I have lost 15 pounds since January by eating what I would say resembles a "French" diet. The food is better, I have more energy and I do not miss the old ways.
BTW, congrats BR I am proud of you and I know what you mean about watching others stuff themselves. It is just insane.
I'm sure you'll all be delighted to know that I have a giant theory about this:
I blame it on our puritan forbears.
See, somewhere in our national consciousness we continue to hold the notion that pleasure is the devil's work. That includes all pleasures of the senses, including food, sex, and leisure. The body is the site of sin, and "giving in" to its wants is to displease God.
So we deny ourselves any sense of "luxurating" in our body.
What happens? What should have been invited in and celebrated comes back as addiction, compulsion, and joyless excess.
So: we lack a sense of eroticism and sensuality in everyday life, but are beset by sex as guilt ridden perversity. We sexualize our children, objectify our bodies, and turn sex into a marketing tool that only creates frustration and anxiety.
We are suspicious of taking our time ("idle hands" you know), so we "professionalize" leisure time, turing it into "extreme sports", vacations that try to pack a year's worth of "fun" into a week, and reasons to buy all the latest "gear" that ostensibly maximizes the efficiency of play.
And we won't eat (and won't enjoy) the food that could really sustain us, lingering over meals with friends or family, savoring the flavors, reveling in the preperation, so we go out and eat hug amounts of fat, salt, and sugar.
Our poor bodies are crying out for care and love, but because we can't or won't give them what they need, we are driven to a frenzy of "junk" love, stuff that doesn't really satisfy, setting up a viscous circle of hunger that never gets fed.
I would call that the "American paradox". Endless want in sea of plenty.
Overweight and obesity in the U.S. occur at higher rates in racial / ethnic minority populations such as African American and Hispanic Americans, compared with White Americans.
Ah, I see my statement of the facts have been censored. How nice.
Still, the fact remains that hispanics and blacks are more overweight than White Americans. Whether this is genetic, or cultural, it certainly begins to point toward an explanation.
What your link shows is that black and hispanics have a somewhat higher (10% or less) incidence of obesity within their population.
That isn't even remotely close to describing obesity in America as being a mostly black or hispanic thing.
Yes and don't forget the correlation with the social status :
Quote:
Socioeconomic Status (SES)
Overweight affects African American women and men across all SES levels.
Minority women with low income appear to have the greatest likelihood of being overweight.
Among Mexican American women, age 20 to 74, the rate of overweight is about 13 percent higher for women living below the poverty line versus above the poverty line.
Without having anything to support this claim, I believe that it is a combination of shitty fast food (McDonalds / Burger King / KFC type stuff), poverty, and lack of nutritional education: Inexpensive, low-quality food (replete with grease, salt, starch, fats and processed sugars) being consumed in over-large portions primarily by people at the lower end of the economic scale. All the cola definitely doesn't help.
The fact that so many Americans live in suburbia, where the only way to get around is by car, may also be a factor. If you drive everywhere, how are you ever going to work off the breakfast cereal, morning danish, lunchtime Whopper and fries and evening Dominos with cheasy bread followed by Ben & Jerry's in front of the TV?
The particular disparity with France could also be attributable to French cultural emphasis on good quality food.
Edit: A lot of posts came in while I was writing this, so most of what I've said is essentially redundant. I think the skewing of obesity stats towards black / Hispanic definitely has a lot to do with income. I see waaaaayyy more people filling the fast food places in my neighborhood in downtown Brooklyn than I do near my office on Park Avenue.
My general impression is that people all over Europe are more or less equal (on average) in body weight, and a LOT less likely to be overweight than Americans.
The best (and worst) example of this are children. Over here when a kid (2-12yrs) is somewhat chubby it is an exception and a rarity. In the US it seems the standard.
Also, i'm amazed how Americans focus on calories and carbs and dieting and excercising, we talk about (some of) these things over here, but not as often. Food is considered a pleasure and a natural thing over here, in the US it's often considered a problem or a necessity.
What to do about it? Well, i guess we are simply more traditional over here. 3 meals a day, fruit inbetween, one meal with meat, vegetables and pasta or patatoes or rice. Not too much television. Transportation by bike or by foot.
A few anecdotes.
When i visited the states a few months ago i notices the 'low carbs' notation on all things, i didn't know what it was so i asked (in dutch they are called 'koolhydraten'), and to my surprise: over here they advertise foods that are high on carbs (mueslix, pasta, ...) as healty bcause they digest easily and provide enough energy to last 'till the next meal.
Another thing: the lack of fresh food and the abundance of 'light' food. I mean, normally food is healty as it is, and in a balanced diet you don't need 'light' foods. What you probably do need is fresh food.
Over here two of the three meals are traditionally bread-meals, but in the US it's almost impossible to get a 'real' bread (one u get from the bakery, preferrably a multi-cereal bread, not wrapped in plastic, not kept in the fridge, not necessary to toast and that gets bad in 2 or 3 days).
Than you have soda's (why not water, or milk, or orange juice), snacks (of course, if u don't have decent meals), ...
Finally you have the fact that life in the US is quite a bit faster (or at least that's how it's perceived) than over here, probably encouraging fast food intake, high sugar consumption, ...
Oh, one more thing, we drink (much) more alcohol over here. Beer or wine in stead of coke. Not sure if that is a healthy thing, but it makes the meals more pleasant :-)
ps: for those who travelled, isn't it amazing how coca cola tastes different in different places. I could barely drink the US coke on my visit there.
Instead of my lengthy, unconsistent and lousy-english reply, i should've simply reffered to the above article.
No at all, I think your post was a very useful perspective. Particularly the stuff about carbs. I think we have really gone off the rails in re "low carb" mania.
While overweight and obesity has reached epidemic proportion for all Americans, it is most prevalent in minorities. Researchers are not completely sure why blacks, Hispanics and American Indians and Alaska Natives gain weight at faster rates than whites but many believe that it is a combination of genetics, environment, culture and socioeconomic factors. Many obesity-related diseases, including diabetes, hypertension, cancer and heart disease, have higher rates among various members of racial and ethnic minorities compared with whites.
Did You Know
Black women become obese twice as fast as white women.
Hispanic men become obese 2.5 times faster than white men; however black men do not surpass white men in weight until after the age of 28, when they become obese 2.2 times faster than white men.
Sixty-nine percent of black women are overweight or obese, compared with 58 percent of black men.
Mexican-American boys tend to have a higher prevalence of overweight than black or white boys.
According to a report in the Annals of Epidemiology, Hispanic women who gain 30 pounds or more after age 18 appear to double their risk of getting breast cancer.
Among American Indians and Alaska Natives ages 45-74, 25.9 percent of men and 31.3 percent of women are overweight.
There is no mention specifically of income disparities being the cause of these distortions, so I think to toss the entire distortion on income disparities is a bit naive.
An interesting possible series of propositions I just formulated in my head is that poor people, in general, are obese because they are lazy. Inactivity is a major cause of obesity. Which also explains why they are poor. In that case, I could deduce that minorities in America are lazy.
There is no mention of income disparities being the cause of these distortions.
An interesting possible series of propositions I just formulated in my head is that poor people, in general, are obese because they are lazy. Inactivity is a major cause of obesity. Which also explains why they are poor. In that case, I could deduce that minorities in America are lazy.
Just a thought.
It certainly is a thought, one that should earn you at least a temporary suspension.
It certainly is a thought, one that should earn you at least a temporary suspension.
If that is the case, I assure you I will be glad to leave.
If not, I feel sorry for your close-minded knee-jerk reaction to me expressing myself in a peaceful, rational manner. And I am quite insulted by your assertion.
Scientific American had an article somewhat on this topic. It had very good examples of genetically similar groups in the US and Mexico that showed great differences in body weight. Rather than focus on diet the rest of the article focused on genes and the metabolism related to obesity. Rather disappointing.
LOL lame excuse, Scott.
Face it, the genetic predisposition of Europeans and US-Americans is so similar, it does not matter.
At fault are the "buy 3, get 2 free"-culture, double-size portions and a general lack of a traditional, frugal diet.
Comments
BTW, congrats BR I am proud of you and I know what you mean about watching others stuff themselves. It is just insane.
Fellows
I blame it on our puritan forbears.
See, somewhere in our national consciousness we continue to hold the notion that pleasure is the devil's work. That includes all pleasures of the senses, including food, sex, and leisure. The body is the site of sin, and "giving in" to its wants is to displease God.
So we deny ourselves any sense of "luxurating" in our body.
What happens? What should have been invited in and celebrated comes back as addiction, compulsion, and joyless excess.
So: we lack a sense of eroticism and sensuality in everyday life, but are beset by sex as guilt ridden perversity. We sexualize our children, objectify our bodies, and turn sex into a marketing tool that only creates frustration and anxiety.
We are suspicious of taking our time ("idle hands" you know), so we "professionalize" leisure time, turing it into "extreme sports", vacations that try to pack a year's worth of "fun" into a week, and reasons to buy all the latest "gear" that ostensibly maximizes the efficiency of play.
And we won't eat (and won't enjoy) the food that could really sustain us, lingering over meals with friends or family, savoring the flavors, reveling in the preperation, so we go out and eat hug amounts of fat, salt, and sugar.
Our poor bodies are crying out for care and love, but because we can't or won't give them what they need, we are driven to a frenzy of "junk" love, stuff that doesn't really satisfy, setting up a viscous circle of hunger that never gets fed.
I would call that the "American paradox". Endless want in sea of plenty.
Let's try to be polite. I know it is a thin line between what is cosidered rude and what is polite discussion.
Originally posted by Ganondorf
Edited out by Fellowship
That just isn't true. Why would you say a thing like that?
http://www.obesity.org/subs/fastfact...rity_Pop.shtml
Overweight and obesity in the U.S. occur at higher rates in racial / ethnic minority populations such as African American and Hispanic Americans, compared with White Americans.
Ah, I see my statement of the facts have been censored. How nice.
Originally posted by Ganondorf
Hmm, I don't know, maybe the American Obesity Association?
http://www.obesity.org/subs/fastfact...rity_Pop.shtml
Ah, I see my statement of the facts have been censored. How nice.
You are of course allowed to state you opinion and facts but let's be careful how it is done.
Nothing personal.
Fellows
Originally posted by Ganondorf
Hmm, I don't know, maybe the American Obesity Association?
http://www.obesity.org/subs/fastfact...rity_Pop.shtml
What your link shows is that black and hispanics have a somewhat higher (10% or less) incidence of obesity within their population.
That isn't even remotely close to describing obesity in America as being a mostly black or hispanic thing.
Still, the fact remains that hispanics and blacks are more overweight than White Americans. Whether this is genetic, or cultural, it certainly begins to point toward an explanation.
Originally posted by addabox
What your link shows is that black and hispanics have a somewhat higher (10% or less) incidence of obesity within their population.
That isn't even remotely close to describing obesity in America as being a mostly black or hispanic thing.
Yes and don't forget the correlation with the social status :
Socioeconomic Status (SES)
Overweight affects African American women and men across all SES levels.
Minority women with low income appear to have the greatest likelihood of being overweight.
Among Mexican American women, age 20 to 74, the rate of overweight is about 13 percent higher for women living below the poverty line versus above the poverty line.
The fact that so many Americans live in suburbia, where the only way to get around is by car, may also be a factor. If you drive everywhere, how are you ever going to work off the breakfast cereal, morning danish, lunchtime Whopper and fries and evening Dominos with cheasy bread followed by Ben & Jerry's in front of the TV?
The particular disparity with France could also be attributable to French cultural emphasis on good quality food.
Edit: A lot of posts came in while I was writing this, so most of what I've said is essentially redundant. I think the skewing of obesity stats towards black / Hispanic definitely has a lot to do with income. I see waaaaayyy more people filling the fast food places in my neighborhood in downtown Brooklyn than I do near my office on Park Avenue.
Young European here, been to the States twice.
My general impression is that people all over Europe are more or less equal (on average) in body weight, and a LOT less likely to be overweight than Americans.
The best (and worst) example of this are children. Over here when a kid (2-12yrs) is somewhat chubby it is an exception and a rarity. In the US it seems the standard.
Also, i'm amazed how Americans focus on calories and carbs and dieting and excercising, we talk about (some of) these things over here, but not as often. Food is considered a pleasure and a natural thing over here, in the US it's often considered a problem or a necessity.
What to do about it? Well, i guess we are simply more traditional over here. 3 meals a day, fruit inbetween, one meal with meat, vegetables and pasta or patatoes or rice. Not too much television. Transportation by bike or by foot.
A few anecdotes.
When i visited the states a few months ago i notices the 'low carbs' notation on all things, i didn't know what it was so i asked (in dutch they are called 'koolhydraten'), and to my surprise: over here they advertise foods that are high on carbs (mueslix, pasta, ...) as healty bcause they digest easily and provide enough energy to last 'till the next meal.
Another thing: the lack of fresh food and the abundance of 'light' food. I mean, normally food is healty as it is, and in a balanced diet you don't need 'light' foods. What you probably do need is fresh food.
Over here two of the three meals are traditionally bread-meals, but in the US it's almost impossible to get a 'real' bread (one u get from the bakery, preferrably a multi-cereal bread, not wrapped in plastic, not kept in the fridge, not necessary to toast and that gets bad in 2 or 3 days).
Than you have soda's (why not water, or milk, or orange juice), snacks (of course, if u don't have decent meals), ...
Finally you have the fact that life in the US is quite a bit faster (or at least that's how it's perceived) than over here, probably encouraging fast food intake, high sugar consumption, ...
Oh, one more thing, we drink (much) more alcohol over here. Beer or wine in stead of coke. Not sure if that is a healthy thing, but it makes the meals more pleasant :-)
ps: for those who travelled, isn't it amazing how coca cola tastes different in different places. I could barely drink the US coke on my visit there.
Originally posted by crawlingparanoia
The problem is we're overfed but undernourished.
Instead of my lengthy, unconsistent and lousy-english reply, i should've simply reffered to the above article.
Originally posted by SpcMs
Instead of my lengthy, unconsistent and lousy-english reply, i should've simply reffered to the above article.
No at all, I think your post was a very useful perspective. Particularly the stuff about carbs. I think we have really gone off the rails in re "low carb" mania.
Overview
While overweight and obesity has reached epidemic proportion for all Americans, it is most prevalent in minorities. Researchers are not completely sure why blacks, Hispanics and American Indians and Alaska Natives gain weight at faster rates than whites but many believe that it is a combination of genetics, environment, culture and socioeconomic factors. Many obesity-related diseases, including diabetes, hypertension, cancer and heart disease, have higher rates among various members of racial and ethnic minorities compared with whites.
Did You Know
Black women become obese twice as fast as white women.
Hispanic men become obese 2.5 times faster than white men; however black men do not surpass white men in weight until after the age of 28, when they become obese 2.2 times faster than white men.
Sixty-nine percent of black women are overweight or obese, compared with 58 percent of black men.
Mexican-American boys tend to have a higher prevalence of overweight than black or white boys.
According to a report in the Annals of Epidemiology, Hispanic women who gain 30 pounds or more after age 18 appear to double their risk of getting breast cancer.
Among American Indians and Alaska Natives ages 45-74, 25.9 percent of men and 31.3 percent of women are overweight.
There is no mention specifically of income disparities being the cause of these distortions, so I think to toss the entire distortion on income disparities is a bit naive.
An interesting possible series of propositions I just formulated in my head is that poor people, in general, are obese because they are lazy. Inactivity is a major cause of obesity. Which also explains why they are poor. In that case, I could deduce that minorities in America are lazy.
Just a thought.
Originally posted by addabox
No at all, I think your post was a very useful
Well thank you, Ma'am
Originally posted by Ganondorf
From the American Public Health Administration:
There is no mention of income disparities being the cause of these distortions.
An interesting possible series of propositions I just formulated in my head is that poor people, in general, are obese because they are lazy. Inactivity is a major cause of obesity. Which also explains why they are poor. In that case, I could deduce that minorities in America are lazy.
Just a thought.
It certainly is a thought, one that should earn you at least a temporary suspension.
Originally posted by addabox
It certainly is a thought, one that should earn you at least a temporary suspension.
If that is the case, I assure you I will be glad to leave.
If not, I feel sorry for your close-minded knee-jerk reaction to me expressing myself in a peaceful, rational manner. And I am quite insulted by your assertion.
Fellows
Originally posted by Scott
Scientific American had an article somewhat on this topic. It had very good examples of genetically similar groups in the US and Mexico that showed great differences in body weight. Rather than focus on diet the rest of the article focused on genes and the metabolism related to obesity. Rather disappointing.
LOL lame excuse, Scott.
Face it, the genetic predisposition of Europeans and US-Americans is so similar, it does not matter.
At fault are the "buy 3, get 2 free"-culture, double-size portions and a general lack of a traditional, frugal diet.