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BleaK
paradox
Registered: 06/23/02
Posts: 1,583
Last seen: 10 years, 1 month
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insight from a snapple cap
#5485138 - 04/05/06 11:49 PM (17 years, 9 months ago) |
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snapples "real fact: #101; About half of all americans are on a diet on any given day.
now, what does that say about americans considering the % of overweight people? man were cool.
-------------------- "You cannot trust in law, unless you can trust in people. If you can trust in people, you don't need law." -J. Mumma
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gettinjiggywithit
jiggy


Registered: 07/20/04
Posts: 7,469
Loc: Heart of Laughter
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Re: insight from a snapple cap [Re: BleaK]
#5485250 - 04/06/06 12:30 AM (17 years, 9 months ago) |
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They say the U.S. is the most over weight country in the world. Access to convenient fast foods contributes to that, however, that in itself I think is a part of the real issue.
What do Americans hold in high value as a way of life?
We love our modern conveniences and yet...............
Doesn't that seem to take precedence of defining "living the American dream" over a healthy, balanced, slower paced life style?
I think a nations average weight comes down to its cultural values.
What other U.S. cultural values probably contribute?
With kids being more obese then ever, another issue may be "Stranger danger". When I was kid, we were running around the neighborhood playing all day and riding bikes. Now, parents feel better with their kids, inside the house, playing video games, watching TV, on line and eating cheetoes.
Then, you look at California, a world of its own, where they value healthy eating and exercise and being thin if not ripped.
We may be seeing a turn in the trend. School cafeterias and fast food places are trying to cater to the healthy minded better now. Junk foods are even working on versions with less fat not to loose market share.
Yet, schools are cutting back on recess and P.E. to cram in more academics.
Maybe it's that, we are still a relatively young nation compared to the rest and are still working at tweaking out what our cultural values as a nation are through progressive trial and error.
I'm curious to see what anyone else has to say.
-------------------- Ahuwale ka nane huna.
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leery11
I Tell You What!

Registered: 06/24/05
Posts: 5,998
Last seen: 8 years, 9 months
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Technology.
Don't walk. drive.
don't play basketball, play virtual basketball.
don't socialize with humans, let the tv socialize you.
don't cook. order out.
i myself have fallen victim to it.
but ah when i was a kid in the early 90s stranger danger (never used that term to my knowledge) was all the rave....... we didn't really go out in the front yards without parental supervision but played in the backyards just fine..... gangs were brooding in our suburb, the police show COPS made me terrified of being murdered and so I'd lie down when riding in cars in case of drive by shootings (until i realized how lame this was)
and uhhhh.... twasn't till I left California for a more ruralesque place that I really wandered around unsupervised with other kids, but..... I was also substantially older at that time..... whereas before I was quite young, younger than 8 and more vulnerable.
strangely people out here were often times not taught about "stranger danger"....... didn't lock their doors either.
-------------------- I am the MacDaddy of Heimlich County, I play it Straight Up Yo! ....I embrace my desire to feel the rhythm, to feel connected enough to step aside and weep like a widow, to feel inspired, to fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity and still be a human...... Om Namah Shivaya, I tell you What!
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gettinjiggywithit
jiggy


Registered: 07/20/04
Posts: 7,469
Loc: Heart of Laughter
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Re: insight from a snapple cap [Re: leery11]
#5486051 - 04/06/06 10:37 AM (17 years, 9 months ago) |
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Indeed.
I also consider that how on average U.S. citizens also live with the luxury of excess of everything. That breeds excessive indulgence mentality across the board. Junk food is just another staple of what is in excess to indulge in here.
Another contributing factor may be that many live in a pressure cooker like never before. The competitive work place, school place and social arena has become more demanding of our time and excellence. That puts people under more pressure to excel in focused areas leading to imbalance with others. A lot of the over eating that goes on may just be the result of comfort eating to compensate for where time doesn't afford one more of what's missing.
The odd thing that doesn't add up is that we also have access to an abundance of knowledge regarding physical health and what good or bad eating habits constitute.
Then I think of how many that are severely obese or go for the stomach stapling say they have a thyroid chemical imbalance, causing the weight gain medical science confirms. I saw a show on this one guy who weighed 1000 lbs that his brain didn't produce the chemical that tells us we are full. He always felt hungry as a result.
If the people setting our average above the global norm have chemical imbalances, wouldn't something cultural still be the possible cause of that? Does mental and emotional balance lead to physical chemical imbalance? Medical science hasn't gotten that far yet they are slowly looking more in that direction.
Do Americans afford themselves an adequate balance of work, physical exercise play, rest and quality social bonding? I think many don't and quick junk food compensates for what is lacking. I'd place that at the base underlying cause of why our national weight average is higher.
Think about it, when we feel lacking, rich food quickly and easily satisfies and temporarily fills the voids.
Now that would be ironic if its the case. We have more available to us then the global average and yet, may have more people that feel lacking something in the natural balance of a healthy lifestyle.
I'm underweight for my height by choice. I know I don't feel good if I don't live in a healthy balance of the factors I mentioned. Wanting to naturally feel good keeps me in check.
If I were a social scientists, that's where I would turn my attention for case studies-where balance is lacking in the American lifestyle and if over eating is compensating for it in millions.
-------------------- Ahuwale ka nane huna.
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daimyo
Monticello

Registered: 05/13/04
Posts: 7,751
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Re: insight from a snapple cap [Re: BleaK]
#5486064 - 04/06/06 10:41 AM (17 years, 9 months ago) |
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Being fat used to be a sign that you were well off. Would it be better if most Americans looked like this:
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"I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man."
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leery11
I Tell You What!

Registered: 06/24/05
Posts: 5,998
Last seen: 8 years, 9 months
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Re: insight from a snapple cap [Re: daimyo]
#5486276 - 04/06/06 11:49 AM (17 years, 9 months ago) |
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Yes. By which I mean no.
We hoard all the resources for ourselves. It's our nation's fault the world is starving, we have a monopoly. We spend as much on the war and drugs and the war on terror to SOLVE WORLD HUNGER.
So yeah, I won't say we deserve to starve, but.... it would be great if we were slim and athletic and we gave our excess resources to people in that picture.
If I ever get a job I think I will be a regular contributer to charities.
I see it in dualities..... giant fat guy can barely walk = skinny slim guy that can barely walk.
gluttony = starvation. I worry about where the morbidly obese will find themselves in future lives if they do not work on bettering themselves and trying to get healthier. Of course, I suppose it's an issue of giving, there's more than enough food for everyone, maybe these fellows have an active interest in fixing world hunger?
Humm.......jiggy...... we are a nation of hungry ghosts, we have everything but everything we have drives us to want more, to want what we cannot have.
especially through the media. we are starving, not in the physical sense, but in the spiritual, in the emotional..... starving for peace of mind. so we fill that void by overeating.
hell if i don't have anything to do i might sit around and eat potato chips until I'm sick..... everytime I go to my parents I end up eating severely unhealthy and feeling so lethargic I could do..... because there's just not a single thing to do but tv, read.... and eat eat eat eateateateat
i hope to become quite fit and slimmer (i'm 6ft and only weigh like 165 lbs but I have a belly on me and am lethargic... or should I say, can be.... nothing is set in stone.)
if I get ripped and in shape maybe my family (almost all of which are way too overweight) will start trying to model themselves after me.
I sure don't want to be like them anymore.
-------------------- I am the MacDaddy of Heimlich County, I play it Straight Up Yo! ....I embrace my desire to feel the rhythm, to feel connected enough to step aside and weep like a widow, to feel inspired, to fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity and still be a human...... Om Namah Shivaya, I tell you What!
Edited by leery11 (04/06/06 11:53 AM)
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Cherk
Fashionable


Registered: 10/25/02
Posts: 46,493
Loc: International
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Re: insight from a snapple cap [Re: leery11]
#5486427 - 04/06/06 12:30 PM (17 years, 9 months ago) |
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If you do not have a job, why don't you spend your free time volunteering for charities?
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I have considered such matters. SIKE
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leery11
I Tell You What!

Registered: 06/24/05
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Re: insight from a snapple cap [Re: Cherk]
#5486580 - 04/06/06 01:54 PM (17 years, 9 months ago) |
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I'm not that inspired?
What do you mean though, what can you do to volunteer for charities? I give blood when the drives come around (have a bad bruise on my arm because of it).... attend meetings when I'm aware of them.
Give money here and there and click the hungersite links every day. You mean something like canned food drives, working at homeless shelters? etc.
I don't know. It's not a bad idea. I suppose I'm only willing to do so much right now and am in school. Not that school is an excuse because I have plenty of free time.
-------------------- I am the MacDaddy of Heimlich County, I play it Straight Up Yo! ....I embrace my desire to feel the rhythm, to feel connected enough to step aside and weep like a widow, to feel inspired, to fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity and still be a human...... Om Namah Shivaya, I tell you What!
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fireworks_god
Sexy.Butt.McDanger


Registered: 03/12/02
Posts: 24,855
Loc: Pandurn
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Re: insight from a snapple cap [Re: leery11]
#5491356 - 04/07/06 10:50 PM (17 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
gettinjiggywithit said: They say the U.S. is the most over weight country in the world. Access to convenient fast foods contributes to that, however, that in itself I think is a part of the real issue.
The real issue lies within the minds of every American. Convient fast food is not to blame, no fucking way. "The American Dream" alludes to the freedom of choice, and that of a wide variety of choices, but it doesn't imply that one makes bad choices simply because the choice is available.
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leery11 said: Technology.
Wrong again. If anything else, technology has provided for us a great oppurtunity to be far more fit and healthy than any other human being in history has been. Once again, it is not the corncucopia of choice that is to blame, but yet the people themselves who have the responsibility to themselves to make choices that benefit themselves.
Personally, I am still rather ticked off that Mc Donald's will no longer serve Super Size french fries because of a bunch of undeveloped, neurotic pussies who simply cannot exercise the ability to not stuff their gullets too full. Fuck you, you fucking losers, you deserve to be fat, don't fuck it up for those who love eating tons of french fries and who's metabolisms can handle it. 
 Peace.
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If I should die this very moment I wouldn't fear For I've never known completeness Like being here Wrapped in the warmth of you Loving every breath of you
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gettinjiggywithit
jiggy


Registered: 07/20/04
Posts: 7,469
Loc: Heart of Laughter
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I'm underweight by choice dude Don't bark at me at me about others bad habits .
I was working my way through understanding it and I think it comes down to greasy, rich, fatty foods satisfy people on an emotional level.
I said, I think people who eat to much comfort food are compensating to satisfy areas of their life they feel lacking in. Of course over eating habits are psychological.
McDonald's just makes it easier for people with bad eating habits to get larger faster. That relates to adults who make unhealthy life style choices.
I was talking about the obesity rate in the nations children. Children do not choose what they eat. They eat what their parents make available to them. I know a lot of busy parents on the go, who get their kids happy meals on the run.
I read a report study done that worked with families who's kids ate at Micky Ds twice a week on average. They asked the families to cut off fast food cold turkey for just a month. On average, the kids all lost 10 lbs in that month by cutting out fast food alone and changing nothing else. That's a wake up call for parents who opt for convenience fast foods to feed their kids regularly.
Thats related to childhood obesity.
I personally think adults need a good balance of work, exercise/play, rest and social/family bonding in their lives. If any of them are lacking, I think people are apt to turn to comfort foods. They need to provide that same balance in a way the children are fullfilled for them as well and set healthy lifestyle choice examples. (If they have children)
Like I said, if I was a social scientists studying obesity in the U.S., thats where I would begin my research.
I could be wrong.
Technology plays a role in keeping with a healthy lifestyle balance. When I said play, I added exercise play to the leisure department. Sitting in front of video games, TV, the internet, is not giving one physical exercise during their leisure play time.
They are getting their leisure time satisfied however. It only becomes a problem if another area is in lacking and they comfort eat to fulfill that void AND are not getting exercise because of their leisure time choice to sit.
Do you have anything to add to your comment that overeating is all in peoples minds? What is going on in their minds that causes them to over eat in your opinion?
I derived mine from knowing what keeps myself from over eating or comfort eating. I also thought about what overweight people I have known, few, however. They were complainers unsatisfied with everything in life. That's why I have only known few and not for long. You give them solutions to their problems and they don't want solutions. It was a no brainer to me that they were comfort eating to fill all the voids.
I shared what keeps me fulfilled, a good balance of work, exercise play, rest and social family bonding. Within all of those areas, there also has to be a sense of accomplishment for the fulfillment to take place. If you are active in those areas but failing accomplishing any growth or achievement, a feeling of something lacking will be experienced.
These are just my observations, insights and opinions. I may be wrong.
-------------------- Ahuwale ka nane huna.
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fresh313
journeyman


Registered: 09/01/03
Posts: 2,537
Last seen: 12 years, 9 months
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im quitting smoking too every square i smoke is my last one til' the next one
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fireworks_god
Sexy.Butt.McDanger


Registered: 03/12/02
Posts: 24,855
Loc: Pandurn
Last seen: 1 year, 12 days
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Quote:
gettinjiggywithit said: I was working my way through understanding it and I think it comes down to greasy, rich, fatty foods satisfy people on an emotional level.
I think it comes down to people cannot exercise will. Actually, it comes down to the fact that they want to stuff their face with greasy foods. They know its making them fat but they do it anyways. If they didn't want to eat greasy foods, then they would make the choice not to. What satisfies people on an emotional level is their own choice.
Quote:
I said, I think people who eat to much comfort food are compensating to satisfy areas of their life they feel lacking in. Of course over eating habits are psychological.
Regardless of the reasoning responsible for their over-eating, it is still their choice. As it is their choice, it is their responsibility to make their own choices.
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McDonald's just makes it easier for people with bad eating habits to get larger faster. That relates to adults who make unhealthy life style choices.
And bridges just make it easier for people who are suicidal to jump and kill themselves. The point: Mc Donald's is not to blame. The availability of options is not responsible for those who execute poor lifestyle decisions. I eat at Mc Donald's frequently and have no physical problems that result. Maybe it is because I make the choice to not overly consume Mc Donald's food, or perhaps because my metabolism is such that I can balance the food with activity that will cancel it out?
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I was talking about the obesity rate in the nations children. Children do not choose what they eat. They eat what their parents make available to them. I know a lot of busy parents on the go, who get their kids happy meals on the run.
Exactly, children do not choose what they eat, their parents do. As their parents, the children's well-being is their responsiblity. Thus, it is their parents' bad choices that are to blame, not the fact that happy meals are made available for consumers to purchase.
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That's a wake up call for parents who opt for convenience fast foods to feed their kids regularly.
Ja, maybe it has enlightened them to the fact that they are responsible for their children's health, and that they need to take more responsibility for their choices that relate.
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Thats related to childhood obesity.
It doesn't relate to how Mc Donald's is to blame, or anything else than how the parent's are to blame for their inability to effectively make good decisions.
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Sitting in front of video games, TV, the internet, is not giving one physical exercise during their leisure play time.
Thus the responsibility to make good decisions that ensure that one stays physically fit.
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They are getting their leisure time satisfied however. It only becomes a problem if another area is in lacking and they comfort eat to fulfill that void AND are not getting exercise because of their leisure time choice to sit.
I realize all of this, and my specific point was only that it is the person who is making the decisions regarding a person's health that is responsible for that person's health, and, as such, it is their fault if they do not effectively make decisions that promote that person's health.
Which is to say that it is not Mc Donald's fault. 
Quote:
Do you have anything to add to your comment that overeating is all in peoples minds? What is going on in their minds that causes them to over eat in your opinion?
Perhaps they are subliminally brainwashed by Mc Donald's? The specific reasoning for why anyone does anything is what it is. It is within their realm, and is their responsibility, and blaming technology or Mc Donald's is not logical.
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You give them solutions to their problems and they don't want solutions. It was a no brainer to me that they were comfort eating to fill all the voids.
It is still their responsibility, regardless of their choices. The fact that fast food is available is not to blame, nor should the availability be taken away.
 Peace.
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If I should die this very moment I wouldn't fear For I've never known completeness Like being here Wrapped in the warmth of you Loving every breath of you
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BlueCoyote
Beyond


Registered: 05/07/04
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I see it too, that people try to compensate some emotional void with overeating. It happened to me too. Sometimes 24 hours are not enough to make intelligent decision if someone is under big pressure. It is very easy to blame everyones own responsibility for that, but, I also see overeating as a symptom. It would make no sense to forbid MC D or forbid some people to eat there. It would make sense to look for the cause of unhealthy lifestyle and promote a healthy one. But tell that a poor guy who is struggling with min income and max working. He will nod and point to his employer. The employer will point to the politicians and they point to the population. Haha, very easy, so nothing is done and it seems to be everyones own responsibility. In fact, that is not quite true. As a saying goes: "You will recognize the problems of a society on its children first" "You will know them by their fruits"
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kotik
fuckingsuperhero


Registered: 06/29/04
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Re: insight from a snapple cap [Re: BlueCoyote]
#5492784 - 04/08/06 12:30 PM (17 years, 9 months ago) |
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fact: american food, overall, is highest in sugar.
-------------------- No statements made in any post or message by myself should be construed to mean that I am now, or have ever been, participating in or considering participation in any activities in violation of any local, state, or federal laws. All posts are works of fiction.
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fireworks_god
Sexy.Butt.McDanger


Registered: 03/12/02
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Re: insight from a snapple cap [Re: BlueCoyote]
#5492868 - 04/08/06 12:50 PM (17 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
BlueCoyote said: It would make sense to look for the cause of unhealthy lifestyle and promote a healthy one.
Certainly! 
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But tell that a poor guy who is struggling with min income and max working. He will nod and point to his employer. The employer will point to the politicians and they point to the population. Haha, very easy, so nothing is done and it seems to be everyones own responsibility.
I agree that we are in a dynamic system of interdependance, but yet we can personally gain a great amount more than what will be handed to us by becoming responsible for ourselves. The nature of our society/environment is such that, by taking responsibility for ourselves and our own actions, everything else will change through our interactions.
Not every problem can be solved by holding ourselves personally accountable for our decisions and our experience, but yet that which we do attain by empowering ourselves is overwhelming. 
I always keep in mind, "I am provided for". Very empowering. 
 Peace.
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If I should die this very moment I wouldn't fear For I've never known completeness Like being here Wrapped in the warmth of you Loving every breath of you
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gettinjiggywithit
jiggy


Registered: 07/20/04
Posts: 7,469
Loc: Heart of Laughter
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Moral of the thread.
Never come between a man and his greasy Micky D's french fries

I agree, its a symptom, not a cause. It's just a good place to start analysis from. Your points are all valid.
Sure, there are many people who WANT, junk food. I doubt most people Want to be obese. Overweight or chubby some say they are happier/more comfortable with. Oprah says she is happier overweight.
Sure, Americans are a free people and free to be the most Obese Nation in the world if that floats there boat in life. I'm not suggesting that fast food restaurants should be outlawed, nor should the right to become obese if one chooses to.
Lets start fresh,
You say the cause comes down to pure freedom of choice and wants.
This is about the statistical fact that Americans have the highest national average of obese adults and children in the world.
This is a comparative analysis between U.S. citizens and the rest of the planet related to obesity.
Then, why does the U.S. have more people freely choosing and wanting to be obese then other nations do?
That's what I was working on.
I'll throw something else out. When people want and choose to be obese as you say, they are in the danger zone and putting their life at risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, hyper tension and the list goes on.
Why are Americans more then others, willing to put their life at these risks to eat what they want and become obese? If it s not a reflection of an imbalance in ones life style as you claim, is it then, that they know they have access to the best of medical care and that the doctors will fix them when it becomes a life threatening issue?
Could it be symptomatic that as a nation, a higher rate then the global average, have simply grown lazy and arrogant into believing, they can make careless reckless choices with their lives and someone else will clean up their mess when it gets to bad?
Are they thinking, "hey, when I get so obese I can't get up from my bed, I'll just have the doctors staple my stomach" "When my heart clogs up, I'll just get a heart transplant" . "When I get diabetes, I'll just go on insulin." 
Ex- there is a post in the pub about a college guy getting busted for possession of pharmaceuticals asking for advice. I was surprised to see the handful that told him to tell his parents so they could bail him out. (fix it and make everything all better for him)
Could it be symptomatic that the last two generations of Americans have developed the disease of being raised spoiled rotten to the point of not having to care about the consequence to their bad choices because, (said in a happy voice)-, "we have a fix for everything". 
Remember the popular 1980s adage made famous by SNL, "Got a problem? Take a pill!" 
I think you see where I am going with this. Maybe you have another line of thought I would appreciate to hear. This is an interesting topic to analyse.
I want to know what makes this nation so different that we have the world most obese people on average.
Anyone?????
-------------------- Ahuwale ka nane huna.
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