America: Land of the Fat

Chicago Sun-Times ^ | June 29, 2003 | Jim Ritter

[SamAdams76]

Sardines can be delicious. However, as I said, most people need to acquire a taste for them. Also, there is a big difference between "premium" sardines and "budget" sardines. King Oscar makes the best sardines I have ever had. In fact, my mouth waters just thinking about them. On the other hand, run-of-the-mill supermarket sardines don't excite me. I can eat them, but they just aren't nearly as good. It's sort of like the difference between a T-Bone or Porterhouse steak and a slab of the cheapest sirloin.

If you don't think you like sardines, give King Oscar a try.

[Sam Cree]

King Oscars are the best, I like the Mediterranean one also.

There was a time in my life when I jogged 3 miles before breakfast every morning. Yeah, it suppressed my appetite. I've heard of others having the same experience.

[southernnorthcarolina]

Buffets are, of course, a two-edged sword for those trying to lose (or even to maintain) weight. With self-discipline, you can do just fine, whether you're an Atkin-ite, or, like me, a low-fat proponent. But temptation is everywhere, compounded by the subconscious desire to "get your money's worth," even at the risk to your health.

It has been my observation that "all-you-can-eat" buffets are frequented by, shall we say, large people. Particularly notable are breakfast buffets, where one sometimes sees really enormous people, evidently not there so much as to have breakfast, but to make a profit in terms of food consumed versus dollars shelled out. And what do these folks load onto their plates? Vast piles of scrambled eggs, glistening in melted margarine; bacon, sausage, and ham (let's have some of each, shall we?); greasy hash-browns; and here in the South, at least, biscuits topped with sausage/cream gravy (as Dave Barry says, "I am not making this up"). Two trips through the buffet line is commmonplace; three is not unheard of. Of course, fruit, wholegrain cereal, skim milk, and yogurt are on the buffet as well -- but you can't get your $6 (or whatever) worth without hitting the sausage, can you?

[Sam Cree]

I'm an Atkins type now, but used to be a low fat type. I feel better and am less hungry on the low carb thing than I was on the low fat regime, but lost weight on both systems.

Tell you the truth, I figure sugar is the main culprit, I believe the low fat people agree on this.

[timm22]

"The dark side of a technologically advanced society is obesity," said Dr. Samuel Klein of the North American Association for the Study of Obesity.

Nonsense. Automobiles or televisions are not denying people the ability to exercise. Just because I drive down to the corner store does not mean I can't walk that same distance at some time that is more convenient for me.

[southernnorthcarolina]

Whatever works, in terms of 1) allowing one to lose or maintain weight, depending upon the objective; 2) being a dietary plan that one can stay on long-term; and 3) being a plan which will not cause physical harm (e.g., increased risk of heart attack, stroke, cancer, diabetes, etc.).

I don't think it's as simple as "low fat" or "low carb." There are "good" and "bad" fats, as well as "good" and "bad" carbs. A middle course has served me well. I strive to sharply reduce (but not eliminate) fats, with the fat I do consume being comprised mostly of olive oil (monounsaturated) and that present in fish (prepared without additional fat -- broiled, boiled, or as sushi). I'm not 100% successful in this goal (I do eat small amounts of red meat, which even though well-trimmed, contains fat of an undesirable variety), but I'd be willing to bet that I consume less than half the fat calories of an average American, and less than 10% of the saturated fat calories.

With respect to carbohydrates, I believe the real villains are "simple" carbs -- sugar, white rice, white flour. Within reason, I eat all the whole grains, whole-wheat bread, beans, and brown rice I want. I still have a problem with whole-wheat pasta, preferring the "regular" variety, but I'm working on that, too.

Bottom line (no pun intended) to me is that it all comes down to calories consumed and calories burned, whether these are actually counted or not. I am in at least partial agreement with your feeling that "sugar is the main culprit" -- not so much due to its caloric content, but to its stimulation of the appetite. I find that if I drink a Coke® with lunch, I'll tend to wolf down my sandwich or whatever faster than I would with black coffee. It's not just the 150 or 200 calories the drink contains, it's the side effects.

Still, on balance, I remain in the "fat causes fat" camp. But... whatever works.

[Sam Cree]

I actually like the whole wheat breads and pasta better than the white. I think you are right that simple carbs stimulate appetite. IMO, olive oil and other fats (when not mixed with stuff like sugar) help keep appetite under control.

I always enjoy these threads, there are usually some strong opinions.

[wideminded]

The culture has to change," said Marian Fitzgibbon of Northwestern University Medical School. "In a culture with virtually unlimited access to high-fat, good-tasting food in outrageous portions, with no reason to regularly exercise, people will be unable to maintain healthy weights.

One reason it's not going to change soon is that people don't like being told what to do. Especially because many of the people doing the telling have their own weird agendas about food.

[Black Agnes]

One restaurant portion of just about anything is guaranteed to feed me for 2 days, 3 maybe depending. Take out containers are our friends! Eat about 1/3 of the meal in the restaurant, take the remainder to work over the next couple of days for lunch. Eating the whole meal at once is just insane. Don't get me started on pasta portions at places like Outback.

[ctonious]

Two of every three adults are overweight. Nearly one in three is obese--at least 30 or 40 pounds overweight, depending on height.

Although I do not disagree with the basic trend discussed here - I am absolutely appalled at the dimwittedness, or sinister sleight-of-hand tricks of these "the sky-is-falling" doomsayers. Sure, arbitrarily change the weight standards overnight - using the riDICulous BMI standards - which has never been vetted in a discussion about real people, real weight and height ranges - and you can make anything sound like a universal crisis. Anybody ever READ these new standards that these breathless idiots are hyper-ventilating over?

Hey, I'm all for health and progress - but let's not let brainless YMCA pinheads suddenly change the rules and say "OhmiGOOOOooooood!! FerSure!! It's now like really BAAAaaad!"

[Sam Cree]

"obesity experts argue that people can't fight fat by themselves. They need society's help.

Society = of course, the State.

"...obesity experts Marion Nestle of New York University and Michael Jacobson of the Center for Science in the Public Interest have proposed a broad set of "social strategies" to change the fat culture.

F.A. Hayek pointed out, correctly, that usually when you hear the word "social," you can substitute "coercive."

The whole thing sounds Orwellian, Center for Science in the "Public Interest?" May as well translate it to Center for Science in the State's Interest.

[giotto]

For lunch, he sometimes eats three Hostess desserts--Suzy Qs, doughnuts and a fruit pie.

LOL! This might be a clue as to why he's overweight. (What the heck is a Susy Q?)

[Capriole]

I do recall when I was a cadet at VMI in the mid-1960s, many of the local poor whites were rail thin:

Of course. Back then, the poor of both races were poor in part because they ate a simple diet and did hard physical work in the fields all day. The people you saw in Lexington did not have access to Doritos and Happy Meals, which had not been invested yet, and they would have worked this type of food off if they did eat it. Today's poor either (a) sit in front of the TV for much of the day, or (b) work at sedentary or stationary jobs, as on an assembly line. These jobs get one tired--too tired to exercise, in many cases--but don't raise the metabolic rate and burn off calories. And today's poor eat the food they see advertised on TV, expensive glop from Burger King that they can't possibly burn off.

[College Repub]

Me too! 35 lbs to date....For the last 1.5 months it's been a multivitamin pill, and 3 double cheeseburgers no bun...that's it. Keeps me full and healthy and causes me to lose weight. It's easy to see how that's the case since it's only about 1000 calories a day.