Do you think America's obesity rate would go down if ... (1 Viewer)

[Suzy]

I'm sick today and I think of the most random stuff when I'm sick. But here is my random discussion topic for today:

Do you think America's obesity rate would go down if they got rid of their leave home at 18 culture?

Of course it changes from house to house but it's usually one of the parents that cook meals for the family when everyone is living under one roof. However, in America people are expected to leave home and take care of themselves once they turn 18. Most of these people have had someone else cook for them their whole lives but suddenly they're expected to take charge of their own meals. So I'd expect that most would turn to fast food or the faster options like pasta, rice and ready meals since they're simply easier. But these foods are also the more calorie dense meals and they're so easy to overeat, making them the main foods responsible for weight gain

I looked it up and apparently 160 million Americans are overweight with nearly 3/4 of men and 60% of women being overweight or obese. And based on observations alone, I have noticed that people who are responsible for making meals usually end up putting on some weight. I guess it's since we "taste" the food while we cook and then eat again once everything is finished. I don't know, there's no studies or evidence on this, just observations.

So do you think there's a correlation or is my brain just working uselessly today? ​

 

[Jichuus]

I think it's more of a correlation rather than causation. It's harder for 18 year olds to live by themselves and be able to afford healthy food options, but it's not the only thing causing obesity (the junk food industry is heavily subsidized and not everyone has access to healthy food in the US). But even as an American, I never really understood the leave home culture. I was raised thinking it was okay living with my parents until I felt comfortable leaving (but my mom's food is too good to resist and well...)

 

[yeji]

I think that it‘s more than that. there is not just one reason for obesity

 

[blueberries]

Not necessarily, cause in my country there is also leaving home at 18 culture and lot less obesity. The difference between my country and US comes probably from that it's actually rly expensive to eat outside. Even subway, mcdonalds etc. aren't sth students can afford everyday. Eating at proper restaurant is luxury you do couple times a year if even that. You need to cook your meals, even if they are cheap ass meals, so you can pay bills. I think in USA it's even normal for families to eat outside not only during special occasions, but almost everyday when in my country cooking meals at home is the normal. And ofc USA's portion sides at restaurants is crazy, not only in fast food but normal restaurants too.

 

[raymondchouku]

I think there is some things that aren't considered. Such as poverty. Why are people obese in the US? What is being given at food banks?

My point is this: Food banks give food that tends to be processed such as boxed mac n cheese.. Peanut Butter.. and foods with a lot of calories. A box of budget mac n cheese that I have in my house is 330 per serving; a serving is like 1/4 cup of prepared mac n cheese. That is like half of the amount of calories for what my lunch should be. Mom and Dad's who can't afford to make dinners because of double shifts may give their kids processed food, which may increase weight gain. Also, this would be increased by single parent households, which has a connection to poverty in and of itself. The other food/s that are given at food banks tend to be things that are disposed from grocery stores such as cakes that are expired and/or messed up by the bakery... There is also linguini (i.e. Spaghetti noodles, angel hair, egg, etc.), eggs, and small portions of chicken and pork.

Then there are psychological issues, such as parenting styles. Particular parenting styles lead to noxious psychological states, which may lead people to eat more. For instance, permissive parents bread children who are impulsive and may eat a whole carton of double stuf oreos... Also, abusive parents may create children who eat their feelings because they feel ugly. This may bleed into psyco-social things as well. Do I eat more because I am already fat and have developed a fatalistic mentality? Do I not go to the gym, because I think people will make fun of me because I do not look like a model on the cover of vogue? Is my family obese and I find it hard to control myself when the culture of the family endorses these unhealthy practices? Having to drive to get unhealthy food takes more effort than having it on hand. I am not very likely to eat bad things at 2 AM if I have to drive to a walmart to get it. Also, do I have role models that would help me become healthy in my eating habits? What are my motivations for becoming a healthy weight? Do I want to become thinner just because I want to have an 8-pack? There are issues of sub-cultures that shame those that are obese.


There is other stuff I could add, but I need to submit an assignment right now and I'm limited in time... Here's an annecdote to end things: When I was a Freshman at my Alma Mater, I eat McDonalds everyday, because well... I didn't have a lunch card for campus. McDonalds was like a block away. Imagine my shock when I discovered I had gained 90 pounds. Yes 90 pounds. I read this on a medical report about myself... To be fair I read this retroactively during my junior year of university. By my junior year, when I stopped eating fast food so frequent I had all but lost that gained weight. Thus, fast-food is another huge part of the problem in the US.

***small thing to add*** My grammar in this post is sh*t. So I applaud you if you have gotten through this. I rambled and was all over the place. Hopefully you can glean something useful out of this post

 

[DrowningFishy]

Nope it's not where you live when you turn 18 that makes you obese. It's accepting unhealthy lifestyles. lack of exercise/play, and even how much you make.

 

[Suzy]

I probably should have specified that I’m not suggesting this is the only reason but one of the reasons. I don’t think everyone who leaves home becomes obese but I think there may be a correlation between taking charge of your own meals and gaining weight. But everyone has made some really good points regardless.

 

[RandAlThor]

It is hard to live alone and eat correctly.
Even if you do cook for your self buying the food almost nothing is anywhere near sized for one .
Thus you either throw a bunch of food away (which is pretty ingrained as a very bad thing) , have a boatload of leftovers or you eat it all and eat too much.
personally i now shop every day or 2 for what i will make that night or the next night. But that is also more expensive.

In many cases its cheaper and easier to eat out, pick up a pizza ect. Add beer or other drugs to the mix and there ya are.

ya can get 8 pieces of fried chicken at a store for 5-8 dollars, a pizza for the same from say little Caesars or domino's ect.
Not mention fast food with the dollar menus or even a filibertos type place (no matter the ethnicity.)
For under 10 bucks you can get more food than you should eat.

 

[Suzy]

I think there is some things that aren't considered. Such as poverty. Why are people obese in the US? What is being given at food banks?

My point is this: Food banks give food that tends to be processed such as boxed mac n cheese.. Peanut Butter.. and foods with a lot of calories. A box of budget mac n cheese that I have in my house is 330 per serving; a serving is like 1/4 cup of prepared mac n cheese. That is like half of the amount of calories for what my lunch should be. Mom and Dad's who can't afford to make dinners because of double shifts may give their kids processed food, which may increase weight gain. Also, this would be increased by single parent households, which has a connection to poverty in and of itself. The other food/s that are given at food banks tend to be things that are disposed from grocery stores such as cakes that are expired and/or messed up by the bakery... There is also linguini (i.e. Spaghetti noodles, angel hair, egg, etc.), eggs, and small portions of chicken and pork.

Then there are psychological issues, such as parenting styles. Particular parenting styles lead to noxious psychological states, which may lead people to eat more. For instance, permissive parents bread children who are impulsive and may eat a whole carton of double stuf oreos... Also, abusive parents may create children who eat their feelings because they feel ugly. This may bleed into psyco-social things as well. Do I eat more because I am already fat and have developed a fatalistic mentality? Do I not go to the gym, because I think people will make fun of me because I do not look like a model on the cover of vogue? Is my family obese and I find it hard to control myself when the culture of the family endorses these unhealthy practices? Having to drive to get unhealthy food takes more effort than having it on hand. I am not very likely to eat bad things at 2 AM if I have to drive to a walmart to get it. Also, do I have role models that would help me become healthy in my eating habits? What are my motivations for becoming a healthy weight? Do I want to become thinner just because I want to have an 8-pack? There are issues of sub-cultures that shame those that are obese.


There is other stuff I could add, but I need to submit an assignment right now and I'm limited in time... Here's an annecdote to end things: When I was a Freshman at my Alma Mater, I eat McDonalds everyday, because well... I didn't have a lunch card for campus. McDonalds was like a block away. Imagine my shock when I discovered I had gained 90 pounds. Yes 90 pounds. I read this on a medical report about myself... To be fair I read this retroactively during my junior year of university. By my junior year, when I stopped eating fast food so frequent I had all but lost that gained weight. Thus, fast-food is another huge part of the problem in the US.

***small thing to add*** My grammar in this post is sh*t. So I applaud you if you have gotten through this. I rambled and was all over the place. Hopefully you can glean something useful out of this post

Your grammar was fine. Well I haven’t noticed anything but then again I’m in a hazy state and can barely concentrate on the detail.

And you made some really great points. I probably should have specified that I didn’t mean this was the only reason people would gain weight but one of the reasons though. I know leaving home isn’t going to cause people to gain weight, I was just wondering if it could be one of the many other reasons.

Like I said, you made some really great points but I’m simply interested in whether having people leave home later in life rather than at 18 could possibly reduce the obesity rate. Since when people start taking charge of their own food once they live alone and since it would be hard to afford healthy meals at that age, I’d assume they’re going for calorie dense, unhealthy foods. I was curious if maybe the obesity rate would decrease if people weren’t taking charge of their food at that time of their lives. But @blueberries made a god point and said her country has the same culture but they don’t have such high obesity ranks. I guess it’s the fast food culture + prices that need to change instead.

Unrelated question: why are people required to move out if they can’t afford it? Wouldn’t it be more beneficial to stay home and split the fees with your family to save than move out and start a life when you can barely afford it? We don’t have that culture here and just looking at all the 18 years olds I know, they’re so immature I can’t imagine them all living alone in the real world at that age.

And good luck with your assignment!

Btw there’s a chance none of this makes sense. If that’s the case just ignore this and when I’m not feeling as dead I’ll fix it up 😢

 

[Willow]

Not necessarily, cause in my country there is also leaving home at 18 culture and lot less obesity. The difference between my country and US comes probably from that it's actually rly expensive to eat outside. Even subway, mcdonalds etc. aren't sth students can afford everyday. Eating at proper restaurant is luxury you do couple times a year if even that. You need to cook your meals, even if they are cheap ass meals, so you can pay bills. I think in USA it's even normal for families to eat outside not only during special occasions, but almost everyday when in my country cooking meals at home is the normal. And ofc USA's portion sides at restaurants is crazy, not only in fast food but normal restaurants too.

Same in Switzerland. Everything is really expensive

 

[raymondchouku]

Like I said, you made some really great points but I’m simply interested in whether having people leave home later in life rather than at 18 could possibly reduce the obesity rate.

I believe it would vary based on the culture of the family

Unrelated question: why are people required to move out if they can’t afford it? Wouldn’t it be more beneficial to stay home and split the fees with your family to save than move out and start a life when you can barely afford it? We don’t have that culture here and just looking at all the 18 years olds I know, they’re so immature I can’t imagine them all living alone in the real world at that age.

Not so much a requirement as an implied norm. Independence is highly prized in the US. One is considered a loser if he is still living with his parents beyond the age of 20. However, in certain families it is required for those with income deficits and disabilities. I do know that in some cultures children stay at home until they graduate college and start a family.. It is even common [in some cultures] for the mother and father in law to move in with their son and daughter in law... Which isn't a bad idea, because grandpa and grandma could help foster healthy eating habits early.

I have addressed [in other threads] that the city where I live rent is approx. $600 for a studio that looks like a glorified bathroom (i.e. enough room for a bed and thats it... Thats before utilities, which may bring it up to beyond $1000. There are nice apartment complexes that offer one bedroom apartments for similar prices, but the tenant is required to prove that they make 3x the amount of the rent. With minimum wage only allowing one to make around $1600 per month at full time... its not really an option. Thus, for those in my city it may become hard to move out at the age of 18..

 

[raymondchouku]

It is hard to live alone and eat correctly.
Even if you do cook for your self buying the food almost nothing is anywhere near sized for one .
Thus you either throw a bunch of food away (which is pretty ingrained as a very bad thing) , have a boatload of leftovers or you eat it all and eat too much.
personally i now shop every day or 2 for what i will make that night or the next night. But that is also more expensive.

In many cases its cheaper and easier to eat out, pick up a pizza ect. Add beer or other drugs to the mix and there ya are.

ya can get 8 pieces of fried chicken at a store for 5-8 dollars, a pizza for the same from say little Caesars or domino's ect.
Not mention fast food with the dollar menus or even a filibertos type place (no matter the ethnicity.)
For under 10 bucks you can get more food than you should eat.

There are also issues of restaurant economics. What I mean is when people go to a buffet, they tend to act in a way to get the bang for their buck. Paying $10 for a small platter of eggs and sausage is rather exorbitant, thus people will often eat more than they should at these types of restaurants. Or even going to Dairy Queen: "Why spend 3.50 for a small blizzard when a large one is around $5.00... And then there's the Gas Station... Get a 44 OZ fountain drink for 1.39... Totals out to about 600 empty calories on something that is gulped down relatively quick..

 

[Seros]

No. It's the food culture, there's too much of a focus on what something taste like vs how good something is for you. There's also not convenient or affordable access to healthy foods in a lot of places.

 

[blueberries]

But @blueberries made a god point and said her country has the same culture but they don’t have such high obesity ranks. I guess it’s the fast food culture + prices that need to change instead.

Unrelated question: why are people required to move out if they can’t afford it? Wouldn’t it be more beneficial to stay home and split the fees with your family to save than move out and start a life when you can barely afford it? We don’t have that culture here and just looking at all the 18 years olds I know, they’re so immature I can’t imagine them all living alone in the real world at that age.

Here at least it's considered embrassing and immature to live with your parents to be frank. You don't need to move right after 18, but plp usually move quite close to that. It's part of becoming adult- you become independent, take care of yourself, don't have to listen parents anymore and decide for yourself (and lot of teenagers here don't get along with their parents that well nor they want to listen and obey their parents this is rly different to many asian countries i think where parents word is almost law?), don't bother your parents anymore.. well that's bit idealistic situation ofc most 18 years old aren't still that independent and mature xd

And ofc, many also move to study. Only big citities have universities so if you want to go to university you will move to student apartment in that city and away from your folks. I actually lived quite long with my parents, but it was mostly cause first I didn't get accepted to big universities i tried to get into so I settled with smaller one in my home city and it was rly hard to find affordable apartments in my home city (they only had students apartments for those moving to my hometown not for those who already lived there).

 

[SnowWhite]

Their culture of moving out so soon sounds irrating as hell. I guess its a rich country that people so young are able to move out.

 

[ddeonghwaaa]

Well, being an American myself......its more than likely because of fast-food.

Fast-food is well known in America and people probably prefer it more because its cheaper. But it does make people gain more weight because the food is greasy, i guess?

I dont know.......me, i naturally have some more meat on my bones and i eat fast-food quite a lot(not my choice. family doesn't always have the money to go shop and get groceries.)

But it could be all sorts of things to be honest.