Why are so many men fat?

[Svnla]

"I ain't fat, just husky/more meat in the bone/tall and big/big boned/fill in the blank" - Americans


On the serious side, I think the fatness is directly related to the amount of food consumed and physical activities or lack thereof.

 

[Fritzo]

"My BMI says I'm too short"

Actually, people are just eating more because they have more income and food is cheaper. I'm also a bit suspect about HFCS, as it seems people really started ballooning up when they introduced it in the 80's.

 

[nehalem256]

It may be well studied, but it's even more well misinformed. The misinformation on obesity in this nation is enough to make everyone's head spin. That's why you ask 100 so-called experts on whats causing obesity or how to lose fat you get 100 different answers.

There is only one way to lose fat. Burning more calories than you consume.

The disagreement is over the best way to accomplish that.

 

[exdeath]

There is only one way to lose fat. Burning more calories than you consume.

The disagreement is over the best way to accomplish that.

By moving more and stuffing your face less.

 

[jagec]

GMO foods,

I'd love to hear a proposed mechanism for this one.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Fluoridation of our precious bodily fluids.

That's about where this thread is.

 

[Golgatha]

I'd love to hear a proposed mechanism for this one.

Yeap, GMO gets broken down exactly the same as non-GMO. I'm more concerned about Monsanto et. al. litigating over patented life and having a monopoly over our food supply than I am about any negative health effects.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

There are three major factors to that:
1. Food quality - US food is much worse than eating shit.
2. Food portions - average portion of US meal would suffice as meal for 4 people elsewhere.
3. People walk everywhere (most of the time).

I've heard several stories of Americans going to Europe for longer time and slimming very much due to nature of all three points mentioned above.

This. I also blame the Army for treating meals like a timed event. I can finish my dinner before my girl even gets to her second bite. I've been suscessful in reducing portion sizes and increasing quality but I still eat REALLY fast.

 

[KeithTalent]

It's the food that's shoved down our throats here. Processed garbage pumped full of horrible ingredients. It seems like more and more people are starting to catch on to that (I hope that's the case).

Go to Italy. I doubt the average male (or female) works out more than we do, and yet the country is full of thin, beautiful people.

Try walking around Rome someday and trying not to trip over your jaw.

Are you a goose being prepared for foie gras? I can't recall ever having anything shoved down my throat; suck to be you if that is how you get your sustenance.

KT

 

[surfsatwerk]

Are you a goose being prepared for foie gras? I can't recall ever having anything shoved down my throat; suck to be you if that is how you get your sustenance.

KT

A girl's gotta make a buck.

 

[Kaido]

Why are so many men fat?

Because food is good?

 

[kotss]

Just a reminder to everyone so far in this thread. A pound of muscle does not weigh more than a pound of fat. Muscle is more dense than fat and therefore a smaller volume of muscle weighs the same as a larger volume of fat.

 

[lozina]

Just a reminder to everyone so far in this thread. A pound of muscle does not weigh more than a pound of fat. Muscle is more dense than fat and therefore a smaller volume of muscle weighs the same as a larger volume of fat.

You probably would think a ton of feathers weighs more than a ton of bricks!




waits for someone to take that seriously

 

[AViking]

lol

 

[I Saw OJ]

Because fat dudes can still get chicks so it doesnt really matter.

 

[Fritzo]

Because fat dudes can still get chicks so it doesnt really matter.

Because there's so many fat chicks for fat dudes to choose from? :sneaky:

 

[vi edit]

Actually, people are just eating more because they have more income and food is cheaper. I'm also a bit suspect about HFCS, as it seems people really started ballooning up when they introduced it in the 80's.

What also happened in the 80's? Cable TV, the VCR and video games.

 

[BurnItDwn]

when I worked in retail and was on my feet all the time, my weight was a lot less. I ate more than I eat now, I didn't do any real external exercise, just, I spent a lot less time sitting on my ass.

I've been behind a desk since 2011, I've reduced food intake, pretty much cut my pop down to almost 0, and I drink less liquor/beer. However, my weight has gone up.

I work in a building which has about 400 or so IT workers, maybe 2/3 to 3/4 are guys.

Perhaps there's just more male desk jockeys vs female?

 

[purbeast0]

its cause people are lazy as shit now a days. they don't want to exercise, they don't want to prepare their own food, they don't want to do anything other than sit around and use technology while sitting on their asses.

not many people now a days have any drive or want to challenge themselves to anything, working out and eating healthy included. that is also why you see so many people unhappy with their current job yet they stay there for years on end, not doing anything about it - no drive or ambition.

and they ALWAYS have excuses as to why they can't do it. every god damn time!

 

[zinfamous]

Here is my theory, which is admittedly not supported with facts and may turn out to be complete bullshit:

In the distant past, food was hard to come by and men had to work very hard to get it by hunting, farming, etc. This principle remained true in many parts of the world from prehistoric times through the middle ages, and even into the pre-industrial age. Due in part to this food insecurity, humans developed an instinct to consume large quantities of food when it was plentiful, as the body understood that large meals may be difficult to come by. Gorging generally did not lead to obesity however, because it was offset by periods where relatively little food was consumed.

In the industrial and post industrial age, food became more plentiful. This lead to a general decrease in the "food insecurity" issue noted above, as for the first time many people could gain access to all of their food requirements by buying it, e.g., from a grocery store. The ready availability of food likely lead to an increase in consumption by males, due at least in part to the instinctual drive to consume. Despite this increase in consumption, many males did not become obese because they engaged in significant amounts of physical labor. In essence, their work required intense physical exertion and thus burned off many of the calories that were consumed. In other words, instinct drove men to eat more because food was available, but physical exertion offset the increased consumption.

In the modern era, food is more plentiful than ever, and in a wider range of choices than ever. In particular, processed foods that are high in calories and fat have become widespread, and are attractive to large portions of the populace because of their taste and their relatively low price. This widespread availability of cheap, high calorie food has lead to another large increase in caloric intake, again fueled in part by the instinctual need to consume when food is readily available. Only this time, this increase in consumption is not offset by physical exertion. Indeed due to technological advancement, most modern men are not required to exert themselves much if at all over the course of the day. To the point that most men who do exert themselves physically do so in a gym, rather than in the course of their work. This has lead to an era where the caloric intake of a male generally exceeds the number of calories he burns over the course of the day, leading to weight gain.

For those who don't like to read -

-Due to food insecurity, human males developed an instinct to "gorge" when food was readily available.
-In the past, increased caloric consumption was offset by physical labor
-In modern times, caloric consumption has increased further due to availability of cheap processed food, while physical exertion has become "optional" for most males in the modern world, leading to an era of "caloric surplus." Nature has not caught up with the fact that males are less active now than at any other point in the history of humankind, and thus instinct continues to drive men to consume large quantities of calories despite the fact that it is no longer necessary to do so.

This post nails it.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

This post nails it.

What it covers is correct. There are other factors which drive obesity, but he's got his part right.

 

[iRONic]

P.S. you mentioned football as being a fat lazy friendly sport but what about baseball? 90% of the time the TV is showing them scratching their balls standing there

Yes, but weight in baseball is not as important as in football. Baseball players are far more slim and fit than average american man, just go to any minor league game.

 

[Jeff7]

It's the food that's shoved down our throats here. Processed garbage pumped full of horrible ingredients. It seems like more and more people are starting to catch on to that (I hope that's the case).

Go to Italy. I doubt the average male (or female) works out more than we do, and yet the country is full of thin, beautiful people.

Try walking around Rome someday and trying not to trip over your jaw.

It showed up in the news briefly, likely to Monsanto's chagrin, that there's something in wheat that acts as an opiate, at least since sometime around the 70s, courtesy of selective breeding that accidentally produced some unexpected results.

"What's that? Our product contains an addictive substance that compels people to buy more of it? Yes, we'll get right on that. Now everyone please shut up about it."

 

[pete6032]

When I was in college I was very active, walking to class and biking to work all the time. After I graduated and got a 40 hr desk job I gained about 20 pounds the first year since I moved to the suburbs and drove to work and sat at a computer all day for my job. Even though I was still working out I was probably walking 4-5 miles less per day working at that desk job. You'd have to get a very strenuous daily workout to make up for such a large deficit of walking.

I've lost the weight since by working out more and eating healthier. My BMI is now 18.5, which is borderline skinny but I like to be lean.

 

[JulesMaximus]

HFCS