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Most Americans report that they've lost weight in the previous year, when they actually gained, new research finds.
When it comes to their waistlines, many Americans -- especially men -- are in optimistic denial, a new study shows.
Researchers from the University of Washington found that people often think they are losing weight when they really aren’t, according to research published in the August issue of the journal Preventive Medicine.
“People’s weights are going up from year to year,” said lead author Catherine Wetmore, who was a researcher with the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in Seattle when the new study was written.
“But when they’re asked to think back to a year ago, they recall being heavier than they were,” added Wetmore, who’s now a bio-statistician at the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
The new study was based on surveys of Americans in 2008 and 2009 as part of the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, or BRFSS. It's the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's yearly survey of adults in the U.S., designed to track health and lifestyle indicators. For 2008, the study included data from 385,416 participants; in 2009, there were 394,700 volunteers.
For the surveys, volunteers were questioned about their socio-economic status and various health behaviors, including lifetime smoking status, daily fruit and vegetable consumption, and weekly physical activity.
They were also asked about their current weight and the prior year's weight:
“About how much do you weigh without shoes?”
“How much did you weigh a year ago?”
The intriguing part of the new study was the reality check of comparing people’s beliefs about their weight loss to what actually happened in the country as a whole from 2008 to 2009.
As it turns out, many people thought they had slimmed down because they reported their weight as being lower now than it was a year ago.
But when researchers compared the average weight of people in the 2008 survey to the average weight of people answering in the 2009 survey, there was a big disconnect: Over that year, the prevalence of obesity actually increased by half a percentage point. The fact is, on average, Americans had gained a pound.
For that to have happened, people couldn’t have been losing weight from one year to the next, Wetmore concludes.
The people’s recollection of their weights in 2008 sounds fishy.
“They do a lot of rounding up, something we call ‘heaping,’” Wetmore said. “So they report their weight change in increments of 5, 10, 15, or 20 pounds. If they say they’re now 163 pounds and they’re remembering being heavier in the past, they might add 10 to that and say they were 173 pounds a year ago.”
Men appear to be twice as likely as women to inflate the previous year’s weight. Wetmore isn’t sure why that would happen.
“There could be a lot of reasons driving it,” she said. “I know it’s a stereotype, but I think women are more attuned to their appearance. And maybe it’s society’s pressure for women to be thin. Whatever the reason, you do see women doing a better job of keeping track of changes in their weight over time.”
If the weights reported had been true, the prevalence of obesity in the U.S. would have declined from 2008 to 2009. But the scary finding in the study is that the obesity rate among the Americans studied actually jumped half a percentage point, climbing from 26 percent to 26.5 percent.
If researchers had relied on the reports of the volunteers in this study, they would have undercounted approximately 4.4 million obese adults in the U.S., Wetmore noted.
Breaking through America’s weight denial is not an easy task, but it’s a necessary one. What's scary, Wetmore said, is that many people believe they're losing weight when the nation as a whole is getting fatter -- rapidly.
“The message we’re trying to drive home is that if Americans don’t accept the reality of their weight changes over time, they’re not going to be motivated to lose weight,” Wetmore said. “It’s important to be attuned to even small changes in body weight because over time they can really add up.”
Her message to doctors: Don’t let your patients skip the annual weigh-in.
Do you weigh more or less than a year ago? Tell us about it on Facebook.
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Many Americans, and, more recently, people in other countries on whom our "American lifestyle" has rubbed off, all suffer from the same disease...soul-less-ness. When your life watchwords are things like "me, myself and I", "what's in it for me?" "anything's okay as long as you don 't get caught" "I want what I want and I want it now" "well, THAT'S not MY fault" (when it is) "I have a right to cheat, lie, defraud and exploit, and I'm entitled to everything I have and to continue to acquire MORE and MORE...and too bad for everyone else" well, you get my drift. This is emptiness, this is a void, this is meaningless, and when you have a huge hole where your conscience, your consciousness, your soul, if you will, ought to be...nature abhors a vaccum, and you have to fill that huge painful hole with SOMETHING, ANYTHING and for most of these people, it's food which fails to nourish, often consumed sitting in front of a giant screen tv for hours at a time, being fed mental garbage. Humans are the only animals which routinely sh** in their own nests. This is our national tragedy!
Clothes manufacturers are purposely increasing the size of their clothes. If you're a size 12 in this brand and a size 14 in that one.... which are you more likely to buy? In 15 yrs from now a size 16 will be a size 2. No wonder you think you're losing weight.
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There needs to be a federal mandate as to weight / height proportions.
All would be weighed and measured annually - much the same as automobile safety inspections.
If a person is not within the mandated guidlines, a tax would be levied.
The proceeds of the tax would help defray the cost of Obamacare.
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drop dead. Last I checked, we still had the freedom of CHOICE. I choose what I eat, I choose NOT TO EXERCISE, and I am good with it. if you don't like it.. don't look at it.
I'll say it right here. I'm 41 years old and I'm morbidly obese. I have been since I was a child. And you know who I blame for my obesity? Me. Plain and simple. I'm now getting to the gym 5 days a week (have been for the last 2 1/2 months). Not only am I going, I've made it a priority. I get up at 2:45 a.m. and am at the gym by 3:30. I'm there minimum 1 hour hitting the weights and force myself to get on the treadmill too (hate the treadmill).
But for those who want to lay the blame somewhere, there is no one individual thing. There are many; but High Fructose Corn Syrup isn't one. Why do I say this? Because that alone isn't going to make you obese, over consumption of it does.
So to point the finger(s), here's a list of things on which I blame the obesity epidemic: video games, cuts in school funding, cheap & poorly produced fast food, highly processed food (i.e., frozen food ready to cook & eat), individual's lack of responsibility (blaming someone else for their problems), over-scheduled parents (not taking the time to have a properly prepared dinner), our 'instant gratification' society, and more.
And this next point is going to be 'conspiracy theory'. I blame the government. What's an easier way to control your population than to get them fat & unable to fight? That's why they're not willing to ban use of fillers & high-calorie food additives.
The answers to obesity is so simple. 1) Learn to put down the fork, 2) get up and go for a walk around the block, 3) turn off the damn TV, 4) learn to cook nutritious meals, 5) drink milk & water instead of soda, and 6) learn what foods are bad for YOU.
Over years I've learned that I can not eat pasta, bread, potatoes, and rice. These 4 particular food types will make me gain weight without even thinking about it. I do still have pasta & bread on rare occasion, but it's weeks between them.
As I said before, I'm morbidly obese and I have no one to blame but myself for my current condition. Oddly enough, I think insurance companies do have the right to charge more for people who are obese UNLESS they can show that they are trying to lose the weight. If someone just sits at home and chows on pizza, burgers, fries, etc., and engages in no physical activity, then why not make them pay more for insurance? If you're overweight, you pay more for life insurance, why not health insurance? The two go hand-in-hand!
I think the real reason government doesn't ban fattening fillers and deceptive advertising for soda, etc., is that they haven't the balls to stand up to lobbyists from the food industry.
Hello, you are talking about Americans right? They are trained to be in denial. Look at how ofter you get away with saying something that is completely untrue. I can think of a hand full of expected responses to everyday activities in the work-place for instance, that have no basis in reality.
Go on a drinking binge. Have a drink every time you are hungry and the alcohol will numb your hunger. Take a couple weeks off work and don't eat the whole time, just drink. You'll lose plenty of weight...and have a good time doing it! Don't drive though...
P.S. I was out of control with the intake of my food, but I had to teach myself healthy eating habits, took me some time to adjust, I discovered that I love, love broccoli, asparagus, red cabbage and more that I before would never touch at all, taught myself to season certain vegetable that really would not taste good at all without the seasoning, I have to be creative, and learned that I cannot leave it up to anyone else, but myself to make my meals as healthy as possible, yes...some vegetables suck, but do not expect for some one else to fix the taste problem for you, take the bull by the horn and let healthy food work for you and make it taste good
Money and self control. That's the issue. If people buy "it" to eat it then it makes money and if it makes money then more of it is made and then others join in and make more of "it" but with a different label and pretty packaging and so on. What the @!$%# am I talking about? Almost everything out there you can eat but specially fast food and heavily processed foods which sometimes cost very little to make, sell for cheap but are incredibly unhealthy. Self control is nearly non existent in the U.S. Everybody is always in a rush and yet we find time to be lazy and irresponsible with what we eat and do. Take a close look at commercials, ads everywhere in general really and every time it's always about what?....convenience, short cuts, time saving formulas, the least amount of physical effort involved and so on. "Wall-E", I know its a movie and I know it's a comedy but there is some truth to it. We focus so much on what is fast, convenient and easy to obtain with little to no effort. A lot of jobs require us to just sit the majority of the day, we have no choice as far as the job is concerned and I understand that but then we need to do something realistic about it and not just pretend its our destiny to let the circumstance choose for us. More and more people, of all ages and sex spend more time indoors now than people did 50 or 100 years ago. You can only burn so many calories indoors doing mundane things. Yes, it's awesome, in fact I love how I can literally order food sitting on my ass in front of a computer without ever leaving my house and have it delivered to me, in fact....I can probably find a way to work from home and buy everything on-line and so on, you get the idea. But ultimately I am just hurting myself by doing so. In that one scenario I am becoming dependant on external forces rather than internal. I am merely a thinking organism rather than a doer. It should be both. Nothing wrong with a little convenience, so don't get me wrong here. The problem is that eventually either the companies out there or people in general at some point in time decide to take advantage of the other or of each other that is, and it all becomes a vicious cycle. Anyway I think I made this too long but I do feel it's a 50/50 issue. Companies make money out of us and we enjoy buying their products too much. It would take both to truly solve the issue on a Nation wide scale so right now it's really just individuals who smart up and realize they can beat the system we are all stuck in.
Dont much like replying to things, but you sorta hit my point about this whole thing and also missed it entirely haha! Do you know why those fast, cheap items are making so much money, or why their such hits with most people? Its because we, as a country, are BROKE! I am always buying hamburger helper, or those little smart meals (or not so smart? dunno), or microwave chicken sandwiches and you know why? Because I wake up at 5:30 am every day, have to take care of my family, pets, and get ready for work (no time for breakfast, I'm lucky to grab a toast) and then I'm at work from 8am to 5pm. I cant buy lunch on breaks because I'm always running out so I cant eat during the day, and by the time I get home at 5pm I've got to do laundary, shopping for the house, cleaning, taking care of pets/working with pets (we have a few of them that need attention) and I also do freelance work to pay for all the things we need. Living hand-to-mouth and paycheck to paycheck I simply dont have the luxury of buying 'healthy' foods. Nor do I have the luxury of making dinners. Putting something in the microwave to eat at 10pm (usually when I'm done with everything and finally able to eat) really quick before getting ready for bed is my only option. I would love a different option, I would love to buy healthier and eat healthier but its not financially possible. We try, Lord knows we do, and I'm always buying fruit juices (the V8 which say they have a serving of fruits and veggies) but with the economy in such dire straights its nearly impossible to have money and have healthy food.
So before you say 'its just lazy people buying crappy food' pick up the newspaper and read one of the many articles I see daily about how our contries poverty rates are rising, or ask any retail worker how many hours a week he's working and see how little time that leaves for simply LIVING. Just take a look at our 'GET IT DONE AND GET IT DONE NOW!' world where were all scrounging for money. Food has become secondary in my life. I am overweight and yet I exercise and work harder than most of my slender friends. Its purely finances. If we can fix that and balance out the economy then I would stake my life on it that we would see a decrease in the nations weight.
Sadly, none of this will ever happen.
You have good points but no solid excuses. Sounds to me like you've convince yourself on how much and how far you can go. We all need to work, that's a given. But that doesn't mean we allow our circumstances to control us. You seem to be a very busy person. Then use that energy you have to find another job. Yes it sounds stupid but what is the other option? Stay poor and have little to no time for life? It's a big step and nobody said it was going to be easy. I am not under any financial stress myself but that doesn't mean I can eat whatever I want or buy/cook Olympian quality food every night. Humans have survived on little to nothing around the world throughout human history. Our media has taught us what to wear, eat, think, and do with our lives. We fear if we don't eat this or that that we are going to suffer this or that. Of course some of it is true but other parts of it are just proganda to buy their products. Healthy have never meant expensive. Ever. It takes research, time and imagination and desire to adjust. Anybody who wants to truly eat healthy will do tons...TONS of research..don't have the time? Make time. That is a fact. I've done it. You would be surprised how much healthy food you can buy with little money. I've been there, done that, and it took a lot of balls and time and effort and a lot of patience. Not trying to be a d.i.c.k. but I wouldn't want to live my life for day to day...that my friend is a sign for you and your family to just truly say "that is it...we are going to improve our situation." Not trying to preach here but its a fact. Nobody owes you anything, speaking in general, you work for what you want and nobody is going to just hand it to you. Anyway, I don't know you and I don't know what you are fully going through, this message was just a simple general way to look at things differently...nothing more. I know people in here like to take things way too personal when they should just chill and realize if we work together we can accomplish more. Best of luck friend and I hope you do find a better job...time wise your job is not that bad let me tell you...but, and this is based on what you've said, money wise it sucks it seems. Don't short change yourself. You have a whole family to back you up if you work together. And working together doesn't mean everybody gets a job, since some family members are childrend and such, it means everybody does their part...even children can do that in their own special way. Its the truth. If you're on the path to find a better paying job then nevermind what i said and i'll STFU!
P.S. Stress wont help you with losing weight nor lack of sleep. I would stay far far away from instant meals...trust me. Again, and I know for a fact I am just saying it in here and it may not matter but...find a better job...if you're just living day by day its not a life. Get mad if you want but its the truth. Took me a long time to realize it and to do something about it. Cheers.
It is a matter of people not taking responsibility for the dysfunctional
relationship they have with food. The food you continuously put into your body will
ultimately determine how you look and feel. It is much easier to ignore and
deny the signs of health problems from gaining excessive weight than to
actually do something about it. Speaking from experience, I know how easy it is
to fall into this pattern. I once was obese, miserable and had many health
problems myself, but I made the decision to stop being a slave to my own
destructive creation and completely transformed my health inside out. Here is
my true story: www.transformative-nutrition.com/my-true-story-0
Having experienced this firsthand, I am now turning that aspect of my life into
a holistic health coaching career. I specialize in coaching men that are
struggling with their weight and health to reach their health and weight loss
goals. If interested, please visit: www.transformative-nutrition.com
for more info.
One problem I see is that there is no agency that has no agenda other than giving us the straight dope. The USDA was created to promote agriculture, including the meat and dairy industries. Recently the USDA tried to promote a meatless Monday. They were immediately slammed by the Cattleman's Assoc. and they promptly backed down. The USDA serves too many masters. We need an agency that serves US and us alone, an agency that by law can not be approached by any lobbying group. Then, there might be a chance that their recommendations are independent and as accurate as the current state of the science can make them.
This is pure hogwash, you don't want to believe me fine by me, I didn't lose the weight for you anyway. But heres whats not hogwash, I have been in the hospital quite a bit in the past two years. On record, two years ago, I weighed 255 lbs. About a year a go my insurance hooked me up with a nurses group that sent me a scale hooked up to the phone lines. I weigh myself every morning and the weight is transmitted to the nurses center. My weight when I started the program, 246 lbs, (down 9 lbs.) Today when I weighed myself, 235 (down 20 lbs. in two years.) There you have it.
I also love that overweight people can get the surgery to lose the weight that most insurance pays for. It's true though people who are fat don't seem to care that they are. I've heard "I've never been thin and I never will be". Yet they continue to go to McDonalds 3 times a week and drink beer like its water. The point is everyone needs exercise and needs to be aware of what they eat. The most important reason is for your health! Especially for the youth of america-all they know is McDonalds! People say my kid only wants chicken nuggets well I didn't realize they were in charge..When I was growing up I was told eat what I cook or you don't eat.
I'm not in de Nial. I'm in de Potomac.
I am male, 60 years old. As an adolescent I wanted to be 6' and 165 lbs when I "grew up". Guess what. I am. I don't over eat, or eat because I am bored. The buffed out HGH look of the young men of today would have been thought freakish fifty years ago. When they are no longer young we all know what they will look like. Then there are the young women. I still have a daughter in high school. My guess is over half are over weight and a quarter obese. Stop eating so much crap, people!
We have as society of people who live an "I want" lifestyle. The idea of being logical and asking "what do I need" is a thing of the past. I believe the boomers are responsible for raising a generation of selfish, illogical children who will eventually raise a generation of children that will be far worse than the are. We are on that slippery slope to a fat, unintelligent, second class society. Sadly, no one seems to care.
I dont really like survey's like this because they dont mention ANYTHING about the findings that would lead to any sort of conclusion. How many people did they survey? What sort of lifestyle did they have? Personally I've been toting the idea for a long time that weight directly corellates with finances (people more well off are generally able to take better care of themselves than people who dont have the time/money for healthier meals which cost much more) so without seeing all of that theres no way to say that this study doesnt match the countries outcome. For all we know all of those people could have been telling the truth, they could have only interviewed a small number comparitavely. Hell what if the country outcome is wrong? Where exactly did they get their numbers from? To say 'well these people say they lost weight, but the nation on an average hasnt, so obvious conclusion is their lying' is compeltely outlandish. I dont know, it just seems like once agian the media is striving to hype up a problem by focusing on the problem itself, and less on the solutions (all of which that are being suggested anyway will do absolutely nothing to curb/stop/help this supposed epidemic of weight). This article sorta just seems forced out there on a whim.
keep a positive attitude
Seriously though, the whole thing is exemplified by the term "comfort food". Food isn't supposed to provide comfort, or status, or libido enhancement, or give you a buzz. It's supposed to provide nutrition. Period.
Now there's no reason nutrition can't be attractive in taste, scent, texture, & appearance. It can even sound good, & be fun to eat. But if you're eating for any other reason than to nourish your body, you've got a problem & should seek professional help.
just keep a positive attitude
I'm going to work up an appetite for dinner, & keep a positive altitude at the same time.
America is also in denial about their lack of desire to make the country the potentially great nation that it can be. If we really wanted to change things for the better, we would unite as citizens, and demand that our government represent the people instead of cooperate America. There is no way a people can say they love their country, yet allow those elected to lead it serve them with an 8% approval rating. It seems that the American people prefer to fight among themselves rather than improve the state of the country. One does not have to be very smart to know that a united people is more likely to get things accomplished. It seems that we would rather see our nation fail than to work collectively as citizens to straighten her. Where is the logic in that? The state of our nation is a direct reflection of the mentality of her citizens. Dysfunctional, divided people will surely have a dysfunctional, divided government. If we united, we could demand a united government that places the well being of the people first. It is the people that's responsible for the state of their country.
Final words: Never diet & execise to lose weight. You're just setting yourself up for failure. Don't lose weight, or worse gain, & you've failed. Lose weight then gain it back, failed again. Start to lose, then "plateau", & fail again. But if you lock in, start losing weight, & keep on losing weight, you become anorexic & die. It's my contention that death is the ultimate failure.
Diet & execise to get healthy. Anything you do, however little, is a success, however small. You want your muscles tight & strong, tissues & organs at peak performance, & as for stamina... The advantages of being able to do for an hour what now wears you out in 10 minutes are too obvious to discuss. Once you've got all that going for you, you're at your right weight, no matter what the scale says.
Will you be an Olympic athlete? No, but long before you reach that point (if ever), you'll look good, feel good, & feel good about yourself. And that's it, that's the best you can look, the best you can feel, the best you can do.
Fast food capital of the world...and it shows...looking over a crowded summertime fair...looks more like a cattle drive than a crowd of people!
I don't know why people think that unhealthy food is so much cheaper than healthy food... The average cost of 2500 calories of food from a fast food resturaunt in the United States? 14$ per day. Now, the average cost from a grocery store on a vegan diet consisting of mostly starchy foods such as potatoes, legumes, whole grains, along with some fresh fruit and veggies? 3$ per day for 2500 calories of food. Now that seems a lot more affordable to me. Why people always say it is cheaper to eat unhealthy fast food? I will never know. Perhaps they are simply comparing that fast food to eating out at a nice resturaunt for every meal.
Preparing your own food, and eating a diet based mainly in whole plant foods will almost always be the cheapest way to go; the fast food companies of America would like you to think otherwise though.
you forget one factor TIME. Yes, it's cheaper to make meals at home.. if you have the time to do it. Mickey-D's is quick and can be picked up on the way to do something else. The only people that can really be healthy are the ones that can AFFORD the time to make meals at home, to go to the Gym, etc..
It used to be the fat were the rich, the ones that had the time to sit around and eat.. The working stiff was out working..
Don't fall for the idea that BMI is not a valid measure. Obviously body fat also matters and there are a few (very few) individuals who because of alot of muscle mass and not great height will have somewhat high BMI's. Most people with high BMI are clearly overweight (with high % body fat), not heavily muscled. BTW, some beer bellies (a few) are due to water retention because of poorly functioning kidneys and livers....called ascites. The keys to a healthy weight are to limit sedentary time and have low caloric intake. It is possible to do along with eating cheaply I can make a healthy stew/soup that lasts 5-6 meals for the price of medium take-out pizza that is one meal for someone.
All these excuses. People work more hours, wheat is the problem, it's cheaper to eat unhealthy. This is the denial problem that American's have. People are overweight because they treat food as something to enjoy, not something they need. My husband and I eat healthy and even if we got to a fast food restaurant, we can find something on the menu that isn't going to cause us to be overweight. It's about choices, and people don't want to make the choice of eating a salad just because it's better for you. People choose not to exercise. My neighbor is a single mom with a 2 and 3 year old. Yet, she makes time every day to go on a walk (even when it is 95 degrees outside). You make time for what is important to you. If you don't have an hour to walk everyday, there are plenty of 10-15 minute exercises you can do at home without equipment. People just want the easy way. They want the magic pill to lose weight and don't want to give up the things they know are bad for them or at least cut down on their portion sizes.
I'm tired of these fad diets. Low carb. Uggh. Show me the actual scientific proof that we all have celiac disease and need to avoid whole grains. It isn't a specific food group that is hurting us (people cutting out fruit? Do you really feel better off without fruit?). I love when someone tells me they are on the Paleo diet and they say something like oatmeal is bad, but then they choose sausage and bacon for breakfast every morning (which actually isn't the correct Paleo diet guideline, but people get the idea meat is good and grain is bad). People just want a magic solution. Sure, if you cut out an entire food group, you probably will lose weight. Might have to do with having limitations and not being able to eat the same amount of food you usually would. You will probably feel better if you quit eating simple sugars so your blood sugar doesn't spike, but cutting out ALL grains or ALL fruits might be removing something from your diet that you don't necessarily want to lose. Nutrition is about when you eat, what you eat, and how much you eat. It can be very complicated (and is a science for out Olympic athletes). Here is a simple guideline: the food pyramid. Yes, I know it is still controlled by food politics, but it's something most of us have seen and can understand. Whole grains, fruits, veggies, a little dairy, and meats. Learn what a portion is and try for a couple days, estimating your calorie intake/output. I know this sounds time consuming, but it's a lot better then the amount of time you are going to spend at the doctor if you keep gaining weight.
I lost two pounds just reading this article.