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EDIT: Apologies for the rant, went a little overboard oh well. For the overwhelming majority of heavy hitting chronic diseases (Diabetes T2, Obesity, Heart Att

EDIT: Apologies for the rant, went a little overboard oh well. For the overwhelming majority of heavy hitting chronic diseases (Diabetes T2, Obesity, Heart Attacks, even likely cancer). They are completely preventable though diet and other lifestyle changes. Good food, grass fed meat, fish and fresh vegetables aren't that expensive people could afford it if they thought it was an actual priority. For those suffering from weight problems (In the UK the obesity rate is 27%! [1] Not even the overweight) I'd recommend for them to cut down on their frequency of meals and ensure that the one or two meals they have are healthy (Very low fructose, nutrient dense, keeps insulin low e.t.c.) It's the same with exercising, a gym membership isn't that much money cheap gyms exist. But you don't even need any money to do some simple body weight exercises, depending on what you do and your fitness level it can literally take 10 minutes. So it's not a lack of time or money for anyone but the absolute poorest, people just don't seem to care that much. I really don't know why ? [1] https://files.digital.nhs.uk/publication/0/0/obes-phys-acti-diet-eng-2018-rep.pdf https://files.digital.nhs.uk/publication/0/0/obes-phys-acti-...

MuffinFlavored 7y ago
> They are completely preventable though diet and other lifestyle changes. Does this mean that some of those Americans are to blame due to living such an unhealthy lifestyle?
- holbrad 7y ago
  Personally I think they do shoulder some blame. But I certainly think things could be made significantly easier for the average person to do the right thing. Nutrition science is very complicated with very strong biases and conflicting results. It makes it difficult to actually know what to eat, the media doesn't help by regurgitating every single crappy study that has a catchy or provocative conclusion. (The rubbish getting published and the peer review process is another can of worms) There are many companies with a vested financial interest in selling appealing but unhealthy food. People are effected by advertising and what is easy, that isn't their fault. Exercises for staying reasonably healthy doesn't really get taught. Things could certainly be made easier, for the average person.
  - MuffinFlavored 7y ago
    > Personally I think they do shoulder some blame. But I certainly think things could be made significantly easier for the average person to do the right thing. Here is a good example. I'm not poor. $30 on a meal means very little to me. I'm not aware of many low calorie, healthy, quick food options, even if price isn't an issue. I think that's the problem. You can get $0.99 cheeseburgers + fries + milkshakes quickly, but you can't get a $9.99 salad quickly. I know fast food chains sell salads but... I feel like that's a guaranteed way to not get the full nutrition of what a salad is really supposed to offer. What are your thoughts?
jhayward 7y ago
> So it's not a lack of time or money for anyone but the absolute poorest, people just don't seem to care that much. I really don't know why ? I would hazard a guess that neither you, nor anyone you know, is a single parent working multiple minimum-wage jobs to provide for a couple of kids living in rented space, with poor transportation available, no easy access to things like laundry facilities, living in a food desert, with no high socio-economic status people in their personal network. In short, your privileged experience doesn't even come close to what the bottom 20%-40% of Americans live.

MuffinFlavored 7y ago

> They are completely preventable though diet and other lifestyle changes. Does this mean that some of those Americans are to blame due to living such an unhealthy lifestyle?

holbrad 7y ago
Personally I think they do shoulder some blame. But I certainly think things could be made significantly easier for the average person to do the right thing. Nutrition science is very complicated with very strong biases and conflicting results. It makes it difficult to actually know what to eat, the media doesn't help by regurgitating every single crappy study that has a catchy or provocative conclusion. (The rubbish getting published and the peer review process is another can of worms) There are many companies with a vested financial interest in selling appealing but unhealthy food. People are effected by advertising and what is easy, that isn't their fault. Exercises for staying reasonably healthy doesn't really get taught. Things could certainly be made easier, for the average person.
- MuffinFlavored 7y ago
  > Personally I think they do shoulder some blame. But I certainly think things could be made significantly easier for the average person to do the right thing. Here is a good example. I'm not poor. $30 on a meal means very little to me. I'm not aware of many low calorie, healthy, quick food options, even if price isn't an issue. I think that's the problem. You can get $0.99 cheeseburgers + fries + milkshakes quickly, but you can't get a $9.99 salad quickly. I know fast food chains sell salads but... I feel like that's a guaranteed way to not get the full nutrition of what a salad is really supposed to offer. What are your thoughts?

jhayward 7y ago

> So it's not a lack of time or money for anyone but the absolute poorest, people just don't seem to care that much. I really don't know why ? I would hazard a guess that neither you, nor anyone you know, is a single parent working multiple minimum-wage jobs to provide for a couple of kids living in rented space, with poor transportation available, no easy access to things like laundry facilities, living in a food desert, with no high socio-economic status people in their personal network. In short, your privileged experience doesn't even come close to what the bottom 20%-40% of Americans live.