How Fat Are You?

[ozij]

I wonder which data you're refering to. Here's what I found:

Volume 352:1138-1145 March 17, 2005 Number 11
A Potential Decline in Life Expectancy in the United States in the 21st Century

S. Jay Olshansky, Ph.D., Douglas J. Passaro, M.D., Ronald C. Hershow, M.D., Jennifer Layden, M.P.H., Bruce A. Carnes, Ph.D., Jacob Brody, M.D., Leonard Hayflick, Ph.D., Robert N. Butler, M.D., David B. Allison, Ph.D., and David S. Ludwig, M.D., Ph.D.

ABSTRACT

Forecasts of life expectancy are an important component of public policy that influence age-based entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare. Although the Social Security Administration recently raised its estimates of how long Americans are going to live in the 21st century, current trends in obesity in the United States suggest that these estimates may not be accurate. From our analysis of the effect of obesity on longevity, we conclude that the steady rise in life expectancy during the past two centuries may soon come to an end.

Statement from Dr. Julie Gerberding, CDC Director, regarding Harvard School of Public Health
opinion poll on obesity attitudes from July 14.

Overweight and Obesity: Clearing the Confusion
June 2, 2005
http://www.cdc.gov/od/oc/media/transcripts/t050602.htm
But what we don't want is for this debate to continue to confuse people. We need to be absolutely explicitly clear about one thing: obesity and overweight are critically important health threats in this country. They have many adverse consequences, and let me just give some very specific facts that we do know.

First of all, we know that over the last 20 years, the rates of obesity and overweight in this country have soared astronomically. This graphic depicts the current profile of obesity among adults in the United States, and, as you can see, there are some states where more than 25 percent of the population is obese. Overall, in our country, 65 percent of adults are overweight, and about 30 percent of adults overall meet the criteria for obesity.

To me, even more frightening than that is the fact that 16 percent of the children in this country are obese. That number has increased by at least two times over the last 20 years.

We know that obesity and overweight are important health threats. People who are obese experience an increased rate of hypertension, diabetes, renal failure. They're at increased risk for cancers, including colon cancer, post-menopausal breast cancer, gall bladder cancer, and uterine cancer.

People who are obese and overweight have an increased risk of arthritis and mobility problems. People have sleep disturbances and breathing problems.

Another very scary fact for children--Type II Diabetes, which used to be known as adult onset diabetes, is now increasingly being diagnosed and adding to the cardiovascular risk profile of our children. We have many children now who are not only overweight, but they also have high blood pressure, lipid abnormalities, and diabetes--all of the factors that increase the risk among adults for cardiovascular disease and stroke.

We also know that obesity is linked to problems with child bearing, premature birth, learning disabilities, and other adverse outcomes for infants.

And finally, the economic estimates of the impact of obesity are astronomical. Approximately $52 billion are attributed to obesity in 1995, and by 2003, this figure had increased to $75 billion.

So we're dealing with a health threat that affects people at every stage of life. It is multi-dimensional in its impact, and it costs money.

So that's what we know.

What we don't know yet is the best methods for estimating the impact of obesity on death. And we are committed to learning more about that process, but you can expect that more studies will be coming forward and that more information will be made available as this research is conducted.

We also don't know what the long-term consequences of the obesity epidemic among our children will ultimately be on the health profile of our nation. As these children age and these health consequences accumulate, we may be seeing a very different profile of health status in our country, and that's a very, very worrisome outlook if we don't take steps now to fix it.

(my emphasis)

I would say the obesity epidemic exists. The diet industry has done nothing to help with obesity, and might even be one of its causes, because after dieting, people rebound, and gain some more weight. I wonder how many of the truly obese (as oppose to slightly overweight) have neve been on a diet, on what are the average and median numbers of diets they have been on.

O.

[CareS]

I weighed in yesterday at 267 which is 108 lbs more than I will be at this time next year. I just joined a weight loss organization and expect by following the program faithfully, I will be down to my goal weight in one year and who knows, perhaps cure the apnea. Wish me luck..CareS

[ozij]

Wishing you lots of luck!

O.

[Flower51 Terry]

Hi Care....as alluded to by Oz and others on this thread (and just plain life exp) you will do well if you see this new way of eating as a permanent way of life, not a one year fix to drop some weight and then return to the typical American way of eating. (ok so you are more North than I am but we're still in America, right? Land of the deep fried cheese covered & breaded LOL)

I've found something that works for me but it is imbedded deeply in my brain that THIS is it until I leave the planet. I had to find something that in my heart of hearts I knew was healthiest in taking care of this body that God gifted me with, and something that was pleasurable too so I wouldn't give up. Do I never test the limits? I can't say that...but EVERYTIME I do I wish I hadn't because I end up putting on 2-5 pounds of water weight. And weight is weight.

As you can see from my Ticker I've lost some and have a lot more to go. The loss up to this point has been turtle like slow for the past 2 years but you know what? At least its going in the right direction and not creeping up up up like it had for so many years of trying every diet out there, including vegetarianism w/no success. I feel truly grateful that I've finally found what works for this body of mine and am committed to it.

One thing thats been important to me in this exp is to realize that its not about obsessing over minor fluctuations, but to focus on being healthy and making healthy decisions moment by moment. Do I eat ice cream anymore? Once one of my favorites? NOPE and its not hard anymore because I've found other things I can eat that I enjoy and are doing me good....one of my favorite things in the summer is to go pick blueberries and sour cherries, toss them into plastic freezer bags and tuck into them on a hot day...so yummy and refreshing and nutritionally good too. Try it sometime! It fits into my lower carb/neandr/paleo way of eating as long as I don't overdo the portion size on fruit. Pretty soon that becomes second nature and its not like being on a diet, its just plain how I've learned to be most comfortable eating.

Success to you in getting and staying healthy! Terry

[Flower51 Terry]

OOPS for some reason my ticker didn't show up...guess I wasn't logged on properly CareS! If you want to see it, go find Flower51 on the other pages and you'll see it at the bottom of my post. I started out at 254 (probably even more but didn't weigh myself before that because I didn't want to face it!) And over the past 2 yrs or so I've gotten to 216. Just the past couple of weeks I tweaked what I was doing (not eating less, just eating different) and the weight started coming off a little more quickly again. I'm 53 and post menopausal so I understand how different it is to try and drop the weight now compared to when we were in our twenties! Let us know how its going! Terry

[CareS]

To Terry, Thank you for your reply and the idea about freezing the blueberries. I am 5'8", 62 years young and have been fighting this weight problem for the past 35 years or so gradually gaining a few pounds each year and keeping them. I am well aware that diets do not work and that you have to make permanent changes in your eating habits, food choices and exercise regimen. I have decided that I do not wish to spend my remaining good years being fat, unhealthy and all the other problems that go along with being morbidly obese. At the moment for exercise I am walking as long as the weather permits then I will join Curves or some other gym. This is the year I am going to be good to me. Congratulations to you on your success so far and I am so confident that this time I am going to make it. CareS

[ozij]

Hey, all excercisers, are you familiar with what started out as "Strong Women Stay ..."

Click the following - it's wonderful, and free
http://nutrition.tufts.edu/research/growingstronger/?

Do download the (free) book, http://nutrition.tufts.edu/research/gro ... /book.html

This is practically a copy of Miriam Nelson's Growing Strong system - linked to form her site - and it's very important - and fun to do.

Most the exercises are also especially easy for those of us who find getting on the floor impossible, and walking a strain.

O.

[rpalmer]

Well, before I go any further, guess I should 'fess up about my weight instead of just posting cartoons. The title of this topic is "How Fat Are You", after all.

I'm 64 y/o; 6' 1''; weigh 265 lbs. That's the bad news, the good news is that's down from a high of 325 lbs. last Dr appointment. Probably need to get down to around 200 lbs to be at my fighting weight. Funny thing is, I weighed 235 when I graduated from hi school, but the composition of the weight was a whole lot different, what with playing football, baseball, tennis, etc. & just a generally far more active life style than I can get up for these days. Body fat was probably less than 10%, although nobody measured that back then.

Now that I've 'fessed up, I'll continue my little rant:

O, you asked what data I was referring to in an earlier post:

I wonder which data you're refering to. Here's what I found:

The link below takes you to The Center for Consumer Freedom's site. They're a consumer advocacy group that've been reporting on the obesity debate & were one of the 1st to report on the discovery that CDC had manipulated obesity numbers to create the "obesity epidemic" scare (along with Harvard Health Policy Review, by the way, who said: "The major problem with the 'obesity kills' statistic is the lack of compelling evidence to substantiate it."):

http://www.consumerfreedom.com/news_det ... dline/2845

To quote from one of their recent stories reporting on a 7/6/05 NBC Nightly News story on the "Obesity Epidemic":

As we've explained before, the so-called "obesity epidemic" has been fueled by a handful of dubious studies -- often conducted by researchers with substantial ties to the weight loss industry, which stands to gain from increased fears of putting on a few extra pounds. Many of those same industry-supported researchers also seek to re-classify obesity as a "disease" in an effort to convince insurance companies, Medicare, and Medicaid to pay for weight-loss products. But, as a CCF spokesman told NBC Nightly News: "If obesity is a disease, it is the only one that I am familiar with that you can cure by taking long walks and keeping your mouth shut."

Labeling obesity a "disease" removes personal responsibility from the equation, which is just what many food scolds want. Instead, we offered a heaping helping of common sense: "People know the difference between a banana and a banana split. And if you need a warning sign, everybody's got a warning in their house. It's called a mirror." And when obesity researcher David Ludwig rhetorically asked how children were supposed to make decisions about what they eat, we reminded Americans that "Kids are not driving themselves to McDonalds. It's not about kids and their choices. It's about parents and their choices."

You also included a quote from Dr. Julie Gerberding, CDC Director. My problem with her is her credibility. Under her direction, her agency's taken a position of refusing to publicly acknowledge the extent of their exaggerated numbers, rather than simply admit mistakes were made & move on. Clearly, her objectivity is in question, particularly when you also consider that she surely has an eye toward future appearances before Congress regarding her agency's budget.

I'm overweight, know I am, & want to lose some, but refuse to accept that it should be added to my already too long list of real medical problems. Particularly just to satisfy someone's political agenda or enable me to submit the cost of weight loss drugs to Medicare for reimbursement. I do know the difference between a banana & a banana split.

[rpalmer]

I didn't mean to give the wrong impression in the above response to Ozij. I certainly agree that obesity is a problem & I'm sure that it does lead to other health issues. I certainly also acknowledge that at 6'1"/265 lbs I'm way overweight, it may well contribute to OSA (I'm not convinced it causes it) & I'm determined to do something about it. Thanks to my Dr & the US pharmaceutical industry, though, my BP is 110/70, cholesterol 133 & triglycerides 124. But even if health weren't an issue, there should be plenty of incentive to lose weight.

My real problem is the politicization of issues like obesity to satisfy partisan & special interest agendas and drive revenues. I think it trivializes what should be a serious issue & then we tend to ignore the problem as "politics as usual" or react with ill-informed knee jerk solutions instead of working toward real solutions to real problems.

It's particularly galling to me when the CDC, which should be one of our government's most respected scientific organizations, turns out to be just one of the most political. The problem isn't new & certainly didn't start with the obesity issue. Years ago when I was involved with the Arthur Ashe HIV/AIDS Foundation, the CDC's politicization of that issue to try to drive funding one way or another, was particularly appalling. Here was a major health issue, which should be CDC's primary (or only?) focus, but they couldn't resist handling it as a political issue, so their contribution was of far less value than it should've been. They really caused more harm than good.

Interesting the number of posts to this topic lamenting that trying to find healthful food is virtually impossible. How right they are. Everyone who says fat-free means the refined sugar content's through the roof is absolutely right and then when the sugar's replaced with Aspartame, Nutri-Sweet, Saccharin, or whatever, it raises God knows how many other health risks. And salt! My Dr recently restricted my salt intake to 2,000 mg/day to help guard against pulmonary edema. Added to saturated fat, sugar, carbs, blah, blah, blah my poor wife feels like she needs a chemistry degree just to go shopping. The only thing you can count on is the nutrition panel, one of the good things the FDA has done, and even those are sometimes misleading or just hard to interpret.

I guess all we can do is hang in there, try our hardest to do what seems to logically be the right things, keep reading this forum 'cause you can count on what you read here, and wade through the hype as best you can. Sometimes a good measure of common sense is our only defense against the hucksters.

This got way off point & for that I apologize. I just didn't want to leave the wrong impression with my earlier post.

[Flower51Terrry]

Hey rpalmer I hear you...who ISN'T frustrated w/the politics of nutrition and "science"?

Re your wife's needing a chem degree to go shopping....one thing that has helped me feel released from anxiety/pressure when venturing out (except of course all the comparison shopping for the best bargains vs the cost of gas to get there...I guess I could use an economics or accounting degree for that one....all I have is a "mommy degree" LOL which has taught me a lot!)....for me personally the simpler the better. I'm talking the purest most unsullied stuff I can find ....fresh low carb veggies esp greens and cruciferous, fish, meat and poultry w/out the injected "tenderizer and flavor enhancers chemical soup", some lower carb in season fruits and also raw nuts and eggs. Thats it. Simple. Basic. Rules out the stuff I have a tough time with metabolically. Outside of that vinegar, olive oil, butter and herbs. Pretty streamlined. No chemistry degree necessary. If I had unlimited shopping bucks I'd go for the organically approved fruits and veggies and the free range meat and eggs but thats not usually happening on our budget but I do eat as healthy as I can because I want to lose the bp meds and get the doc off my back re cholesterol numbers.

The only canned stuff I buy is normally olives. Its really turned shopping into a readers digest version of what I used to do, although there are weeks, with feeding 5 people that I need to go to 3 to 6 close to each other shops to get the best deals and have the money stretch....I have to admit that can take hours. Head for the sale prices and I'm done. Sometimes I go to a pick your own veggie and fruit place that I found not far from us. Some years I grow a few in our little yard....this year its just chives and garlic and tomatoes and LOTS of sour cherries bursting from the tree I planted a few yrs ago....first year thats happened and pretty much pest free.
T

[Flower51Terry]

just reread my post...besides olives I buy jarred salsa and tomatos or tomato sauce...sometimes sauerkraut and kimchee...T

[Flower51]

In my ongoing saga of thinning out our possessions so they don't possess us, I decided to go for the cookbook collection. What a collection! So many eclectic books from Simply Potatoes to Woman's Glory, the Kitchen (I know, I can see the feminazis cringing as I typed the last one in). I've collected cookbooks since at least 1971 when I became a bride, and added to the ones my Mother and Grandmother gave me. Why is it such a wrenching thing to let go of those pages filled w/comfort foods that I grew up on and served my new husband? Those are the recipes I also grew fat and unhealthy on and I don't want to pass them on to my son's wife just so she can continue the generational heart disease, etc...that attached itself to our "well fed" Slovenian family. And yet there is a touch of angst as though letting go of these pages is letting go of part of me and my childhood and family memories. I am giving these away. I considered giving them to my next door neighbor who is a foodie and loves to collect cookbooks, but you know what? Why contribute to the ill health of her family who suffer w/diabetes and heart disease? One more step to freedom....I looked at my bookcase and decided that it needed to go on a diet too...what is virtuous about having stacks and stacks of books? Its a pride thing....look how intellectual and well read I am! I have all these frigging (excuse me) books collecting dust on the shelves! God has spoken to me since last night about my sin of gluttony. This is the FIRST time in my life that I've recognized that I have this problem. Not just food but books, dishes, things in my home that someone else can use. Maybe I don't have as much as some people do but its still more than I need to have when someone else can be using it. I am purging the castle once again! As Oprah once put it, she remembers one day looking at her house and realizing she had a "fat house"....Now I understand what she meant! How about you? Love, Terry

[lostone]

I am a 54 year ole female who is 5'2 inches and I weigh 220 lbs. I have lost 30 lbs in the last 2 years and I am now struggling to get below the 220 mark. My body is resisting. I work out at a gym called Curves and I try to walk at least a mile a couple of days a week and I eat healthy. I have lost inches and gained muscle and I know that makes up for some of the weight but I would really like to lose some more weight again!

[CareS]

To Terry Flower, Read your post about clearing the clutter and purging, getting rid of your cookbooks etc. With me it is piano books, art supplies and fabric, bins of fabric and unfinished sewing projects waiting until I get thinner to make something really nice. I have cookbooks too and a small library of diet books. I live by myself in a modest bungalow and have been thinking that my house is too small when I should be thinking...get rid of all the stuff...purge, purge, purge. My favorite TV programs are called "neat" and there is another one who's name escapes me but it is about a team going into a house of unbelievable clutter and transforming the rooms into newly decorated organized places. I think clutter and disorganized living causes people to procrastinate (eat while procrastinating) instead of getting busy and getting rid of all the stuff that owns you, not the other way around. We keep things thinking that we might find a use for them but more likely we won't and the stuff keeps piling up. Enjoy your posts.. CareS lost 1/2 lb today

[Guest]

Hi,
I am 40 yrs old> Mother of 4 girls 20,11,9,8.
I weighed myself yesterday and I am up to 245
Yuck