13 ms·

We can go back and forth on this, but HN isn't the place. I've had this debate many times and it ends nowhere. Bottom line, calories-in vs calories-out is a fin

by eclipxe 13y ago

We can go back and forth on this, but HN isn't the place. I've had this debate many times and it ends nowhere. Bottom line, calories-in vs calories-out is a fine and dandy statement, but tells us nothing of value about the cause of increased calorie consumption. I agree with you that for weight gain to occur, there must be a greater energy intake than burn, but what causes more caloric intake?

matwood 13y ago
Eating? I'm only partially joking. Calories don't just magically appear.
- Daniel_Newby 13y ago
  Eating is an effect, not a cause. Much of of the cause is subconscious regulatory systems in the brain, which function like magic to a person consciously trying to eat less.
- mixmastamyk 13y ago
  Sugar makes you feel like you're starving. You get sleepy at the peak, "starving" at the trough... like a repeating sine wave. Leads to overeating.
  - StavrosK 13y ago
    But who eats sugar to get full? I (and everyone I know) eat sweets after a meal, or because I see them, not because I expect to sate my hunger with it.
    - pierreio 13y ago
      Lustig's point is that you don't know you're eating sugar when you actually are. Up to 10% corn syrup in white breads, sauces, any precooked meal, sausages. If you eat BBQ sauce, you're eating sugar. Salt and sugar save low aroma food (>80% processed food). Their combined power on the human body is vicious.
      - StavrosK 13y ago
        As the other commenter said, this is pretty much just the US, I just didn't realize the article wasn't talking globally.
    - threeseed 13y ago
      Ask anyone who isn't American what the first thing they notice about the food when they visit the US. How sweet everything is.
      - StavrosK 13y ago
        That's me, and you're right, everything's very sweet and buttery. I guess I was thinking the article applied to me, when the answer to my question was "Americans".
      - hfsktr 13y ago
        My friend is from England and the few times she's been to America the primary thing she's said is that the portions here are ridiculously large. At places like Chili's or Applebees she ended up ordering appetizers and eating half of that as a meal. I got a regular meal but I knew in advance I would be taking it to go halfway through, as I usually do.
        DanBC 13y ago
        Yes, the problem with coke isn't that it's got a lot of sugar in it. The problem with coke is that people drink litres of it each day.
        hfsktr 13y ago
        I can't tell if you are being sarcastic or agreeing or not. Usually your comments are good so I am going to believe you are sincere here. Somewhat related I am one of those people who needs to make a change as I get >1000 calories from soda a day. I did quit years ago (just cold turkey) and after the initial headaches and tiredness the biggest change I saw was that I was constantly hungry. Much like quitting smoking made me for quite a while.
        DanBC 13y ago
        Coke has a lot of sugar in it. Some people drink a small amount of coke, and get pleasure from it, and are not fat. Increasing portion sizes (see for example the increasing sizes of servings in McDonalds menus) mean that people now drink huge quantities of this sugary drink. The volume of drink, the quantity of the sugar, is the problem. Two cookies are not a problem. Two packets of cookies are a problem.
    - digisign 13y ago
      As mentioned, there is a lot of sugar hidden in processed foods. Also, a plate of pasta is about the same as far as the body is concerned, just a bit slower on the uptake.
  - matwood 13y ago
    It causes people to lack discipline in what they eat. That's really the issue here. Sugar isn't some poison and it is not a magical 10x the normal calorie. People who eat a lot of sugar are usually still eating a lot of everything else. All those calories add up and lead to weight problems. The first thing to losing weight is to get serious about how much you are eating. Write it all down. People tell me all the time they don't understand why they are gaining weight, and then we go through a day of eating. It's not just sugar or fat or some other thing someone has said trying to sell a book, it is simply eating too much. Oftentimes people don't even realize it. I had the opposite problem with I started weight lifting years ago. I simply couldn't gain weight, and thought it was impossible based on how much I thought I ate. When I started writing things down I realized I was barely breaking 2k calories/day if I was lucky. It took concerted effort to eat more, and results quickly followed. Now I'm older and am not as active, so I simply don't eat as much. My weight has stayed the same for a long time.
    - digisign 13y ago
      It's not really about discipline. If you're "starving" (low blood sugar), you eat big to stop that feeling. There's few people who can will themselves to suffer instead, and really why should they? Better to avoid the problem entirely in the first place. If you don't feel hungry (stable blood sugar) eating becomes a moot point/routine task.
joering2 13y ago
Right on, and thats why they brand sugar as deadly poison -- it affects your brain and tricks it into wanting more of it because its a drug of pleasure. Then it makes you never full so you eat more of other stuff that eventually gets you sick. Like with anything else, including alcohol or even heroine (altho that one very limited) - nothing in reasonable limitations will kill you. If you have strong will then you keep your brain on leech and treat it as a pleasure you consume time to time in limitations. If you eat it daily in large quanitities, then you helping yourself to get sick.

by eclipxe 13y ago

matwood 13y ago

Eating? I'm only partially joking. Calories don't just magically appear.

Daniel_Newby 13y ago
Eating is an effect, not a cause. Much of of the cause is subconscious regulatory systems in the brain, which function like magic to a person consciously trying to eat less.
mixmastamyk 13y ago
Sugar makes you feel like you're starving. You get sleepy at the peak, "starving" at the trough... like a repeating sine wave. Leads to overeating.
- StavrosK 13y ago
  But who eats sugar to get full? I (and everyone I know) eat sweets after a meal, or because I see them, not because I expect to sate my hunger with it.
  - pierreio 13y ago
    Lustig's point is that you don't know you're eating sugar when you actually are. Up to 10% corn syrup in white breads, sauces, any precooked meal, sausages. If you eat BBQ sauce, you're eating sugar. Salt and sugar save low aroma food (>80% processed food). Their combined power on the human body is vicious.
    - StavrosK 13y ago
      As the other commenter said, this is pretty much just the US, I just didn't realize the article wasn't talking globally.
  - threeseed 13y ago
    Ask anyone who isn't American what the first thing they notice about the food when they visit the US. How sweet everything is.
    - StavrosK 13y ago
      That's me, and you're right, everything's very sweet and buttery. I guess I was thinking the article applied to me, when the answer to my question was "Americans".
    - hfsktr 13y ago
      My friend is from England and the few times she's been to America the primary thing she's said is that the portions here are ridiculously large. At places like Chili's or Applebees she ended up ordering appetizers and eating half of that as a meal. I got a regular meal but I knew in advance I would be taking it to go halfway through, as I usually do.
      - DanBC 13y ago
        Yes, the problem with coke isn't that it's got a lot of sugar in it. The problem with coke is that people drink litres of it each day.
        hfsktr 13y ago
        I can't tell if you are being sarcastic or agreeing or not. Usually your comments are good so I am going to believe you are sincere here. Somewhat related I am one of those people who needs to make a change as I get >1000 calories from soda a day. I did quit years ago (just cold turkey) and after the initial headaches and tiredness the biggest change I saw was that I was constantly hungry. Much like quitting smoking made me for quite a while.
        DanBC 13y ago
        Coke has a lot of sugar in it. Some people drink a small amount of coke, and get pleasure from it, and are not fat. Increasing portion sizes (see for example the increasing sizes of servings in McDonalds menus) mean that people now drink huge quantities of this sugary drink. The volume of drink, the quantity of the sugar, is the problem. Two cookies are not a problem. Two packets of cookies are a problem.
  - digisign 13y ago
    As mentioned, there is a lot of sugar hidden in processed foods. Also, a plate of pasta is about the same as far as the body is concerned, just a bit slower on the uptake.
- matwood 13y ago
  It causes people to lack discipline in what they eat. That's really the issue here. Sugar isn't some poison and it is not a magical 10x the normal calorie. People who eat a lot of sugar are usually still eating a lot of everything else. All those calories add up and lead to weight problems. The first thing to losing weight is to get serious about how much you are eating. Write it all down. People tell me all the time they don't understand why they are gaining weight, and then we go through a day of eating. It's not just sugar or fat or some other thing someone has said trying to sell a book, it is simply eating too much. Oftentimes people don't even realize it. I had the opposite problem with I started weight lifting years ago. I simply couldn't gain weight, and thought it was impossible based on how much I thought I ate. When I started writing things down I realized I was barely breaking 2k calories/day if I was lucky. It took concerted effort to eat more, and results quickly followed. Now I'm older and am not as active, so I simply don't eat as much. My weight has stayed the same for a long time.
  - digisign 13y ago
    It's not really about discipline. If you're "starving" (low blood sugar), you eat big to stop that feeling. There's few people who can will themselves to suffer instead, and really why should they? Better to avoid the problem entirely in the first place. If you don't feel hungry (stable blood sugar) eating becomes a moot point/routine task.

joering2 13y ago

Right on, and thats why they brand sugar as deadly poison -- it affects your brain and tricks it into wanting more of it because its a drug of pleasure. Then it makes you never full so you eat more of other stuff that eventually gets you sick. Like with anything else, including alcohol or even heroine (altho that one very limited) - nothing in reasonable limitations will kill you. If you have strong will then you keep your brain on leech and treat it as a pleasure you consume time to time in limitations. If you eat it daily in large quanitities, then you helping yourself to get sick.