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Bill Maher on obesity (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Captain Cranks
- Start date
The General
Footballguy
I got up to the about where they started talking about soda and think I got the gist.
Not much to argue about with what he said, we are a bunch of fatties addicted to salt and sugar because they are delicious and an easy legal "high".
Not much to argue about with what he said, we are a bunch of fatties addicted to salt and sugar because they are delicious and an easy legal "high".
..We're a "different species" if you look at photos and videos from 50 years ago, like those from Woodstock...
He has a point, although Woodstock might not be the best example. I marvel at how thin people were on Soul Train, although again it's a select group of people. Look at any movie or TV show from the 1950s and 1960s and you'll see most were skinny by today's standards. He brings up Michelle Obama who was criticized by many for her efforts to combat childhood obesity, as "shaming". He also brings up his spat with James Corden. "Blood on the hands" of those who criticized "fat shamers" for a role in the disproportionate death of obese people during the COVID pandemic is a bit strong.
It's super hard to change habits. At my workplace, there's a half-hearted effort to tie health insurance costs with modifiable risks, such hypertension and obesity.
He has a point, although Woodstock might not be the best example. I marvel at how thin people were on Soul Train, although again it's a select group of people. Look at any movie or TV show from the 1950s and 1960s and you'll see most were skinny by today's standards. He brings up Michelle Obama who was criticized by many for her efforts to combat childhood obesity, as "shaming". He also brings up his spat with James Corden. "Blood on the hands" of those who criticized "fat shamers" for a role in the disproportionate death of obese people during the COVID pandemic is a bit strong.
It's super hard to change habits. At my workplace, there's a half-hearted effort to tie health insurance costs with modifiable risks, such hypertension and obesity.
especially when the FDA, Big Agri and Big Pharma actively are pushing and promoting horrible eating habits
High Fructose Corn Syrup is the single worst food item you can ingest, but it is used in practically all processed food
much easier to sell a never ending annuity program of drugs to fix all of those problems
can you say Statin Drugs?
Juxtatarot
Footballguy
There should be more push back on people using the excuse that it’s hard to eat healthy. For most people, it isn’t hard. You just have to want to do it.
Captain Cranks
Footballguy
Basically there's an elephant in the room (we're fat and unhealthy which can easily be tied to disease and death) and rather than be able to talk about it and encourage societal improvement, it's labeled as "fat shaming".
If you watch about 1 minute from here you'll get the gist: "How dare you drunk shame me!"
parasaurolophus
Footballguy
Just look at what happens in these threads when people mention making better food choices. There is always a big pushback.
All this talk about this being the governments fault just serves as a distraction from the real problem.
We arent going to get delicious tasting stuff banned. Nor should we. People wont stop eating twinkies because we add a tax. And if they do it will be because they found a replacement tasty treat that isnt taxed.
Anything short of figuring out how to get kids and adults active understanding that eating too many calories is really bad for you wont work.
Instead we get body positivity movements and blame the government and hf corn syrup.
The General
Footballguy
Right. In my experience cheap unhealthy food is much more delicious than cheap healthy food.
Ghost Rider
Footballguy
He is right. Adele was shamed a while back for losing weight. Read that again. For losing weight. Shame on her for not staying overweight and unhealthy. Welcome to 2022.
Summer Wheat
Footballguy
My wife lets our kids have chips once a week, and that is one bag between 3. Never soda of any kind.
The good thing is my kids love veggies and fruits of all kinds and actually love outdoor activities and sports , so they are staying where they need to be. It blows me away when I go to school events and see all the fat kids. When I am out I see parents getting their kids a pizza each with a quart of coke or mountain Dew to wash it down, disgusting.
Then I saw a commercial last night with all these fat women parading around in little clothing and it was not pleasing to the eye.
The good thing is my kids love veggies and fruits of all kinds and actually love outdoor activities and sports , so they are staying where they need to be. It blows me away when I go to school events and see all the fat kids. When I am out I see parents getting their kids a pizza each with a quart of coke or mountain Dew to wash it down, disgusting.
Then I saw a commercial last night with all these fat women parading around in little clothing and it was not pleasing to the eye.
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Juxtatarot
Footballguy
After one cleans up the diet for a while, a lot of the unhealthy stuff doesn’t taste as good as one remembers. Some of the good stuff can even taste better. I actually like the flavor of celery these days.
parasaurolophus
Footballguy
Well you see if we acknowledge that adele shouldnt be heavy then we are not properly treating the small % of people that have something like prader willi syndrome.
greenmountaingoat
Footballguy
Is being obese or overweight and unfit a choice? When I've been motivated enough at stages in my life, I've been very fit. At other stages, I've been much less so. During my adult life I've weighed 245 (age 21), 200-215 (age 25-38), 190 after a divorce 9 years ago and back up to 245 again last summer. Down to 230 and hoping to get back to 205 or so to keep my knees from getting destroyed on the hikes I have planned. 45 left on my list.
In my experience, I guess it is a choice but it's a harder choice to make than it should be. The big question is... why is it so hard? What kept me drinking 4 PBRs and having a bowl of ice cream every night? I don't know.
Seems like, as a society we're not getting this one right.
In my experience, I guess it is a choice but it's a harder choice to make than it should be. The big question is... why is it so hard? What kept me drinking 4 PBRs and having a bowl of ice cream every night? I don't know.
Seems like, as a society we're not getting this one right.
The General
Footballguy
The food scientists have this down to a science. Sugar, Salt, Fat. Food is just the delivery system. I'm not saying they are big tobacco but they live on the same block
Leroy Hoard
Footballguy
Yes ever since I started limiting salt and sugar a lot of popular junk food is just too sweet or too salty.
bigbottom
Footballguy
Not intending to get political here, but I never understood the blanket pushback on Michelle Obama’s efforts to combat childhood obesity. Sure there may have been elements that seemed unworkable (e.g. salad bars in school cafeterias) but the general effort to promote physical activity, encourage healthier food options, and consider removing inherently bad options (do we really need to offer sugar soft drinks in elementary school?) should have been supported by just about everyone regardless of politics.
Juxtatarot
Footballguy
Like sugar? Eat fruit.The food scientists have this down to a science. Sugar, Salt, Fat. Food is just the delivery system. I'm not saying they are big tobacco but they live on the same block
Like fat? Eat nuts and healthy oils.
Like salt? Find other spices you like to cook with.
SeniorVBDStudent
Footballguy
This guy gets it. The FDA is in the business preservation business and no one, including you and me, are doing a damn thing to stop it.
I've been thinking a good bit about this lately as I need to lose about 15 pounds.
I'm 6'0" and 210 and feel better when I'm around 195.
My best friend just did something similar where he lost 20 pounds and he's about my size. He's an MD and we were talking about it this week.
He said, "Everyone asks me how I did it? Less carbs? Less sugar? Less fat? My answer is 'yes'".
He said he just simply ate less food.
Then he said, "Nobody wants to hear it. But the truth is I was hungry a lot of the time.".
In other words, he was uncomfortable a good bit of the time. And we don't do that well.
I'm 6'0" and 210 and feel better when I'm around 195.
My best friend just did something similar where he lost 20 pounds and he's about my size. He's an MD and we were talking about it this week.
He said, "Everyone asks me how I did it? Less carbs? Less sugar? Less fat? My answer is 'yes'".
He said he just simply ate less food.
Then he said, "Nobody wants to hear it. But the truth is I was hungry a lot of the time.".
In other words, he was uncomfortable a good bit of the time. And we don't do that well.
shader
Footballguy
There's nothing wrong with salt. Not even in the same universe as sugar in terms of the contribution to obesity.
parasaurolophus
Footballguy
I dont think eliminating hf corn syrup fixes the problem. In fact i think it would barely make a dent.
So is it a "problem"? Sure. Should it be where we spend a ton of focus? Nope.
The General
Footballguy
Agreed. Now convince 90% of the country to do this as opposed to ice cream, potato chips, and fast food. People are hooked to the later.
We are a nation of crack heads for sugar, salt, fat. It's all easily available, is marketed to kids and is a trillion dollar industry.
Not really sure the solution, but telling people to eat healthy alone won't cut it.
The General
Footballguy
dgreen
Footballguy
I still eat way too much sugar, but a long time ago I switched from sweet tea to unsweet tea and I absolutely hate the taste of sweet tea now. Way too sweet. And, man, the Chick Fil A lemonade is undrinkable for me. So freaking sweet.
Captain Cranks
Footballguy
Is this chronic situation though? Similar to our tastes changing based on what we eat, don't our appetites change based on how much we eat?
Juxtatarot
Footballguy
For general good health, it seems like, at a minimum, the science hasn’t been settled. Probably best for most people to consume it in moderation. If you have some articles indicating “nothing” is wrong with it, I’d like to read them.
unrefined himalayan and sea salt is fine
processed salt is bad due to what else is put into the salt
The General
Footballguy
Not trying to remove blame from a society who stuff their faces with this stuff but I heard this guy interviewed awhile ago: Michael Moss
This is all legal but it is also disturbing.
shader
Footballguy
If we take out the very rare cases and speak of the 99% of humanity - being obese and overweight is most definitely a choice. Without question.
The problem is, it's so difficult to lose weight for some people, and not as difficult for others. We live in a world where it's very trendy to go out and have drinks, eat at nice restaurants, and eat all the great tasting food that is out there. This culture is obsessed with food. It's not fuel, it's tied to everything we do. Even our morning coffee has gone from a coffee with a little cream or sugar to coffee flavored drinks that are calorie bombs.
Losing weight in this environment is so incredibly difficult because everywhere we go, we are faced with temptations and we are literally swimming upstream. For those of us that fatten easily, it's a nightmare.
I spent my entire adult life trying to get skinny. I only finally succeeded (230 to 179) because of two factors. First, the pandemic hit and I spent a year away from all the trendy gatherings, parties, festivals, work events, that always plagued me. Second, I unfortunately went through a divorce. That's a motivation that most people don't have, and it's likely short-lived.
Now that the divorce is in the rear-view and all the events are back, I'm finding my weight very slowly starting to creep up. It's very, very difficult to overcome. Is it possible? Of course, it's just science. Eat less and exercise more. But the execution, in our culture, can be so incredibly difficult for someone with the propensity to gain weight.
Captain Cranks
Footballguy
Not only is it marketed, but there's likely backroom deals between the industry and our government to maintain demand for cheap, calorie dense food and drink. Someone asked above why there was so much resistance to eliminating sugary drinks in our schools. There's a good chance the corn and sugar lobbies were fighting it to some extent.
bigbottom
Footballguy
But assuming that folks were slimmer across the board in the 70s and 80s, I don’t think they were any less comfortable were they? So what was the difference? More physical activity then versus now? Perhaps. Easier access to a wider range of unhealthy food options now versus back then? I’d say that’s likely. But I’d be willing to bet that the biggest difference is a change in portion size then versus now.
when an additive like HFCS is the single largest component in most processed foods and it leads directly to diabetes,
you are wrong to think it should not be a focus of fixing one's diet
That's a good question. My thought is we are way more comfortable now. From remote controls to next day shipping to shopping online and having most anything we want and can afford the next day. From cars to homes to just about anything, I think we're way more comfortable today. And on the flip side, I think we're way more averse to not having things the way we want them. I think of the things I feel like complaining about compared to the things my grandparents complained about and it's remarkable.
My vegan daughter in LA would like to have a word with you. It does take time to prepare healthy food, and it helps if you like spicy food, which is what many people in the rest of the world have preparing and eating for centuries.
In the end, it's not really about healthy or unhealthy food. It's about caloric intake as the PhD nutritionist from Kansas showed with the twinkle diet, losing weight and improving his lipid profile eating mainly twinkles for about 2 months. Of course, "an entire pound of spinach has the same amount if calories as a single Oreo cookie."
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-dec-06-la-he-fitness-twinkie-diet-20101206-story.html
Captain Cranks
Footballguy
I watched a documentary about this a few months ago which spoke to the difference: Food is easier to get, it's more affordable, and usually the most affordable food has more calories. Ultimately we're not only eating more, but what we're eating is more calorie dense and harder to burn.
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shader
Footballguy
Gary Taubes has some great stuff on salt. He explains it far better than I ever can in terms of the effects on our health/blood pressure, etc. But this thread isn't about blood pressure or health, it's about obesity. And salt has no calories. Sugar is loaded in calories.
Not trying to be pedantic here, just saying that one of the confusing things for people trying to lose weight is that there is so much conflicting info. So I think it's important to simplify things as much as possible. Asking people to cook without salt is confusing advice, because cooking without salt will not help you burn fat at all.
Leroy Hoard
Footballguy
The General
Footballguy
There are no doubt some great health food.
You put an Oreo cookie down in front of a kid or a pound of spinach I think I know what they are going for
We had a salad bar every day from 6th-12th grade. What is unworkable about them?
(Sure, Covid now, but that wasn't an issue then)
The rest of the world is witnessing an increase in obesity. Probably due to those some factors you mention.
I agree portion size is wild now. I think some of that is simply competition. Whether it's the ridiculously huge sandwiches at Katz or Chuy's "big as your face" burrito. Or just the general talk about "getting a value" for the money one spends, portion size is a thing.
I know lots of people who will put, "They give you a giant plate" as a positive for a restaurant. Restaurants use this as they compete with each other.
I bet on just about every meal out I get, I can eat half of it and be totally content. I don't complain about it because I get a take home box just about every time I eat out. But it's a thing for sure.
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bigbottom
Footballguy
I certainly agree with your general point, but I guess I meant uncomfortable with respect to being hungry, the situation noted by your friend. But perhaps you’re right that we have a higher standard for feeling satiated (and thus, comfortable) than we did back then.
The General
Footballguy
Just like all products in our consumer driven market, the food industry has improved and continues to improve to stay alive.
That includes health food but also includes processed #### food. Easier to produce, cheaper, packed with more flavor enhancers, etc.
Did you know there's only one F in Double Stuf Oreos?There are no doubt some great health food.
You put an Oreo cookie down in front of a kid or a pound of spinach I think I know what they are going for
