The fatting of America.

[tgibson3770]

Everywhere you look, obesity is there. I am not advocating to be a food policeman, but we need to start making a voice in our land. People do not like being overweight. But certain foods are addictive and the public needs to be educated on proper unbiased nutrition. Meat and dairy products and foods that are fried are absolutely in no way beneficial to the human body. The human physiological system is completely adaptable to a total vegetarian diet. But with the refined sugars and fatty foods that poison our body and cloud our minds, addiction sets in deep and becomes 'nearly' impossible to break the bonds.

I am challenging every nurse to take up the baton on this one. If we, health care professionals cannot make the first stand on the nutrition value of America, then the general population have little to no hope.

How about it? Educate, rejuvinate, permeate.

[StrwbryblndRN]

I have not read the entire thread just half. But did anyone mention that what is good for one is not good for the other.

In recent years I have found that certain foods that are considered good for you are very bad for me. I have food intolerances that manifest themselves in fluid retention and weight gain and abd pain. It took years for me to see it and I am still fine tuning my diet to exclude what ails me. (family history of this too). That is not to say that my friend would need to do the same thing. Everyone should figure what is best for them. If you find your weight still a problem look further into what you eat. Yes, fried food, high fat, high sugars are bad. Moderation is key but at the same time remember if your stomach can't tolerate brocoli and fish makes you throw up then maybe it is not for you. The human body is amazing and no one is built the same. From DNA to hair color; the list goes on.

If you do not wish to proceed with changing your lifestyle and you like how you feel then so be it. In my opinion if you want to change then do it. If not, I hope you enjoy your life to fullest no matter what your weight is at.

[Spidey's mom, ADN, BSN, RN]

I definately agree that happy people are healthy people. Depressed, stress and unhappy people live with more aches, pains and illnesses.

There's a certain truth with being happy with our food choices.

However, the old "You gotta die of something, and I'd rather die fat and happy......." can kill us.

Maybe looking to food as a source of happiness is the wrong attitude. Maybe attaching any kind of emotion to food is not a good thing.

Looking to food for anything other than good nutrition probably is a better idea.

Pizza, ice cream, McDonalds food, fried chicken makes me happy. It doesn't mean I need to eat it. Brussel sprouts and broccoli don't make me happy but I eat them.

While I don't go to McD's, I do eat pizza and ice cream. Life is too short to define it by what I can and can not eat. But to limit myself to what makes me happy wouldn't be wise either.

Tofu makes me happy. Eat it once or twice a week. :)

I love brussel sprouts . . . .

Hate McDonalds. Fried chicken and homemade gravy and mashed potatoes make me happy.

I love the tofu in hot and sour soup . . . I've had tofu in other dishes and liked it - I just don't know how to prepare it.

I'm not crazy about sweet stuff - can live w/o it easily.

I don't drink alot of milk but if I do have it I drink non-fat. I know - yuck. I used to think that too but I slowly worked my way down and got used to it and now any other milk taste "off" to me.

Everything in moderation . . . . but keep up the exercise.

steph

[rngreenhorn]

OK tweety, I'll admit it. My dad does make a tasty tofu dish with lentils, fava beans, veggies and sharp cheddar. It makes me happy.

I agree somewhat that emotion should not be connected with food, but only negative emotion. I don't think positive emotion (happiness) and consumption of nutrients ought to be mutually exclusive.

I think part of America's obesity problem comes from our negative emotion and unhealthy obsession with food. Our groceries stores are filled with low fat, low carb, "all natural," organic foods. Our book stores have shelves full of diet book. There is always someone I know on some sort of diet. Yet we keep getting fatter.

If you are fat and truly happy, and die because of it, good for you. I think being truly happy and fullfilled really is the point of this crazy journey. However, most overweight people I know are not happy with their extra pounds. These people equate eating with guilt. Some eat more to ease the guilt; a vicious cycle. Feeling guilty everytime you eat has to be a stressful way to live. We all have to eat. And to add insult to injury, stress causes weight gain. Why not eat healthy portions of what you like and skip the stress and guilt associated with food. Who cares if you eat ice cream for dinner?

As mvanz pointed out, many cultures (poblably all cultures, including America) celebrate special occasions with feasts. Some of my fondest memories are of Thankgiving, 4th of July, family reunions etc in which the main attration is the food. I still loves to hang out in the kitchen and munch an apple, eat cheetos, or drink a beer while talking with mom. Mvanz mentions France, a country who's cuisine no doubt has been dubbed evil in some American best-selling diet book. Yet they don't seem to have the problem of obesity. I wonder if it is because the French choose to enjoy mealtime and celebrate good food, while we grab an extra-crispy-McWhopper-Bell-grande-jack and eat while doing something "more important." I think we could relieve some of our obsession if we would slow down and make mealtime a priority, a time of fellowship and enjoyment.

[SmilingBluEyes]

I think I get confused on what is really making me happy ....eating chocolate makes me "happy" . But over all peace and true contentment do not come with eating crap. Drinking 12 oz V8 does not make me happy, but it does make my body happy. In the long run, good health will make me happy. Being fat and sick, definately not. Seeing the long term has definately helped me make some better choices here of late. I have a long way to go to true all around wellness, unfortunately.

[SmilingBluEyes]

Anyone See Dr Phil today and the fat babies...interesting the defensive manner in which parents discuss their choices they make for their kids' eating. There is little defense in my mind, to pushing crap on a kid to the point he is 150 at age 4!!!

or is that just me?

[VivaLasViejas, ASN, RN]

First of all, I think there's got to be something metabolically out of sync with any child who weighs 150# at age 4. That's just unreal. But I'm also certain that some parents equate loving their children with giving them everything they want, and with some kids, that's food. All kinds of food. At any time they happen to want it.

I have four grown and almost-grown children, only one of whom is overweight (and that's the pregnant one!). I've always been aware, though, that in a family with an overweight mom and dad, statistically my kids stand an 80% chance of being overweight themselves, so I've always been careful to expose them to all sorts of foods, both healthy and not-so-healthy. I also did not make a big deal out of sweets or snack foods; they were just a normal part of our diet, along with meat and vegetables.

Nothing guarantees food obsession better than categorizing certain foods as 'forbidden'. But if kids grow up thinking that sweets and snacks are nothing special, they don't get hung up on them; my three normal-weight kids are living proof of that. And not one of them---not even my chunky girl---eats when they're not hungry, nor do they munch mindlessly, stuff themselves until they throw up, or eat "just because it's there".

Time will tell if any of them become obese as they age---I never got fat until I was an adult either---but I tend to think not, simply because they never developed the dysfunctional eating patterns I did. Genetics does not have to mean destiny, and I'm sorry, but anyone who overfeeds their child when that child is at risk of obesity needs some MAJOR mental health assistance.:stone

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

Bleeeeeeeeh. McDonald's.

Other cultures place significant importance on meal-times and the social interaction that occurs. In contrast, most American's make it a rush-rush thing (ie, fast food and so on).

For the record I don't eat at McDonalds. But the millions they spend to make their food taste good apparently works. I love Quarter Pounders with cheese, or I did when I used to eat them.

I agree, we've kind of lost some of the social/family connection with meals.

I have not read the entire thread just half. But did anyone mention that what is good for one is not good for the other.

,,,,,,,,, If you do not wish to proceed with changing your lifestyle and you like how you feel then so be it. In my opinion if you want to change then do it. If not, I hope you enjoy your life to fullest no matter what your weight is at.

I mentioned somewhere, maybe not in this thread, but one of the other infamous obesity threads for sure that indeed there isn't a one diet fits all. Many people thrive on Adkins and I hated it.

You are 100% right that we need to be happy with wherever we are at, whether we want to change it or not.

I love brussel sprouts . . . .

Hate McDonalds. Fried chicken and homemade gravy and mashed potatoes make me happy.

I love the tofu in hot and sour soup . . . I've had tofu in other dishes and liked it - I just don't know how to prepare it.

I'm not crazy about sweet stuff - can live w/o it easily.

I don't drink alot of milk but if I do have it I drink non-fat. I know - yuck. I used to think that too but I slowly worked my way down and got used to it and now any other milk taste "off" to me.

Everything in moderation . . . . but keep up the exercise.

steph

Good advice about the moderation advice. We can have our cake and eat it too without detrimental effects. Exercise definately helps. I've gotten so used to non-fat milk when I do drink it, that's what I use. Whole milk taste to "thick".

OK tweety, I'll admit it. My dad does make a tasty tofu dish with lentils, fava beans, veggies and sharp cheddar. It makes me happy.

I agree somewhat that emotion should not be connected with food, but only negative emotion. I don't think positive emotion (happiness) and consumption of nutrients ought to be mutually exclusive.

I think part of America's obesity problem comes from our negative emotion and unhealthy obsession with food. Our groceries stores are filled with low fat, low carb, "all natural," organic foods. Our book stores have shelves full of diet book. There is always someone I know on some sort of diet. Yet we keep getting fatter.

I definately think that mealtime should be happy time. We should not feel deprived or miserable. Nothing worse than being on a diet and starving and being miserable while your family is eating fried chicken.

On the other hand, one should not look to food to make you happy. i.e. the "I'm unhappy, so I'll eat a gallon of ice cream to see if I feel better because ice cream makes me happy". That is self-destruction.

A meal that nourishes the body, that is eaten with gratitude for the bounty we enjoy in this country, and all the people whose labor brought it to our table, and that is shared with others is nothing but noursing to the body/mind/soul.

I think I get confused on what is really making me happy ....eating chocolate makes me "happy" . But over all peace and true contentment do not come with eating crap. Drinking 12 oz V8 does not make me happy, but it does make my body happy. In the long run, good health will make me happy. Being fat and sick, definately not. Seeing the long term has definately helped me make some better choices here of late. I have a long way to go to true all around wellness, unfortunately.

I agree. This is how it is for me too. Eating poorly and not taking care of myself may bring some semblence of satisfaction at the moment, but in the long run, it brings me down.

......my three normal-weight kids are living proof of that. And not one of them---not even my chunky girl---eats when they're not hungry, nor do they munch mindlessly, stuff themselves until they throw up, or eat "just because it's there".

I think they got it right. Watch what thin people do. They eat when they are hungry and stop when they are full. At celebrations, or office parties they show restraint naturally without thinking. I wonder if those us who emotionally eat or compulsively overeat can rewire our brains that way?

[jimthorp]

If we ran fast enough to get our heart rate into the "target zone", they would think that a code had been called.

LOL. Just that anouncement is enough to put the adrenal glands into overdrive.

[peacelovestar]

I've always been a little chubby at 150lbs (At 5‘9“ I hid it well on my hourglass figure) but it was never enough to stop eating. Food is one of my favorite things. Trying new restaurants, family dinners, lunches with the girls, and we can't forget those college nights...--> partying all night, then hitting up Jack in the Box at 3am when you buy everything off the dollar menu? I KNOW SOMEONE ELSE OUT THERE DOES IT TOO.. that damn drive-thru line is ridiculous at early AM hours)

But something clicked a year ago (I also got really sick at this time, and was put in a hospital... which is when decided I wanted to be a nurse!) Silly as it was, but a commercial changed my life. "Heart Disease is the #1 killer in Women and it's also one of the most preventable disease". I was surprised. I asked my dad what the causes of heart disease were (this was when I was a business major and had no real science background) and he started ticking off reasons, finally coming to the fact that being overweight and not exercising could very well be one of the main reasons (as it's generally thought to lead to an increased cholesterol level, high blood pressure, etc).

I was shocked. I looked at my mother, who at 6' weighs about 225lbs and became very, very scared. Then I got mad. Mad that she wasn't taking care of herself... therefore putting herself at a higher risk. I'm not naive, people at a healthy weight die everyday for different reasons but why put yourself at more of a risk? (Same goes with smoking but I don't even want to go there)

That day I started eating much healthier, getting more exercise and focusing more on expanding my mind through nursing and health. My mental and physical health drastically changed. I did it for me and also in hope that my good habits rub off on her. And you know what? They have, but not completely. YET!!

When it's your life, your body, you only get one. Make it count.

Believe me, as I was once a self described food addict.. I get it! I LOVE FOOD. I still do. But when I do treat myself to those "bad foods" (and I do, from time to time) it just makes them that much better because now I rarely eat them. I'm happy.

I'm not preaching to anyone, rather just sharing my experience. Veggies are good!!

[pipersjo, ADN, BSN, MSN]

And my dog loves fresh yogurt. (Of course my dog also likes fresh cat turd) Oh well.

We need disclaimer's when someone says something like this--I was taking a drink and almost blew it out my nose!:chuckle

[dream'n, BSN, RN]

I have been off of coca-cola for 10 days now. Cold turkey, went from about 2 liters a day to water, water, water. I have already lost 6 pounds! The headaches haven't been too bad, but the hypoglycemic episodes are huge. Got up the other morning and everything was rolling and spinning, had to lay back down for a bit. I hope this is only the first step in taking care of myself, I've been very lax in that department. My triglycerides were 1400 and change! So everyone please send some positive vibes my way. Only thing I don't understand is that caffeine is supposed to be a diuretic, but since I stopped it, I am constantly in the bathroom and my ankle swelling is much down.

[Indy, LPN, LVN]

Caffeine may be a diuretic but the sodium content in coke is insane, hence the fluid retention.