Obesity: Why are we getting fat? :epizza:

[Monomer]

7000 kJ? :eek:

 

Hardee's unveils the biggest burger ever - Nightly News with Brian Williams - MSNBC.com

 

Hardees' Monster Thickburger!

 

Abandon hope, all ye who enter here! (Dante never seemed more appropriate than now. :))

 

 

That looks nasty!!!!

 

If we listen closely we can hear many arteries clogging up.

[InfiniteNow]

In all seriousness, I could easily eat two of these things... maybe three if I've been working outside all day. I like the quote in the video...

 

"These Thick Burgers are quintessential food porn... Just oozing with artery clogging fat." -- Michael Jacobson of the Center for Science for the Public Interest (what the hell is that anyway?)

[maikeru]

Two or three, InfiniteNow? You must have a metabolism made out of iron. I don't think I could stand one--my heart would pop.

[InfiniteNow]

Two or three, InfiniteNow? You must have a metabolism made out of iron. I don't think I could stand one--my heart would pop.

 

The trick is to eat them with a slurpee sized margarita in the other hand, sipping on the frozen lime flavored tequila beverage slowly as you eat. The alcohol relaxes the muscles of your heart and reduces the speed at which the full belly signals travel to the brain. :hihi:

 

I used to go to Arby's and pick-up 4 roast beef sandwiches and finish them all... for lunch... then have a pasta dinner when I got home. I've always been the tall lanky guy, about 6'2" and averaging about 150. However, as I am aging, my metabolism is slowing and this year I've crested 175 for the first time in my life. :shrug:

 

My girlfriend still remembers the first time she cooked me dinner. It was spaghetti. We'd each had a very large plate with some wine. I went into the kitchen for more, and asked her if she was finished. She said she was, so I scooped out the remainder of the pot of pasta on to my plate... and finished it. She was stunned. :eek:

 

Unfortunately, as I am getting older, my metabolism is slowing. While I understand that higher caloric intake shortens life, I approach things with the "quality over quantity" state of mind, and enjoy thoroughly my fine foods, liquors, and cigars. I'd rather live 60 years with good scotch than 70 without, but that's just me.

 

I guess I can thank my mom's ADHD being passed genetically and keeping my mind running in perpetual fast forward, hence burning a significant portion of the calories I ingest. Physically too... You should have seen the steaks I ate when preparing for my black belt test. Wholey cow... literally. ;)

[maikeru]

The trick is to eat them with a slurpee sized margarita in the other hand, sipping on the frozen lime flavored tequila beverage slowly as you eat. The alcohol relaxes the muscles of your heart and reduces the speed at which the full belly signals travel to the brain. :eek:

 

I used to go to Arby's and pick-up 4 roast beef sandwiches and finish them all... for lunch... then have a pasta dinner when I got home. I've always been the tall lanky guy, about 6'2" and averaging about 150. However, as I am aging, my metabolism is slowing and this year I've crested 175 for the first time in my life. :shrug:

 

No doubt in my mind, then, that you have a stout constitution, even if you are tall and lanky. My body build is similar to yours: 6'0 or 6'1 (1.82 or 1.84 m, can't recall exactly) and about 150 lbs now. I used to weigh around 135-140 lbs, but I've put on weight starting last year with exercise and ballroom dance (which has really done wonders for toning and strengthening everything). I've always had very low body fat, though--last time I was measured in a gym class I had 4%.

 

My girlfriend still remembers the first time she cooked me dinner. It was spaghetti. We'd each had a very large plate with some wine. I went into the kitchen for more, and asked her if she was finished. She said she was, so I scooped out the remainder of the pot of pasta on to my plate... and finished it. She was stunned. ;)

 

One plate of pasta's good for me. :) Most of the my food falls into a few categories: traditional East Asian (Chinese, Japanese, some Korean, Vietnamese), Mediterranean (Italian, French, Spanish), and lastly American (steak, potatoes, pizza, etc.). So I guess I eat a pretty lean, low-cal diet. Even as an American, I have to admit American food's not always my favorite. I'd rather eat Asian and Mediterranean food more often. I try to limit my meat intake, although I have an occasional steak or beef roast. I really like fish and seafood.

 

Too fatty or too sweet of food usually makes me sick...like a terrible yuckiness inside out. That feeling lasts the entire day. I've learned to avoid foods that make me feel like that. I've noticed in particular that too many sodas, maple syrup, or too much coffee with sugar + donuts trigger it. I don't know if this is common or because of my usual diet and my body's not used to eating foods high in saturated/trans-fats or sugars. Or maybe it's just me.

 

Unfortunately, as I am getting older, my metabolism is slowing. While I understand that higher caloric intake shortens life, I approach things with the "quality over quantity" state of mind, and enjoy thoroughly my fine foods, liquors, and cigars. I'd rather live 60 years with good scotch than 70 without, but that's just me.

 

Everyone has a different philosophy of life. :) And I enjoy the occasional bit of wine as well.

 

I guess I can thank my mom's ADHD being passed genetically and keeping my mind running in perpetual fast forward, hence burning a significant portion of the calories I ingest. Physically too... You should have seen the steaks I ate when preparing for my black belt test. Wholey cow... literally. ;)

 

You're not going to devour Boersun, are you? I'd better tell him to run for the hills. :hihi:

[IMAMONKEY!]

I have a similar build as well... 6' and 140 lbs. I'm thin and while some people say unnaturally so I prefer to refer to it is being... lean. :naughty:

 

The only difference is I WISH I was fat. I eat so much junk-food, meat, peanut butter, and high-calorie/fatty foods it's not even funny... those monster thickburger's wouldn't last a minute on my plate... If you've ever been to Wendy's try eating 2 of their triple-decker cheeseburgers... I can't remember the name although I remember the taste (so goooood).

 

I've even resorted to taking weight-gainer which STILL ISN"T WORKING! It's actually beginning to worry me... I'm thinking about taking creatine or some other such solution to gain weight; at this point and at my age I don't care how much weight I gain (preferably some) or what kind of weight it is (preferably muscle).

 

Last time in Phys. Ed. (Gym) i was weighed and measured was...about half a year ago? I weighed 101.4 lbs was 5' 9" and had 2.6% body fat :)... My teacher thought I was anorexic although my friends managed to convince him that I ate like a horse. :Guns: (still do)

 

And I've noticed I'm not the only one... I know obesity is a health problem but did anyone stop to think that maybe being to thin is a problem as well? Just addressing some concerns of mine.

 

Must go now because I have lunch in 2 hours and I feel like I could blow the 80 bucks I made reffing games last Saturday, :shrug:

 

IMAMONKEY!

[Monomer]

The baby growth charts are all wrong:

 

MANY new mothers come to dread the arcane growth charts produced by baby clinics to assess whether their new arrival is being

under or overfed.

 

Now research is beginning to confirm what many mothers have long suspected – that the most commonly used growth charts, based on babies fed highprotein formula milk, wrongly classify lean but healthy babies as underweight. What’s more, by encouraging mothers to overfeed their babies, the charts may be setting perfectly healthy children on the path to obesity.

 

http://press.newscientist.com/data/pdf/press/2601/260106.pdf

[Monomer]

we r getting fat because we have money which talks..we wanna buy, we wanna feel free, we wanna party!!

 

while some parents do not cook for their children because of lack of time for work, so the children just aslk the money to buy food, or the parents buy fast food/junk food for theirchildren. negligence? or publicity? media doing it all? or just greediness of people?

 

 

Well, it seems that a lack of money is the reason why people are getting fat.

 

Many Victorians in low socio-economic areas said they could not afford to eat nutritious foods, walked less and rarely took part in outdoor activities because they felt their neighbourhoods weren't safe or attractive.

 

[Researchers] found that in disadvantaged areas:

 

RESIDENTS tended to avoid healthy food because they didn't like the taste, and were less likely to buy nutritious groceries such as fruit and low-fat products.

 

MEN were more likely to binge drink.

 

THERE were double the number of takeaway shops.

 

PEOPLE chose fatty fast-food because it was cheaper.

 

WALKING paths were shorter, and fewer pedestrian crossings.

 

Suburbs rule our waists | Herald Sun

[maikeru]

Good article, Monomer. I think there's a serious problem when people feel like they cannot afford healthy food and enjoy the outdoors.

[charles brough]

It does seem we agree that a number of causes are involved in the obesity plaguing us in the West. Perhaps here are a few more:

 

1). Since it is not really world wide but more the industrial world, I would say that stress is partially to blame. It has been tested on stressed animals and led to weight gain.

 

2). Also consider the huge servings brought the patron in most every restaurant in the Industrial world.

 

3). Also consider all the food additives in our food. The overwhelming number of them could be causing it just as lead pipes in some Ancient Roman cities poisoned the people. It might even make us susceptable to the "fat virus."

 

4) Our materialistic culture could also contribute. Lacking a really loved ideal, we have diverted ourselves to the achieving of satisfactions, of pleasure---the so called persuit of happiness. Eating is one. Late in the Roman empire, the upper class grew fat as did the monks during the Period of Church Decadence in the 15th century.

 

5) Personally, I have noted that the poorest and least educated people in our society TEND to be the fattest. They do not know or care about themselves or their appearance enough to do something about it, don't know how, and don't have enough self-discipline.

 

charles, HOME PAGE

[Monomer]

Good article, Monomer. :evil: I think there's a serious problem when people feel like they cannot afford healthy food and enjoy the outdoors.

 

 

I agree - it is a serious problem. I grew up in a disadvantaged area, and my parents were just getting by financially, they still managed to provide nutritious meals, and I remember spending lots of time outside.

 

I think people in more disadvantaged areas are not as motivated and instead of trying to find a way to eat healthily on a low income they head for the nearest fast food outlet. I know people who think it's cheaper to eat fast food, but I really don't think it is.

[charles brough]

I think people in more disadvantaged areas are not as motivated and instead of trying to find a way to eat healthily on a low income they head for the nearest fast food outlet. I know people who think it's cheaper to eat fast food, but I really don't think it is.

 

Yes, I agree! I have to do all my own cooking, but I eat only very rarely in restaurants. By watching where I shop and what I buy---and also, not wasting food---I spend about $2.50 a day on food. I would starve trying to live on only $2.50 a day for fast food in the Franchise resturants!:evil:

 

charles, HOME PAGE

[Michaelangelica]

Yes, I agree! I have to do all my own cooking, but I eat only very rarely in restaurants. By watching where I shop and what I buy---and also, not wasting food---I spend about $2.50 a day on food. I would starve trying to live on only $2.50 a day for fast food in the Franchise resturants!

 

charles, HOME PAGE

Is that $2.50 USA a day?

If so how do you do it?

[charles brough]

well, I buy inexpensive pork, chicken and ground beef. I make soup out of the fried, cut up meats, cut up carrots, onions and potatoes and in broth made from boiling bones left over from previous meals. I eat a lot of rice with meat and cellery with chedder cheese. Also, bacon and eggs plus toast or spagetti and meat sauce made with ground beef and canned tomatoes---all for variety---things like that. Disserts are jello or box mix made brownies, etc. Typical breakfast is oatmeal or gritts with green tea.

 

I have almost no garbage because I only serve myself the amount I will eat and clean the plate. Even vegetable peelings boil well with the bones to make a good soup broth. I live most of the time in a motor home and use only one burner. I eat well but shop at Walmart or Audi"s when I can. Salads turn out well with olive oil, lemon juice and salt. I always read the labeled ingredients on canned and frozen foods to eliminate high chemical content foods, especially ones with monosodium gluconate---and avoid foods with palm or cottonseed oils.

 

I eat healthy and cheaply buy eating all I cook right away or as leftovers. I make enough soup at one time to make about five separate meals. I do not over eat and keep my slim weight decade after decade.

 

I have an advantage. I learned cooking and baking in the Maritime Service at the end of WWII and know how to cook.

Over the years, I have had a lot of experience.

 

charles, HOME PAGE

[Michaelangelica]

Well done Charles!

 

Read the thread here (on Hypography), on MSG-terrifying

 

 

CAVEMEN PREFERRED BIG MAMMAS (News in Science, 29/3/07)

Prehistoric men 15,000 years ago preferred full-figured women, suggest

dozens of flint figurines excavated from a Palaeolithic hunting site in

Poland.

News in Science - Cavemen preferred big mammas - 29/03/2007

 

PIZZA AS HEALTH FOOD? IT'S ALL IN THE DOUGH (Health & Medical News, 27/3/07)

It's the junk food lover's dream come true, pizza as health food.

News in Science - Pizza as health food? It's all in the dough - 27/03/2007

[Michaelangelica]

well, I buy inexpensive pork, chicken and ground beef. ]

No such thing in Oz

Pork and chicken are the cheapest meats at $3/5-$20 a K depending on cut.

 

"Diets that limit carbohydrates and eliminate transfats, and at the same time emphasize fiber and good fats, appear to be healthiest, especially among individuals who are predisposed to developing diabetes."

 

This study was supported, in part, by grants from the National Institutes of Health and from Takeda Pharmaceuticals.

ScienceDaily: Calorie Density Key To Losing Weight

 

POPaganda: The Art And Crimes Of Ron English (ABC 2.00pm Sunday) looks at Ron English, a US artist/activist who paints satirical variations on corporate ads (a typical one shows a grossly overweight "supersized" Ronald McDonald and an anti "phat food" slogan).

 

He doesn’t alter existing billboards, like Buga-up used to do. He simply appropriates some company’s entire billboard and pastes his own painted-to-measure art-work over it.

 

Naturally, the advertising companies think he’s a criminal. Ordinary people admire his work (except for the god-fearing New Yorkers who took exception to his billboard urging viewers to "kill god" — they brought out their baseball bats and tried to bash up his team).

The Guardian

[Michaelangelica]

Study Strengthens Link between Virus and Weight Gain

 

From Scientific American:Fat_1

 

New study results bolster the controversial hypothesis that certain cases of obesity are contagious.

Over the last 20 years, some research has suggested that certain strains of human and avian adenoviruses--responsible for ailments ranging from the chest colds to pink eye--actually make individuals build up more fat cells. Having antibodies to one strain in particular, so-called Ad-36, proved to correlate with the heaviest obese people, and in one study, pairs of twins differed in heft depending on exposure to that virus.

Now researchers have identified another strain of adenovirus that makes chickens plump.

 

Physiologist Leah Whigham of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her colleagues inoculated young male chickens with three strains of adenovirus--Ad-2, Ad-31 and Ad-37. She and her team then monitored the chickens for three and a half weeks, recording their food intake throughout.

 

Though the infected chickens and noninfected controls consumed the same amount of food and were exposed to the same conditions, chickens carrying Ad-37 were found to have nearly three times as much fat in their guts and more than two times as much fat over their entire body at the end of the three-and-a-half week period. The other two virus strains appeared to have little effect on weight.

 

Whether or not hand-washing will help with weight management remains to be determined.

 

More here.

Study Strengthens Link between Virus and Weight Gain: Scientific American