2/3 of American adults are overweight. Why is this just accepted?!

I suppose it just became 'OK' when years ago it was really looked down on/as a health hazard. The same is happening in a huge amount of countries.

For sure dude, and it’s exactly why COVId has been such a big problem - morbidly obese are one of the highest risk groups for dying of COVId.

You have a solution? No one else seems to have one. People are addicted to food, food is cheap, they barely move during the day and being fat is acceptable. Not sure how to fix that, it’s depressing bro

The anti fat shaming doesn't help. Pretty much saying it's fine to be fat. And almost putting down people who are physically fit and attractive saying that this fat person is the beautiful one. I just see a ton of excuses saying how there's nothing wrong with being fat.

Actually, 2/3 of Americans are average weight.

Diabetes is the new sexy wrote:

For sure dude, and it’s exactly why COVId has been such a big problem - morbidly obese are one of the highest risk groups for dying of COVId.

You have a solution? No one else seems to have one. People are addicted to food, food is cheap, they barely move during the day and being fat is acceptable. Not sure how to fix that, it’s depressing bro

I don't have a solution I just don't get it. We can't make food expensive, that would be wrong.

I have a gf. I want to be attractive to her. I want her to be attractive. If I was fat I wouldn't be attractive to her. If she was fat I would not be attracted to her.

If I was fat I'd have low self-esteem but I would know, for a fact, that losing weight would raise my self-esteem.

I see these blob people waddling around grocery stores, after parking as close to the store as possible, and realize this is the only walking they do bc it's hard. I just want to yell at them, "It wouldnt be so hard to walk if you didnt eat so much all the time!", but they already know that. Yet they waddle back to their car and have another Coke.

I don't remotely understand the psyche of 2/3 of people.

despite all those diet options wrote:

The downstream and feedback loop consequences of this fact must be DISASTROUS for population health.

1. Associated diseases: Diabetes, High Cholesterol, Heart Disease, back pain, etc.

2. Psychological effects: Low self-esteem, low romantic satisfaction, depression, isolation.

3. Lower physical ability: lower physical activity levels, less formal exercise, lower mobility.

I understand that Covid is the current concern, but after Covid I feel like there is no excuse for us as a nation to continue ignoring this fact. Scientists, doctors, politicians, and schools should all be talking about this. By numbers alone, this MUST be our biggest health issue as a country, right?

That's because most of the people (2/3 of them) writing the articles, and making all the rules and policies are also fat. It is literally a huge conspiracy of fat people.

Really noticeable how many more commercials - and especially prescription medicine commercials - have clearly overweight people in them in recent years. On the one hand, I got it, if you're selling something you might not want to "alienate" potential consumers by having nothing but svelte hard bodies in your commercials. But it's gotten to the point where it seems pretty clear that the message, "It's perfectly OK to be significantly overweight" is being sent. They're clearly casting for and dressing (or note dressing) the actors to make their obesity quite clear.

I know that some would view this as a good thing. "We love everyone, no matter what they look like." But it sure would be best to do this WITHOUT normalizing obesity. But that horse appears to have left that barn a long time ago......

You can't get many Americans to wear a mask so as not to kill other people. You want to tell them not to stuff their own faces? Good luck buddy!

in before some one comments how BMI doesn't take into account muscular athletic builds

which accounts for maybe 1% of the population

Couldn't agree more with all the above. WTF? Just lose some frigg'in weight. No big deal. And while you're at it, if you don't speak English, get over that one too, please!! Speak English! Be thin! USA! USA! USA!

A lot of fat people just have low self esteem. Knowing that, I try to treat them nicely unless they are rude to me. I dont know what they're going through. Most people in general have low or fragile self esteem. They can use food to cope with their emotional pain. Obviously this is not too intelligent or logical but their emotional need overrides the logic.

A lot of non fat people also have low self esteem but their coping method is different unless they are bulimic. People even use running as a way to cope with life. I think everyone has a thing they turn to in order to feel better or ease the pain and stress.

I do think excessive fat acceptance and being "snowflakes" can be taking things too far in terms that we don't want to teach kids that being fat is okay. For the kids, they are a product of their environment.

Easy times makes soft people.

Look at any random picture of people 30-40 years ago. They all look like runners!

despite all those diet options wrote:

If I was fat I'd have low self-esteem but I would know, for a fact, that losing weight would raise my self-esteem.

I see these blob people waddling around grocery stores, after parking as close to the store as possible, and realize this is the only walking they do bc it's hard. I just want to yell at them, "It wouldnt be so hard to walk if you didnt eat so much all the time!", but they already know that. Yet they waddle back to their car and have another Coke.

I don't remotely understand the psyche of 2/3 of people.

I agree that “fat acceptance” is basically a dangerous mistake. I agree that obesity is the single greatest health problem in this country.

When I see a morbidly obese grocery shopper looking at the ice cream varieties, I can’t help but be a little disgusted, and I might think something along the lines of “Maybe you shouldn’t eat that?” to put it nicely.

Having said that, I’ve had my own problems with depression, addiction, self discipline, and generally doing things I know are not in my self-interests. I can’t find any moderation in drinking or pot-smoking, which has led me to be depressed, which in turn leads me to more drinking and pot smoking. The same is true for many people with food. There have been times when I wasn’t running and my diet became very poor, replete with nasty binges; I’m lucky that it’s very hard for me to put on weight, and that distance running is another thing I’ve struggled to do in moderation.

So, while encouraging, even accepting obesity is a real problem, I find my view of those unfortunate people is somewhere between pity and empathy.

“Remember when you’re out there trying to heal the sick, that you must always first forgive them.”

80 percent of deaths from Covid have been those who are overweight or obese.

Then a lot of the remaining had COPD or something.

But you see the 15 year-old on the news.

Do you really think scientists, doctors, politicians and schools, are NOT talking about it? Is this your first venture onto the internet? And what would "not accepting" that people are overweight mean?

WeightOK wrote:

Really noticeable how many more commercials - and especially prescription medicine commercials - have clearly overweight people in them in recent years. On the one hand, I got it, if you're selling something you might not want to "alienate" potential consumers by having nothing but svelte hard bodies in your commercials. But it's gotten to the point where it seems pretty clear that the message, "It's perfectly OK to be significantly overweight" is being sent. They're clearly casting for and dressing (or note dressing) the actors to make their obesity quite clear.

I know that some would view this as a good thing. "We love everyone, no matter what they look like." But it sure would be best to do this WITHOUT normalizing obesity. But that horse appears to have left that barn a long time ago......

Oh, don't get me started. You wouldn't need a pill to lower your blood sugar IF YOU CUT OUT SUGAR.

“The whole point of this country is if you want to eat garbage, balloon up to 600 pounds and die of a heart attack at 43, you can!” - Ron Swanson

No one working in medicine or public health "accepts" the epidemic of obesity. It's just a very hard problem to solve.

What do all you people think we should do?