Poll: Obesity as a Disease.

[Grey Day for Elcia]

Some diseases can contribute to obesity, but being overweight is largely a choice. While some of us are genetically predisposed to being overweight, most people who are large simply don't want to lose weight--if they wanted to, they could, it's just not easy.

I, for one, don't give a rat's ass about weight. I'm "morbidly underweight," which is to say my lack of fatty tissue and poor diet is negatively impacting my health. But be you 50kg or 250kg, I don't care. The only time weight is a problem, in my eyes, is when it stops you from doing what you want in your life. Don't lose weight, get in shape or work out and eat right because other people want you to. It's your life and you only get to do it once, so do it exactly how you want to.

/rant

 

[Ulquiorra4sama]

Mortal obesity seems to me like it's a combination of a lazy and unhealthy lifestyle and some kind of medical problem. Not saying it can't be just one or the other, but i think if you managed just to eat yourself to death by not moving without any external input then you don't deserve any better.

So yes, i know where my belly blubber comes from and i praise higher powers i don't have some kind of disease to go with it because it's bad enough as it is and i can actually live with being a lazy bastard?

Wasn't that what we envisioned with easier and more convenient technology anyways? See Wall-E for how we're gonna end up one day.

 

[Alternative]

Im fat because i eat alot of junk food and spend alot of time sitting down, i dont really consider that a disease.

Untill a time in which a doctor tells me that i have somesort of glandular problem i will chalk my weight upto poor eating and exercise habits rather then any kind of genetic malfunction.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

While genetics is a factor the chances of Obesity, it isn't the be all end all of it either. You cram enough processed food down your gullet you WILL gain weight unless you burn off that energy received.

So while genetics can INCREASE your chances of becoming obese, it's not the primary factor.

On the subject of Obesity be a disease, I tend to think of it as a major preventable contributor to diseases and complications in life, allot like smoking.

REcaptcha: chicken feed

 

[Something Amyss]

IT can be a disease. It can be avoided. It can also not be a disease.

Let's not forget that America's obesity problem also relates to just about everything containing high fructose corn syrup. Some studies are showing that HFCS is like crack.

Is that the sole reason? Also no.

 

[Snowbell]

I would say that obesity is a disease (it causes identifiable symptoms so it must be one) but it's easily treated or even more easily avoided so 'it's a disease' should never be used as an excuse.

There are very few conditions that lead to obesity (note, obesity rather than simply being overweight which can be caused by several hormonal conditions), obesity really is caused by eating too much of the wrong thing with too little exercise. Look at countries like India where the poorer classes earn little and have to buy cheap food, which contains a lot more fat and the like, whereas the richer classes (those on the same level as the British middle class) can buy healthier food and are not as overweight.

Obesity is easily avoided but not easily removed once it's developed as a problem. The more you eat the larger your stomach becomes, the more ghrelin (the hunger hormone) is produced, the more you eat. It's a vicious circle.

However, there is evidence that obese people have a constant, middling level of ghrelin produced which causes them to never feel full and snack throughout the day. Weirdly, getting your stomach stapled seems to return the levels to normal, possibly because most stomach-shrinking procedures involve removing some of the stomach meaning that less of the hormone can be made.

Apparently one of the major causes of obesity is that if the mother doesn't eat well during pregnancy then a certain hormone is engaged which leads to the child eating more because they perceive that their mother was starved due to low amounts of food available. So when they see the huge quantities of food that are around they eat a lot because their bodies still think there's a chance of them starving.

Nurture also plays a part; families are often fat because the children learn negative behaviour patterns from their parents, this can also help to develop the problem of 'comfort eating'.

Most of this is a simplified version of the information presented in a recent Panorama episode on the BBC about fat (which I can't find a link to, sorry), and the rest comes from the A-level course I took on psychology.

 

[Yan007]

Bodybuilding here.Used to be fat.

Being overweight is a choice: The choice to not take responsibility for your body. No, it's not as simple as calories in and out, but take me for an example. I used to blame genetics because we are fat in my family instead of blaming the real culprits: ourselves and how lazy we are/were. Don't get me wrong, we work hard in my family - we are lazy in the sense that we can't be assed to educate ourselves about our bodies and even if we were we would still find ways to find it too difficult to change old habits.

Went from 5f6 250 pounds to 145 pounds before starting to get muscles and a great physique. Took me a bit under a year (losing weight part- THAT is the EASY part). If you are currently overweight and have an actual drive to change your life around you need to do the following: get yourself a rendez-vous with a trainer in a good gym that offers to analyse your body-type, your fat ratio and that will give you a new diet with your training schedule. Follow the damn diet to the letter, stop cheating except for your cheat meal (your trainer will tell you about this) and follow your new routine religiously. With some luck you'll fall in love with training and want to become a bodybuilder yourself. I can vouch for the pleasure you will get from exposing yourself to others after your hard work and know that people are pleased with what they see.

Take the challenge: Go to your gym and have a rendez-vous with the trainer and ask for help! For most people it only takes a few months to change your life forever. It took me a few days to feel increased energy and benefits (was living on pizza pockets and chips before I switched...) and I believe the same can happen to you. I won't lie to you though. During my first time at the gym I almost fainted (with extremely light weights...) and for a few weeks I felt like I had to puke after my hour at the gym. It went away after a month or two.

I understand that many may have difficulties they can't control (as in your family only eats junk food and you can't eat what you want and have no power over this situation). Still, in the end your body is a machine and unless something is very special with you and your body it will produce results equivalent to what you put into it,regardless of your feelings and what you want to look like.

Lastly: Training and bodybuilding ain't that difficult. You would think that I am ALWAYS training but that is not the case. I train 4-5 times a week, an hour MAX each time. Most of time is spent resting. In the gym you break your muscles. You need to rest to grow.

 

[A3sir]

As someone who weighs 150kgs, obesity is not a disease. I know the reason I am overweight is because I eat too much junk and don't do enough exercise, not because I am sick.

 

[Yan007]

I'm not sure it's a disease, but genetics are involved. The possibility of being obese is greater in some than others. I eat well - cook for myself, only buy pop/chips/candy maybe once a month as a treat, have veggies with every meal, etc, but am overweight. I've been overweight since childhood. I didn't eat well as a child, but walked 20 minutes each way to school (and home for lunch), played baseball, basketball, and roamed the streets on my bike. I was your typical active child. Then puberty, etc. Still walked to school and played baseball, but started filling out. Filled out all though middle and high school (still walked and played baseball). Have always been filled out.

I've accepted it now, and know I need more exercise - my diet could still be better but it's pretty good. However, my grandmother has like 7 sisters - and every single one of them has the exact same body shape as me. Tall and well-proportioned (ie top half and lower half are the same size) for being overweight, except for a spare tire around the middle. Every single one, including my aunt and second cousins twice removed, etc. And these women are all farmers (or were), so they were active their whole lives.

Again, I'm not sure if it's a disease, but it is genetics. Except now we're not as active as we were as a society, and we're eating a lot more processed things. I'm sure genetically modified foods don't help, either. (As I sit at my desk and eat my Chex...)

Question: Could you tell us about your diet? What do you usually eat daily, what quantities? Give me portions sizes if possible (1 portion = 1 closed fist)

 

[Nimzabaat]

So how do you catch obesity? Is it a air borne virus? Blood borne? If a fat person bites me do I get obesity? Should I use a condom... Yeah sorry, it's a sore point with me that things are being labelled as "diseases" when they are really just a lack of self control.

You can't catch depression, you can't catch alcoholism and you can't catch obesity. Therefore they are not diseases. Calling these things ?diseases? is just peoples way of not taking personal responsibility for bad life style choices.

Personally I know someone who is obese and it's her own damn fault. Eating a family pack of potato chips by yourself in one sitting is not a "disease". She was losing weight, she was exercising and eating better (and I was as supportive as possible) but she gave up. That's not a disease, it's giving up and blaming something else doesn't change that. In fact it's counter-productive to call these things "diseases" because acceptance of the truth is the first stage in getting better.

 

[DarkhoIlow]

I don't find it a disease myself.

I am overwheight myself due to being that in the past I had some financial problems and my parents sent me to college in another town and the prices were too big so I had to bail.

Since then(4 years now)I've been sitting on my ass playing games and nothing else not knowing what to df course my weight skyrocketed. I can't say that I eat junkfood since we those are more expensive that the normal meals my mom makes but barely moving does take it's toll. My metabolism is also very wacky at times since I've tried to burn calories and I put them back ten fold. I can still walk(have an toe problem with nail shoved into my flesh along with fungus which I can't fix right now because of the money issues)but not as much as I would want too.

Can't say I'm proud of my "obesity",but even if I wanted to lose it I can't really afford the gym trainers/workout diets that needs to be made and kept.

 

[Chairman Miaow]

Being fat can be caused by genetics. Being obese cannot.

 

[bjj hero]

Being fat is a lifestyle choice, not a disease. No one has got fat from eatting salad and running every week. I eat well and exercise a lot, I'm off running later this evening while we're at it. I'm not fat and I don't think its a coincidence.

If lunch box had smaller meals, was eatting the right things and taking regular exercise then he/she would not be fat in the first place. It,s simple maths. Consume more energy than you use and you will put on weight, body builders use this all of the time, as do fat people.

 

[Yan007]

Well actually hero you are half right about the calories. The other half is that the type of calories matter. Proteins and natural fats are good for you to lose weight while grains, corn syrup and sugar (all carbs) are bad for you (relatively speaking).

 

[JochemHippie]

There's probably a small amount to blame on genetics, but the largest part is in being lazy.

So no, everyone can lose weight if he wants too.

 

[IndomitableSam]

Question: Could you tell us about your diet? What do you usually eat daily, what quantities? Give me portions sizes if possible (1 portion = 1 closed fist)

Breakfast is usually a cup of cereal - lately Honey Nut(oat?) Chex with soymilk (lactose issue) and half a cup of coffee, 1/4 teaspoon sugar (I know, why bother with any?)

When I get to work, I have some tea (Green or orange pekoe) and at 10am usually an apple or fruit cup thing (like applesauce, unsweetened). For lunch is usually dinner leftovers - 1 serving of meat - beef, pork, or chicken, a couple cups worth of carbs, usually, and a half cup (or more) of veggies. Usually with some butter and/or cheese. (I like to make pasta with half a bag of frozen veggies and breaded chicken fingers - 4 or 5 - if I"m lazy. Or pork chops/steak with rice side or baked potato and broccoli or asparagus side. Broccoli is nuked from frozen and cheese is put on it, asparagus is cooked in a fry-pan with a touch of olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Steaks and pork chops are plain. When I cook ham I mix some mustard and honey together to dip. I do eat probably more dinner than I should as my carb servings are bigger than they should be, but by mealtimes I'm usuallt starving.

Chocolate soy milk for dessert, usually.

Usually do have an evening snack - small plate of nachos, bowl of air-pop popcorn with butter, or cereal. I buy maybe 3 litres of pop a month and that's split between 2 people. This is probably where I screw myself.

Once every couple weeks we'll have McDonald's, and once every couple of weeks Subway. Once a week I go down to the cafeteria and buy a taco salad - the bowl is a deep-fried tortilla. And Fridays are snack day at work so someone brings a treat.

I go to my parents once a week for dinner, my mom's diabetic so I eat the same there, but usually have a can of coke as well.

We have just moved out to the edge of the city and are trying to take walks in the evening, now. Also, it's funny, but I have to drive to work now so I walk further than when I took the bus, as I rent a parking space a few blocks from my office. Not nearly enough, I know. Must get that second bicycle to explore the dirt roads around here, too.

 

[HardkorSB]

Most people I know that are fat tend to eat a lot and not do anything that requires physical effort. Sure, some cases can be attributed to genetics but even then, you can get slim if you want to.
My cousin was fat ever since she was a little girl. Apparently, it was genetic so she was always told that it's not her fault, that it's ok and that there's nothing she can do about it. She wanted to be slimmer so I told her once that she should stop eating so much and start exercising. I got so much hate from my family for that.
Then, after she finished high school (which was kind of hard for her because of her looks) she started going to the gym and now, 6 years later, she looks really good (I would tap that if she wasn't family
This was especially surprising to her mother, who looks like a whale, who refused to go on a diet even after having a heart attack (and several other nice things) at the age of 40, who eats when she's sad/nervous/anxious etc.

My point is, even if it's in your genes, you can still beat it.
I was diagnosed with arthritis when I was 6. I was told by many (including doctors) that I won't be able to do anything physically demanding. Yet, look at the shit I can do:


nothing physically demanding bout that, eh?
Plus, thanks to eating healthy (I prefer to take my vitamins in food, rather than pills), my bones are way stronger than I was told they were going to be.

People just don't want to do all the work in order to get in shape and "oh, it's genetic" is an excuse for that (maybe not in all cases but in most of them).

 

[Yan007]

Question: Could you tell us about your diet? What do you usually eat daily, what quantities? Give me portions sizes if possible (1 portion = 1 closed fist)

Breakfast is usually a cup of cereal - lately Honey Nut(oat?) Chex with soymilk (lactose issue) and half a cup of coffee, 1/4 teaspoon sugar (I know, why bother with any?)

When I get to work, I have some tea (Green or orange pekoe) and at 10am usually an apple or fruit cup thing (like applesauce, unsweetened). For lunch is usually dinner leftovers - 1 serving of meat - beef, pork, or chicken, a couple cups worth of carbs, usually, and a half cup (or more) of veggies. Usually with some butter and/or cheese. (I like to make pasta with half a bag of frozen veggies and breaded chicken fingers - 4 or 5 - if I"m lazy. Or pork chops/steak with rice side or baked potato and broccoli or asparagus side. Broccoli is nuked from frozen and cheese is put on it, asparagus is cooked in a fry-pan with a touch of olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Steaks and pork chops are plain. When I cook ham I mix some mustard and honey together to dip. I do eat probably more dinner than I should as my carb servings are bigger than they should be, but by mealtimes I'm usuallt starving.

Chocolate soy milk for dessert, usually.

Usually do have an evening snack - small plate of nachos, bowl of air-pop popcorn with butter, or cereal. I buy maybe 3 litres of pop a month and that's split between 2 people. This is probably where I screw myself.

Once every couple weeks we'll have McDonald's, and once every couple of weeks Subway. Once a week I go down to the cafeteria and buy a taco salad - the bowl is a deep-fried tortilla. And Fridays are snack day at work so someone brings a treat.

I go to my parents once a week for dinner, my mom's diabetic so I eat the same there, but usually have a can of coke as well.

We have just moved out to the edge of the city and are trying to take walks in the evening, now. Also, it's funny, but I have to drive to work now so I walk further than when I took the bus, as I rent a parking space a few blocks from my office. Not nearly enough, I know. Must get that second bicycle to explore the dirt roads around here, too.

Here's my take on it. From what I understand you believe the following: carbs are good for you, fat is bad for you. Correct me if I'm wrong.

When I am cutting (losing weight), I get most of my calories from proteins. I HIGHLY suggest you ditch the cereals, pasta and grains and keep your carbs to a MAXIMUM of 100 grams a DAY. Therefore, make sure you get complex carbs when you have to (brown rice, oatmeal and whole grain/wheat produces). As a rule of thumb, if it's white you don't eat it. Yes, it may sound insane to you right now but it works. Long story short, carbs are sugar, sugar makes your blood sugar spike, which in turn tells your body to produce insulin that will store your calories as fat. Complex carbs take longer to release the sugar into your bloodstream, meaning your insulin spike will be more gradual and you will store less calories as fat. Your body is made to handle natural fats (from meats and butter for example) so you should move to a high protein diet with low carbs. A trainer in a gym would build you a diet following this basic guideline if you ever went to see one.

If possible, you should split your meals through the day (eat 5-7 times instead of 3 if you can). Replace your cereals with pure oatmeal instead btw, way too much carbs(sugar) in one sitting. I think that by replacing most of your calories from carbs by proteins would help you greatly attain your fat loss goals. Now I highly suggest you talk with a trainer to set you on a path you can be confident will work for you. He should monitor your progress and help you adjust your ratios so you won't have to worry too much about not eating or exercising the right way. You should also resist the temptation to eat less in order to lose weight. If you eat too little you will starve your body and slow down your metabolism, setting yourself up to failure.

 

[Trippy Turtle]

Disease or not you aren't going to be obese if you do something about it.
Not that I can talk when it comes to doing stuff to fix my life of course.

 

[Fappy]

I can buy into the mutation idea considering I have been eating like a shameless pig my entire life and am the skinniest of my friends. The media says I should be fat but I am not. Fancy that.