How Did Americans Get So Fat, In Seven Charts
Americans are fat. They are so fat very few would even bother to click on a hyperlink in this article explaining how fat they are, so instead we will present an animated chart showing the severity of the US obesity problem over the past 30 years.
Cartoons aside, here are the facts: today two-thirds of U.S. adults are overweight or obese. Half are afflicted with chronic conditions like diabetes or high blood pressure that can often be prevented with better diets, but aren't and as a result debt-funded healthcare costs have exploded, and while this chronic obesity has made pharma companies richer beyond their wildest dreams, it means future US healthcare spending and welfare obligations are unsustainable.
America didn't get this way overnight. The average calories available to the average American increased 25 percent, to more than 2500, between 1970 and 2010, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. There was no extra meal added to the day, instead an evolution in the type of foods Americans eat led to steady growth in calories.
Added fats and grains account for a growing share of total caloric intake. These two categories, which include oils and fats in processed foods and flour in cereals and breads, made up about 37 percent of our diet in 1970. By 2010, they were 46 percent—a larger share of the growing pie. One of the main factor: cost; the increasingly more caloric foods become progressively cheaper and more affordable. The result: more of the lower and middle classes gravitated toward it, leading to the epidemic shown above.
Here, courtesy of Bloomberg, are seven charts showing the detail behind America's troubling obesity trend.
First, this is where America's calories come from.
Cheese is replacing milk.
A lot more fat goes into our foods.
Calories from wheat, rice, and corn have increased. This includes refined grains like white bread that provide calories but are stripped of much of the nutrients in whole grains.
There are some indications that Americans are changing their diets to become healthier. For example, we're swapping red meat for chicken.
And though corn syrup boomed since the 1970s, the total amount of sweeteners we eat has declined. That's partly because Americans are drinking less soda.
These positive changes haven't negated the overall increase in calories on our plates. More than two-thirds of U.S. adults are overweight or obese, compared to less than half in the 1970s.
The government's dietary guidelines are simple: "Almost all people in the United States could benefit from shifting choices to better support healthy eating patterns." Right, now if only the government would also subsidize this healthy - which means more expensive - eating. We won't hold our breath: after all the massive pharma lobby would generate far less profits for its clients if US obesity were to sharply decline as a result of someone doing the right thing.
So until something does take place to shock the US out of its fatty momentum, here is Family Guy.
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"We are taking a part in an experiment we did not sign up for."
This is one reason I very publicly and regularly withdraw my consent through a number of ways and means. I encourage everyone to do the same to the best of their knowledge, understanding or ability.
You know what's a fun way to piss off most people you meet now days (those people generally being overweight and moaning about being overweight) - tell these morons you are just having the hardest time gaining weight, that you eat everything but the pounds just won't stick to your bones. That one always makes for a good Homer Simpson moment!
Reminds me of my friend who tells people that he used "the patch" to start smoking.
I lost 30lb after a heart attack by eating apples, bananas and oranges for breakfast instead of the 2 bacon egg and cheeze burritos. When I got hungry between meals, I ate an apple or orange. I keep a sack of each in the truck.
No refrigeration needed.
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Jus' take a look at that Kardashian bum!
Jus' sayin'…
http://www.google.ca/search?q=KIm+kardashian+ass&safe=off&client=firefox...
But it does seem kind of nice.
Don't deny me.
•?•
V-V
The wheat we eat today is not the same as let's say a hundred years ago. It has a much higher glycemic index. Eating lots of carbs was promoted to boost agriculture after WWII.
Some doctors have said there is so much obesity, there must be something, else, going on.
I think insurance companies, who control med schools and medical research, do what's in their power, to say some diseases do not exist and they do that for profit. In our Culture of Corruption, profit is the only thing that matters. They kill you, your mother, your father and millions of others, and only profit matters. There are diseases that are purposely undiagnosed, untreated, undertreated that leave the desperate patient and the well meaning doctor between a rock and a hard place. All for profit. And, I think, it's one or more of these undiagnosed, untreated, undertreated diseases that is making America fat.
Undiagnosed, untreated, undertreated is the game. For money
I lost 45 pounds last year. I didn't remove any food from my regular eating patterns and I didn't go on a diet. I just cut every portion in half. Two slices of whole wheat bread for breakfast became one. Instead of soup n salad for lunch I just did soup. If I got hungry I ate an apple or orange.I also consume marijuana oil (from indica; no THC, only CBDS etc so no high) at night before bed. Some call it Rick Simpson oil. That makes for deep sleep. I found with the better sleep I didn't need as much food, coffee etc . Marijuana. ..if it were discovered today it would be hailed as a wonder plant.
Fat people cannot run away.
oh funny
it sure can slow them down quite a bit though...
Tank Ass Sydrome
They are getting fatter to increase their real estate for tattoos..,...
I was starting to get a bit chubby back in 2010. I cut out fast food and soda. Have eaten a lot of fish which get's old but that is protein. Don't call me chubby anymore. What sucks is buying new clothes but that is OK.
The witch and the farmer always fatten up the victim just before the slaughter.
The level of denial among some are you is just hilarious. "BMI is just bullcrap. I´ve been BMI >30 all my life but I´m just really muscular. Oh BMI is not a good measurement for my body type - the fat one. I´m big boned. And the fact that I´m having problems typing right now has nothing to do with the amount of chicken fat on my fingers. Which by the way is really good for you. Because vegetables (carbs) kill".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_mass_index#Limitations
"A 2010 study that followed 11,000 subjects for up to eight years concluded that BMI is not a good measure for the risk of heart attack, stroke or death. A better measure was found to be the waist-to-height ratio.[51] A 2011 study that followed 60,000 participants for up to 13 years found that waist–hip ratio was a better predictor of ischaemic heart disease mortality... If obesity is redefined using WHR instead of BMI, the proportion of people categorized as at risk of heart attack worldwide increases threefold.[9]"
Being vegan works, but it isn't much fun. I'm a short, slim (not skinny) ethical vegan female (17 years vegan, then two years veg, then back to vegan). Today I ate baked tofu, boiled kale, a few potato chips, popcorn w/olive oil, a banana, an orange, a cup of tea (w/two tsp. sugar), some pecans, 8 oz. of white wine, and some highly diluted grape juice. That's it. I eat cinnamon just in case (for blood sugar). My "numbers" are all perfect. No, I'm not anorexic; I carry heavy boxes of books around for an hour a day (volunteeriing) and I can carry my 52 lb. dog with no problem. But a short female just doesn't need many calories; way fewer than you'd think. If you're vegan, food isn't that tempting, so you only eat as much as hunger suggests. Well, that will appeal to a small fraction of one percent of the population.
There are gastric stretch receptors in the stomach that signal the brain to stop producing a hormone called ghrelin, when full. Highly fibrous foods, like fruit and vegetables, trigger the receptors much sooner than non-fibrous foods, like meat/dairy/sugar/oils. The result, you eat fewer calories, but more food.
BTW, what is an 'ethical vegan'
An "ethical vegan" is vegan out of pity for animals (my case), or concern about the environment (not my case). As opposed to being vegan for one's own personal health. Actually I don't think being vegan is the most healthful way to eat, but it does beat a lot of the alternatives.
You are right about fiber/ghrelin. Also being vegan (or even vegetarian) causes you to have totally different gut bacteria from an omnivore. Your gut bacteria affect how much food you need, how hungry you feel; lots of things. I think vegans are less hungry for that reason too.
Thanks.
I do an 80/20 diet. Basically, 80% plant-based, 20% animal-based. No dairy, eggs, or sugar. If you look at chimpanzee, our closest living relative, they follow a similar diet (they eat mostly plant-based, with some insects and monkeys).
two words: SERVICE ECONOMY. Motherfuckers sit on their asses for 8+ hours a day. It's not the calories you intake, it's the calories you output. People should go on the "Manual Labor" diet. Gets you in shape QUICK!
Conclusion: Americans love to indulge themselves into sedation.
Conclusion: Social/Behavioral Engineering methods applied over a period of 40 years result in acceleration of the aging processm, creating conditions incompatible to sustained predicted rate of metabolism and early demise.
I fast twice a week. No food sundays and wednesdays. The other days I eat what I want. BMI 26, down from 28
Simple! Import bazillion Mexicans + Welfare = Obesity Explosion
Fat Mexicans....
3 body types: mesomorph, ectomorph and endomorph.
Fat people are simply inferior genetics so choose wisely when mating and reincarnating.
Because we can ?
Gays are thinner .... sucking dick .... high protein snack ?
i thought it was AIDS
Follow the EBT trail .... free food .... for fat fucks .... thanks to Moochelle .... the Dietician in Chief ?
and social media...the internet (faecesbook, rotten apple, boohoo, goggle, shitter, netfix) plus salaries for sports that allow the participation ONLY of a steroid elite picked from an early age.
soviet russia was killing its population with vodka and hard work
chinas way of killing population is with smog and 1-child-tradition (which was abadoned but is unreversable now)
europeans are killing its populations with islamo-replacement, selfhate ideology, gays and feminism
america kills its population with obesity, gays, gentle giants, stupidity, muchacho immigrants, drugs, neger-health-care, etc
people are fat because it's the only way they can store wealth - as in the south sea islands and africa where being fat is a sign of prosperity - /sarc
90% of the population was working dawn to dusk on the farm before mechanized farming.
Now it's single digits.
Thank God I am one of them.
The focus on fats is beyond insane. The fact is, natural fats are healthy. The killer is carbohydrates, especially empty carbs like sugar, flour, etc.
A small quantity of carbs in something like almonds isn't so bad, as long as quantity doesn't get outta hand.
The diets suggested as healthy by governments and medical organizations are DEADLY. Usually the death is slow and methodical... until shortly before you die. At that point you are so screwed, and so habituated to eating garbage, the cure is considered worse than death by most.
Ditch sugar completely. Ditch most empty carbs completely (a small quantity of rice is okay, but all the usual carbs are terrible). Eat natural. The best single advice is... only buy food with one ingredient. Better yet, grow food yourself (in super-duper mineral rich soil like powdered black lava).
Not really. There's also tons of propaganda on the paleo side.
There were plenty of people who lived long healthy lives (they were not wrecks on retirement, they worked almost whole lives) on carbs based diets. But they burned them. For a guy working manual job and than working around the house potatoes and wheat are not that much of a problem. If he'll still get all the needed nutrients those almost-empty calories are just going straight to fuel the labor. Feeding an office worker that doesn't exercise and drives everywhere the same food - that's the problem with carbs based diets.
Fastfood and sugary-everything (even goddamn youghurt that has 15/100g of sugar!) that's another problem.
Still, can't read all you paleo food-fascists. Gobbling fats and nuts is not the only healthy diet (unless you are in a small group that is very prone to diabetes - those people could take your advice without qualification). You can get all essential fats, all needed amino acids, vitamins and minerals eating even as low as 10% protein and 10% fat. It also makes plain sense. Adults are not growing, but they are using up energy. While you need to keep rebuilding your tissues, that's a small fraction compared to the need for energy. If you eat tons of red meat to get 50% fat, 30% protein you will burn yourself. You'll have chronic low-level inflamation and that's already a serious killer in developed countries, burning down hearth and bowels. Hunter gatherers didn't live 80 years, while potato based peasant diet is not fit for a lazy office worker - optimal diet will be personalized to the weakest part of a persons body and likely combine good parts of vegetable-cultists and paleo-fascists.
Ehhhh... gobbling chicken breast and broccoli doesn't seem like "gobbling fats" to me. Plus, nowhere did I claim what I suggest is "gobbling fats and nuts".
You just created a strawman, then shot your mental weapon at it. That's a totally bogus and non-informative approach.
I didn't mention protein (like chicken breast or other low-fat meat) because my comment was to correct the standard yet bogus claim "fats bad, carbs good" (which doesn't mention protein).
To be sure, protein and most fiber in natural foods is good. Fact is, that's mostly what I eat (with some natural fats to make the food taste better). Doesn't everyone love butter on their broccoli?
The body works different on low-carb diets. The Atkins diet was maybe the first popularized diet to recognize that. In most people, below a certain quantity of carbs (10 to 50 grams in most people) the body operates differently and calories are almost irrelevant to losing weight. But go above your limit and all those calories pile on weight due to influences of [non-fiber] carbs on body chemistry.
I said zero about red meat. Personally I never ate much red meat... perhaps once or twice a month. Now that I grow and raise all my own food, the only time I eat red meat is when I travel away from home... and even then rarely, for variety. Nonetheless, I doubt a modest quantity of red meat is any problem, as long as carbs are kept low.
To be sure exercise is good for health, as is simple body motion without substantial exertion. Nothing wrong with natural veggies, but those with the lowest carbs are almost always the most nutritious and best for controlling weight.
Also, though I haven't read anything about diets for ages (thus nothing about paleo), I'd bet you are putting words into their mouth too. There is nothing in the meaning of "paleo" that says "stay away from protein and only eat lard". So what you say sounds like yet another strawman.
This! This is the truth. Carbs are the true cause of obesity and heart disease. Brainwashed masses have been fed all the BS from the government about fats, but I eat meat, fat and no sugars. Lost 40lbs and got ripped and have never been healthier. If you want to lose the hunger and weight, eat fat and get rid of grains and sugar. It's a fact, not an opinion. Start learning.
Fast the truth people. The real issue is the automobile. People drive too much. If a link is ever proven between auto use and obesity, the auto would be the single most dangerous machine ever invented.
I find it odd that the decrease in smoking is not included in the charts.
Lastly, on a positive note, it is great to see the use are margarine has been declining. It will be a great day when this shit is banished to the dustbin of history. Give me liberty butter or give me death!
LOL I see you like to read propaganda. The butter industry has been trying to kill margarine since 1877...with lies and misinformation.
My comments are based solely on taste. I don't need propaganda to tell me that butter tastes better, cooks better, and is better than margarine.
That maybe true but it's rather arrogant of you to limit the people's choice to "liberty butter" based on your taste, and budget.
when the fiat dollar collapses it will be good to thin out these pigs...perhaps china will lend a few bags of rice
"America didn't get this way overnight." I did...
Look at that again. The average woman is overweight.
This proves once again that the BMI labels are meaningless. If everyone is "overweight", then no one is overweight.
http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9806/17/weight.guidelines/
Three members of the committee responsible for making the recommendation had direct ties to pharmaceuticals that manufactured diet pills for profit. A fourth member was the lead scientist for the program advisory committee of Weight Watchers International. This committee advocated dieting for everyone who had a BMI more than 24. They shaved 15-20 lbs off the definition of “ideal/healthy weight” which made about 29 million Americans “overweight, ” and thus “unhealthy,” overnight. It allowed doctors to prescribe diet pills to those 29 million Americans.
95% of the people who complain about the BMI being false are truly OBESE and are just trying to justify being fat...
True, as all these people would fail even under the old standard. Only 15% of the population go to a gym regularly and if you believe the Planet Fitness commercials even less lift weights, so BMI measurements are fairly valid for 85% of the population. I'm not saying that BMI does not have its place I'm saying you can't move the goal post then complain about the lack of scoring.
Saying all that I always find it interesting that nobody mentions that 10% of the population became overweight overnight, and new standards are very difficult to obtain much less maintain. The irony is that these same people will tell you with a straight face that 25% of your diet can be derived from sugar.
This subject is over-analyzed. You weight too much because you eat too much.
Ok, some people have a low rate of metabolism. Some people take medicine, which puts on weight.
Did you ask yourself at the end of the day: I didn't do anything today - I don't need that much food.