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Keep in mind that you've learned some important lessons only for yourself. Extrapolations you make to other people--the minutia of how their bodies work, what

Keep in mind that you've learned some important lessons only for yourself. Extrapolations you make to other people--the minutia of how their bodies work, what sort of impulses and urges they have, how easy or difficult those urges are to control--are basically speculative. And judgments based just on speculation aren't really worth very much.

Evgeny 16y ago
Well I hope I understand that. However, widespread obesity is a relatively recent problem. I'm not convinced that human bodies somehow started to work in a very different way over the span of just a few decades. The amount and compisition of what we place inside those bodies did change though. Overcoming the urges and impulses would require a certain amount of effort and self-control, but don't other positive changes in life do? To become stronger would involve regular and fairly intensive exercise. To get that better job may require extra studying and less going out. To save for that vacation may require restricting your spending. My approach would be the same in general: set a reasonable goal, formulate the plan, follow the plan. If something is not working, try to find the reason and adjust your goals or plans.
- randallsquared 16y ago
  I'm not convinced that human bodies somehow started to work in a very different way over the span of just a few decades. The amount and composition of what we place inside those bodies did change though. Just like in times past, people tend to eat as much as they can, and do as little physical work as they can, in the extreme. It's just that we're all so incredibly wealthy now compared to our ancestors that this is no longer a reasonable strategy for maintaining a healthy weight.
  - Evgeny 16y ago
    It is probably a big part of the story, but maybe not the whole story. There are examples when abundance of food does not lead to widespread obesity, so the particular types of food being eaten must be of importance. Kitavans are not particularly active. They have an activity level comparable to a moderately active Swede, the population to which Dr. Lindeberg draws frequent comparisons. They have abundant food, and shortage is practically unknown. Their good health is probably not related to genetics, since genetically similar groups in the same region are exquisitely sensitive to the ravages of industrial food. Furthermore, the only Kitavan who moved away from the island to live a modern life is also the only fat Kitavan. http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2008/08/kitavans-wisdom-from-pacific-islands.html http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2008/08/kitavans-wisdo...

Evgeny 16y ago

Well I hope I understand that. However, widespread obesity is a relatively recent problem. I'm not convinced that human bodies somehow started to work in a very different way over the span of just a few decades. The amount and compisition of what we place inside those bodies did change though. Overcoming the urges and impulses would require a certain amount of effort and self-control, but don't other positive changes in life do? To become stronger would involve regular and fairly intensive exercise. To get that better job may require extra studying and less going out. To save for that vacation may require restricting your spending. My approach would be the same in general: set a reasonable goal, formulate the plan, follow the plan. If something is not working, try to find the reason and adjust your goals or plans.

randallsquared 16y ago
I'm not convinced that human bodies somehow started to work in a very different way over the span of just a few decades. The amount and composition of what we place inside those bodies did change though. Just like in times past, people tend to eat as much as they can, and do as little physical work as they can, in the extreme. It's just that we're all so incredibly wealthy now compared to our ancestors that this is no longer a reasonable strategy for maintaining a healthy weight.
- Evgeny 16y ago
  It is probably a big part of the story, but maybe not the whole story. There are examples when abundance of food does not lead to widespread obesity, so the particular types of food being eaten must be of importance. Kitavans are not particularly active. They have an activity level comparable to a moderately active Swede, the population to which Dr. Lindeberg draws frequent comparisons. They have abundant food, and shortage is practically unknown. Their good health is probably not related to genetics, since genetically similar groups in the same region are exquisitely sensitive to the ravages of industrial food. Furthermore, the only Kitavan who moved away from the island to live a modern life is also the only fat Kitavan. http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2008/08/kitavans-wisdom-from-pacific-islands.html http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2008/08/kitavans-wisdo...