OT - Study uncovers 'fat gene'

[pundit]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200704/s1896958.htm

Okay so they say 16% of the population has the 'fat gene', so what I want to know why is 60% of the population fat?

Obesity, next to global warming, is the biggest problem (in the West) we will encounter in the next 40 years. As the baby boomers reach retirement age in conjunction with the obesity epidemic that's occurring in the Western world (US, UK, Australia etc) many countries health systems are going to literally collapse under the strain.

They're talking about imposing a 'junk food' tax over here and increasing health insurance premiums for obese people, or in some cases even refusing insurance. My doctor says half his patients who have chronic health problems are as a result of lifestyle issues, poor diet, smoking lack of exercise etc. Most either don't see their health problems are caused by themselves or keep making excuses why they can't change.

[repenttokyo]

CVD is a HUGE problem in the US and Canada, it's also a problem people love to bury their heads in the sand about.

[Robert K]

For whatever reason, I decided at the end of last year to begin eating better. Mind you, I'm not overweight at all, nor do I eat that terribly to begin with. But, I decided to try to educate myself on how to improve my eating. So, I went to Amazon.com and started trying to find a book or two to purchase. I kept coming coming upon great reviews of the book "The China Study" by T. Colin Campbell Ph.D so I bought it. Talk about an eye opener.

To sum up the book, he discusses the differences between western (America) style diets versus eastern (China, etc.) diets. His findings state that our obesity problem and much of our illnesses/diseases/cancer is due to what we eat. He says that many underdeveloped countries tend to eat more vegetarian type diets and have far less obesity and far less disease than western diets. Once underdeveloped countries start to become affluent and begin adopting western style eating habits, their incidence of disease starts to mimic those who eat a western diet. I found the book very enlightening.

Because I read the book, I have not had hardly any meat, dairy or egg products since about mid-January. I went from my normal 165 pounds down to about 160. I had someone who hadn't seem me in a while say the other day that I looked younger in my face, which I took as a good thing. I also found out from my doctor the other day that my marginal high-blood pressure was now down at the high limits of normal. I quit taking my blood pressure medication about the time I started my diet change and told my doctor that I was going to try to lower it by changing my diet. He said "Go for it." Looks like it's working.

I've suggested the book to a few people. My main reason for changing my diet was because the author linked the standard western diet (meat, dairy, high fat, etc.) to cancer. I figured if I could reduce my risk of cancer by eating differently, it was definitely worth a try. Changing to a mostly vegetarian diet is challenging, but not impossible. If it can help reduce my risk for getting the "Big C," I figure it's worth it.

Grace and peace,

Robert K
1991 535i

[Jehu]

Tonight I made a big pot of lentils and mixed rice with broccoli,onion,garlic,hot peppers,tomatoe and grilled a small turkey breast which i cut into chunks and mixed in. Real peasant food for sure , looks like crap but was delicious and i have to imagine healthy as hell.

[fin]

I may have posted twice, so I will keep it short.

Eating more calories than you burn causes weight gain, not eating food with fat content.

Calories > burned = weight gain, Calories < burned = weight loss

Just the same as the fuel tank in your car, buy more gas than you use and your car weighs more. Only with humans, you have the ability to grow a bigger tank.........

Eat in moderation, work off the extra.

Buying tools is good for your health.

Cheers,

Fin

[CharlesAFerg]

How about you start jogging and eating better food on a better schedule. Or-do what I do and go for a run.

It's so easy, I am pissed because I'm going to be paying for these fat ****ers' healthcare.



Buying tools is good for your health.

Cheers,

Fin

:-D


Tonight I made a big pot of lentils and mixed rice with broccoli,onion,garlic,hot peppers,tomatoe and grilled a small turkey breast which i cut into chunks and mixed in. Real peasant food for sure , looks like crap but was delicious and i have to imagine healthy as hell.

sounds delish - I do this a lot, but seem to have a tendancy to make it presentable when other people arte eating it... Instead of making a milkshake, I just seperate a few ingredients and put them on the side... viola, it's pretty.
hahahah
Otherwise, it's practically a blender in that pot.

[Incantation]

this is such a complex issue .. i think the wholistic answer is that the media has ****ed over the population into becoming useless, lazy, and stupid. and money is more important than educating the public

sit at home, watch tv, don't go out it's dangerous, watch tv, buy mcdonalds it's so good, watch tv, don't take the kids out for exercise, forget the babysitter.. tv will do the job

anything remotely though provoking is banned from airing because of corporate sponsorship of television.. money.. nevermind healthy food it costs too much to make and there is too small a margin on it.. let's just **** people over and sell them **** which they think tastes good

it starts so young.. i mean who the **** would feed their kids fruit loops or coco puffs for breakfast?

the four food groups? that's a joke.. it was created by the dairy foundation

etc

[Incantation]

i would agree it's becoming a problem in canada (as i live here) but the minute u cross the border it's like a different world.. everyone is so fuken fat and looks like a sloth. yea of course there are exceptions to every rule but u travel away from the limelight to see the real population and is it ever sad

[Robert K]

There's really no need to use the offensive language to make your point.

Robert K
1991 535i

[repenttokyo]

Canada's obesity problem is as serious as that in the US, particularly among children and teenagers. Even european nations like France, who were considered an extremely healthy general population, have started to succumb to obesity. I do a lot of work in the field of obesity and CVD, and the general trend towards and overweight population is scary, particularly given the lifestyle choices 90 percent of people make for themselves and their children.

Basically, obesity breaks down to simple life decisions: do I eat healthy things in moderation, or not? Do I get any exercise on a daily basis or not?

[rob101]

well I guess there is a gene for lazy bastards that can't service their car also. I invest in myself in that i spend time and money in the gym and buying good food. Just as i invest in good oil, proper filters and set aside the time to change them every 7000 kms.
Typical of people's attitudes that nothing is their fault when usually its all their fault. Your body is a machine if you don't invest in maintaining it it'll look crap and you won't get good mileage out of it.

[Jehu]

well put. I should go run a marathon as i just inhaled a flat bread pizza in about 8 minutes.. cheese and herb... crushed garlic,tomato chunks, Serrano pepper, curry power and olive oil... it was a thin crust style but still. As its $hitty weather outside I'll likely flop around in inside the rest of the day listening to music.I really ought to work out on this though...

http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/3070/ultralftum9.jpg

[rob101]

well put. I should go run a marathon as i just inhaled a flat bread pizza in about 8 minutes.. cheese and herb... crushed garlic,tomato chunks, Serrano pepper, curry power and olive oil... it was a thin crust style but still. As its $hitty weather outside I'll likely flop around in inside the rest of the day listening to music.I really ought to work out on this though...

http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/3070/ultralftum9.jpg
lol, I might have been a bit blunt there are also people who appear "fat" who are actually quite healthy and goto the gym alot and such. perhaps these are the people with the "fat gene" i am not sure. but the vast majority of fat people view food as primarly a "pleasure item" so the problem is not primarly physical but psychological. If you want to lose weight you have to rationalise all your food and think of it merely as a fuel and a source of vitamins. I lost 12 kg this way, i've probably gained 5 kg of that back of which probably only 3 kg or so is fat (I have def gained muscle).

[Ross]

Over there you contemplate taxing the fatties, here it's about to become a protected class.