What is the cause of our current obesity epidemic? Is it really the increase in consumption of a certain particular food, like so many seem to believe, or is it something completely different?
It seems like everyone nowadays is trying to pinpoint the obesity epidemic on a certain food. Some people think its because we eat too much protein, others think its too many carbohydrates and sugars, many blame it on saturated fats, and now the new bad thing going around is trans fats.
I would like to add my 2 cents to this whole problem and excuse me if it sounds blatantly obvious.
We are overweight because we eat too much!
It is that simple. It doesn’t matter what food it is, we are eating way more food than our body needs therefore we are putting on weight.
We didn’t always have this obesity problem, so what did we do differently before?
From human existence all the way up to the world wars, there was a constant struggle for food. In fact you were considered rich and successful in some cultures if you were overweight. Actually, around the turn of the century a doctor was lucky to see a handful of heart disease patients in his lifetime. Now it is one of America’s biggest killers and is directly related to obesity. So what dramatic changes happened since the world wars that have brought on this current obesity epidemic?
First and foremost, technology has exploded. Can you imagine how much harder it would have been to get around without cars, having to walk everywhere instead. What about everyday chores like washing clothes or turning on the heater. Back then, they had to wash clothes manually and go out and chop firewood.
Don’t you think this extra activity made a difference? You bet it did. Nowadays we are spoilt with technology and exert ourselves a lot less than we did 50 years ago.
Another rapid increase in the past 60 years is the availability of food. Not only that, but calorie loaded, nutrient lacking food. Soft Drinks, lollies, packaged snack foods, chocolates, pastries and so on are everywhere and are easier to access now when you are out and about then a piece of fruit!
The biggest contributor has probably been the explosion of the fast food industry. The food is so yummy and so convenient that it is the mainstay for many people in the Western World. Problem is, a simple value meal from any of these outlets can be close to or even surpass someone’s daily calorie requirements.
Compare this to the countries that don’t have an obesity problem. You’ll find that these countries don’t rely on technology as much in their day to day life and calorie dense food isn’t as readily available.
In conclusion, I know it sounds too obvious but in my opinion the obesity epidemic comes down to one main factor. We are eating way more than our bodies need a day. This is made easy to do by our lack of activity through technological advancements, and the ease at which we can access calorie dense food, making it all too easy for us to eat too much.
Luke Johnstone
Weight Loss Articles | January 20, 2008
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