Healthy Eating in Modern Society

[gimmepie]

Let's not waste a goo - well a thread. Going to repurpose this for a discussion on healthy eating in the modern world. Talk here about the obesity epidemic, eating disorders and the roles of the government and media in dealing with these issues.

 

[string555]

LOL, you are truly professional... XD

I have eaten whatever the psyduck I want for my entire life, and yet I stay skinny. Yes, I have a killer metabolism... :P

 

[Sawsbuck]

LOL, you are truly professional... XD

I have eaten whatever the psyduck I want for my entire life, and yet I stay skinny. Yes, I have a killer metabolism... :P

My diet consists of a lot of junk food, yet I'm only 145ish lbs

 

[Vragon]

Aw and I had really good comment.

Oh well, yes I metabolisms can be an issue, but there is the argument it isn't enough to compensate the obesity happening. There is some truth to the argument of overweight due to eating and there are ways to handle it.

I for one am a person that can go on a day with only 2 meals. This helps me on the weight stuff (a decent substitute for starving myself) and if I do need more food I can get some. I also do ping pong now and then for a little exercise as well a walk a lot on campus or just to o on a walk. Certain subtle things can help in the (keeping your weight down) rather than just full blown exercising so getting into decent habits of stuff that do help burn calories you do everyday can help in the long run if you don't like doing full blow exercising or fat burn programs. Which I would say they are a good way, just not for everyone.

 

[gimmepie]

My big concern with the initiative to fight against obesity, is that I think we sometimes take it too far and encourage people to overexercise and under eat/develop eating disorders. That's just as bad if not worse than being obese and certainly worse than being slightly overweight. I think more attention needs to be given to that side of the issue than currently is.

 

[Sawsbuck]

My big concern with the initiative to fight against obesity, is that I think we sometimes take it too far and encourage people to overexercise and under eat/develop eating disorders. That's just as bad if not worse than being obese and certainly worse than being slightly overweight. I think more attention needs to be given to that side of the issue than currently is.

My concern is that they are going to try and ban all junk food and replace it with bland inedible crap (it probably wouldn't happen though) because it will "get rid of obesity". I mean sure it probably would, but it isn't fair to those who aren't overweight and don't care if it isn't "healthy" that they have to suffer too because of that, we should be able to choose what we want to eat.

Like the school lunches here, they made a change requiring it to be somewhat healthy and got rid of all of the good stuff they used to have and replaced it with boring stuff that you probably wouldn't even feed to your dog.

 

[Pinkie-Dawn]

We could also talk about all of those articles and videos about avoiding cancer-causing foods (microwave popcorn, fried chips, canned food, etc.) and what food we should eat to lessen our chances of getting cancer.

 

[Kanzler]

I would encourage eating more whole foods and fibre, while avoiding simple carbs and excess sodium. If you start making your own food, chances are it would be more healthy than if you bought something from the frozen section.

 

[Esper]

Sugar is the problem. Sugar is in almost all foods.

Since the 70s or so we've been eating a lot of processed food and that's around the same time that obesity began to rise. (There's always been a percentage of overweight people of course.) Very importantly at the same time foods began taking out fat because everyone was told that fat makes you fat. (Sugar makes you fat.) But then foods tasted awful so they added sugar, specifically fructose (as in high fructose corn syrup) which gets metabolized in a bad way by your digestive system and can cause all kinds of health problems. They also took out a lot of the fiber in foods to make them have longer shelf lives, but fiber is important to your digestion.

There's a good (long) video about it here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM
Probably easier to watch videos, but this is from a doctor and it goes into a lot more detail than most of us can understand (unless we've taken biochem).

tl;dr eat foods without fructose unless they're natural like fruit because fruit has fiber

I would encourage eating more whole foods and fibre, while avoiding simple carbs and excess sodium. If you start making your own food, chances are it would be more healthy than if you bought something from the frozen section.

I've been reading that sodium is actually fine for you and that it can even be detrimental if you don't get enough sodium. (There's a sweet spot of optimal salt intake, but going over it even by double isn't so bad, though halving it can be pretty bad.) Places like Korea and Japan have some very high levels of sodium intake in their diets and yet have some of the lowest levels of heart disease in the world. (I believe South Korea has the lowest in the developed world.)

 

[Kanzler]

I've been reading that sodium is actually fine for you and that it can even be detrimental if you don't get enough sodium. (There's a sweet spot of optimal salt intake, but going over it even by double isn't so bad, though halving it can be pretty bad.) Places like Korea and Japan have some very high levels of sodium intake in their diets and yet have some of the lowest levels of heart disease in the world. (I believe South Korea has the lowest in the developed world.)

There are a lot of factors in heart disease, but sodium is a big one and high intake can make hypertension and other diseases worse. I don't expect most people in our population to eat and live like Japanese or South Koreans so I still think it's important for people to pay attention to the amount of sodium they are taking in. Japanese and South Koreans tend to lead more physically active lives than in North America, as well as having less obesity which would reduce their risk of heart disease through those factors, but it doesn't matter if you're Japanese or South Korean or whatever culture, eating more sodium will increase your risk for blood pressure. Pointing out that sodium is less important in the Japanese or South Korean experience does not necessarily mean that the Japanese or South Korean experience applies to you.

Honestly, in this part of the world, it's very difficult to eat too little sodium without being overzealous about your diet, and by and large, it's not the overzealous folks we're worried about when it comes to diet and health. People over here get most of their sodium through processed foods, and those tend to come with poorer nutritional content as well as being higher in unhealthy fats and sugars. People with low blood pressures might stand to benefit from eating a bit more salt, but broadly speaking, most people eat too much salt from processed foods.

 

[Nick]

The key to healthy eating is using single, fresh ingredients in your diet. Instead of buying the box of rice with 400 calories per 1/2 cup because of all of the extra things they add which are actually really crap for your body and add no nutritional value to your meal, choose a rice that you like (Jasmine is my go to) and then combine it with spices and herbs from your cabinet. Combine a variety of spices, herbs, and single ingredients to create flavor. Weigh your food out using a food scale so you know just how much food you are putting into your body, and what it consists of by utilizing apps like MyFitnessPal.

That should be the staple you follow if you actually care about living a healthy life. Take the time to research what makes up the macronutrients of the food you are eating, so you are knowing where the fuel is coming from. You should theoretically have a relatively high protein diet, with healthy fats (please please please get your fats in, they are important and often misinterpreted to make people think that fat makes you fat when it's the opposite) and carbohydrates to help you get through the day.

To people who are saying "I eat a lot of junk food but I don't gain weight." That's because you're eating at a maintenance level of calories. You can lose weight if all you eat is junk food, but you eat less than you burn. It doesn't really change the fact that you are feeding your body toxic, though.

 

[Corrin]

Mm, it's possible, but in this day and age, a lot of people don't have the time (Many have multiple jobs just to live) so it may seem unrealistic, so people get fast food.

 

[Nick]

Mm, it's possible, but in this day and age, a lot of people don't have the time (Many have multiple jobs just to live) so it may seem unrealistic, so people get fast food.

That?s called laziness. Your day isn?t so busy and filled with important events that you can?t cook for 10-20 minutes.

 

[Sawsbuck]

That?s called laziness. Your day isn?t so busy and filled with important events that you can?t cook for 10-20 minutes.

Some people can't cook though

 

[Nick]

Some people can't cook though

Learn? Follow a recipe online. There?s so many ways to learn new skills. People like to make excuses.

 

[Sawsbuck]

Learn? Follow a recipe online. There?s so many ways to learn new skills. People like to make excuses.

If you work most of the day you really can't

 

[Jellicent♀]

If you work most of the day you really can't

I mean, I hate to sound like an ass, but this is the lamest excuse. I work a full-time job as a hairstylist working 8 hour days each day that quite often last an hour or two longer, so roughly 10 hours a shift. I get home and I still have plenty of time to cook something. Even if it is premade mess, it has instructions on how to cook everything. Chefs have 3 minute videos all over YouTube for this specific reason.
It isn't difficult.

I've developed a horrible dairy allergy recently and have had to change my entire diet and eating habits, and it literally added nothing to my already busy schedule.

Eating healthier isn't difficult. It isn't some mystery anymore. There are millions of articles and recipes and tutorials and information. It's just all about discipline.

 

[Nick]

If you work most of the day you really can't

Look I?m not trying to get you to change your lifestyle. If you want to live off of fast food, all power to you. But the world of adulthood, you?re working 8-12+ hours a day on top of other obligations, and millions and millions of people find the time to buy ingredients, prep food, and cook their own food. Takes roughly 20 minutes to cook a well rounded meal and that includes prepping vegetables by hand.

You do you. Eat what you want. But don?t make the lamest excuses ever like people don?t have time, people don?t know how, or people work.

 

[Desert Stream~]

making food isn't too hard. A can of beans, some seasoning, super quick easy meal that isn't too bad for you. you can buy beans for like a dollar, and seasoning for like, 69 cents that'll last a few meals. Sure, there's a bit of sodium, but you could simply rinse them and it's way less salty.

 

[Her]

Let's not have such a high horse, people. Laziness can often be a factor, but be realistic: people may have the time to prepare and cook a meal and so forth, but after a full day of work or inbetween a second job, they may not have the mental energy to do so. Accessibility is the key factor when it comes to managing one's diet and quick, easy, filling food is always more readily available than fresh produce. Like... there's really no reason to be without compassion for someone's day to day life experience to push good health tips they already know.

Which brings up the main issue re: accessibility. Fresh produce and materials for healthy and diverse meals are expensive. Maybe not so much when catering solely for yourself, but as you get older and have more people to think about other people? Absolutely. When you have multiple people to look after, keeping them satisfied and not hungry can often take precedence to the Super Healthy fresh meals we wish we could have readily available all the time. We all want (or should) want to be healthy, but the main limitation when it comes to this is not some weird sense of avoiding responsibility or avoiding taking charge of their situation, but having their financial situation define things for them before the food is even on the table. Personal responsibility gives way to actual reality very often when it comes to food and it bugs the shit out of me when people ignore that.

Laziness is a thing, but using it as a buzzword in discussions like these is very cringe-inducing. Your own experiences does not mean another person will be able to achieve the same things.