifiers and blankies, kids and teenagers are kept quiet with Xboxes, the internet and cell phones. Parents burning themselves out working their asses off just to pay Best Buy don’t have the time or energy to parent. So the whole thing is a perpetual circle, the parents are out of shape, the kids are out of shape. Everyone is committing slow suicide by the way of the Whopper and super sized fries. Values are gone, some of us still remain and teach our kids the right way and try to show them what is really important in life. But that number as the ones I talked about at the start of this is also dwindling.

And I know what I’m talking about, I had a heart attack 2 months ago. I’m in decent shape, stress and having an affinity for ribs and beer is what did me in. So now I live a life of lean meats, chicken and veggies but I’m ok with that, because the key phrase there is “I live a life”.
So in my opinion, a fatter America is also a greedy instant gratification America. We lost our way and sadly unless something really horrible happens, I don’t see us coming back. It's not just one or even two things that's the cause it's a list of behaviors that is plaguing us.

 

[Bbucko]

Of course, it's easier to recognize your limitations when everyone tells you that your limitations are what make you special. I guess we're all special.

This shows how tenuous a grasp you have on the concept of nuance.

Here's an example for you: I've suffered from migraine since my mid-20s and finally got serious about finding the cause and treatment options in my mid-30s. An MRI revealed that I have massive disc degeneration and bone spurs throughout my cervical spine.

I attempted modifying my work to a small degree, but being a merchandiser in a furniture store still involves lifting a lot of furniture, and eliminating the merchandising aspect of my job not only limited my marketability but my earning potential as well, so I kept doing it. I refused to accept that I had a limitation.

This lasted until I wound up very nearly breaking my neck moving a walnut armoire up a flight of stairs and required eight months of rehabilitation before I could walk again without a cane; when stressed or if I've lifted anything (such as a dining chair) the wrong way, my limp returns, sometimes for days.

My limitations don't make me "special", except to the extent that a man of my age should have a much greater range of mobility than I do. But refusing to accept my limitations is one of the main reasons why a 25+ year career in the furniture industry ended much too soon.

Even the quickest peek at my gallery will show that I do not have a weight problem at all. In fact, I have pretty much the same body I had in my early 20s.

 

[B_OtterJoq]

You, sir, might enjoy this:
Asinine America | Meme Generator

I, sir, did! Very much! Thanks.:smile:

 

[vince]

I, sir, did! Very much! Thanks.:smile:

There's a lot of hate on that site.

Appropriately named I guess.

 

[D_Sir Fitzwilly Wankheimer III]

I think the divide is mostly poor/wealthy. Poor people are more likely to be obese/fat than the affluent. Reason being that bad/empty calories are a whole lot cheaper than calories derived from good, healthy stuff like fruits, veggies, lean meats, etc.

BS there are plenty of rich fat asses out there. it's all about sloth and gluttony.


Nothing worse than getting stuck with a fat ass next to you on a long flight!

 

[faceking]

FAT!

 

[Calboner]

FAT!

You fat fatty! Give me those fat books!

 

[TomCat84]

Fruits, vege's and meat are a whole lot cheaper then junk fast food and candy bars... and the best part.. their prices aren't inflated with taxes...

I don't think it rich against poor either... diet information and exercise tricks are all over the net and need not be paid for...A poor person can just as easily be a health freak as a rich one.

I reckon its just environmental influence and personality type that makes people choose to be healthy and self conscious about their looks or vice versa (A certain degree of vanity certainly helps us keep thin)... If your family and friends are health conscious, its more likely that you will be too... The rich probably have more peer pressure to look perfect as well.

Wrong. Healthy food is a lot more expensive PER CALORIE than junk food.

 

[Smaccoms]

Wrong. Healthy food is a lot more expensive PER CALORIE than junk food.

I do not believe raw produce is too different in cost than junk food, I do not have extensive proof to show you, but that is what I believe.
I believe using that as a reason to not get in shape or at least eat right is just an excuse.

 

[mitchymo]

an island with the richest pastures set in a sea full of cod, haddock and salmon.

Absolutely loved this part. What a wonderful way of looking at the UK.

If this thread was actually a nation describing thread, i would like to see 'veined with concrete' inserted after pastures.

 

[TomCat84]

Even I, as a 26 yr old, have noticed a change from when I was growing up. Like many posters on here before me have said, staying inside on a nice day (plentiful here in San Diego) was just not an option. Many times I was locked out of the house and told to go run around with the kids down the street. I could only come back in if I had to go to the bathroom. We would ride our bikes everywhere, run around, and get dirty and sweaty. Playing Nintendo or computer games was saved for a special occasion, or for when it was especially cold or rainy. My mom/dad would take my sister and I to McDonald's maybe once or twice a month at the most, and we always got the kid sized portions. We sat down for dinner at the table almost every night (and I was usually not allowed to leave the table unless I had eaten my veggies), and in season, I had Boy Scouts, soccer practice, swimming, etc. There was always the "fat kid", but never more than one or two. Now, go to any elementary/middle/high school, and there are tons of fat kids. Times have changed.

 

[mitchymo]

I do not believe raw produce is too different in cost than junk food, I do not have extensive proof to show you, but that is what I believe.
I believe using that as a reason to not get in shape or at least eat right is just an excuse.

I agree. Problem i think is that the best quality goods are sold to the highest bidder, driving up prices and leaving the poorest with the leftovers, junk food.

 

[TomCat84]

I do not believe raw produce is too different in cost than junk food, I do not have extensive proof to show you, but that is what I believe.
I believe using that as a reason to not get in shape or at least eat right is just an excuse.

Like I said, per calorie it's more expensive. Take a large red apple. It has, what....80 calories? One red apple at the Food4Less (grocery store warehouse owned by Kroger) usually costs 75 cents or so, give or take 10 cents depending on sales. Now take your standard cup of noodles. They cost maybe 25 cents, for a total of 200+ calories.

 

[B_OtterJoq]

There's a lot of hate on that site.

Appropriately named I guess.

Yeah...at second glance, I have to agree with you.

Still, some of the captions were rather funny, IMHO.

 

[B_OtterJoq]

You fat fatty! Give me those fat books!

What a great film!

 

[mitchymo]

My rule is....if you're going to eat beef, eat steak! Leave the beefburgers alone!
If you are gonna eat chicken, eat chicken and leave the nuggets alone.

Too much processed food is BAD!

 

[TomCat84]

I guess I was just pointing out the cost at the point at which the consumer buys the finished product, not what it costs to grow/make said product. I really have no idea of the true cost of manufacturing/growing food.

 

[B_OtterJoq]

I do not believe raw produce is too different in cost than junk food, I do not have extensive proof to show you, but that is what I believe.
I believe using that as a reason to not get in shape or at least eat right is just an excuse.

I agree with you, but it still is a matter of availability in some cases. Many inner-city "grocery" stores just don't stock a goodly amount of produce. We have to find a way to make healthier, less-processed foods available to more people.