USA Obesity Epidemic - how fast it happened!!! 25 years!

[brett]

My sister and at least one of my SIL's are in the process of eating themselves into an early death. We have no control over it other than to observe on the sidelines.

Nothing that we can do about it. But we can take care of ourselves so that is what we do.

 

[MRG]

And Kerrygold is grass-fed. I wish I could get it where I live...
I used to get it at TJ's - They usually had it at a reasonable price.

Try Walmart.

 

[athena53]

<snip>
But when I buy cheese, I expect it to be a milk product, not the processed chum of some unknown plant.

The article goes on to talk about "dangerous" or whatever. That's just horse-rubbish, and another problem with our society (sensationalized journalism.) I'll gladly eat cellulose at lunch when I have that broccoli salad. Instead, my problem is with just all the C.R.A.P. we get in our food now. Yogurt is a great example, because most of the major brands now fill it with all kinds of stuff to make it pudding-like.

I agree- I have no problem with eating broccoli and consuming a little inherent cellulose in the process. I DO have a problem with Taco Bell selling me a "beef taco" with cellulose filler even if the latter came from vegetables. They're thinning out the beef with something cheaper. Same with using cornstarch and other thickeners in yogurt, or the horse meat scandal in Europe, where it turned out that many products labeled as containing beef really had horse meat. It's legal to sell horse meat for human consumption there, but not if you label it as beef.

 

[JoeWras]

I agree- I have no problem with eating broccoli and consuming a little inherent cellulose in the process. I DO have a problem with Taco Bell selling me a "beef taco" with cellulose filler even if the latter came from vegetables. They're thinning out the beef with something cheaper. Same with using cornstarch and other thickeners in yogurt, or the horse meat scandal in Europe, where it turned out that many products labeled as containing beef really had horse meat. It's legal to sell horse meat for human consumption there, but not if you label it as beef.

Wow, that really is "horse-rubbish."

I think a bit of that scandal made it to the USA in the form of meatballs at Ikea.

 

[tmm99]

Try Walmart.

I'm in Canada...


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[MRG]

I'm in Canada...


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Ahhh.

 

[JoeWras]

Thanks for the discussion here. Based on it, I decided to go out and get some kefir.

This stuff is awesome! A good, tangy, sour. I like! I will be using this as a base for my smoothies.

Frankly, I was scared off by Wikipedia describing the 100s year old tradition of beating goat milk in a goatskin bag. Pictures of the grains didn't help either.

But nevermind, it isn't any of that. It is better than buttermilk. Good stuff. Thanks for adding some diversity to my diet.

 

[Marita40]

Another kefir convert! I love the stuff.
A few years ago my young nephew was traveling across Slovenia and reported back that old women were selling some kind of horrid soured, thick, fermented milk at roadside stands and that the Slovenes loved the stuff. I realized it was kefir!

 

[audreyh1]

Thanks for the discussion here. Based on it, I decided to go out and get some kefir.

This stuff is awesome! A good, tangy, sour. I like! I will be using this as a base for my smoothies.

Frankly, I was scared off by Wikipedia describing the 100s year old tradition of beating goat milk in a goatskin bag. Pictures of the grains didn't help either.

But nevermind, it isn't any of that. It is better than buttermilk. Good stuff. Thanks for adding some diversity to my diet.

Yeah - if you like tangy sour, which we do, it's really great.

DH just decided to put away his kefir making for a while. He's going to use the Lifeway plain instead which he really likes. Less work. He's a very busy man - retired, but super busy.

 

[Freedom56]

I visited my doctor at UCLA Health for my annual physical a few weeks ago. He calculated my BMI at 24.9 and stated we are not going to see another person in your shape the rest of the day. He went on to state that the average BMI for patients now is in the range of 28 to 34. I told him that if UCLA was serious about combating obesity, they should start with their own employees where 35% are obese. It's like going to a personal trainer who is fat and smoking. If the norm for employees in the healthcare industry is overweight to obese, why would you expect patients to be any different. He was stunned and then stated that I had a point.

On the subject of dieting - You can eat what you want as long as you work it off. For my wife and I, we found that the best form of exercise is cycling. There is nothing like a 35-45 mile bike ride to burn off calories and keep your heart healthy. Start off slowly with 10 mile rides and work your way up. You don't have to spend thousands on a bike. A $400 bike will do. Buy an indoor spin bike if you don't want to cycle on the roads.

 

[Nemo2]

I told him that if UCLA was serious about combating obesity, they should start with their own employees where 35% are obese. It's like going to a personal trainer who is fat and smoking.

When my late wife was in (and out of) hospital while dying from cancer, she was visited (while I was in the room) by a 'dietitian' (why, I have no idea).......I told the young woman that she couldn't possibly be a hospital dietitian because she wasn't overweight.

I was just amazed by the number of staff, (in that particular hospital anyway), who were overweight/obese.

 

[Chuckanut]

Calories In Calories Out (CICO) may work for some but for most of us it has to many problems. It sounds simple, but it forgets that the food that contains the calories has an effect on our body that we can't ignore.

CICO tells us what is happening but not WHY it is happening. For example, every restaurant in your town is having a slow business day except for one that is very crowded. Your friend says it is because more people have gone into the restaurant than come out of it. Well.. yes. But, why? Later you find out that today is the 10th anniversary of the opening and the owners was serving all food at the same prices as 10 years ago and giving a free dessert with each meal. A real deal!! Which information tells you what you really need to know? CICO tells you what is happening. The 10th anniversary information tells you why it is happening. Isn't that what you need to know?

This book explains it a lot better than I can.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00W22IKBK/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

 

[NW-Bound]

... For my wife and I, we found that the best form of exercise is cycling. There is nothing like a 35-45 mile bike ride to burn off calories and keep your heart healthy. Start off slowly with 10 mile rides and work your way up. You don't have to spend thousands on a bike. A $400 bike will do. Buy an indoor spin bike if you don't want to cycle on the roads.

I am not a bike enthusiast, but thought that a cheap Walmart bike would let one burn more calories sooner. Let some air out of the tires too. Non?

 

[Nemo2]

For example, every restaurant in your town is having a slow business day except for one that is very crowded. Your friend says it is because more people have gone into the restaurant than come out of it.

"Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded."

Yogi Berra

 

[NanoSour]

And Kerrygold is grass-fed. I wish I could get it where I live...
I used to get it at TJ's - They usually had it at a reasonable price.

I have to get my unsalted KG at TJ and it's not cheap compared to Costco. But delicious in bullet coffee. KG is a miracle food and we go through like a hot knife through butter. A box per week since we started on it 3 years ago.

 

[Ronstar]

....
On the subject of dieting - You can eat what you want as long as you work it off. For my wife and I, we found that the best form of exercise is cycling. There is nothing like a 35-45 mile bike ride to burn off calories and keep your heart healthy. Start off slowly with 10 mile rides and work your way up. You don't have to spend thousands on a bike. A $400 bike will do. Buy an indoor spin bike if you don't want to cycle on the roads.

I agree. For me, biking is the best exercise to burn calories without the impact issues caused by running.

 

[Chuckanut]

I picked up a loaf of bread at the store today that prominently featured whole grain on the label. The ingredients included "cellulose." They are putting sawdust in the bread.

And we wonder if the food we eat might be causing our health problems!

I have started making my own bread. I even grind the wheat berries so I have fresh flour. Yummy stuff. And no cellulose.

 

[Music Lover]

I visited my doctor at UCLA Health for my annual physical a few weeks ago. He calculated my BMI at 24.9 and stated we are not going to see another person in your shape the rest of the day. He went on to state that the average BMI for patients now is in the range of 28 to 34. I told him that if UCLA was serious about combating obesity, they should start with their own employees where 35% are obese. It's like going to a personal trainer who is fat and smoking. If the norm for employees in the healthcare industry is overweight to obese, why would you expect patients to be any different. He was stunned and then stated that I had a point.

My previous doctor was a 5'0" woman who weighed about 200 pounds. She told me that my BMI of about 26 was approaching the "high" range, but she seemed to be completely unaware that I had more muscle mass than average and reasonably low body fat. She just looked up my weight and height on a BMI chart. I held back from commenting on her weight.

I now have a new doctor who doesn't take BMI seriously. She is more concerned with how much fat a person is carrying as opposed to their overall weight.

 

[Bir48die]

My previous doctor was a 5'0" woman who weighed about 200 pounds. She told me that my BMI of about 26 was approaching the "high" range, but she seemed to be completely unaware that I had more muscle mass than average and reasonably low body fat. She just looked up my weight and height on a BMI chart. I held back from commenting on her weight.

I now have a new doctor who doesn't take BMI seriously. She is more concerned with how much fat a person is carrying as opposed to their overall weight.

I was commenting on this when my computer crashed. I am in agreement that BMI is one general look at the "obesity" issue but has limitations described above. I made a decision to put on some more muscle mass this year so I can continue to do strenuous tasks around the house. So, my BMI took a tick up. I would be more interested in muscle/fat ratios.

 

[Chuckanut]

Another kefir convert! I love the stuff.
A few years ago my young nephew was traveling across Slovenia and reported back that old women were selling some kind of horrid soured, thick, fermented milk at roadside stands and that the Slovenes loved the stuff. I realized it was kefir!

It also may have been Ayran or something similar. I first had it in Turkey. It's 50% [-]Greek[/-] Turkish yogurt, 50% milk, and some salt. Some people will add savory herbs to it also. Very good stuff.

 

[Amethyst]

My Dr., who is about my age, was very obese when I first went to her. Back then, I didn't go to the Dr. as much, so didn't see her for a couple of years. When I saw her again, I didn't recognize her. She'd lost at least 100 pounds. It's been at least 5 years now, and she's kept the weight off.

She has never commented on my BMI or weight, but when my total cholesterol soared to 233, she said she saw no need to put me on statins because I was fit and had very high HDL. So she does notice.

My previous doctor was a 5'0" woman who weighed about 200 pounds. She told me that my BMI of about 26 was approaching the "high" range, but she seemed to be completely unaware that I had more muscle mass than average and reasonably low body fat. She just looked up my weight and height on a BMI chart. I held back from commenting on her weight.

I now have a new doctor who doesn't take BMI seriously. She is more concerned with how much fat a person is carrying as opposed to their overall weight.

 

[Chuckanut]

This is what convinces me that the people who suggest that something in our diet throws off homeostasis - just a bit - are right. I went through the typical male scenario - +1 pound/year for 40 years. But then I dumped all that weight and am stable at my reduced weight for 4 years. Was I somehow just happening to pick the wrong foods with precisely 10 calories/day of excess and now I just happen to be able to avoid those specific 10 calories a day (or even 100 calories/day)?

Same. I was on the slow climb up. Every 3-5 years I needed to buy the next size pants. Finally, I tried eliminating sugar and lost 10 pounds without doing anything else to control what and how much I ate. Then I went to a lower-carb diet (about 70-100 g of carbs a day). I lost another 15 pounds for a grand total of 25 pounds. I literally rolled my weight back 10 years, maybe more. I gained about 5 pounds back in 6 months, but have stayed steady since then.

I realize that what was relatively easy for me may be very hard for others. Individual metabolism makes a huge difference. I think the best route is for a person to eat good, real food (little sugar and processed foods) , exercise and let their body be what it is. Unless one has a diagnosed medical condition that affects weight, there is not much else we can do.

 

[athena53]

She has never commented on my BMI or weight, but when my total cholesterol soared to 233, she said she saw no need to put me on statins because I was fit and had very high HDL. So she does notice.

I'm glad to hear this. I think my cholesterol is at about that level, but HDL is 96. I tried statins once and they gave me terrible tendonitis so every time a doc suggest them again I ignore them. My BMI is 20.4 and my blood pressure is so low it falls into the "athletes and children" range so I think I have a few good years left.

 

[sengsational]

On the subject of dieting - You can eat what you want as long as you work it off.

That's what the doctors have been saying for decades. Isn't that what you heard as you exited your annual physical for the last 40 years?

"Eat less. Exercise more."

Too bad it's completely unhelpful advice. The doctor's might as well have been saying:

"Work-up and appetite, then try to ignore being hungry."

Unless the action includes something that addresses or affects satiety, it's doomed to fail.

 

[Nemo2]

That's what the doctors have been saying for decades. Isn't that what you heard as you exited your annual physical for the last 40 years?

"Eat less. Exercise more."

Too bad it's completely unhelpful advice. The doctor's might as well have been saying:

"Work-up and appetite, then try to ignore being hungry."

Unless the action includes something that addresses or affects satiety, it's doomed to fail.

How about "Exercise more. Eat better." ?