Post: #1

Throughout the world, we are seeing obesity skyrocket.

Depending on your measure, Mexico may actually be the fattest country in the world. It does not take great wealth to become fat, because terrible food is often factory-produced at little marginal cost, and can be quite cheap.

As westernization of the world continues apace, will we see the long-term normalization of obesity as we have seen in the US?

Currently, you can escape the crisis geographically. In 100 years, probably there will still be variance between countries. But do you expect that from rich to poor, the whole world will settle on a new norm that is much much heavier than we currently have?

Or, after an initial obesity shock, will humanity learn to control it's baser instincts and actually fight back against obesity?

Honestly, any government that takes a harsh anti-obesity stance and takes drastic action against awful food would have my full support. Extreme sin-taxes on junk food would be more than welcomed on my part. I think this may inevitably be the only way to fight obesity, as corporations have clearly designed poisonous "food" that is irresistible to the vast majority of humans.

Post: #2

I fear most of the world is unfortunately headed in the direction of obesity being the standard. I am seeing more and more fat children out and about... I used to get pretty pissed when I did, now I just feel sad for them. It's not that kids fault they are fat its their parents or lack there of. Its one thing if you are married and lazy and just wanna get fat, but don't put that shit on your kid who really has no choice in the matter. Not only is the kid gonna grow up with the deteriorated health that comes with being a fatty all your life but they will also have the damaged mental health that comes with always being self conscious of you porky body as well.


Yesterday I went to a car show out of town with a friend and they wanted to eat at the "Wood grill buffet." They drove so I was like thats cool where ever you wanna eat is fine by me. Fuck..... that was the fattest bunch of miserable land whales I have ever seen in my life at that buffet. It was pretty surreal.. I found myself smiling and giggling to myself a lot and puffing my toned chizzled chest out just a little more then normal.

I don't know what I can do.... I try to give people in my life grand advice about cutting out soda and cutting down on sugars and carbs an they are just like "Yeah I know I need to" but most don't (I have had a few stop drinking soda.)

I herd a quote the other day that went something a long the lines of this "Don't waste your time and effort trying to change other people, Its hard enough trying to change yourself."

Post: #3

Yes, you're right, we, Mexicans, are now #1. Fat is dropping South of the border, down Mexico way.

Post: #4

It's an excellent question to be honest. I'll play the devils advocate and say no, that humans have seen the error of their ways and that obesity is an epidemic that can be contained. Now, I say this because companies that are the leaders in fast food, and those that make and bottle sodas, fried foods, etc, are seeing their stocks fall as of lately. The consumer is demanding a healthier option over the classic high sugar/high carbohydrate product. This is opening the door for health food chains, for supplement manufacturers, and for companies that create a healthier product. You can extrapolate trends just based on the market. People are jumping on the fitness bandwagon, you see it everyday. Sure there are fat acceptance movements, but guess what, I don't care if you throw people in jail for shaming a fat person, it is and never will be looked upon as healthy or sexy by the majority of society.

By living in North America we are corrupted by stupidity and literal insanity everywhere we turn. But, coming back from Europe last month, I could see the difference there, specifically in Italy and Greece; they move more, they're always walking, they use bikes, their seats are literally smaller, its just a society of more active people. They eat natural foods still, they eat fish instead of meat with high saturated fat.

I personally think that obesity rates world wide will drop in coming years. Sure our lives are getting easier, but people are beginning to see that the easy way is not always the best way. At least thats what the optimistic side of me hopes.

Post: #5

Scary.

I can't imagine this trend going any other way.

*heads to gym*

WIA

Post: #6

Eh, like so many other things the obesity epidemic will come to an end right about when we have the next global war.

Post: #7

Quote:"In October 2011, Denmark introduced a fat tax on butter, milk, cheese, pizza, meat, oil and processed food if the item contains more than 2.3% saturated fat.[25] However, in November 2012, the Danish Tax Ministry announced it would abolish the fat tax."

Yeah good job to start taxing saturated fats.
Processed sugars is what they should tax harder.

But in the end it wouldn't matter. When obese people start craving for a chocolate cupcake they will find a way to get it.

All of a sudden the forests would be full of illegal fucking cupcake bakeries and fried mars-bars smugglers.

Let them eat themselves to death.

Post: #8

I dont think it will be global, no. There are still many countries/cultures that put a strong emphasis on quality, natural foods (France, Japan, Italy etc). There are still many cultures that prefer an active lifestyle as opposed to the sedentary nightmare that Americans exist in. America is BUILT to be fat. You cannot walk anywhere if youre outside of the big cities.

Post: #9

(08-04-2014 02:19 AM)Chaos Wrote:  

Quote:"In October 2011, Denmark introduced a fat tax on butter, milk, cheese, pizza, meat, oil and processed food if the item contains more than 2.3% saturated fat.[25] However, in November 2012, the Danish Tax Ministry announced it would abolish the fat tax."

Yeah good job to start taxing saturated fats.
Processed sugars is what they should tax harder.

But in the end it wouldn't matter. When obese people start craving for a chocolate cupcake they will find a way to get it.

All of a sudden the forests would be full of illegal fucking cupcake bakeries and fried mars-bars smugglers.

Let them eat themselves to death.

Why should we tax food?

Tax fat people. Tax them highly. Use BMI with a body fat component so muscular guys end up not paying as much.

Doctor determines how much of the "fat tax" that gets levied on the obese. The doctor gets percentage kick back in his taxes by being heavy handed. Problem solved.

Frankly, while the mean of excellence in education and health has been declining it makes it easier for people like me to be above average and dare I say approach excellence the more I work on myself.

Bring on the land whales!

Post: #10

^ I'm not arguing, I hear you. For me personally they can tax soda,icecream,candy,chips etc etc how much they want since I don't eat that stuff.

Post: #11

I don't think so. There is a growing movement in the States against a lot of the things which cause obesity, and more awareness about GMO foods. I have no doubt that there will be some segment of society that will always carry around some extra pounds, but I don't think the current rates will last in the long term. If one thing in history has proven true, its that most trends tend to swing back the other way after awhile.

However I see a large war on the horizon with Russia and China challenging America, Britain, and the West's hegemony over the world, especially if we in the U.S. keep antagonizing Russia every other week like it's our new favorite sport.

"Oh look mommy, there's a bear! Let's go poke it!"

At that point, between nuclear destruction and forced conscription, won't be too many fatties left.

Post: #12

It is discouraging, but it's hard to see a reversal of the trend in the near future. There's certainly an equilibrium to be found between modern comfort and physical vitality, it's just we presently lack the social, pedagogical and political framework to achieve it. I don't think we even need a major overhaul, just a few choice reforms: first, shift the education system so kids spend about as much time engaged in challenging physical activity as they do in the classroom. Second, mandatory military service for men and mandatory civilian service (Zivildienst) for women. Third, get unnecessary chemicals out of food whenever practicable. Fewer career-obsessed women and more home-cooked meals would be good too. Unfortunately I see none of those things happening anytime soon.

Post: #13

(08-04-2014 08:21 AM)DChambers Wrote:  I don't think so. There is a growing movement in the States against a lot of the things which cause obesity, and more awareness about GMO foods. I have no doubt that there will be some segment of society that will always carry around some extra pounds, but I don't think the current rates will last in the long term. If one thing in history has proven true, its that most trends tend to swing back the other way after awhile.

However I see a large war on the horizon with Russia and China challenging America, Britain, and the West's hegemony over the world, especially if we in the U.S. keep antagonizing Russia every other week like it's our new favorite sport.

"Oh look mommy, there's a bear! Let's go poke it!"

At that point, between nuclear destruction and forced conscription, won't be too many fatties left.

I actually don't see a war happening. War doesn't help anybody.

What I do see happening is this new fangled currency the "Brico" being a clever way to get the US to its knees.

Everyone holds a f*ck ton of US treasury bonds so people can get more dollars to settle their trades. Putin et al with their new central bank can simply have everyone swap their US treasury notes for Brico bonds on a one to one basis.

Once their central bank has all of the US treasury notes and people begin settling their trade with the Brico, the Brico central bank will effectively have credit control over the US government.

The US wants war, because once a power like China or Russia actually attack an ally the US can invalidate the treasury notes and then the military industrial complex can go full steam ahead and crush them. Nothing changes and the US continues to use the rest of the world as its free money credit card.
____________________
@Saga, I 100% agree with what you've said. I would have done better in high school had I lifted heavy and had a foundation of personal strength in the gym. Physical fitness is so important to mental health it is crazy.

Not to mention the decline of processed foods. If people actually worked out, they'd get sick of eating the processed junk and only eat whole foods. The industry would respond to such a movement.

Post: #14

You could see a very quick turnaround if governments and institutions strongly embraced saturated fats as fuel - coconut, tallow, butter, palm oil. If you went from 60% carbs and 30% fat to the other way around, you would see some strong changes. And saturated fats, not rape oil and soy and other vegetable/seed oils. Of course, that would mean massively retooling every menu in the country. If one country adopted such a protocol, and saw quick progress, you would see much quicker adoption. If I was dictator of the US, I would do randomized trials with military cafeterias where obesity was abundant. After observing weight loss in the treatment group, I'd shove that in the face of mainstream nutritionists and then rewrite the entire government food pyramid.

"But in the end it wouldn't matter. When obese people start craving for a chocolate cupcake they will find a way to get it."

Those cravings happen because the rest of their diet is shitty. If you eat a fat steak with some greens slathered in pastured butter, as I frequently do, dessert hardly even occurs to you - a cherry or morsel of watermelon will do at that point.

And junk food is low, not high, in saturated fat. A McDonald's meal is a burger, fries, and a tall soda. That's white bread, soy (mayo), a little bit of protein and saturated fat, carbs slathered in non-saturated fat, and sugar.

A tax on obese people is stupid because it's hard to implement, and would not send people a clear signal as to which foods to avoid. A simple sugar tax would be much more effective. Something like taxing sugary sodas, packaged fruit juices, and desserts, paired with food guidelines advising higher fat intake and lower carb intake. Tax revenues could go towards making healthful nutritious foods like good fats and proteins cheaper in some way.

Post: #15

(08-03-2014 10:42 PM)TheFinalEpic Wrote:  It's an excellent question to be honest. I'll play the devils advocate and say no, that humans have seen the error of their ways and that obesity is an epidemic that can be contained. Now, I say this because companies that are the leaders in fast food, and those that make and bottle sodas, fried foods, etc, are seeing their stocks fall as of lately. The consumer is demanding a healthier option over the classic high sugar/high carbohydrate product. This is opening the door for health food chains, for supplement manufacturers, and for companies that create a healthier product. You can extrapolate trends just based on the market. People are jumping on the fitness bandwagon, you see it everyday. Sure there are fat acceptance movements, but guess what, I don't care if you throw people in jail for shaming a fat person, it is and never will be looked upon as healthy or sexy by the majority of society.

By living in North America we are corrupted by stupidity and literal insanity everywhere we turn. But, coming back from Europe last month, I could see the difference there, specifically in Italy and Greece; they move more, they're always walking, they use bikes, their seats are literally smaller, its just a society of more active people. They eat natural foods still, they eat fish instead of meat with high saturated fat.

I personally think that obesity rates world wide will drop in coming years. Sure our lives are getting easier, but people are beginning to see that the easy way is not always the best way. At least thats what the optimistic side of me hopes.

I too am more optimistic. The standard of "beauty" has always fluctuated according to each civilization's sensibilities as evidenced in the artistic record



In Venus and Adonis by Peter Paul Rubens, 1635. Venus the Goddess Of Love, and most beautiful woman in the universe is depicted as a pretty hefty fatty. Today, "Rubenesque" is a polite way to say "big" or "plus-sized."

While I agree that the last several decades have produced a proliferation of obesity I don't think the evidence points towards fat acceptance being the norm. Oh we may get a bunch pseudo-social rationalizations about it's "ok to be big". But it's just lip service paid mostly by fatties themselves. I'd wager that there's not a single slim chick out there regardless of what they may say would trade places with or choose to be a heifer.

The money seems to support this*:

$20 Billion
The annual revenue of the U.S. weight-loss industry, including diet books, diet drugs and weight-loss surgeries.

108 Million
The number of people on diets in the United States. Dieters typically make four to five attempts per year.

85 Percent
The percentage of customers consuming weight-loss products and services who are female.

I personally wont worry too much as long as the pictures in ads like the one below remain BEFORE on the left and AFTER on the right. The moment that order inverts then I'll believe the world is fucked

By the way... fatty on the left WNB,..slimmer version totally WB (before she blows up again)



*Sources: John LaRosa of MarketData; National Weight Control Registry; American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery

Post: #16

Difficult to say. In pure mathematical terms, probably yes, obesity will increase as global incomes rise. But the total number of hot woman, for example, will not decrease, either in absolute or relative terms. What I mean by this is that rising incomes, while increasing the number of fat people will also increase the number of fit people, Simply not being fat is not enough to be attractive. You may be emaciated, which obviously isn't sexy.

I see this happening in South Africa. It is true that increasing incomes among the poor, mostly black, population has led to an increase in fat people, especially men. Most poor women here have always been fat. But it has also massively increased the number of people who take care of themselves, both men and women. It's allowed more people to be fashionable. And this always means somewhat muscular for young men, and slim/shapely for young women. Yes, for all races. With age the requirements are relaxed.

Post: #17

The upper class will always be fit and in shape. The rich and beautiful will maintain the standard of beauty as that is everyone's goal. No matter how much fat acceptance goes around it will never EVER be the standard of beauty. People will go to the gym and workout to keep chasing the rich eventually. Or it could go the other way with the rich being the only ones being skinny and being in shape will be a means to get involved with them. Either way I see no long term downside.

Post: #18

(08-04-2014 09:45 AM)frenchie Wrote:  

(08-04-2014 08:21 AM)DChambers Wrote:  I don't think so. There is a growing movement in the States against a lot of the things which cause obesity, and more awareness about GMO foods. I have no doubt that there will be some segment of society that will always carry around some extra pounds, but I don't think the current rates will last in the long term. If one thing in history has proven true, its that most trends tend to swing back the other way after awhile.

However I see a large war on the horizon with Russia and China challenging America, Britain, and the West's hegemony over the world, especially if we in the U.S. keep antagonizing Russia every other week like it's our new favorite sport.

"Oh look mommy, there's a bear! Let's go poke it!"

At that point, between nuclear destruction and forced conscription, won't be too many fatties left.

I actually don't see a war happening. War doesn't help anybody.

What I do see happening is this new fangled currency the "Brico" being a clever way to get the US to its knees.

Everyone holds a f*ck ton of US treasury bonds so people can get more dollars to settle their trades. Putin et al with their new central bank can simply have everyone swap their US treasury notes for Brico bonds on a one to one basis.

Once their central bank has all of the US treasury notes and people begin settling their trade with the Brico, the Brico central bank will effectively have credit control over the US government.

The US wants war, because once a power like China or Russia actually attack an ally the US can invalidate the treasury notes and then the military industrial complex can go full steam ahead and crush them. Nothing changes and the US continues to use the rest of the world as its free money credit card.
____________________
<Snip>

I agree, the loss of the U.S. dollar as a world reserve currency could do hefty damage to the U.S. economy. I don't see that happening yet though. The Brico doesn't have the resources to compete with the dollar as a global currency, and the West can still make it far more painful for a nation to change it's currency than to keep the dollar.

Personally I feel a showdown between China and the U.S. to be inevitable, they need to defeat the U.S. in order to expand their influence into the Pacific. This probably wouldn't come until around 2020, as that is when the first of the Chinese aircraft carriers come online.

Of course, a collapsing U.S. economy would give have the same end, as China and Russia move in to fill the vacuum we leave behind. With the current economic and monetary policies we have in place this might be the more likely scenario.

lol, not really on topic for the thread.

Post: #19

I believe that if governments take the same approach to obesity as they did with cigarettes and tobacco companies, than obesity will shrink dramatically over the next few decades. Here's a few examples:

-In Canada, they have those annoying pictures on the back of every carton of cigs. Imagine if the government put a picture of an obese person on every sugary item in grocery stores with the caption "This will be you."
-Taxing the hell out of unhealthy foods
-Going after companies that produce unhealthy foods
-Outlawing eating unhealthy foods in certain public areas
-Coming up with a law akin to 2nd hand smoke for fat people (2nd chin something sounds good...)
-Putting billboards on the streets and commercials on TV with gross fat people
-Making advertising unhealthy foods illegal in most forms of media

Smoking used to be all over the media half a century ago. It was cool. It was hip. But after anti-smoking campaigns came about the entire perception of smoking changed. Even kids who smoke weed everyday have been effectively brainwashed into think cigarettes are disgusting (which isn't necessarily a bad thing).

The same exact methods could be used to eradicate obesity, but it won't. Because being fat isn't a "choice". We should accept fat people for who they are. They are beautiful on the insi..yada yada bullshit. The obesity epidemic came along with the PC epidemic and they have been working great in tandem.

I expect obesity rates in America to start slowing down significantly and then hover at that level for a while. However, obesity will, and already is rising in Europe, Latin America and China.

Post: #20

I feel as though a pushback against obesity is already occuring and we may have already passed peak levels in the anglosphere. The rest of the world will never reach current western obesity levels as the culture is changing in the US and UK. Only three girls and no guys in my year at school are fat out of about 100 18 year olds. Granted its a private school so there are mostly upper-middle class kids in there, but Id say that across income groups, young people are fairly thin where I live. I think people now are so aware of obesity and its prevalance that they are starting to really try not to be fat- at worst eating shit food and not working out, but not eating too much. There are a lot of skinny fat unfit teens, but not many obese ones.
We mock SWPLers a lot on this forum, but I think they'll bring about a fall in obesity, (at least among middle class white people). In England, even McDonalds has had to clean up its act and serve healthier food- people may be unhealthy, but they dont want to engage with a conspicuously unhealthy brand- particularly the middle class comsumers that a lot of brands are trying to attract. Eventually this will cause a fall in obesity, as young people are thinner and (as I noticed in the US when I visited last week), ice cream stores are replaced by frozen yoghurt shops which in turn will be ousted when they acquire a reputation for being unhealthy as well.

Due to this change in culture, obesity in the Anglosphere will fall, and the rest of the world will never reach our level of corpulence. The brands we export (such as McDonalds will be healthier) and people wont be sucked info our current fattening culture.

Post: #21

I worry that many of you are far too optimisitic. I hope you are right and personal responsibility, health conciousness, and beauty will defeat obesity. I worry though...

Post: #22

(08-03-2014 10:22 PM)Luvianka Wrote:  Yes, you're right, we, Mexicans, are now #1. Fat is dropping South of the border, down Mexico way.

I read that in the newspaper sometime last year.

Have been down to Mexico 3 times in the past 6 months:

Mexico City, Oaxaca, Baja, and Puerto Escondido.

I will say from direct observation: the young girls in America are much much much fatter than the mamacitas here. I think the obesity is contained within the family types.

Out at night, you hardly see an overweight girl...not like America where a good percent are fatties.

So from a game perspective...'merica is still #1.

**Also...on three different occasions Mexican girls have said "Americano?! No gordo!" and they touch my flat stomach. I reply "Sí, soy americano, pero no soy un idiota." And that gets em laughing.

Post: #23

I think it's only a matter of time before some sort of wonder drug is created that allows people to stuff their faces everyday and stay slim.

Until then…yeah absolutely.

Post: #24

It is the high fructose corn syrup and refined flour that is blowing everbody up like whales. Big soft drink manufacturers are going to get sued one day like the cigarette industry. Wait for it.

Post: #25

Gastric bypass surgeons are going to become a huge demand with all the endless number of fatties.