I’ve often wondered if the obesity problem in western countries is due in part to a backlash against the ‘perfection’ thrown at us (men and women) day in and day out in the media. TV, movies, newspapers, magazines, and the internet. These standards of perfection are so unattainable that even the models can’t reach them and have to be airbrushed in pictures. Growing up in southern California during the late 70’s/early 80’s (can you say Farrah?), if you weren’t blonde, blue eyed, tanned and perfect…forget it! I spent more time, energy and money trying to achieve the unachievable and hating myself because I couldn’t do it. A generation ago people’s standards of beauty were more realistic-Marilyn Monroe was a healthy size 12. Late 60’s to early 70’s thin became ‘in’ and unrealistic expectations of what we should look like took hold. It took until I was in my early 30’s for me to finally accept myself for who I am. A lot of people never do and hate themselves so much that they can end up destroying themselves with food.

I think another reason is the cost of good food. I buy fresh fruits and veggie and good meat (chicken, fish, and turkey) for my family every week and I feel like I’m breaking the bank sometimes. Hell, a loaf of wheat bread can be 40-50% higher than white bread. But I can buy processed food for half the cost of fresh. A hundred years ago if someone was overweight, it was a sign that they were wealthy because they didn’t have to struggle for money for food. Thin people were poor. Now it’s generally the opposite. It seems (in my unscientific study of this) that a great deal of obese people are the poorer ones in society. Changing dietary habits are wonderful, but if you can’t afford food that’s not loaded down with salt, sugar, preservatives and fat…what’s the point?

This isn’t one of those easy, one-answer things. A lot of different variables are involved and have been mentioned here: TV, video games, lack of exercise, inactivity, laziness, and computers. Plus psychological factors, genetics (you can’t get away from the genes!), eating habits, how you were raised, etc. There are a lot of issues that need to be addressed first so that when someone loses the weight that it stays off. Unfortunately it’s not as easy as telling someone to just ‘push back from the table a little more often’.

Lisa