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Tyler Durden's picture


A week ago we had the displeasure of reminding America that in 8 years three quarters of the population will be obese. We said that "many forget that a much more serious long term issue for the US (assuming anyone cares what happens in the long run) is a far more ominous secular shift in US population - namely the fact that everyone is getting fatter fast, aka America's "obesity epidemic." And according to a just released analysis by BNY ConvergEx' Nicholas Colas, things are about to get much worse, because as the OECD predicts, by 2020 75% of US the population will be obese. What this implies for the tens of trillions in underfunded healthcare "benefits" in the future is all too clear." Subsequently, The Atlantic decided to do a follow up on what it titled "The True Cost Of Unwalkable Streets" in which author Kain Benfield says: "Perhaps the single most alarming public health trend in the United States today is the dramatic rise in the number of people who are overweight and obese, bringing serious risks of heart disease, diabetes and other consequences leading to life impairment and premature death. This is bad enough as it is, but I contend that it is particularly unfortunate that we do not sufficiently recognize the extent to which these trends are caused by environmental factors, particularly the shape of our built environment."

Alas, resorting to the traditional American pastime of assigning meaningless blame when faced with a probem of epic proportions, instead of attempting to proactively resolve it, is about as expected as that of the four people around you, three will be, quite soon, morbidly fat. Because no matter who, why, when or where the obesity epidemic started, it won't end until the US welfare state is, pardon the pun, sucked dry (see "Welfare - the Great Delusion"). And if ordinary American citizens are shocked by how little Wall Streeters and politicians have changed their behvaiour, they would be speechless if only they looked in the mirror.

So while we don't have quite the suitable reflective device, here is a chart that should do the trick, coming from the same Atlantic piece. If this doesn't get one to rush out and scarf down the local (within 10 kcal or under walking distance) $0.99 McSomthing meal, nothing will.

Lastly, while the partisan bickering over whether Jeff Sessions is right or not in his estimate of a $17 trillion addition of Obamacare to future unfunded liabilities, goes on we wonder... Seriously? Because supposedly while $82 trillion in future unfunded liabilities is perfectly ok, $99 trillion is obviously a partisan hack to derail the great American plot to eat itself to death? Or something.

Instead of encouraging and enabling Americans to believe that any and every health-related issue they develop (of which the bulk originate from simply eating far too much, such as scarfing down on sugar, sugar and more sugar - which just happens to be the topic of tonight's 60 minutes), will be dealt with on someone else's dime, we have another suggestion: offer every American $100 for every pound they lose until they get to just below their ideal weight, and offer them a further $1000 each year to stay below that weight. Total cost: a tiny fraction of whatever Obamacare would cost, and the future benefits to one's credit card, to social healthcare outflows, and to society in general, would be unmeasurable.

And for those who missed it, here is 60 minutes on whether sugar is toxic (full transcript here).


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Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:19 | 2308508 Dr Benway
Dr Benway's picture

No tht is not correct. A very few vegetables have net minus calories but the vast majority of foodstuffs is calorie positive processed or unprocessed, cooked or uncooked.


Look I know it's depressing, but there really are no magic shortcuts here. Energy intake - energy consumption = change in fat stores. That's it.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:00 | 2308622 Gully Foyle
Gully Foyle's picture


"You can eat raw vegan for example and eat thousands of calories and not gain weight"



Doesn't matter the type of food.


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:18 | 2308655 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

OK.  I used to think like you but I've learned otherwise.  Go ahead and load up on 2000 calories of Slim Jims and Coca-Cola + all the aspartame you can drink + a multivitamin for good measure.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:29 | 2308677 Gully Foyle
Gully Foyle's picture


Clearly you can't read.

But even your snark falls apart against evidence

Twinkie Diet: Man loses weight while eating junk food

As an experiment meant to promote discussion among his students about nutrition and weight loss, Haub limited his calories to 1,800 a day, kept physical exercise about the same, and ate a diet that included junk food. About two-thirds of his total intake came from junk food. He also took a multivitamin pill, drank a protein shake daily and ate some vegetables.

"I wanted to show that it's not necessarily the individual foods, the specific foods, but it's about how much, how many of those foods we eat. It goes back to the old adage, a calorie is a calorie," he said.

He acknowledges weight is not the only health factor. Other things like cholesterol and glucose need to be considered as well. He said when he measured them, they all went in the healthy direction during his experiment.


Teacher loses weight on 'Super Size Me' diet

After a month of eating only McDonald's food, a teacher in Edmonton has lost weight, lowered his blood pressure and won a bet with his biology students, but nutritionists say he's risking his health.

Les Sayer set out to recreate the diet behind the hit film Super Size Me, in which Morgan Spurlock's 30-day McBinge ends in a weight gain of 25 pounds and a host of ailments.

Unlike the documentary maker, Sayer wanted to show he could lose weight and stay healthy on the fast food diet, which included the chain's salads.


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:39 | 2308699 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

Yeah brah I heard about those stories too.  You're saying you can lose weight if you eat shitty food as long as you eat less amounts of the shit than you burn. That's not revolutionary. 

I disagree with the notion that all calories are created equal- you can lose weight if you eat LOTS of unprocessed foods.  When I eat raw vegan I eat all I can (I counted once, it was about 3000 calories a day with all the avocadoes and bananas and coconut oil) and I still lose weight. 

But keep your food journal if it makes you happy!

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:42 | 2308710 lasvegaspersona
lasvegaspersona's picture

Spurlock proved convincingly A) gluttony is bad and B) he is a moron. Why one would do what he did is beyond me. He was simply trying to prove "McDonalds is bad ......mmmkay?

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:07 | 2308764 Fred Hayek
Fred Hayek's picture

We used to have a guy who was vegetarian in our office. He was easily the fattest one. But, pffeww!, he didn't eat meat.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 01:35 | 2308935 TBT or not TBT
TBT or not TBT's picture

Sugar is vegetarian.  Fructose, a sugar found in fruit, and "high fructose corn syrup" is a pernicious simple carbohydrate.   Wheat flour, whether whole or processed, genetically modified or classically hybridized, is chock full of carbohydrates.   Beer, full of maltose, another simple sugar, is vegetarian.   Potatoes of every type are simple carbohyrdate bombs.   Carbohydrate consumption causes insulin production which causes fat storage.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:29 | 2308539 Saro
Saro's picture

While this is perfectly true in the strictest sense, it doesn't really tell people how to get from Point A to Point B. That is, if you want to consume less calories than you expend, what's the easiest way to do it so that you can stick with it permanently and be content?  For me, it's paleo/primal.  Give up grains, acquire bacon.  

I've dropped 32 lbs in two months.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:31 | 2308544 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

congrats! grain-free is great advice ^_^

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:35 | 2308554 Dr Benway
Dr Benway's picture

OK that's a fair point, and congrats on your weight loss.


I just think it's important to remember the basics drivers of fat before formulating plans to combat it.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:43 | 2308577 Saro
Saro's picture

Yeah, learning something about nutrition and body metabolism has really opened my eyes to what real food is.  

Step one (as it is in so many areas of life) was realizing that everything the government has been telling me about nutrition my entire existence is complete bullshit.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:32 | 2308683 Gully Foyle
Gully Foyle's picture


So you are including insects in the Paleo diet?

You understand it is just another trend that glorifies surviving in shitty times, like Renniasance fairs.

The next fad will be the Amish diet complimented by living an Amish lifestyle.

After that maybe the Indian beggar diet or starving African diet.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:03 | 2308751 Saro
Saro's picture

Bacon, eggs, and cooking with butter (instead of compressed vegetable oil) is a "trend" now?

It's cool, though.  I've left you all the shitty processed carbs and "fat free" high-fructose corn syrup products you can choke down your swollen gullet.  Go nuts!

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 01:25 | 2308927 francis_sawyer
francis_sawyer's picture

The "Hunger Games" diet is surely coming next...

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:24 | 2308354 Bansters-in-my-...
Bansters-in-my- feces's picture

Save a hoggie,eat a banker.

Lower in calories and you burn lots of calories just catching them.


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:32 | 2308358 CompassionateFascist
CompassionateFascist's picture

Estrogen. Floating down from the chemtrails. So that, when the reptilian gods return, they will have plenty of tasty human flesh to eat. We are Food of the Gods, and it is a high calling indeed.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:01 | 2308446 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

Link, please

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:09 | 2308481 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

dude I'm hella into chemtrails/reptilian conspiracies seconding link request please

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 05:31 | 2309047 Disenchanted
Disenchanted's picture

That may be coming more from the food and water supplies than chemtrails:


Xenoestrogen: Turning Men Into Women One PCB At A Time


It is unclear whether or not the proliferation of Xenoestrogens is intentional or simply due to corporate greed, but the facts remain: Xenoestrogens are being dumped into our food and water supply on a daily basis and creating synthetic surges in human estrogen levels globally. However, there are things you can do to combat this toxic war on your health.


excerpt from:


Although the jury's still out on what all we're being exposed to in the artificial clouds resulting from 'geo-engineering'(the Solar Radiation Management (SRM) side of that).

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:33 | 2308360 Dingleberry
Dingleberry's picture

Everytime an article gets posted on ZH that tries to explain why fat fuckers got fat, all I can say is:

"See you at the buffet.....bitchez!!"

Stop making excuses....they are all lies.  Put down the fork.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:38 | 2308379 Jendrzejczyk
Jendrzejczyk's picture

Someone dropped a spicy pork rind on your down button.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:04 | 2308460 Dingleberry
Dingleberry's picture

Ha! Looking at the obesity map, it looks like our country may start listing to the starboard side. 

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:46 | 2308584 Stax Edwards
Stax Edwards's picture

+1 Big Mac

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:07 | 2308468 LetThemEatRand
LetThemEatRand's picture

Did they just invent forks and abundant food in the last fourteen years?   

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:24 | 2308512 Dr Benway
Dr Benway's picture

It is mostly a change in societal pressure and mores. It has become much more acceptable to be fat, and this spreads like a disease through social circles. People compare themselves with their fat friends and so don't feel very fat themselves, they feel "normal". That's what has changed.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:03 | 2308629 Gully Foyle
Gully Foyle's picture

Dr Benway

It isn't the food it is the leisure time. People are not as active as we were. We do not work as hard. We burn fewer calories.

It is the success of our civilization causing obesity.

You want thin people live in fucking India or Africa or any third world country that puts more labor into their lifestyle and less leisure.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:25 | 2308670 Dr Benway
Dr Benway's picture

Wealth and weight are only positively correlated for low levels of wealth. After that they become negatively correlated.

The fattest people in the US are not the wealthy. So increased wealth is not the reason for the obesity epidemic.

Everything points to my conclusion above. Changing social mores have made fat more acceptable and changed what is considered a "normal" body.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:13 | 2308771 Fred Hayek
Fred Hayek's picture

Also, the demographic center of the country has gotten older. The baby boomers who were 26-44 in 1990 are now 48-64 years old. It's natural that there be some putting on of weight in that huge cohort of the populace.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 01:42 | 2308938 TBT or not TBT
TBT or not TBT's picture

Doiing more exercise increases appetite, which causes people to consume more food, so no effect from exercise.   No scientific studies find excercise to be effective in their data, although they still tend to conclude with the more excercise/thermodynamic balance hypothesis.  

What actually works is stopping/massively reducing insulin production.   The only way to do that (short of killing/removing the gland that makes it) is cutting down on carbohydrate consumption, and substituting for carb calories calorie equivalents of FATS and protein.    This was well known up until the 60's, that starches cause people to  get fat, and cutting back on them causes people to lose weight.  

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:25 | 2308525 OSCSPJ
OSCSPJ's picture

You live a life where it will never be your fault.  Always someone else to blame, no personal responsibility.  What do you have left when that doesn't work?  don't you ever tire of blaming others?  Did you ever want to be successful?  Responsible for where YOU were in life?

Best Excuse in life gets you absolutely nothing.  Winner or loser?  You have your excuse.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 09:34 | 2309342 Liposuction
Liposuction's picture

No but that's about the time graphical MMO's took off.  "You got epic items and larger underwear!"

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:12 | 2308484 Dr Benway
Dr Benway's picture

Yeah I agree 100%. I find the excuses for fat here on ZH are pathetic.


If you consume less calories than you expend you cannot get fat. Its physically impossible. IMPOSSIBLE.


ZH understand that you cannot spend more money than you earn without incurring debt. But they do not realize you cannot eat more calories than you burn without getting disgustingly fat. Irony bitchez!

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:30 | 2308362 swissaustrian
swissaustrian's picture

GMO crap.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:40 | 2308387 Death and Gravity
Death and Gravity's picture

Nonsense. Its nothing more than an abundance of liquid calories, by way of the quintessential American produce:

Coca Cola

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:00 | 2308441 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

most HFCS is GMO

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:15 | 2308495 Dr Benway
Dr Benway's picture

It has nothing to do with GMO or HFCS or any of your tinfoil scares. Here's the reason for your obesity:




That's it.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:10 | 2308644 tmosley
tmosley's picture

Halo effect.  One has literally nothing to do with the other.

HFCS is bad no matter what kind of corn it comes from.  It is a defined mix of sugars.  You could produce it from algae or a thousand year old strain of maize, and it would still make you gain more weight than would the caloric equivilent of regular sugar.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:21 | 2308661 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

I agree, and I'm not saying GMO food has an effect on weight gain vs. the non-GMO equivalent (I could be wrong, anyone have any data?) , although it should be avoided for other health reasons.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:42 | 2308371 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

Americans aren't fat because they are socially deviant.  They are 'fat' because they have an extremely high income relative to the rest of the world.  Guess what...the rest of the world be as plump if they could.  They just can't.

Check out the price difference steaks at the butcher between Europe and the US.  They are triple the price in Europe.  They were the same, the Eurotard would have enormous grills and firing them up nightly too.

I despise this kind of rhetorical fucking shit on ZH.  Stick with the financial news.  This brings out every stupid mother fucker that wants to hate AmeriKKKa...or whatever.

ZH is just above this stupid shit....or should be.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:42 | 2308391 Death and Gravity
Death and Gravity's picture

"Check out the price difference between steaks at the butcher between Europe and the US. "

Steaks are meat, which is protein. Protein if anything, and consumed instead of the poisons such as HFCS, would be an antidote to obesity.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:48 | 2308397 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

I see you really grasped the notion.


You know...Americans secretly sponsored Hitler and are trying to steal baby food from the poor countries.

As expected, he comes the flood of Eurotards looking to glaum onto a red meat article based on loose evidence that supports they propoganda they've been spoon fed their entire lives.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 02:04 | 2308962 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

I agree, buddy.

Rather than pissing on others' ideas, you and I should be talking stocks.  The war of ideas has gotten no further than you getting seven junks on the internet.  Let's do something productive for a change.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 06:01 | 2309060 Disenchanted
Disenchanted's picture


Piss-n-Vinegar said:


"you and I should be talking stocks."


You two must be some of those 'Muppets' I've heard tell about...

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 04:46 | 2309025 Colonial Intent
Colonial Intent's picture


Bollox, bush prescott and barclays and fanta sponsored hitler, Nestle dont steal they give baby food to poor countries.

You some kinda librul pinko commie?

Buncha whiney yanks, american capital can cross borders but american labor can' hoo china stole your job.......Ahhh diddums.

Either man up or pass the baton to china.


"As expected, here comes the flood of Eurotards"

Companyyyyyyy....... present and correct SAH!

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:43 | 2308393 pods
pods's picture



Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:50 | 2308408 nmewn
nmewn's picture


We need a study done on the calories burned swiping a SNAP card.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:00 | 2308444 Jendrzejczyk
Jendrzejczyk's picture

That study would take 8.4 years to complete, at a cost of $6.3 billion. The results would be inconclusive and be too late to save 75% of the US population anyway. ;]

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:26 | 2308527 nmewn
nmewn's picture

You're right of course, it would be time consuming and its much more cost effective to just say its Bush's fault.

But the statists have a problem with that line of reasoning. Because there's not a recurring "revenue stream" for them to swallow. And the MSM is chomping at the bit for some dirty laundry. So the thing to do is have a blue ribbon panel investigate the merits of attempting a study at all.

That way the statists can demagogue the issue, bubble headed bleached blondes will have something to fill their on air time with and political operatives can hold on to their tenuous existence.

Really, Keynes at his finest, nothing is ever solved and people stay fat & happy ;-)

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:51 | 2308411 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

And, obviously, there should be some embarrassment if not down right shame associated with it.  Because that just makes us lazy and pathetic and re-enforced the Euro way of life.  Strangely, the US still has a huge backlog of persons trying to immigrate here.


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:55 | 2308421 skepticCarl
skepticCarl's picture

Oops, you got me Boilermaker.  I took the bait.  You provoked a response from me (below), not realizing your April Fool's joke.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:19 | 2308437 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

No, really, I'm sitting right now with 5 other "Amerikkkans" and plotting how we can kill off some endangered species, perpetuate birth defects, sell unicorn horns as an exotic aphrodisiac, and rob the disadvantaged of a future.  Not to mention or relentless mocking of the special olympics.

I'm just twisting my mustache all night long while eating high fructose fast food and hatching diabolical evil plans against the Euros.
Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:44 | 2308715 NumberNone
NumberNone's picture

We Americans are just not getting enough baby seal and bald eagle in our diets. 

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:02 | 2308750 UP Forester
UP Forester's picture

Don't forget Spotted Owls.  They're good wrapped in bacon.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:18 | 2308779 NumberNone
NumberNone's picture

Try polar bear topped with snail die for.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:36 | 2308800 UP Forester
UP Forester's picture

Now THAT'S a big meal.  Trying to get enough Kirtland's Warbles with Blue Karner Butterfly sauce burns more calories than you get out of it....

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:18 | 2308586 Goldilocks
Goldilocks's picture

Happy April Fools' Day ‘;-)

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:47 | 2308719 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

Did Tyler kill links on this site or not?  'Cuz if so, your posts are forever rendered irrelvevant.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 00:35 | 2308869 AgShaman
AgShaman's picture

I think you missed the joke.

Come tomorrow....we'll be tortured once again, with bad music from the 80's

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 02:09 | 2308966 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

Nice one.

I say buy physical and some BAC, too.  It might seem nonsensical at first, but it's damn near a perfect hedge against the ills of the world and the pointlessness of many of the comments here.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:25 | 2308522 americanspirit
americanspirit's picture

Actually we are fat because we eat a diet that triggers whole body inflammation. Sure too many people eat a lot of empty calorie junk food and are fat because they cram their mouths with all kinds of shit, but bottom line my friends is that a HUGE portion of the exess weight that Americans tote around is because of auto-immune inflammatory disease. Now, there is a direct relationship between stuff in our "food" like HFCS that leads directly to inflammatory response, and there is a parallel weight gain in fatty tissues, but the real underlying story isn't the fat, its the inflammation. Diabetes, heart disease, cancer, hashimotos, crohns, IBS, asthma, autism, alzheimers, and on and on - all inflammation-caused and moderated. Fat people jokes aside, these people are victims of a global conspiracy - a real, true, planned-in-the-corporate-boardroom conspiracy. Just like the cigarette industry is a major owner of the health insurance and life insurance industry - profiting both ways - so the 'food' industry capitalists own a huge amount of the health care and life insurance industry. Get people to buy your shit which makes them sick and then drain them on their way to death. It is nothing more than a business plan. Evil bastards, but clever - you gotta give them credit. Nobody gets it, and the game goes on.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:26 | 2308530 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

Well, that, and a box of lil' Debbie's moon pies is $0.99 when NOT on sale.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:29 | 2308540 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture


even zero-calories artificial sweeteners make you fat

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:32 | 2308547 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

AND...they'll give you hot dog fingers and whooping cough and possibly shingles!  But, the government won't tell you that!

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:16 | 2308650 americanspirit
americanspirit's picture

Arrrggghhhh - it isn't the calories or lack of them my friend. It's the inflammation that the chemicals behind those empty calories trigger. When your tissues swell, you gain weight. That is completely different from fat. There are multiple origins of obesity - not one. That is simplistic thinking and benefits those who are manipulating people's health for their profit. I repeat - obesity isn't only about fat, and in many, many cases isn't about fat at all.

When your body needs to isolate toxins, it stores them in fat cells. Then it walls off those fat cells so they can't be breached - to prevent the toxins from being released. That's why it's so hard to get rid of fat - the body has it protected because of the nuclear waste that's stored there. So that's the problem with fat.

Meanwhile - inflammation = tissue fluid retention = weight. Not fat, or rather, in addition to fat - inflammation causing fluid retention. Totally different problem, totally different solution. I see great minds at work here on ZH all the time - so what's with this simplistic "These people are pigs and deserve to die" bullshit?

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:27 | 2308675 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

I agree with you. 

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 09:27 | 2309320 blunderdog
blunderdog's picture


A fair number of folks here are totalitarian fascists at heart.  They only THINK they believe in liberty.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 01:53 | 2308952 TBT or not TBT
TBT or not TBT's picture

Indeed, a sweet taste on the tongue causes insulin to be produced in anticipation of carbohydrates that never arrive.   The insulin produced from mere sweet tastes causes sugars circulating to be stored as fat, empying sugar from the bloodstream, causing a hypoglycemic state, which makes the subject hungrier than before.   Reaction?  Their appetite increases at the next meal, particularly for sugary or starchy foods, because their blood sugar was lowered by the artificial sweetener.

I.E. artificial sweeteners make you fat, arguably fatter than the real thing taken in moderation with a meal to spread the glycemic spike over time.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 01:48 | 2308945 TBT or not TBT
TBT or not TBT's picture

Erm..sure there is inflamation around in chronically sugar poisoned bodies, but the reason for this is the battle of the body against the onslaught of sugars and the damage they do.   The cheif reaction to eating carbohydrates, insulin production, is what causes fat storage.  On top that, sure, you have inflamation as a secondary effect.   The primary weight gain is from adipoctyes storing fat in reaction to insulin, which happens when we eat carbohydrates.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:49 | 2308405 Unprepared
Unprepared's picture

Whoever wants to "hate" America wouldn't read ZH, they would just watch Americans.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:52 | 2308413 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

Thanks for validating the point better than I could have.  There's nothing like a Eurotard swooping in and filling the role and right on cue.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:01 | 2308453 Unprepared
Unprepared's picture

Overeating is not a disease, it's a symptom of psychological / cognitive void. Likewise for inflated ego.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:07 | 2308471 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

Huh, and all this time I thought it was because it was enjoyable and relatively inexpensive.

Thank you so very much for that enlighteing and, obviously, expert correction.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:16 | 2308499 Unprepared
Unprepared's picture

Know the difference between quantity and quality? Beyond a certain affordability/abundance point, eating becomes a cultural expression of self. It is you who is insulting yourself and your fellow citizens for not even giving them the mental faculty of knowing when to enjoy something and when to say enough.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:36 | 2308518 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

Ah, yes, it's a 'cultured' thing, now isn't it?  Euros can eat a piece of cheese that smells like a garbage can in July but if it's priced high enough then it's high brow and wonderful.

Give me a break.  Go fuck yourself.  Did you really write "eating becomes a CULTURAL EXPRESSION OF SELF"?

Whatever gets you through your miserable existence bro...whatever it takes.

You're wearing a black turtle neck and have mousse in your hair, right now....I'll bet on it.


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:19 | 2308657 americanspirit
americanspirit's picture

Unprepared - pearls before swine. Save your breath.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:15 | 2308775 NumberNone
NumberNone's picture

ZH backed up your comments in another fat related story a couple days ago.  Saying


All this sudden attention to fat and the price of food Americans pay reminds me of the whole argument around how the US is fucking the world by having low oil prices and using more fuel than the rest of the world and how everything would be wonderful if prices were high enough to encourage conservation in the US.  Wonder what the fuck is up. 

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:51 | 2308412 skepticCarl
skepticCarl's picture

So, Boilermaker, poor people are skinny, and rich people are fat?  The numbers show the opposite:  poor people eat cheap, high calorie, low nutrition food, and are fatter than the well-off.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:55 | 2308423 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

Considering I didn't even TRY to make that point, I have no fucking clue what you are alluding to. 

My point was that food here is relatively cheap and our incomes are relatively high.  Thus, buying food isn't the issue it is in the rest of the world.  Moreover, if the situation was the same in the rest of the world, we wouldn't be relatively fat.


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:33 | 2308551 Saro
Saro's picture

It's not that steak is too cheap here (steak is about the healthiest thing you can eat); It's that corn and wheat are too cheap.  Cutting out grains, refined sugars, and starchy vegetables has done wonders for my waistline, but damn if it isn't murdering my food budget.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:18 | 2308653 Waffen
Waffen's picture



corn subsidies may be the worst thing our government has ever done if you consider the damage it has dont with both ethenol and HFCS

keeping in mind that government also subsidizes american sugar making it more expensive then it is in the rest of the world.


obsesity and hfcs

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 11:35 | 2309714 pods
pods's picture

Keep eating a high meat diet and they will be able to fit you into a small coffin.


Tue, 04/03/2012 - 10:20 | 2312804 Saro
Saro's picture

It's actually a diet high in (natural) fats and protein, with lots of fruits and vegetables.

It's only the garbage carbs that you have to cut out.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:47 | 2308587 zkay
zkay's picture

Besides your valid points, Boilermaker, I would also append that whenever an article like this shows up on ZH it's almost as if it takes the BMI index at face value. Did anyone here know a man weighing in at 250lbs standing 6'1 would be considered morbidly obese by the BMI index? Even if he was built like a brick shithouse at 10% bodyfat.

Taking that rating scale and believing it is just assinine, and seems counterintuitive to the other articles I read here at ZH. Everything else is questioned, why is the BMI scale verboten?

It should be noted, too, that there are varying levels of health among fatter people, just as there are among skinny people. My dad was a chunky guy most of his life and never has had a health problem going on 60 years of age. It all depends on what it is you're eating, how much, and what (if any) exercise you do.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:59 | 2308619 Dr Benway
Dr Benway's picture



Let me ask you one question about your example. Of all those 6'1 Americans who weigh 250lbs, what proportion has 10% or less bodyfat do you think? one in twenty? less?


Just accept that you are fat and in debt.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:08 | 2308639 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

And, the superpower of the world.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:03 | 2308630 Shaktipalooza
Shaktipalooza's picture

Why does an article like this belong on Zero Hedge??? Because a rising obesity rate in a population has dramatic impact on social programs. Living in Asia I see LOADS of fat Europeans that give any slice of the American population a serious run for their money on the chimichanga scale. I could write a book on my experiences with Europeans here, and the idea of "The Ugly American" being a wildly misdirected generalization, but that's another subject.

I am however, a US taxpayer, and I do care about how my tax money is going support (or not) an ever growing black hole of preventable medical costs. First thing I would suggest is no more subsidised cheap calories! Take oreos, soda, doritos, junk food, off the eligibility list for food stamps. In fact I'd be ok if food stamps were limited to food staples ONLY.

I think obesity rates are also tied to social norms and acceptance. Here in Taipei the incomes are high. Food is very affordable, often loaded with fat, and yet there just aren't that many overweight people. It's very rare to see someone who is actually 'obese'. Probably a much higher rate of eating disorders for women but at least you don't see half the people in the crowd well on their way to insulin dependency.

My last flight back to the US had 4 people within six rows of my seat who could NOT sit down without taking 1/2 of the adjoining seats. Those fat fucks were all westerners.

Bottom line, there is a serious obesity problem in the US, and the social costs are going to to be unaffordable.

Besides, I hate looking at fat chicks.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:23 | 2308666 americanspirit
americanspirit's picture

Shakti - gotta agree there. Whenever I see an obese woman with a young child ( everywhere) I can't help but think - who would want to fuck that? I mean, really? Who looks at those mounds of grease and says yum yum?

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:26 | 2308671 Shaktipalooza
Shaktipalooza's picture

There is a very small minority of men that get off on mountainous fatty globs of cellulite. I'd rather eat my own vomit.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 09:36 | 2309343 blunderdog
blunderdog's picture


Obesity *saves* your precious tax dollars, dude.  Same with smoking.  Quit bitching and learn to understand the statistics.

Nothing in the world is a greater waste of tax-money than paying for long-care treatment for the Alzheimer's-disabled 70 year old for the last 3 decades of life.

   Besides, I hate looking at fat chicks.

Oh, nevermind.  It doesn't really have anything to do with your money.  Do you hate looking at niggers too?  Or bald guys?

To each his own.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:13 | 2308646 GeorgeHayduke
GeorgeHayduke's picture

It's not that I hate America or Americans. After all I am American.

However, I strongly dislike avarice, gluttony, proud ignorance, empire mentality and that whole "I got mine screw you" attitude that has infected a large number of my fellow citizens. These attributes are a large part of the reason America is teetering right now.

You can wave the flag all you want, but recognizing that there might be a problem is the first step healing. Unfortunately, many Americans are too brainwashed and headstrong to consider looking in the mirror to see where part of the problem might lie. Fixing problems often starts with yourself.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:18 | 2308652 Boilermaker
Boilermaker's picture

I've got news for you. Europe, Japan, and China are teetering too.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:32 | 2308684 GeorgeHayduke
GeorgeHayduke's picture

Sorry, it's not news to me. Do you think that perhaps, this entire worldwide economic system based on the fascist business model of bankers and corporations (avarice) has reached its end? And, since it's a worldwide system everyone goes down?Perhaps the fact that the global economic system is falling is due to an economic system built on avarice, greed and gluttony is not sustainable, contrary to all of the "theories".

Maybe this whole current colonial/dominionist economic system as we know it cannot operate with 6 billion humans on the planet.

Perhaps cheap energy is a thing of the past and that's what's causing the teetering. We will likely only know what really happened in hindsight and after much upheaval.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 05:58 | 2309058 Mitzibitzi
Mitzibitzi's picture

All of the above, I suspect. Looks like the Mayans may have been about right on the date for the end of this era and the beginning of the next (not that I put much credence in that kinda crap, as a rule). Because we surely can't keep up this bullshit for very much longer. Though I'm sure TPTB are going to pull out all the stops to prolong the agony. And then pull out some more once TSHTF in order to ensure that they come out on top of whatever humanity does next.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:34 | 2308688 Pairadimes
Pairadimes's picture

The problem with this assertion is that there is actually an inverse relationship between income and obesity in the United States. People in the low income category are more likely to be obese than those in the high income category. This is a very unusual phenomenon, and so far, policy makers seem to be clueless as to the roots of the problem and the path to a solution (a phrase at risk of being over-used).

Once upon a time, being fat (or at least overweight) was a sign of affluence in this country. Today's popular culture glorifies being abnormally thin and vilifies fat people, so one would think that if the path to a socially acceptable weight were easy, everyone would take it. I have often thought that modern, highly processed foods act upon the body more like drugs than nutrition, and that many people 'medicate', rather than feed, themselves. I also believe the human animal is poorly adapted to an environment of excess; that absent the struggle to survive, we are inclined to these behaviors.

I suspect most middle and lower class Americans give this issue little thought, being preoccupied with many matters of much more immediate concern. People like us may be concerned with the future consequences of this trend, but at the end of the day, this situation is the result of millions of individual choices freely made every day.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 01:59 | 2308958 TBT or not TBT
TBT or not TBT's picture

There is a simple explanation:

Carbohydrates are cheaper than fats and proteins.  Wealthier people eat fewer carbs and more fats and proteins because they can afford to.   Poor people have their bodies under assault from blood sugar and the resulting insulin flood more of the day and more intensely, fattening them, and bring them to states of insulin resistance and pre-diabetic states faster than their richer compatriots.

Also, poorer people tend to get that way through poor impulse control.   Cheap carbohyrdrates are available front and center all day.   You have to pass by walls of them to get into and out of a typical Walmart, where I've heard poor people shop.   OK. I do too, but I don't buy any carbs there.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:35 | 2308373 Maos Dog
Maos Dog's picture

At the current food and fuel inflation rate I predict this problem will solve its self soon...

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:36 | 2308375 Racer
Racer's picture

Well that is one way of storing supplies for a hyperinflationary food crisis...........

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:39 | 2308381 Unprepared
Unprepared's picture

Tyler, please refrain from using "sugar" so many times, my browser "cookies" become so sweet that I get Sugar Daddy ads.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:53 | 2308419 Unprepared
Unprepared's picture

Goddamit, now I'm getting weight loss ads.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:00 | 2308445 nmewn
nmewn's picture

And I thought Sugar Daddy was a candy bar...must be something leftover from the Goldman's romp in the rack story.

Time to clean up the cookie crumbs ;-)

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:52 | 2308602 zkay
zkay's picture


All your ad problems are now gone, for free. Enjoy.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:45 | 2308717 Kali
Kali's picture

Thank you!

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:40 | 2308383 toadold
toadold's picture

Well there are a lot of theories about the fat epedemic.  One I favor is the increase amounts of sugar(not just corn fructose) in everything that is packaged or processed, the other is from a study a German did on the difference in life styles between Europe and the US done about a decade ago. Basically he stated Europeans due to the way their old cities were constructed and small apartment sizes had to do more walking, in the US by contrast the majority of the towns and cities were built to accomodate automoblie transportation. You'll find suburbs built without sidewalks for instance. A third problem that is illustrated by a study in South Korea is that kids are spending so much time inside on the 'Net that they aren't getting enough exercise and can't meet military fitness requirements.  Their are secondary effects also in that people have got so time conflicted they don't do their own cooking anymore.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 02:08 | 2308965 TBT or not TBT
TBT or not TBT's picture

Rewind and imagine the same comparison 40 years ago.    The german study thesis fails.   

The main difference is not walking or not walking(increasing excercise just increases appetite, causes test subjects to eat more to compensate).  The main difference is that germans and french police eachothers' behavior far more critically, and one behavior they police is TIMING of eating, and location too.   They eat at meal times, which are far more circumscribed than in the USA.    They actually get hungry between meals...and at these times their bodies go into ketosis, fat burning.   On top of that they still eat non-lean meat and non-diet food with all the fat in there, which provides calorie substitution for carbohydrates they might otherwise have had the appetite for.    Carbohydrates cause insulin production, which is the primary thing that causes fat cells to store fat.    Less carbs and more fat with appropriate consumption of protein yields leaner humans.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 09:43 | 2309357 blunderdog
blunderdog's picture


That increased appetite bit is nonsense when you try to apply it to seriously fat people.  It applies in cases where subjects are near a stable-level of blood sugar and caloric intake, but most people who are carrying a lot of excess fat are NOWHERE NEAR stable blood-sugar or equilibrium of calorie consumption.

To wit: if you're eating an 1800 cal/day diet and start walking, you might increase your caloric intake.  So far so good.  If you're eating a 3200 cal/day diet and start walking, you WILL NOT increase your caloric intake because you've already got a massive surplus.  Walking will actually help stabilize blood-sugar levels and get you back in-tune with the difference between "hunger" and "empty stomach," thus also helping re-align your overall consumption levels.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:48 | 2308394 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

Posts like this are the best.  They get to the heart of the issue - is America a constitutional republic, full of hardworking people of good values, a beacon of freedom for the world that must be defended from enemies foreign and domestic...or is it a bunch of overweight shlubs, too stupid to know what's going on, living the high life because they were given a winning lottery ticket having been born into the Empire, more concerned about Dancing With The Stars than the concept of liberty?

'Cuz if it's the latter, I'm really grateful that Wal-Mart pays a dividend.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:28 | 2308676 Dr. Engali
Dr. Engali's picture

Believe it's a combination. But it's like any family owned business. You get a few generations out from those who built it up then it gets all fucked up. The latest generation feels entitled to the benefits without out putting in the hard work to maintain it. So they hire people to do it and maybe check in once in a while and collect a pay check. After a while they start to get fat and lazy. They make no contribution , but continue to consume the company profits. Then as time passes they don't care what liberties or restrictions are placed on them by the board of directors as long as they get the trust fund money. Next thing you know the company / country is sold out from under them and the trust fund is drained. Leaving a bunch of fat lazy fucks penniless and hungry.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:02 | 2308748 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

Totally true and I don't mean to disrespect you. 

But here's another day where ZH allows this for a response.  LOL

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:44 | 2308395 Incubus
Incubus's picture

fatness is a result of ignorance of personal body metabolism and diet.


There's no reason why anyone should be 'fat';  what fatness symbolizes is poor impulse control + ignorance of macronutrients and their effects on the body.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:09 | 2308479 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

True.  For you, me and anyone else who reads this, there is no reason why any of us should be overweight.  It's kind of like buying physical: you either get it or you don't.

BTW, buy physical.  Don't eat shit, too :-)

So a genuine question is - should we look on our fellow fatties as our brother or exploit them because they are exploitable?  Darwinism wins in the end, you know. 

It would be nice to hear some genuine thoughts on this.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:23 | 2308511 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture


Not to get all RobotTrader on you, but McD's is pushing world record highs

 It's easy to get on here and say fuk McD's.  But plenty of people will keep on consuming it, however.  They just want an Extra Value Meal or Happy Meal because it tastes good and is easy.

Is it immoral to buy stock in McD's?  Or is it inevitable...i.e., if I don't take that dividend someone else will? 

Because they will. 

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:24 | 2308524 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

there are junker sifs afoot

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:33 | 2308550 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

LOL.  And LOL again that you got junked so fast for that.

It would be nice to hear a discussion on this topic. 

'Cuz either a) you got such a hard-on for doom that you love this article or b) you should consider the dividend-paying opportunities it reveals.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:04 | 2308755 Kali
Kali's picture

OK, I'll bite!  (sorry, bad pun)    Darwinism at work.  The ones who die, will die.  If they take the effort not to, maybe they will live longer.  The only thing that gets me mad, are the ones who made no effort, don't die and need lots of health care. They use limited health care dollars to deal with their fat instead of those dollars going to people who have serious illnesses or injuries that were not of their own doing. So I see it as an extreme case of selfishness.  That is what I think when I see obese people, they are extremely selfish.  I also think "how many starving people could be fed with what this person overeats?" or " how much less pesticides/fertilizers/oil would have been used if this pig didn't eat so much".  I see it as a colossal waste of resources.  Waste not, want not type of thing.

 But with the coming collapse, there will be no more "any kind of health care, any time I want it".  You will have to pick and choose what health care you can afford.  Healthier people will not need to spend as much.   I know it sounds cold, but in much of the world, that is the way it is now.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:39 | 2308787 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

ORI will mention on this site that we are entering the Age of Aquarius.  If you look that up on the web, you might see a link or two that says that means we are entering the age of evil.

I don't think so.  At least I don't think so if the age of righteousness means Jesus fishes on the back of SUV's while we fight wars in the middle east.  If this is the age of righteousness, I say bring on the age of evil.  LOL

Looking at your comment, I'm not too worried about entering the "age of evil".  It might be fun.  LOL again.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 06:33 | 2309072 Mitzibitzi
Mitzibitzi's picture

Harsh as it is, I can't help but agree with you. Sick and fucking tired of all the people who consume more than their fair share, consider it their right to do so and then have the temerity to complain about it when the check comes due and they find it's painful, or not possible at all, to pay up. And that applies to debt, fuel, food and all the rest.

I must confess that I also have mixed feelings about the endless pursuit of more money. On one hand, it's difficult to set yourself up in a situation where you can be somewhat self-sufficient and thus not a burden on your fellow man when you've got no spare money in your pockets. But, on the other hand, when you already have everything you actually need, what's the point of trying so hard to accumulate ever more. 

I also wonder if presenting our kids will a big inheritance, supposedly so 'they don't have to go through all the shit and hard work we had to', is actually a good thing. I refer to the eventual deterioration of a once great family business mentioned up-thread a bit. I think it's generally acknowledged around here that wealth is created through work, productivity and common sense. And that 'money' has to be put to work, circulating and allowing businesses and new ideas to start up and grow, in a free-market system, if the general level of wealth is to rise for all participants in said market. I'm struggling to see how handing your descendants a huge pile of cash when you shuffle off this mortal coil is conducive to that process. Enough of a grub-stake that they can afford to eat and pay the bills while getting an education, starting their own business, or whatever, sure. But a hundred million dollar trust fund? Surely that's just pretty much guaranteeing that your descendants will adopt an 'entitled' mentality, even if it takes a few generations for them to get there. And, even if we have a global collapse and a total reset but don't address the issues that led to it, since the only way for people to stay rich while not having to work at it is to game the system, we'll just end up right back where we are now - a relative handful of uber-rich pricks who call all the shots. 

Fuck it, I'm starting to sound like some kind of Socialist, which I'm not. I guess I just don't see how any potential system can actually work properly unless we can fundamentally change human nature during it's establishment. Either we have to limit, or preferably eliminate, the numbers of lazy fucking predators, or we need a watchdog body with the power to prevent too much power from ever again being concentrated into too few hands. And we have that, who watches the watchers?

I'm going to plant some more carrots....

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:45 | 2308396 Caviar Emptor
Caviar Emptor's picture

Tonight's Japan, Australia data coming in weak: Tankan Man and AIG Man both below estimate and showing contraction. But AUD inflation gauge comes in hotter than expected. Biflation again. 

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:45 | 2308399 freeasabee1
freeasabee1's picture

people are getting lazier, where I live the sidewalks are totally empty but not the roads next to them.  People drive to the gym or 7-11 even if its a 5 minute walk.  Strange times we live in.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:55 | 2308424 Temporalist
Temporalist's picture

They invented stair master....when stairs are already free

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:00 | 2308442 freeasabee1
freeasabee1's picture

yeah, can't fix stupid I guess.  What's weird where I live,  the drive thru for coffee in the morning is 20 to 30 cars deep, but the shop is empty inside.  You could park, go inside and get a coffee, have a smoke, get back in the car and still beat the guys inline.  

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:48 | 2308404 Racer
Racer's picture


Add all that sugar and processing into the diet and no wonder the US are bubble fat blob people. they have been brainwashed and force fed sugar and other corporate junk since before they were born

The corporations of the US are feeding on the carcasses of foie gras humans thinking they can have the golden egg from them forever


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:07 | 2308474 rbg81
rbg81's picture

Its not the natural sugar, its the High Fructose (pronounced:  FuckedDose) Corn Syrup substitute.  Bitchez.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:37 | 2308562 Saro
Saro's picture

Table sugar is just as nutritionally deficient as HFCS.  They are both garbage carbs, and you shouldn't consume any if you can help it.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:40 | 2308568 Miss Expectations
Miss Expectations's picture

Diet Soda Also Makes You Fat!

Another reason why you should avoid drinking diet soda is it can lead to weight gain and obesity.

For 10 years, University of Texas Health Science Center researchers observed 474 diet soda drinkers and found out that their waists grew 70 percent larger than those of non-diet soda drinkers. In addition, drinkers who ingested two or more diet sodas a day had a 500 percent greater increase in waist circumference. This study was presented at the 2011 American Diabetes Association meeting.

“Your waist size is not only a matter of aesthetics, but also one of the most powerful predictors of lean body mass and your risk of serious degenerative disease,” Dr. Mercola says.

Another study, also from the same researchers, found out that mice who consumed food laced with aspartame had higher blood sugar levels than those who did not. This proves that aspartame may increase your risk of metabolic syndrome and diabetes.

Artificial sweeteners are said to be addictive because they trigger enhanced activity in your brain’s pleasure centers. However, it gives you less actual satisfaction. This is because when you consume artificial sweeteners, your brain actually craves sugar more because your body is not satisfied at a cellular level.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:56 | 2308613 Cathartes Aura
Cathartes Aura's picture

aspartame?  RUMSFELD.

that's pretty much all ya need to know.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 04:19 | 2309017 Jendrzejczyk
Jendrzejczyk's picture


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:40 | 2308698 JustObserving
JustObserving's picture

Your body does not know if the sweetener is artificial or not.  So even with artificial sweeteners, it releases insulin to handle the expected influx of sugar. But since there is no sugar, the extra insulin drives down blood sugar and you are ravenously hungry. That is the mechanism by which diet drinks make you gain weight very quickly.

At least 40% of US adults have metabolic syndrome.  If you are above age 50, you have more than 60% chance of having metabolic syndrome or prediabetes.  You can easily reduce your risk of diabetes by more than 50% by changing your nutrition, activity-level and lifestyle.


Mon, 04/02/2012 - 02:11 | 2308967 TBT or not TBT
TBT or not TBT's picture


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:54 | 2308422 Fantasy Planet
Fantasy Planet's picture

This story made me hungry. 

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:13 | 2308490 Amish Hacker
Amish Hacker's picture

Have a TV dinner while watching Iron Chef. Then may I suggest some cookies for dessert while watching Biggest Loser.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 20:56 | 2308431 samsara
samsara's picture

Nothing to do with large mega corps like Walmart et al under pricing every mom and pop business (who were more likely to carry local food) we have grocery store anemic inter cities and towns, what is there close for many people to buy? Fast food from large corporations being fanned by constant PR ads. Yes conditioning does work. Watch wall-ee the movie.

The obesity is just the physical manifestation. One of the mental manifestations would be someone who says 'why worry if you have done nthing wrong?'. Or a die hard supporter of either party, etc.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:07 | 2308472 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

You can still buy lentils and rice for cheap at WalMart... people are just too disconnected from their food and what's beneficial to their bodies.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 02:13 | 2308969 TBT or not TBT
TBT or not TBT's picture

Rice is one of the worst things you can eat.    Pure starches.     These cause insulin production, which causes fat storage.    Rice is part of the obesity problem, as is pasta, and potatoes.   All cheap food.  The type low income people get by on.

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 09:53 | 2309391 blunderdog
blunderdog's picture

Demonstrated by all the hugely fat fucks in S. and SE Asia, right?  All that rice.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:00 | 2308447 donethat
donethat's picture

Is 'Knife and Fork' disease covered under Obamacare?

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:05 | 2308463 ss123
ss123's picture


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:16 | 2308538 nmewn
nmewn's picture

We need another Georgetown law student to "weigh in" on this.


What is the average height/weight at Georgetown Law anyways? ;-)

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:04 | 2308458 maxw3st
maxw3st's picture

This is the single biggest expense in healthcare. Obesity lands more people in the hospital with related ailments than anything else. Bottom line, it's nobodies fault but those who persistently overeat, and overeat garbage diets.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:04 | 2308459 ss123
ss123's picture

Make smoking cigarettes cheap again.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 23:46 | 2308815 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

You and I are having two different conversations.  LOL at both of our comments

But what do dolphins have to do with the Age of Aquarius?

This shift into being transparent (where we no longer try to hide who and what we really are) is a key element of the Aquarian philosophy. When we no longer mask our true feelings and desires, humanity as a race will literally "jump" into a type of collective consciousness that, at present, can barely be imagined. With the ability to sense what's really going on inside one another, it will no longer be logical to even try to be deceitful. We will instantly know when someone is happy, sad, angry, physically distressed, or in love. We will know a person's motivation at the very same moment they know it!

For forty million years, dolphins, a mammalian species with brains larger and more complex than our own, have been living such a transparent existence. Utilizing an incredibly accurate sense of ultrasound, dolphins are able to "see" inside one another via high-frequency echolocation. In the global community of dolphins, there can be no hiding, no lying, no reason to mask anything but truth. In other words, what we would call an Aquarian existence–a seemingly impossible dream–has been a reality to dolphins for millions of years.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:06 | 2308466 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

I live in a dark red state and I've never had a weight problem but that's because I don't live like most people here


I don't eat at (the vast majority of) their crappy restaurants

I'm aware of what I eat, I know what's in it and where it came from

I've started working out occassionally


it's amazing how ingrained it is in the culture- do you REALLY need a fucking Coca-Cola at 8AM? Same thing with Diet Coke, nasty shit.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:01 | 2308620 xela2200
xela2200's picture

That is what diet coke is for.

I had a boss that once told me that He had to get used to the taste of diet cola which took him some time. I asked him if it wouldn't have been better to give it up altogether. He gave me a crazy look. Yes, he was very fat, but it reminded me how strong the powers of the marketing gods are. Just think of the marketing that has gone into the red bull brand. I am proud to say htat I have never even tried one.

I gave up sodas or rather I avoid them as much as possible. At the start, I craved them but then you get use to it. I think is an "easy" thing to do and the amount of sugar you spare your body in a year is incredible. I still sometimes miss coke and condensed milk shake. That used to wake me up.

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:24 | 2308669 kekekekekekeke
kekekekekekeke's picture

I think the diets are worse than the regular stuff.  My partner was addicted to Coke Zero when I met him (my vice was Diet Dr. Pepper years ago) but he's quit, and I can't even take a sip of that stuff now. Sparkling water still gives me the bubble without the sweeteners.

Are you from Xela? I was there a couple of years ago, I love it :']

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 10:02 | 2309394 xela2200
xela2200's picture

Yes, anything that is made by a group of people wearing white robs is off my list.

You are right. Once you go off those drinks for awhile and then try them again, you wonder why you were drinking it in the first place. Nobody is immune to the powers of marketing.

I am not from there, but I am originally from that country. Glad you enjoyed it and keep your trip safe.


Sugar is the new tobacco.;storyMediaBox

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:09 | 2308480 ss123
ss123's picture

Corn Fed Bitchez!

(Sorry, could not resist.)

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:16 | 2308497 Yardfarmer
Yardfarmer's picture

that's no lie. i heard somewhere that the "average" American is about 70% corn!

Sun, 04/01/2012 - 21:47 | 2308582 DaveyJones
DaveyJones's picture

see the documentary King Corn, they demonstrate this. How's the garden? I've got Favas already flowering. (in the greenhouse). Toughest plant I've ever grown. The leaves are edible too when you're done with the bean.   

Mon, 04/02/2012 - 06:42 | 2309081 Mitzibitzi
Mitzibitzi's picture

The leaves are edible too when you're done with the bean.  

I didn't know that. Thanks!


Sun, 04/01/2012 - 22:05 | 2308633 xela2200
xela2200's picture

Another unintended consequence of subsidies. Here in Florida US Sugar has been devastated by the stupid subsidy. I read somewhere that it was cheaper for Mexicans to buy US corn than to grow it themselves. This is a culture that believe that god made man out of corn before bring him to life.

No way this will end bad for anybody.
