Is the obesity epidemic a big, fat beat up?

No help for you says:

09:00am | 07/01/11

Guess we could also shut down all the suicide and mental health help lines. I mean
“if people want to kill themselves, why can’t we just let them.”
After all, eating yourself to death is just a slow suicide. like smoking and excessive drinking.

Elphaba says:

09:42am | 07/01/11

@No help for you, nice work there, putting words in my mouth.  Where did I say we should remove all support services for people who may be overeating and want to stop?  By all means, provide the services - but don’t tell them they can’t do it just because you don’t like looking at them or sitting next to them on a plane.

The vast amount of reasoning that people are putting on here, is bitching about how “they” have to put up with fat people.  Newsflash - they’re not concerned about the people killing themselves with food, they’re concerned about how it directly impacts them - and most of the reasoning is “I don’t want that tub of lard touching me on my flight”.

The world is full of things we don’t like.  Those people griping about fat people need to get themselves some real problems.

Aeeta says:

09:59am | 07/01/11

His analysis of the issues about BMI was complete twaddle

Most people aren’t bodybuilders or elite athletes so if their BMI is high then it’s usually because they’re fat, not because of a large muscle mass. People that try to convince themselves otherwise are deluding themselves.

If people want to eat themselves stupid then that’s fine. But they should not be allowed to avail themselves of FREE health care when the inevitable happens.

Fair’s fair. I don’t want to have my tax dollars paying for some lardo who refused to exercise some self control. Personal choice and personal responsibility.

Seth Brundle says:

11:07am | 07/01/11

@aeeta - No, it’s the BMI that is twaddle.  It was invented by a MATHEMATICIAN named Lambert Adolphe Jacques Quetelet in the 1800’s.  Forgive me if I would prefer a more recent measure of obesity designed by someone better qualified…

Markus says:

11:24am | 07/01/11

@Seth Brundle, the big question is does any more recent measure of obesity actually disprove the claim made based on BMI that up to 1 in 2 adults in this country are overweight or obese?

St. Michael says:

11:43am | 07/01/11

I actually wonder what the health bill would be like.  Remember most aged care is privately funded these days, there aren’t many straight government-run facilities left.

Does it cost more to fund the taxpayer through a couple of heart bypasses, diabetes medications, and all the other medical complications through a 10-15 year gap before the body finally gives up, or subsidise a healthy old age in an aged care facility? I’ve no idea, just wondering which.

Me, I’ve watched several of my grandparents live to ripe old ages as their minds go to swiss cheese.  My parents have, too, and they’re not impressed.  My Dad likes to quote an older man he talks to a lot: “There’s nothing to look forward to in old age, mate.”  Living a long time without your mind is a prison term in your old age, I think.

Elphaba says:

11:53am | 07/01/11

@St Michael, good point about the dementia thing - I’ve had grandparents suffer from it and it’s horrible.

I just think the excuses being cited on here about how much stress it puts on the healthcare system is rubbish, when every day we fund a system that looks after people when they make all sorts of poor self-preservation decisions that don’t relate to obesity.

The real reason people want junk food banned is so they don’t have to look at something they don’t like - but the world is full of things we don’t like, which suggests to me that those people need to get over it.

Aeeta says:

01:27pm | 07/01/11

No Elphaba. It has nothing to do with seeing things we don’t like and everything to do with paying for the poor life choices of other people.

It’s called moral hazard. When a person’s poor choices costs everyone else there is a definite cost to society no matter the reason for those costs whether it be obesity or acoholism or anything else. When that person can avail themselves of a FREE medical system then the rest of us lose.

It would be much better if we could focus on building things that add value to our society with our tax dollars rather than proppiung up the consequences of poor life choices. It’s time that those who make bad decisions are required to pay for those decisions rather than sponging off the public purse.

Elphaba says:

01:52pm | 07/01/11

@Aeeta, so the solution is to ban everything that could potentially endanger your life just in case you end up a burden on the health system?

Talk about the fun police…

Elphaba says:

02:06pm | 07/01/11

Besides anyway, Aeeta, how are they sponging when they still pay taxes?  I pay taxes for the paid parental scheme and FTB, even though I don’t have kids.  Where’s my prize?

I’d rather a system that treats all people regardless of how or why they did something to themselves, to say… the horrendous situation of healthcare in the US.

pwri6406 says:

03:32pm | 07/01/11

Fat Tax

Steph says:

03:51pm | 07/01/11

Aeeta, that’s fine. If I ever have any health problems related to obesity, I’d happily pay for them. So long as the druggo’s and smokers and alcoholics get off the health care system for their problems too. Fair’s fair, right?

St. Michael - re: dementia. Sadly, it’s becoming more prevalent in society, and I hear often from people older than me (gee, that’s just about everyone, I’m 21) “Don’t let me turn out like that. I don’t ever want to be a vegetable” or some such. My nanna was echoing the same sentiments before she had her second major stroke which, as you can imagine, left her unable to do anything for herself - including speak and move. A couple of months passed, and she died. Not from failure of anything - she just died. It wasn’t how she wanted to live. I’d much rather die knowing who I am as a person than wilt away to nothing. There’s no point in me living if I’m not me anymore.

Also. A quote I heard once (and can’t seem to forget): “Health freaks are going to feel stupid one day, lying in hospitals dying of nothing”.

Shifter says:

04:40pm | 07/01/11

@Elphaba - Where’s your prize? The NBN, some road maintenance here and there. It’s about all a healthy SINK or DINK sees back from their taxes.

You could also consider it a case of paying it forward.

Either way the ‘poor me I’m paying tax but get nothing’ statement doesn’t wash with me. Everyone who grabs a hold of that a whinges like there is no tomorrow becomes part of the reason the government wastes so much money.

Seriously, let the fat kid have his cake. If he dies at 65 then so be it. If there’s a few more like him we may have just ‘naturally’ corrected the aging population issue.

(Apologies for the stream of consciousness, it’s Friday, and it’s been a crap week)

Elphaba says:

05:46pm | 07/01/11

Lol, no worries Shifter, I totally agree.  I’m happy to pay taxes for all the things I don’t use, because I’m also paying for the things I do use. 

For people who whine that fat people are sponging off the health care system, it’s just wrong.  If they’ve paid taxes like everyone else, they’re just as entitled.  Otherwise, we might as well start refusing treatment for all lifestyle choices, like extreme sports.

If “fat” was contagious, and there was a huge risk to other people being affected by poor decisions re: health (see Leo’s vaccination blog), then maybe it could be debated some more.  As it stands, we’re all gonna die sometime - if someone chooses to do it by food, good luck to them.  I’m slightly envious that I’m so sensible.

Like I said, it’s about people bitching about having to sit next to them on aeroplanes. 

Bad week Shifter?  Need a hug?

Shifter says:

06:06pm | 07/01/11

‘Fat’. It’s contagious. It’s the new cooties.

Pass the chocolate cake, please

Elphaba says:

06:37pm | 07/01/11

@Shifter, no, it’s MY cake!

Ok, you can have some.

Nom nom nom…

Jotun says:

01:13am | 08/01/11

People have become fixated on the sickness and death when it comes to the examination of healthcare issues, when we should really focus on being healthy and satisfied in our own bodies.

I have just had a thought on the obesity beat-up however. Is it a large section of the community, or possibly just a small section with a large influence on our population, flogging the ‘don’t be fat’ line and suggesting invasive methods of curbing the flab in Western civilisation, because they support government intervention and nanny state sentiments? Is it another way to control the citizens? I know I’m making a sweeping generalisation of the argument, but it could be a valid point nonetheless.

KH says:

07:17am | 07/01/11

Exactly - Diabetes, heart problems do occur in seemingly healthy people, but it is avoidable in many cases where obesity is the root problem.  Then there is lapband surgery - apparently rates of this have increased in recent years, and it is on medicare - what the?  I should be able to get my nose job on medicare then   Then there is the cost of sickness/disability benefits for people who are so overweight they can barely move…......

I truly believe there is a limit to individual ‘rights’ - there has to be a balance between your individual rights and the rights of the community you live in - if it is costing everyone for you to pursue your own ‘rights’ then I think others have the right to intervene.  If you want to just do whatever you want, screw everyone else, then do us all a favour and go and live in the wilderness somewhere.

BL says:

08:59am | 07/01/11

Interesting Jill, because I am a tax payer and I pay for private health insurance, and I’m overweight. It is my choice to be overweight, and as far as I’m concerned I am paying for any medical needs I may need in the future every week wen it comes out of my bak account. So no honey, you aren’t paying for my chronic health problems… I am.

Meanwhile I notice that most people who aren’t obese are either chronic smokers, drinkers or addicted to prescribed medications. I wonder how many of these people are not paying for private health insurance, and slagging off the fatties while they have their own bad habits which are dangerous to their healths.

RT says:

09:06am | 07/01/11

Andrew Fenton concludes ‘Ultimately it’s their life and their choice.’  But it’s our health system that has to pick up the pieces for people who make bad choices. The AMA, CSIRO and government health agencies are right to raise the alarm.

David C says:

09:55am | 07/01/11

fat people pay taxes too

Aeeta says:

10:05am | 07/01/11

BL
Your payments to private health insurance will nowhere near cover your future treatments

bec says:

11:24am | 07/01/11

It must suck to have to pay the health care costs of people who don’t take care of their health and fitness.

For instance, do you know that when I pay my private medical cover, it also pays for dickheads who do things like ride teeny tiny BMX bikes down hills and into trees under the guise of “extreme sports”? Sucks. It also covers morons who believe that acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine are actually effective (or that TCM is *actually* traditional, when it was only introduced to make the health statistics look less appalling during the Cultural Revolution). That blows totally.

You’re right. I don’t like paying for other people’s idiotic lifestyle choices either. Where can I sign up to tell them to die in a ditch?

rudy says:

12:32pm | 07/01/11

@bec: ‘Where can I sign up to tell them to die in a ditch?’. Right here.

Die, fatties, die and stop clogging up the place.

afartherroom says:

10:07pm | 07/01/11

Er, if obesity is supposed to cause people to die young (as every obesity scare article ever written assures me that it does), then how precisely are the obese using your taxpayer dollars again? Surely it is those healthy folks who linger for decades of old age who cost the taxpayer the most money. People dying of heart attacks in their fifties are hardly drains on the public funds.

But of course, none of this is really about money at all, is it? Nor is it really about health: if it were, then people would be focused on blood pressure and cholesterol levels—you know, things that actually have predictive value when it comes to health?—rather than on appearance, which is a very poor indicator of anyone’s health or lack thereof. This is really about thinking that fat people are yucky and immoral, and so they must be suitably punished. 

The Victorians feared sexual ‘appetite;’ we, in our modern wisdom, have outgrown that silliness and decided to live in mortal terror of literal appetite instead. I suspect that a century from now, it will be viewed as the defining cultural hysteria of this period of history—and will likely seem as absurd and bizarre to our descendants as concerns about witchcraft seem to us now.

Ben says:

07:36am | 08/01/11

afartherroom,

‘Obesity costs Australian taxpayers an estimated $1.5 billion every year in direct health costs. Indirect health costs are harder to estimate.’
(Better Health, Victoria Government)

That’s how precisely the obese using your taxpayer dollars again.

Dogbolter says:

02:12pm | 10/01/11

Jill - at least fat people don’t get themselves “blind stuffed”, then go out and kill people by king hitting them or putting people into a coma or killing people on roads because they made a choice to drink/drive. My taxes pay for things I think I shouldn’t, like IVF and the breeder bonus. To me, that’s tax money flushed down the drain. Please, like the Gen Y kids will take care of us in our old age? So many of them now are feral, wild, imbeciles and illiterate - truly unemployable, and a few years down the track we will be paying more unemployment benefits than pensions.

We all have to pay tax and see it used on things we hate. But it’s easy to hate fat people, isn’t it? What about smpkers, drug addicts, alcoholics? I watched my father - a massive alcoholic - die slowly of a poisoned body, hating him, hating how he abused me and hating how it’s made me fat. And then I get your hatred too. But it’s so easy to do that, isn’t it? You don’t know my world, but I’ll bet things aren’t perfect in yours, either. Leave us the hell alone, take that stick out of your arse and get mad about things that really matter.

AT says:

08:25am | 07/01/11

You can tell they’re sad just from passing them in the street? That’s pretty impressive…

RT says:

09:08am | 07/01/11

Have a look around an average outer suburban or regional town shopping centre during weekdays. Fatties seem to congregate. I’d like to think it’s an unrepresentative sample, but I’m not sure.

joseph says:

09:11am | 07/01/11

Completely Agree.
There are far too many fat unhealthy people in this country.
We drove through Taree the other day…I have never seen so many pot bellies, gut rolls, front bums, and turkey arms. Add to that, the food court in the local shopping centre was full of people stuffing their face with fried foods, bloody cokes, pepsis, sprites, and other sugared, salted, fried, super sized rubbish.

activity is probably a big part of the story, but so is healthy eating!

AJ says:

09:40am | 07/01/11

100% agree. I am frequently astounded by just how large the majority of people appear to be when catching public transport, going to the movies, dining out, etc.

In particular, I can’t comprehend how large children and teenagers seem to be. I don’t recall there being any over-weight kids when I was in primary school and only a couple when I was in high school, but there appear to be so many of them today. And it’s not just that they are overweight, but that they don’t even seen to realise it - at least judging from the fact they still wear clothing which would be more appropriate on someone 1/3 their size (not to mention someone at least 5-10 years older).

MudCrab says:

12:02pm | 07/01/11

You may walk down the street seeing man and woman mountains of lard, but remember kiddies that the CLAIM is that 60% of men and 45% of woman are tragic fat losers who we must point and laugh at.
I see fat people, and being a cruel insensitive scum I point and laugh and hold cream buns in front of their faces till they cry (that’s a joke actually, I never really do that. I mean why would I have a cream bun on me?? ).

However I am NOT seeing anywhere near the massive percentages claimed by the medical associations.

BEAT

UP

Spanish Girl says:

07:17pm | 09/01/11

I’m with Joseph.  I went to my local shopping centre food court today and saw all the fatties stuffing themselves with garbage food.  The skinny ones were doing it as well and I wondered how long it would be before they became fatties as well. 

I was grossly overweight once and I managed to drop 22 kgs.  Sure it was difficult but only for the first few weeks.  Once I began to see results, it became easier and actually fun and now I can’t even imagine eating junk food.

I don’t have private health insurance, but I do invest money and I figure that will more than cover any medical emergencies I may have in the future.  But complications from being overweight won’t be one of the things either me or any Aussie taxpayer will have to pay for.

Lou says:

12:56pm | 10/01/11

@MallyBoy - if everyone follws your lead, we’re killing 2 birds with one stone - reducing the amount of time people spend in sedentary activity AND increasing public discussion about the issue.

PS for wanting to pooh-pooh the issue, Andrew, you have brought it into public debate further.  Well done on raising the profile of the issue (even if you didn’t mean to!)

Punters Pal says:

10:04am | 07/01/11

I suppose, It depends where you live. It is known fact that the obesity if more prevalent among lower socio economic areas. If you walk around Eastern suburbs or Northern beaches area of Sydney, you would definitely think there is no problem with obesity. Not everyone is slim, but truly overweight people are hardly seen. Meanwhile, in other areas of Sydney you could definitely see the problem.

TT says:

08:25am | 07/01/11

Sucks to be you, bella

bella starkey says:

09:55am | 07/01/11

Fingers in my ears not listening… i am a beautiful and unique snowflake…

B Adu says:

01:21am | 08/01/11

Less of the paedo gaze if you don’t mind.

RT says:

09:10am | 07/01/11

‘...more lost than Adam and Eve on Mother’s Day’. Love it.

David C says:

09:57am | 07/01/11

so fat people dont pay taxes? And how can you propose taxing KFC and Maccas?

StefanR says:

10:09am | 07/01/11

I suppose such a tax would have to be applied to the fatty food served up in fine dining too? Or is it just the poor fat people you want to tax?

Angela says:

11:49pm | 07/01/11

Wow, aren’t you a nasty little piece of humanity??

Do you even know what a BMI of 30 looks like? Or 40? Let me show you: http://www.flickr.com/photos/77367764@N00/sets/72157602199008819/with/1458120224/

As to your other nonsense claims - BMI is generally not adjusted for gender, age or ethnic background. The equation for weight loss is not (and has never been) as simple as ‘calories in < calories out’ - other factors that have been scientifically demonstrated to have an effect on obesity include rate of metabolism, hormone levels, and even the type of bacteria living in the intestines. And they are purely physiological factors that for the most part cannot be changed through behaviour.

If you want to talk about behaviour, it has also been demonstrated that physical activity is a better indicator of health than body fat. That is, better to be fat and fit than thin and unfit. I’m sure a well educated person such as yourself (just guessing from the punctuation, or lack of) would be aware of the concept and dangers of ‘visceral fat’ - that is, fat around your organs, which has not at this stage been correlated with obesity.

Finally, if you have so many issues with catching a plane - take the train. It can’t be fun for any airline staff to have to deal with hateful people such as yourself.

Elphaba says:

08:14am | 07/01/11

I can never buy clothes on the internet because of that - I have to try everything on first, because the size it says it is may or not fit based on who made it.

As for fast food retailers, shouldn’t it be up to the consumer to exercise restraint?

KH says:

09:03am | 07/01/11

Elphaba - I know what you mean - i don’t bother looking at the labels in my wardrobe - I currently have clothes that fit perfectly and vary from US size 4 (AUS 8)  to AUS size 12…..........generally I have to try things on then buy online (stuff you, Gerry Harvey)..............I don’t listen to anyone who talks about obesity and clothing sizes as these numbers mean nothing!

Jade says:

09:41am | 07/01/11

Same here Elphaba, I only buy clothes from the brands I know exactly what my size is online. And sometimes they muff it up to and they are to big/small.

Elphaba says:

09:54am | 07/01/11

@KH and Jade, it’s shoes as well!  I would have thought they’d be fairly bulletproof but nope, I wear an 8.5-10 depending on the shoe.

I find t-shirts are ok, providing they have a size chart, measurements, and you can return it.  I really want to buy dresses online (sooo much cheaper than in store!) but I’ve been wary.

I will look into trying brands on and then shopping online for them, that’s a good tip.

GB says:

11:05am | 07/01/11

Ugh dont’ get me started on vanity sizing. I have things from sz 8 to sz 12 and XS to XL in my wardrobe. I’m so tired of having to take 3 different sizes into the changeroom and fitting into a pair of size 8 pants just ticks me off because there is no way I am a size 8 on the bottom half!

Shifter says:

04:47pm | 07/01/11

The biggest problem faced by women’s clothing is that there is no standard (correct me if I’m wrong). Hence manufacturers do not have anything to measure up to. I mean, what exactly does a ‘10’ mean?

At least men’s sizing for pants are generally based on real measurements ie. an X inch waist or Y cm collar. Yes I am aware that I am ignoring the S,M,L sizing generally used for T-shirts. Especially since I’m a XXL in Singapore!

Elphaba says:

05:48pm | 07/01/11

It drives me nuts.  It’s great when you try something on ticketed as a much smaller size than what you’d normally wear - but of course you feel crap when it goes the other way.

Yo-yo diets, yo-yo sizes… grrr…

Kate says:

12:04pm | 09/01/11

Same here Elphaba - I’m an 8-12 in clothing and a 10-12 in shoes!

KH says:

11:43am | 07/01/11

1. A classroom is a very small sample - you would need to get a statistically more significant number than 30 kids.
2. We have already established that BMI as applied to a whole population should not be used on individuals - they start taking other things into consideration such as measurements etc.

Sir Ronald Bradnam says:

11:52am | 07/01/11

well KH i actually meant any classroom. the whole obese, fat overweight thing is another beatup by medical/weight loss industry, gov and self serving individuals who see the opportunity to develop an industry around it and make a few dollars, doesnt hurt that it is another thing that keeps the population in a state of anxiety.
work down the street and there is certainly not 40% of the pop overweight.

Sir Ronald Bradnam says:

04:46pm | 07/01/11

more to the point arent we sick of people always telling us what to do ie lose weight, you need to lose weight, go on a diet, eat the food pyramid, eat more fruit, dont eat carbs, cut back on protein, one coffee a day, become a vegetarian for one day a week it is good for you and the planet, dont eat the poor animals they have feelings to, well to all those people f… o.. dont tell me what to do if i want to be a fat lazy slob that is my business if i want to be an elite athelete i will do that but stop telling me what i should be and should be doing mind your own business.

rudy says:

02:09pm | 07/01/11

Right. Time to stop cushioning the fatties. Aren’t they cushioned enough by their own lard? Don’t know where you get the 5% figure from BTW. You sure about that?

Steph says:

07:51pm | 07/01/11

Rudy, just because obese people shouldn’t be encouraged in their lifestyle doesn’t mean you can throw insults against them. While I agree that there’s no need to coddle them, surely encouragement to change lifestyles positively instead of screaming insults at them and exacerbating the problem is better?

rudy says:

07:55am | 08/01/11

I was using irony, Steph.  Thought my last sentence showed that. Need a smiley?

Chris says:

03:32am | 08/01/11

All these people saying “elite” footballers aren’t representative miss the point. It isn’t just elite athletes, it is basically any athlete. I play 3rd grade amateur rugby. I went for a medical check-up recently and was classed as overweight by BMI (26). The doctor said it was pretty much irrelevant as I carry my weight as muscle, not fat. What do is not elite, a couple of training sessions and a game every week. There would be many people out there, like me, for whom this measure is just an irrelevancy. For reports to claim the proportion of the population of Australia is obese based soley on BMI ratings is at the very least mis-leading.

bec says:

10:28am | 07/01/11

School canteens are full of crap. Sugary drinks, awful reheated pies, sandwiches made with white bread? What kind of joy and interest does that instil in good food?

Reslemo says:

07:52am | 09/01/11

When did you last go to a school canteen bec?
Most of that food is banned now.

James says:

09:47am | 07/01/11

Actually no Freeman, I suffer from bipolar and anxiety and did so WAY before I became fat. When I was in my teens and skinny, I was also teased, abused, bullied and always had low self esteem, now that I am an adult I use food as a way to dissolve my emotions as to how screwed up this world is and how alien I feel to it. I couldn’t give two rats if you think im gross because im fat or lazy, because the fact is you have no idea what its like to be me or what ive gone through in life. The fat that im fat is not the main issue in my life and yes although alot of overweight people are lazy gluttons, quite a few suffer with some deep psychological issues and the weight is a byproduct of these. If you think hassling someone because they are fat or demonising fat people is going to help everyone miraculously become skinny and anorexic you are VERY mistaken.  And lets face it, if your not fat you are either an alcoholic, drug user or one of those snobby health freaks who never enjoys life and just lives it looking down on people.

elizabeth says:

03:40pm | 07/01/11

@James - so it’s ok for YOU to be fat because you suffer from mental health issues, but not for the ‘lazy gluttons?’ 

i could not care less if people were fat, thin, or whatever.  the Health At Any Size movement has a lot of really interesting things to say about bodies, and body image.  However, James, using food as a way to ‘dissolve your emotions’ is a really poor treatment strategy for your anxiety and bipolar disorder.  i hope you have some help which is assisting you to manage your diseases. 

i also take issue with the idea that, just because i am of an average weight, i am therefore   “either an alcoholic, drug user or one of those snobby health freaks who never enjoys life and just lives it looking down on people” - i’m none of those.  i just happen to be a size 8 woman.  you also have no idea “what its (sic) like to be me or what ive gone through in life” or anything about the non-fat people, or the people you are claiming are lazy gluttons.

Spanish Girl says:

08:22pm | 09/01/11

That’s not always true, in spite of the logic of your post.

I know a guy who is a very heavy smoker (40 plus per day) and he constantly gets chest infections and is always coughing up phlegm and being sick.  He smells awful and he’s completely disgusting.  And he strongly asserts that he’s ill because of allergies!  His solution?  Roll another of his disgusting filterless ciggies and light it up!  Besides, allergies in winter?  Please! 

So just because someone is obviously living with bad habits doesn’t mean it’s self evident.  Denial is very big place to live.

The other side of the door says:

09:53am | 07/01/11

What an insane idea. Spend taxpayer money on treadmills for fatties?
Why not go for a walk?
you know - outside in the real world

fish says:

01:41pm | 07/01/11

And plug those treadmills in to the power grid - We may be able to bring down our electricity prices as well.

Your name: Michele says:

06:10am | 08/01/11

@The other side of the door:

Why treadmills inside instead of walking out in public?  Thanks for asking.  Here’s the answer to your question:

Because when fat people go outside and exercise, thin people shout abuse at them from their cars.  When I was heavy I sold my car and committed to taking the bus for longer trips but walking everywhere that was reasonable.  This included a two mile walk home from work every day.  People driving past me would roll down their windows and moo at me or call me names or shout other forms of verbal abuse at me.  A few veered their cars in my direction as if they planned to run me down, laughing the entire time (there were no sidewalks there—I walked on the side of the road).

Now, I have a treadmill in my home and I walk on it quite happily in total privacy.

You skinny people need to decide what the heck you want.  If you want fat people to exercise regularly, then shut the heck up when you see us doing it.  Better yet, if you have to shout something, how about words of encouragement?

Elphaba says:

09:58am | 07/01/11

Whenever that advertisement about how much butter your kids are ingesting (and he has all the butter sitting on a bench) comes on TV, all I can think of it “Mmmmm… butter.”

Jade says:

11:47am | 07/01/11

Haha melted on think white toast! aaah drool! hahaha

Elphaba says:

12:43pm | 07/01/11

Yuuuummmmmm…. on home-made bread!  With Vegemite.

Stop it.

Jade says:

04:07pm | 07/01/11

Aaah yes, fresh out of the bread maker I want some now :D

Platinum says:

08:10pm | 07/01/11

Rumour has it that butter is considerably less toxic than margarine… even when used in moderation!  And that’s the point - people are into satiation rather than moderation, whether it’s with food, alcohol, or the internet.  Gimme… gimme NOW… it’s my right.

Elphaba says:

10:06am | 07/01/11

You’re awesome.  Well said.

HT says:

10:46am | 07/01/11

Thanks! I am exactly in the same position. I eat healthy most of the time, go to the gym 5 days a week (doing high intensity cardio and resistance training, NOT just reading a magazine and walking at 4km on the treadmill for 20 minutes like some fat haters might suggest) and struggle to lose weight. People who tell me “just eat healthy” “just move more” seriously infuriate me. Fat people KNOW what they need to do, they know what foods are healthy.. in fact, I (a fat person) know more about calories, carbohydrates, aerobic fitness, weight resistance than most of the people I have ever met.

I kind of get frustrated by articles like this because it brings out the fat haters who trot out the same tired arguments about obesity. Giving people shit for being fat under the guise of ‘concern about your health’ or ‘concern about my tax dollars’ is complete bollocks, imo. People who tease others about being fat are doing it because they’re insecure, mean and rude.

If the government are going to throw money at the obesity issue, it shouldn’t be on ridiculous and obvious advertisements about fat and its impact on our health. It should be spent on promoting and subsidising programs involving physical activity (for example, more sports clubs where people can come along and play or participate for free or for a small cost). Also, the price of meat/fresh fruit/vegetables is high.. It costs me more to purchase these ingredients on a regular basis than it does to buy chicken in a can, noodles or whatever other unhealthy processed stuff you can buy in the aisles of Woolies.

To everybody else, your nasty comments are not helping, they actually make fat people feel more ashamed and guilty and exacerbate whatever issues they have with food even more.

GB says:

11:01am | 07/01/11

Bec, try not to worry about #5. I am not overweight and still get hooted at and insulted by dickheads in cars when out running. It annoys me no end - there is no way they would do that in a gym so why do it on the street - but just flip em the bird or ignore them.

Phill says:

12:22pm | 07/01/11

Love it

Well written and well said.

RT says:

02:24pm | 07/01/11

Great rant. Thanks. GB is right though - horn honks and comments from dickheads in cars - ignore ‘em.

Redeker Plan says:

02:49pm | 07/01/11

Superb! Well said Bec - especially Point # 5.
As a fellow fatty, my favourite is the under-tone comments and horrified glances directed my way if I have the unmitigated gall to you know, eat lunch in public.  The self-righteous attitude of “Well that’s why you’re fat”.  It doesn’t matter whether it’s a healthy salad Sub or a Nando’s burger, which is the “trashiest” junk I can stomach (don’t eat Macca’s, etc).

Thank you so much, but I was already aware that past bad habits have led me to the way I am. My problem was the amount I eat, rather than WHAT I eat as my diet is pretty healthy, and HATING exercise. My bad choices, I’ll cop that, you don’t need to remind me thanks all the same. 

The judgmentalism is the same, it’s entirely based on perception.  They are not to know that as a treat after my doctor telling me that I’ve lost 20 kilos (through the simple effort of cutting down portions, exercise and changing some medications that were exacerbating the issue), I decided to lash out JUST ONCE.  As far as they’re concerned I eat 2 Domino’s Pizzas and a KFC family meal deal every night.

Observer says:

09:06pm | 10/01/11

Love it Bec—especially #2.  Being thin (and yes, with teeny waist too) apparently is the result of my deliberate conspiracy of starvation and purging with the sole intention to undermine the self-esteem of large lasses rather than just a metabolism that burns everything I eat. Skinny bitch anyone?

bec says:

10:42am | 07/01/11

I don’t know if it’s necessarily GE foods to blame. I think that the push for low-fat diets and a increase in the amount of soy and corn syrup that goes into our food is a huge problem. For most of us, we’re rarely eating food that our grandmothers would have been able to recognise as food sixty years ago. That’s sad.

ZSRenn says:

11:22am | 07/01/11

A link to a comparison scale for countries re Obesity

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/hea_obe-health-obesity

Australia at number 6

hmm says:

12:29pm | 07/01/11

ZSRen - it might be a silly question, but where do they get their stats from?  It’s not like they weigh every individual because no one with authority has ever weighed me.  I think websites purporting to know obesity levels by country is merely guess work and nothing more.

Wilma J Craig says:

12:58pm | 07/01/11

Antismokerism? What in god’s name does that mean? In the 1980s weI went to “live the life” up on the Sunshine Coast. The result? With all the socialising, eating,drinking I ballooned out to 102kg - seemingly overnight. In 1991 I put my foot down & we returned to civilisation. A year or so later after Hard Work, Lots of Exercise & a self-planned & directed eating regime (All those Diets are, without exception a total waste of time) I got down to 80 kilograms. I have maintained my exercise regime (Gym: 2 hours 3 times a week) A sensible diet - a liitle bit of everything in moderation, including the odd glass or two of beer,wine or spirits!!! and as I am no longer in work lots of walking & swimming. I am now 62 kilograms & have maintained that weight for the last 8 years.
You say:
1) Diets will not reduce weight by more than 3-6 kgs over the long term.
That is certainly true about all those fad diets & weight loss regimes you have to pay for to take part in!
2) only 1-2% of people can maintain weight loss over a two year period.
I think that is absolute nonsense.
Manual Labourers are, you say, on average fatter & heavier than sedentary workers. May be they are bigger in all respects but I think you are confusing Fat & Muscle. As any properly trained personal trainer, GP & Physiotherapist will tell you, Muscle weighs more than Fat & takes up far less room.
After I had lost most of the FAT & lost a heap of weight as I got deeper into exercising my weight increased. not by much but enough to cause me concern. It was explained to me that once the fat had gone & muscle (no, I don’t mean Ms Universe bodybuilder-type) started to develop I would put on a bit of weight but that this would even out as I lost more FAT. And so it proved.
I am still well covered, even if my boobs are not as perky - at my age (now 82) that is tobe expected!!!
It all boils down to three main things:
1) What you put in your mouth.
2) How much of it you put in you mouth.
3) The amount of real exercise you get in the habit of taking.
Where exercise is concerned once you get used to doing it it becomes a habit which is very hard to break.

Jade says:

11:54am | 07/01/11

Yeah I agree there Heather, after I have done meat and fruit and veg half of my shopping budget is gone. Its all backwards.

RT says:

02:19pm | 07/01/11

Why don’t you try it, instead of being sarcastic and resentful about those who do?

Lucius says:

02:48pm | 07/01/11

RT, who wants to try and be a judgemental and nasty person? If your referring to trying to be “perfect”, I’m sorry to break it to you but perfection doesn’t exist. Most of these health freaks and drongos obsessed with looking like an anorexic lollypop have their own issues (and it generally involves a hell of a lot of drugs and alcohol), it’s just that unlike overweight people they prefer to live a facade at the risk of their own sanity.

Yes we do have an issue with obesity, but we also have issues with addictions to smoking, pokies, prescribed medications, we also have issues with so-called perfectly healthy people having cancer (My mother has cancer and Ive been with her for the chemo, and the other people there aren’t obese, they are thin and average healthy looking people).

I think the problem is we have so many hate-filled people in Australia with their own mental health issues and self-esteem problems so they find undesirables (such as smokers and the obese) and instead of actually helping these people, making friends with them and supporting them in making lifestyle changes, they insult them with a barrage of hate-filled bigoted comments, which truly shows what type of scumbag, lowlife human beings they really are.

David C says:

01:39pm | 07/01/11

excellent comment

rudy says:

02:18pm | 07/01/11

False argument. All that’s being proposed by the AMA is to warn of the dangers of unhealthy diet. No-one is proposing not to medically treat those who fall victim to it, or to anything else.

Kika says:

02:38pm | 07/01/11

Good point!

notSue says:

03:06pm | 07/01/11

@rudy. I’m replying in the main, to those who believe that lifestyle choices should preclude people from government -funded health care. That’s a preposterous and totally unworkable proposition.

I also happen to disagree with the idea that we need any further warnings about the unhealthiness of obesity, whether it comes from the venerated AMA or not. Saturation point has already been achieved.

rudy says:

08:00am | 08/01/11

NotSue, I’ve read people here objecting that the health system has to pick up the costs of poor lifestyle choices but i don’t believe anyone’s inference is that people should therefore be left untreated. And, since obesity is worst among the poor and poorly educated, I don’t think it’s possible for the health message to be overstated. Switch off the advertisements if they bother you.

rudy says:

02:13pm | 07/01/11

So, by the same argument, there should be no prohibition on drugs, right? And no need for cyclists to wear helmets, or anyone but children to wear seatbelts in cars?  In fact, it’s not the same argument, because no-one is proposing to outlaw tobacco or unhealthy food, just discourage them. So if drugs were legalised, you wouldn’t even agree with official warnings about the health risks?

BD says:

02:43pm | 07/01/11

So what’s the solution? Just tell the poor to suck it up, you’re born to be poor, unhealthy and die young? Isn’t the AMA’s drawing attention to increasing obesity a worthwhile step? BTW I’m not sure that ‘The medical profession is recruited almost entirely from an affluent private school educated cohort’ stacks up.

Kika says:

03:42pm | 07/01/11

Correct!
Let’s calculate the cost difference between eating healthy and eating junk. And I’m not going to rubbish around and portion costs for the vegies like Coles does and say you need 20% of a bag of salad therfore the salad only costs 20% of the full price. Rubbish. You need the full bag. So I will assume the person already doesn’t have a bag of salad at home and will need to buy a new one

Both are for 2 people ONLY, and are for convenience

MEAL 1 - Steamed Fish (microwaved), Salad and Thai rice from a box cooked in a microwave
FISH - $7.51
Lettuce bag - $3.70
Tomatoes - $2.70
Corn - $1.50
Rice - $2.53

TOTAL = $17.94. You will now need to go home, prepared the salad and then cook the fish and the rice for a total of 19 minutes to get it all done and ready.

Option 2 - STUNNER MEAL HUNGRY JACKS

2 x meals = $10.00
1x burger
1x fries
1x drink
1 x dessert

Eat straight away, no preparation or time needed.  Plus you’ll get your endorphin rush with all the fat and sugar running through your system it will make you feel great for the 10 minutes you take eating your meal.

stephen says:

08:28pm | 08/01/11

Mate, after half-a-dozen at the Breckie-Creek the only body-parts i can clean are the ones I can see : me nose, me bellie and me toes.
Me girlfriend cleans the rest,
which for me, makes beer the best.

rudy says:

07:53am | 08/01/11

The tosser is you, Freddy, for jumping to the wrong conclusion based on your misinterpretation of my reply above. I’m in favour of drug legalisation and opposed to bike helmet laws, OK? I was checking the consistency of somebody else’s case. Think before posting.

TalkingScience says:

11:04am | 08/01/11

Well done - you’re just showing why this article is a welcome relief from the ignorant stereotypes of people like you. Oh because you’re the right height for your weight and play footy in season and cricket, then according to your ‘logic’ then your norm applies to everybody else.

You may not be overweight (neither am I but then again I don’t apply my own circumstances to others and claim I am the exemplar of what should be) but you certainly lack intelligence and clearly are one of those science-illiterate people who cannot grasp fundamentals of genetics or evolution.

“F****these few fat f***s who wont (sic) do anything about it…”
I hope your problem is you’ve been hit in the head too many times playing footy and cricket because if you haven’t then you’re obviously mighty stupid.

Sam Chowder says:

02:40pm | 10/01/11

Since when has crickey been exercise, standing in a paddock waiting for meal breaks

Observer says:

09:10pm | 10/01/11

Well argued and well presented Chris. How did your comment get past the mods?