Weight

This post is something I have thought about a bit, for a few reasons. It is big news all over the place, and there is really not much that hasn't been covered in any number of documentaries, reality type shows, books, magazines, blogs, websites, and so on. So can I really add insight or depth to a topic that has been pretty much devoured? No, but that hasn't stopped me before. 

People with weight issues have no self control: This is basically an variation of American myth. It flows that, since an individual is the person who actually consumes the food, they are solely responsible for their weight issues. It's not like anyone is forcing food down their throats; and so if they eat too much or too little, then it is up them to fix it. Just close your damn mouth, or don't open it, or just eat right! It's not like we don't learn healthy eating habits from grade school on, so just do it!

An extension of this argument is that if people do eat unhealthily and have weight and health issues as a result, then so be it. It's just Darwinism at it's finest. People who aren't healthy are less likely to reproduce. So if some people want to eat unhealthily, let them; society doesn't need whatever gene they have that makes them eat unhealthily anyway.

As final proof of this argument, people can easily point to the same reality shows, like "the Biggest Loser", that highlight all people have to do is buckle down and change their habits. If they can do it on TV, they can do it at home as well. 

Society is as much to blame as the individual: This argument basically holds that because of constant influences in our society - such as fashion magazines and fast food restaurants - that people as a whole are less able to resist the unhealthy eating. Fast food is everywhere; we have less time; and we are less able to cook at home. This helps explain why people overeat - and unrealistic body images like those in fashion magazines and in movies, tv and

 the internet can contribute to people who develop disorders like anorexia.

An extension of this argument is that since our society is partly responsible for the situation, then it is up to society to try to fix it. This is why you will see things like healthy eating programs in schools, stomach surgery paid for by insurance policies (in the US - in Canada, it can be covered by provincial health care plans), and laws enacted banning trans-fats in certain food situations. 

As final proof of society's culpability, they will point to the fact that the average American (and Canadian, though not quite as much) is heavier that they used to be by a very large margin. They will point out that when there us a measurable increase in these things, it is now a societal problem, not just an individual problem. They will say that it is a disease just as cancer or asthma is. 

What I think: This is an issue that I have thought about a lot, and I have come up with no solid answer. Surprise surprise. I think it can be an individual issue - ultimately it has to be, because it has to be the individual that makes the change for themselves. But it also has to be a societal issue - you would have to be an exceptionally strong individual to resist all the forces aligned against healthy eating. Not just magazines - which really get too much press; I mean, how many people still read magazines anyway? - but our time constrained lifestyles, the cheapness of fatty foods, the accessibility of unhealthy choices, to name a few. So can an individual change? Certainly. Can society? Certainly. Will either? I think not. 

How I relate: I don't eat the best, and I am fairly immune to most advertising. Not completely immune - I still love my McDonald's and Taco Time. But I am conscious of how I look, and I try to avoid the really bad stuff on a regular basis. I wonder how some people can let themselves go the way they do, but I know that it is not an overnight process. I know people don't just wake up one day and find they are xxx heavier or lighter; it takes time. And bottom line, maybe the west deserves exactly what it gets - if heart disease and failed kidneys are the price of our decadence, then most of us will be okay with that.