Ot; Heavy

[Anonymous]

I understand that, in theory, it is ultimately our own choice as to what we eat. After all, no one is forcing food into anyone’s mouth.

But I also understand that choices are not as easy for some individuals, and there can be overwhelming differences in the difficulty from one person to another in making a particular choice.

I think a similar issue is homosexuality. Some claim it is a choice, but there is pretty compelling evidence that sexual preference is an inherent biological trait.

So if it is true that the food we put in our mouths is ultimately our own choice, then it is also true that whatever we put … well, you know what I mean…

If one is going to claim that what we eat is a series of choices that can be easily altered, then you may have to agree that our sexual preference, or at least acting on it, is also a choice that can be easily “cured.”

I personally don’t agree with either.

Of course there are differences – we do want to end obesity, but it would be folly and inhumane to try to end homosexuality. But the underlying forces are similar – different people can have vastly different innate drives and needs (like hunger and, well, you know…)

[briansd1]

[quote=pri_dk]

I think a similar issue is homosexuality. Some claim it is a choice, but there is pretty compelling evidence that sexual preference is an inherent biological trait.

So if it is true that the food we put in our mouths is ultimately our own choice, then it is also true that whatever we put … well, you know what I mean…

[/quote]

I agree that the sex act is a choice. We can choose not to have sex and with enough will-power we can abstain.

But sex is healthy and good exercise… so why abstain? If you’re healthy, there is no compelling reason to abstain from sex.

Our attraction to males/females is innate, just like our craving for sweet, salty, fatty foods.

There are different degrees of addiction and craving so that’s why we are not equal; and some people have to work harder than others. Such is life.

[CA renter]

[quote=ocrenter]CAR, sorry to hear about your sister. Just remember, no one here is saying there’s no metabolic differences. And it is true, if someone is genetically overweight, they will be healthier staying overweight. What I have seen however is because of the changes we have induced for ourselves over the last 50 years, a lot of the genetically overweight are now obese, and this is quite concerning.

The same can be said for a lot of Filipinos I know. They are meant to be skinny people, and what is happening is a lot of them are overweight, and their bodies can’t handle it. They develop diabetes, hypertension, cholesterol problem, and gout just by being overweight.

Lastly, you are right about people that over do the exercise. There is evidence that extreme exercise leads to cardiac scarring.

The Buddha was very wise in his advocation of the middle path. Most things in life are truly better in moderation.[/quote]

Humans have moved from an agrarian lifestyle to an industrialized lifestyle, with most of these changes occuring in just a few decades. Our bodies have gone from tending fields and doing a lot of manual labor to sitting behind computer screens in sunless cubicles all day. We now sit in traffic for hours per day to get to and from work. We eat processed food — food that came about because nobody is home anymore to prepare the fresh food from the fields…and we don’t have fields anymore.

Without a doubt, these lifesyle changes have wreacked havoc on our bodies, and many people whose bodies had evolved over thousands of years to withstand famine now have access to thousands of calories that they are completely unable to handle. Some bodies have adapted well, possibly because their ancestors had access to more food, or because they decend from people who would have died, but when food became more available, they began living longer and having more children. We don’t really know why, but there is no doubt in my mind that some people are able to handle these changes better than others.

I think people need to focus on living a healthy lifestyle rather than focus on the appearance of a healthy lifestyle. Some people will be skinny, others will be “normal,” and some others will be “overweight.” What’s important is that they eat healthy foods, get plenty of exercise (preferably outdoors), have good relationships with family and friends, and reduce their stress levels as much as possible. We need to move away from the notion that everyone has to look the same. It’s unrealistic and unhealthy, and it’s causing a lot of young girls to experiment with very dangerous habits that will end up killing them far sooner than a few extra pounds will.

People are different — some are tall, some short, some blonde, some brown, some heavy, some light, some black, some brown, some white, some gay, some straight, and some in between. What matters most is that they are good people. Let’s focus on the important things in life, and stop obsessing about the things that people have little/no control over.

[Arraya]

[quote=briansd1]
*

There definitely are cultural and psychological problems more than food and medical issues.

Arraya mentioned that our modern society is inducing a lot of stress that wasn’t there before. We are constantly bombarded with media messages that affect our self-esteem.

.[/quote]

It’s something I’ve been looking at a lot this past year. We socially stress ourselves and these stresses are encouraged, to some extent. A lot of it is neurologically based rather than genetic. But, what we’ve seen over the past 4 decades is unhealthy patterns of behavior increasing on multiple fronts that turn into health problems. And these things spread like a disease throughout the social body.

Also, like CAR said, a lot has to do with dramatic changes in food and lifestyles from one generation to the next. I think another part of it is people being pushed to consume more. Which really started to ramp up after WWII. Personal consumption doubled from 1945 to today. The two working parents is also a big change and probably not the best thing for young children not to have an emotionally available, unstressed, parent available at all times. At least up to 5 or so.

The other very interesting study is what Navydoc posted about fetal programming. Prenatal stressing can cause a host of issues. Also ACE( Adverse Childhood Experiences) can cause the brian to develop in ways that can cause issues down the road. Human infant’s brains are undeveloped at birth. So the younger somebody is, the more vulnerable they are to environmental stresses that cause changes in neurochemistry that can last a lifetime.

I posted this before. It goes into the brain triggers with addiction. I think it is, at least, tangentially related to the behavioral changes taking place throughout society. Including over eating.

Brain Development & Addiction

[briansd1]

So CA renter, I think we agree on several things.

We should not eat the same food that our agrarian elders ate.

We should not eat processed junk food. The definition of junk is yet to be defined.

We should reduce stress.

We should try to be healthy. What is healthy? IMO, we should start with medical science and BMI which I think is generous.

[quote=CA renter] Let’s focus on the important things in life, and stop obsessing about the things that people have little/no control over.[/quote]

Things we can’t control like the intrincic forces of globalization? We can control our health, however — at least to a great extent.

[briansd1]

[quote=Arraya][quote=briansd1]
*

There definitely are cultural and psychological problems more than food and medical issues.

Arraya mentioned that our modern society is inducing a lot of stress that wasn’t there before. We are constantly bombarded with media messages that affect our self-esteem.

.[/quote]

It’s something I’ve been looking at a lot this past year. We socially stress ourselves and these stresses are encouraged, to some extent. A lot of it is neurologically based rather than genetic. But, what we’ve seen over the past 4 decades is unhealthy patterns of behavior increasing on multiple fronts that turn into health problems. And these things spread like a disease throughout the social body.

Also, like CAR said, a lot has to do with dramatic changes in food and lifestyles from one generation to the next. I think another part of it is people being pushed to consume more. Which really started to ramp up after WWII. Personal consumption doubled from 1945 to today. The two working parents is also a big change and probably not the best thing for young children not to have an emotionally available, unstressed, parent available at all times. At least up to 5 or so.

The other very interesting study is what Navydoc posted about fetal programming. Prenatal stressing can cause a host of issues. Also ACE( Adverse Childhood Experiences) can cause the brian to develop in ways that can cause issues down the road. Human infant’s brains are undeveloped at birth. So the younger somebody is, the more vulnerable they are to environmental stresses that cause changes in neurochemistry that can last a lifetime.

I posted this before. It goes into the brain triggers with addiction. I think it is, at least, tangentially related to the behavioral changes taking place throughout society. Including over eating.

Brain Development & Addiction[/quote]

I very much agree, Arraya.

I haven’t really thought about social stress much but I will reflect on the subject more and I’ll discuss this with some of my friends.

Stress and food is interesting. If you read the novels of the past, you’ll notice that whenever someone is distraught or love sick, that person would lose appetite and not eat for days. In today’s culture, when people are depressed, they sit in front of the TV with apple pie and a pint of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. Something has changed, and it’s not genetics.

[briansd1]

[quote=Jacarandoso] can you post something that shows that most obese adults were born significantly heavier than their non-obese siblings?[/quote]

I would be interested to see data that indicate that babies who were born heavier ended up heavier in later life.

In my family it’s the opposite. My older bro was thin and sickly when little. Now he’s the fattest because of marrying a Southern girl and enjoying too much wholesome Southern cuisine.

[ocrenter]

[quote=briansd1]So CA renter, I think we agree on several things.

We should not eat the same food that our agrarian elders ate.

We should not eat processed junk food. The definition of junk is yet to be defined.

We should reduce stress.

We should try to be healthy. What is healthy? IMO, we should start with medical science and BMI which I think is generous.

[quote=CA renter] Let’s focus on the important things in life, and stop obsessing about the things that people have little/no control over.[/quote]

Things we can’t control like the intrincic forces of globalization? We can control our health, however — at least to a great extent.[/quote]

once again, the problem proves to be multifactorial.

[NotCranky]

[quote=ocrenter][quote=briansd1]So CA renter, I think we agree on several things.

We should not eat the same food that our agrarian elders ate.

We should not eat processed junk food. The definition of junk is yet to be defined.

We should reduce stress.

We should try to be healthy. What is healthy? IMO, we should start with medical science and BMI which I think is generous.

[quote=CA renter] Let’s focus on the important things in life, and stop obsessing about the things that people have little/no control over.[/quote]

Things we can’t control like the intrincic forces of globalization? We can control our health, however — at least to a great extent.[/quote]

once again, the problem proves to be multifactorial.[/quote]
I hope chicken and poblano cream sauce over fettuccine isn’t part of the problem?

[briansd1]

[quote=Jacarandoso] I hope chicken and poblano cream sauce over fettuccine isn’t part of the problem?[/quote]

No cream, cheese or fettucine allowed! 😉

Only a little specialty cheeses on a platter at the end of the dinner, but no cheese sauces, or cheese on top of the food.

Here is an interesting new documentary.
I believe that a low-sodium diet of plant products and fish would eliminate heart disease, high blood pressure and cholesterol altogether.

Home v3

[briansd1]

pajama jeans for everyone now, even for men. Maybe a good present for a loved one.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/arts-post/post/pajama-jeans-now-for-

men/2011/12/20/gIQAEGc76O_blog.html
https://www.pajamajeans.com/

http://www.npr.org/2011/12/11/143003539/spandex-has-stretched-with-u-s-waistlines

[UCGal]

[quote=briansd1]pajama jeans for everyone now, even for men. Maybe a good present for a loved one.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/arts-post/post/pajama-jeans-now-for-

men/2011/12/20/gIQAEGc76O_blog.html
https://www.pajamajeans.com/

http://www.npr.org/2011/12/11/143003539/spandex-has-stretched-with-u-s-waistlines%5B/quote%5D

That link starting with “men/2011” is NOT work safe.
Just sayin…

[briansd1]

UCGal, it’s supposed to be this link:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/arts-post/post/pajama-jeans-now-for-men/2011/12/20/gIQAEGc76O_blog.html

[ucodegen]

[quote UCGal]That link starting with “men/2011” is NOT work safe.
Just sayin…[/quote]
Its not screen/keyboard safe either…. more so the links to ‘jeanderpants’ on that page.

[briansd1]

So you guys have big brother watching at work where certain sites are blocked?

BTW, I thought that pajama jeans might be a good Christmas gift recommendation that flu asked for.

[Author]

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