Why Are People So Fat?

No, it is human nature. We just don't face the same consequences (in general, in the west) as in other times. Look: obesity, diabetes, lung cancer may all be considered aspects of modern culture/society. Laziness, apathy and lack of discipline are not. Well maybe they are in the way you put it but they are primarily human aspects and have been so in ALL times.

 

In past times it would have been much harder to get that fat because the food available was mainly natural, and far less available than now. You might even have had to walk a few miles to get it and carry it home. No phoning the pizza place or calling into McD's. No doubt the negative human qualities were applied in other areas. I wouldn't argue that human nature isn't flawed - that's why we create flawed cultures.

I think the 24/7 availability of junk food as well as the growth of car use are probably factors in this modern epidemic. And the fact that comfort eating is a way people seek to alleviate the stress of their lives.

But think on this as an example of the equivocal nature of what people are subject to. Turn on the news, see an item about obesity and the millions it will kill over the next decades. Adverts come on and it's special offer on our double cheeseburger or whatever. It's no wonder people are confused.
Nearly everyday now I get a flyer through the post box offering me the latest delivered- to- your- door fast food place. It's just become too easy for people to over eat - and most of the food on such offers is probably the very worst for putting on weight.

 

They are...

Yeps, these very human aspects are now more prevalent because of the luxury our culture/society has to offer. Doesn't change that they are human aspects from all times

Saying it is primarily modern culture instead of human behaviour is like saying supermarkets are the main cause small town stores are closing. No, we could have both. It is intrinsic human behaviour to get everything from one place when that is the most convenient option.

 

Yes, food is everywhere these days, the portions are bigger than ever, and people think it's natural to be eating (often hyperpalatable, calorie-dense foods) all the time while doing little to no physical activity. It really is a matter of energy balance (or in this case, inbalance), which isn't to say there aren't hormonal issues contributing to the obesity problem as well, but this is usually brought on by poor diet. But in short, people are eating more while not doing more physical activity to make up for the increase in energy intake. Over time calories add up to become pounds on the scale.

 

That may be the case. I'm not a mind reader, I only go by what I read. But that's what discussions are for...clearing things up.

 

I dare to say supermarkets are a great and fantastic invention and very beneficial. That some things in and about supermarkets are atrocious and unfortunate does not mean supermarkets themselves are an atrocious and unfortunate phenomenom (there are many great products in supermarkets as well naturally). In fact we ourselves are the cause of that. We buy the rubbish chicken, we stop going to the real bakery. It is the same with modern culture.

 

The only good thing I can see about supermarkets is that they are cheap. Otherwise I don't like them. For one thing, in this country at least, they're rapidly moping up the few old fashioned shops that remain. These small local shops were often a kind of community hub, where gossip would be exchanged, credit would often be available (despite signs saying the opposite) and neighbours would meet. You don't get any of that at Tesco.
So the options to go to another retail outlet are getting more limited all the time unless you want an expensive speciality shop, and given that many people struggle to pay the bills, the cut price supermarkets have it just about stitched up.

Surely culture is at one level simply mass human behaviour. But I don't disagree that greed etc are part of human nature. In the past most societies had strictures against untrammelled greed and so on. These days there's really a kind of 'greed is good' attitude in a great many people. So greedy people create a culture of greed. Not surprising.

 

I think a lot of it boils down to how much time people are willing to give to critically inspect the nutrition labels on the foods they eat, and how much time they're willing to cook and prepare a healthy meal on their own. Fast food offers a great convenience for people who don't have the time for meal preparation. Too many people have blind trust in any food that's available for purchase. Fast food restaurants put speed and efficiency as a higher priority than the calorie content.

Personally I don't like cooking very much. Especially when I wake up in the morning. I'm sure a lot of people feel the same way, or have an even worse attitude about cooking than I do. I think the reason I feel this way is because cooking requires work and by the time I start cooking, I am already hungry and the smell of food is driving me crazy and giving me a bad attitude.

And when people don't like cooking and cleaning, they'll turn to fast food for options.

 

If they run like I do, they can lose weight. Let's run all together . I am running and I've lost 16 kilograms. We must run

 

This is still a problem because you can't ever know what reason someone has for being fat by looking at them. That's why I said earlier

 

But there are so many factors of modern life that could lead to more inactivity that have nothing to do with laziness. What about the fact that precription drugs are being prescribed at a much higher rate now? A lot of these medications, like ones for mental disorders, can cause tiredness and lethargy. A lot of them actually list weight gain as a side effect actually.

 

One of my friends was lazy as fuck in high school and was probably 30 pounds over weight for a few years. After summer break we came back for 11th grade and i legit ddnt even recognize him. He was in a class with me and I had no idea it was him because he lost about 25-35 pounds over summer. he said all he did was ride his bike and go on an elliptical and cut down his calorie intake a bit. For people who dont have a physical problem or who take a medication which can possibly cause weight gain it seems like a little motivation and consistency are key. I have lost weight before and gained weight as well and while its not the easiest thing ever it can definitely be done by making a few smart changes. If you have a desk job i suggest signing up for a gym or play basketball a few times a week or something.

 

I am glad someone mentioned fructose. It was not until the 1980s that we started getting non- citrus fruit juices and people thought it was healthy. I remember working part time in a cafeteria in 1978 and the serving of orange juice was about 1/2 cup, probably about right.
Fructose can only be digested through the liver and like alcohol is converted directly into body fat. It takes you a while to eat five shop size apples, but only 30 seconds the drink the juice of the same five apples.

 

My stance on this has actually changed quite a bit. I don't think fructose is inherently bad unless it's consumed in abundance. Other than packing a high caloric load and being devoid of fiber, I don't think juice is necessarily bad or "fattening" unless someone is regularly guzzling it down. I personally don't drink juice hardly ever because I don't like to drink my calories, but I have come to learn that there are really no "bad" or "unhealthy" foods when taken into context. So while it is true that the liver can convert fructose to fat through the process of gluconeogenesis, this is only going to happen when it is being consumed in a caloric surplus.

 

Furthermore, alcohol also does not directly convert to fat unless consumed in an energy surplus. However, alcohol does shut down the body's ability to burn fat until the liver metabolizes the alcohol. So alcohol is not really fattening in and of itself, but like all things it can be if it is consumed in an energy or caloric surplus.

 

Fructose is a natural product but yes it is the quantity that matters.

 

I hate to be a traitor to my gender but I do think obesity probably became a problem when it became more common for women to work full time jobs. I know I ate pretty horribly growing up because my mom didn't have time to cook nutritious meals. I struggle with it myself. I'm very commited to eating whole, nutritious foods most ofI the time but I only make it work because of that commitment and it takes up a lot of my time. I can see how lower income parents who may work odd hours and more than one job fail to instill good nutrition in their kids because they simply don't have the time.

So then you have entire generations of children growing up on food that not only has very little nutritional value but is also loaded with addictive sugar like HFCs which is in pretty much any type of processed food you can think of.

This thread is old, I hope I'm not repeating myself from something I said in 2014.

 

I don't drink alcohol because it has too many calories. I drink so much
tea and coffee without sugar nor milk. I am glad there are drinks like tea and coffee which doesn't cause me to gain weight. No matter how much coffee I drink, it doesn't cause me to gain weight. Coffee almost has zero calories.

 

Coffee doesn't almost have zero calories. It has zero calories unless you're adding cream and sugar to it.

 

You should not just consider calories. HFCS alters the metabolism of the human body and leaves the hunger switch on. Insidious stuff. Google Dr Robert lustig.