Fat people Not responsible.

[squidmaster]

I kinda agree with a fat tax, but not as the only solution that will fix the problem. I think it's better to tax the junk food as is being proposed. Eliminate meat, corn and wheat subsidies so that we are paying the real costs of unhealthy food and those 99 cent menus go away pretty quick.
Also, when 2/3 of Americans are overweight, it's more of a societal problem than one of just personal responsibility.

I agree with this.
Also, as stated, the 1c tax is hardly a deterrent, rather to offset the cost of health care for drinking that soda.

Being a bit overweight (as in 15-20lbs) is sometimes quite beneficial for health when fighting off ailments, but being any fatter is quite negative. When we subscribe to the forced-third-party-private-healthcare system, the costs would actually be lower for people that already have health insurance, and would cut government expenditures very, very significantly.

Some info on being fat:

http://www.sfn.org/index.aspx?pagename=BrainFactsContent

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/71742/title/Obesity_messes_with_the_brain

http://www.annals.org/content/138/5/383

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/lose_wt/risk.htm

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2006-07-17-teen-obesity_x.htm

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-weight/healthy-weight-full-story/index.html

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/nutrition-news/excess-weight/index.html

http://phatscience.blogspot.com/2008/03/environmental-scourge-of-obesity.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/apr/20/obesity-climate-change

http://articles.cnn.com/2009-04-20/health/thin.global.warming_1_obese-people-global-warming-greenhouse-gas-emissions?_s=PM:HEALTH

Benefits of 10% weight lossMortality

>20% decrease in total mortality
>30% decrease in diabetes related deaths
>40% decrease in obesity related cancers
Blood pressure

fall of 10 mmHg systolic
fall of 20 mmHg diastolic
Diabetes

30 - 50% fall in fasting glucose
50% fall in risk of diabetes developing
15% decrease in HbA1c
Lipids

10% decrease in total cholesterol
15% decrease in LDL cholesterol
30% decrease in triglycerides
8% increase in HDL cholesterol

TL;DNR: fat is unhealthy, and an extreme majority of over-weight people is due to their own choices.

[squidmaster]

I just watched that Forks over Knives on netflix last night. I thought I was pretty well informed on nutrition but some of the info in their shocked me. The correlation data they found between animal protein at 5% ratio vs. 20% ratio and cancer rates was staggering. I've been trying to eat "paleo" lately which calls for a lot of meat. I'm not really wanting to take the plunge into vegetarianism, but I plan on trying to stick to lean meats and in moderation.

"involving a panel of 22 experts, ranked the Paleo diet lowest of the 20 diets evaluated based on factors including health, weight-loss and ease of following.[24] These results were repeated in the 2012 survey, where the diet placed 24th out of 24, stating that their experts "took issue with the diet on every measure""

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paleolithic_diet

the paleo diet also calls mostly for plant matter, not meat. the meat that is consumed should be lean meat, fish, and some shellfish.

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Also, the BMI scale is bullsh#t. Disregard it, or use it as an overly vague guideline.

[Farbin Kaiber]

Posting tax on R3v.

I'm fuct.

[joshh]

Anyone who thinks taxing food is going to change how America eats as a nation is in for a surprise. Americans can't even keep a checkbook and are in heavy debt generally. If they can't even balance a checkbook and have credit cards they can keep charging all this good food on, what makes you think a few cents is going to sway them from eating that 1500 calorie meal?
On the other hand. Why are there so many fat poor folk around? Because poor quality food is cheap.
Isn't going to happen.
And the over production of food isn't the cause either.
And of course, personal responsibility is lacking in those that are fat and don't have a medical reason for it. Both the poor and the rich are fat fucks respectively.

[Kershaw]

And the over production of food isn't the cause either.

oh good, now we can toss the lifes work of a PHD holding top scientist out the window because joshh says so!

[joshh]

oh good, now we can toss the lifes work of a PHD holding top scientist out the window because joshh says so!

Because people like you need a Phd holder to tell you something. When it's perfectly obvious (for those of us not wanting to give people excuses for their bad habits) fat fucks are fat fucks because they can't prevent themselves from eating fatting food on a consistent basis.
Society doesn't force the food down their throats. Stop blaming society for fat fucks being fat fucks. Fat fucks are fat fucks because of themselves. Minus the few that have a physical ailment or are on meds.

[Massimo]

Good read:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/15/sc...o-obesity.html

So eat less. Wow that is a break through. ;)

That was interesting that you body can reach a "steady state" that would explain a lot to do with childhood obesity, and remaining over weight there whole life.

Because people like you need a Phd holder to tell you something. When it's perfectly obvious (for those of us not wanting to give people excuses for their bad habits) fat fucks are fat fucks because they can't prevent themselves from eating fatting food on a consistent basis.
Society doesn't force the food down their throats. Stop blaming society for fat fucks being fat fucks. Fat fucks are fat fucks because of themselves. Minus the few that have a physical ailment or are on meds.

Fat fucks are fat fucks.

[z31maniac]

Anyone who thinks taxing food is going to change how America eats as a nation is in for a surprise. Americans can't even keep a checkbook and are in heavy debt generally. If they can't even balance a checkbook and have credit cards they can keep charging all this good food on, what makes you think a few cents is going to sway them from eating that 1500 calorie meal?
On the other hand. Why are there so many fat poor folk around? Because poor quality food is cheap.
Isn't going to happen.
And the over production of food isn't the cause either.
And of course, personal responsibility is lacking in those that are fat and don't have a medical reason for it. Both the poor and the rich are fat fucks respectively.

Yep, tax policy has NEVER been successful in modifying behaviour.


I'm not saying I'm for/against a tax on fatty food (when I think America's problem really relates to GI/Insulin/Carbs).

[joshh]

Yep, tax policy has NEVER been successful in modifying behaviour.


I'm not saying I'm for/against a tax on fatty food (when I think America's problem really relates to GI/Insulin/Carbs).

That's a big generalization. Adding a few cents for these people is not going to change a damn thing. And they're also penalizing all the people who are fit/not very over weight who want a soda once in a while. Granted it's only a couple pennies.

We have a problem with what's in our food and how it's produced, absolutely. But that doesn't prevent those who try to eat well from eating well. Even if you're on a tight budget like my family is.

I'd argue unemployment checks so lazy ass Americans can sit on the fucking couch all day and watch Oprah or Ellen for a full 2.5 years before they become serious about finding a job is a much bigger problem than the amount of food Americans currently intake. How about no free fucking ride anymore and see the pounds fall off.
Set up government work sites where those who are unemployed work for a days worth of food and birthing. We sure as fuck wouldn't have a infrastructure problem. I'd support something like this over most of our broken social programs. Oh but for Christ's sake Americans would actually have to work.
Everyone is out looking for the reason Americans are getting fatter and lazier. You don't need a Phd for that one.

Regarding the amount of food being produced. When was the last time an American couldn't walk into any given grocery store and buy all the food they wanted? ...rhetorical

[nando]

...about the same time as americans started getting fatter :p

obviously, if food wasn't so easily available and cheap, it wouldn't be so easy to get fat. you only need $5 (or less) and you can consume 2-3x what a normal person should in calories and fat. That's a pretty low barrier, financially, and fast food places are everywhere. Ever see a skinny homeless guy? Nope!

grocery stores interest me. we haven't had a serious food shortage in any time that people can remember. We just go to the grocery store with a seemingly limitless supply of food. what people don't see, is the store is stocking that shit as fast as they can (local stores go through 1-2 semi trucks full a day, costco is probably 4x that). if we had a serious shortage, the food in the stores wouldn't last more than a day. imagine a zombie army of fatties looking for doughnuts..

[Vedubin01]

obviously, if food wasn't so easily available and cheap, it wouldn't be so easy to get fat.

You can compare this to cigarettes in a way. Pricing and taxing has not curbed smokers from smoking. They just find other ways to find the money to cover their addiction. A lot of fat people use food as an object of comfort just like other addictions.

[herbivor]

That's a big generalization. Adding a few cents for these people is not going to change a damn thing.

When governments started taxing the fuck out of cigarettes and started educating people about the risks, the smoking rate dropped. There is no reason it can't work with food.

[nando]

You can compare this to cigarettes in a way. Pricing and taxing has not curbed smokers from smoking. They just find other ways to find the money to cover their addiction. A lot of fat people use food as an object of comfort just like other addictions.

yeah, but nicotine is an addictive drug. although, food can be addictive as well. but it's not like you can't get cigarettes everywhere. price isn't everything, but availability definitely is a big factor.

and like I said - ever seen a skinny homeless guy? we have tons of homeless people up here. they all look pretty well nourished to me (not that I'd want to be in their shoes). all you need to "survive" calorie wise, is a couple bucks and a fast food restaurant.

[z31maniac]

You can compare this to cigarettes in a way. Pricing and taxing has not curbed smokers from smoking. They just find other ways to find the money to cover their addiction. A lot of fat people use food as an object of comfort just like other addictions.

Derp

When governments started taxing the fuck out of cigarettes and started educating people about the risks, the smoking rate dropped. There is no reason it can't work with food.

Exactly.

[nando]

hey, these guys never let "facts" get in their way before. :p