5 ms·

"What caused the obesity epidemic?" "And it’s something very simple, very obvious, something that few want to hear: The epidemic was caused by the over

by csmeder 14y ago

"What caused the obesity epidemic?" "And it’s something very simple, very obvious, something that few want to hear: The epidemic was caused by the overproduction of food in the United States. ...This, of course, is a tremendously controversial idea. However, the model shows that increase in food more than explains the increase in weight." This is analogous to saying: "What caused the increase in car accidents?" "And it’s something very simple, very obvious, something that few want to hear: The car accident epidemic was caused by the overproduction of cars in the United States. ...This, of course, is a tremendously controversial idea. However, the model shows that increase in cars more than explains the increase in car accidents." By using the phrase "overproduction of food" he is using too broad of a statement that doesn't describe the problem in an addressable way. It makes it sound like we could just cut food production across the board and prevent obesity. . I would argue the problem isn't the quantity, rather the quality. Quality in regards to: - Nutrients vs Fat and sugars - Number of meals a day and the time we eat those meals - Sugary drinks vs Water - Appropriate meal size - Fast food vs home made meals The solution for the 21st century is going to take more than cutting food production. Just as curbing injuries from car accidents will take a different approach than limiting US car production.

alexandros 14y ago
> I would argue the problem isn't the quantity, rather the quality But you didn't, argue. You simply asserted. You threw out the article's theory by constructing a straw-man you didn't even bother tearing down, then proceeded to inform us of your views.
- aMoniker 14y ago
  Actually, he said that he 'would' argue. So he is not actually arguing, but informing us that if necessary, an argument could be constructed based on the view he presented.
- brady747 14y ago
  You are right, but he didn't say he was arguing in his comment, he said he would. :)
Mz 14y ago
FWIW: A few years ago, someone verbally mentioned to me that some study found evidence of some sort linking type of bacteria in your gut to obesity. (No, I don't have a link.) This fits at least partially with my personal experience: In the quest to get myself well when doctors said it could not be done, I ended up slimming down tremendously in the last year or so. That was not a goal. I did not care about my weight and neither did my doctor since being underweight is far more typical of my condition and is far more immediately life threatening. My main goal was to kill infection and get my body working closer to normal, which included doing a lot of work on my gut health, both in terms of gut chenistry and gut flora.
- deleted 14y ago
  [deleted]
- codebaobab 14y ago
  I've heard that too. Would you mind sharing more details of what you did to promote gut health/chemistry/flora?
  - Mz 14y ago
    Really short version: I worked on correcting the extreme acidity my genetic disorder promotes and I consumed a combo of high brine sea salt, coconut oil, glyconutrients and organic yogurt. I did a lot more than that but that is a good place to start, assuming you are hoping to act on the info. Organic yogurt has more varieties of flora than other yogurts and coconut oil does good things for gut flora.
    - codebaobab 14y ago
      By "extreme acidity" do you mean in your gastrointestinal system or elsewhere? (I've heard people talk about blood-level acidity before.) Was there a test that let you track/monitor acidity as you made changes?
      - Mz 14y ago
draebek 14y ago
> By using the phrase "overproduction of food" he is using too broad of a statement that doesn't describe the problem in an addressable way. Cut food production, food prices rise, people can't eat as much. It's an extreme solution, perhaps, and one with more political obstacles than I care to think about right now, but it seems "addressable" to me. What if we stopped some of the farm subsidies that don't make sense? What if we significantly increased taxes on unhealthy foods, which is probably justified since unhealthy foods probably directly lead to a rise in healthcare costs down the line? (Now I get to sit back and wait for someone to post facts from one or more of the localities that have tried raising taxes on e.g. sugary foods. I love the Internet!)
- Drbble 14y ago
  Done and done. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giffen_good http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giffen_good
jcfrei 14y ago
>It makes it sound like we could just cut food production across the board and prevent obesity. that would actually work. anyway, let's continue with your automobile parable. I think you're actually spot on with the quality argument. it was necessary to increase safety in passenger vehicles by state intervention (Euro NCAP), and alike the state, in my opinion, needs to chip in if consumers can't control their eating behaviour (just like there always will be irresponsible drivers out there). I'm actually a die hard libertarian, but it is hard to argue that imposing some sort of "fat tax" wouldn't actually reduce obesity (especially since obesity is higher in low income households) heck - we got the smokers to feel terrible about themselves, I bet we can do the same to fat people... /rant
Tichy 14y ago
I don't get your argument. I suppose more cars really lead to more car accidents. Where is the error? You want to have more cars and maintain your old level of car accidents, but it is very unlikely to work out...

by csmeder 14y ago

alexandros 14y ago

> I would argue the problem isn't the quantity, rather the quality But you didn't, argue. You simply asserted. You threw out the article's theory by constructing a straw-man you didn't even bother tearing down, then proceeded to inform us of your views.

aMoniker 14y ago
Actually, he said that he 'would' argue. So he is not actually arguing, but informing us that if necessary, an argument could be constructed based on the view he presented.
brady747 14y ago
You are right, but he didn't say he was arguing in his comment, he said he would. :)

Mz 14y ago

FWIW: A few years ago, someone verbally mentioned to me that some study found evidence of some sort linking type of bacteria in your gut to obesity. (No, I don't have a link.) This fits at least partially with my personal experience: In the quest to get myself well when doctors said it could not be done, I ended up slimming down tremendously in the last year or so. That was not a goal. I did not care about my weight and neither did my doctor since being underweight is far more typical of my condition and is far more immediately life threatening. My main goal was to kill infection and get my body working closer to normal, which included doing a lot of work on my gut health, both in terms of gut chenistry and gut flora.

deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
codebaobab 14y ago
I've heard that too. Would you mind sharing more details of what you did to promote gut health/chemistry/flora?
- Mz 14y ago
  Really short version: I worked on correcting the extreme acidity my genetic disorder promotes and I consumed a combo of high brine sea salt, coconut oil, glyconutrients and organic yogurt. I did a lot more than that but that is a good place to start, assuming you are hoping to act on the info. Organic yogurt has more varieties of flora than other yogurts and coconut oil does good things for gut flora.
  - codebaobab 14y ago
    By "extreme acidity" do you mean in your gastrointestinal system or elsewhere? (I've heard people talk about blood-level acidity before.) Was there a test that let you track/monitor acidity as you made changes?
    - Mz 14y ago

draebek 14y ago

> By using the phrase "overproduction of food" he is using too broad of a statement that doesn't describe the problem in an addressable way. Cut food production, food prices rise, people can't eat as much. It's an extreme solution, perhaps, and one with more political obstacles than I care to think about right now, but it seems "addressable" to me. What if we stopped some of the farm subsidies that don't make sense? What if we significantly increased taxes on unhealthy foods, which is probably justified since unhealthy foods probably directly lead to a rise in healthcare costs down the line? (Now I get to sit back and wait for someone to post facts from one or more of the localities that have tried raising taxes on e.g. sugary foods. I love the Internet!)

Drbble 14y ago
Done and done. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giffen_good http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giffen_good

jcfrei 14y ago

>It makes it sound like we could just cut food production across the board and prevent obesity. that would actually work. anyway, let's continue with your automobile parable. I think you're actually spot on with the quality argument. it was necessary to increase safety in passenger vehicles by state intervention (Euro NCAP), and alike the state, in my opinion, needs to chip in if consumers can't control their eating behaviour (just like there always will be irresponsible drivers out there). I'm actually a die hard libertarian, but it is hard to argue that imposing some sort of "fat tax" wouldn't actually reduce obesity (especially since obesity is higher in low income households) heck - we got the smokers to feel terrible about themselves, I bet we can do the same to fat people... /rant

Tichy 14y ago

I don't get your argument. I suppose more cars really lead to more car accidents. Where is the error? You want to have more cars and maintain your old level of car accidents, but it is very unlikely to work out...