Obesity in Ireland, What's goin on?

[omaghjoe]

Looks like Ireland is leading the way for Europe in the worldwide obesity surge

http://www.rte.ie/news/2015/0505/698970-obesity/

Latest expert opinion indicate lack exercise is not the problem at all or even fats so much but mainly sugar
http://www.bbc.com/news/health-32417699

The solution appears to be stay away from processed foods.

Potential to be a massive problem with far further reaching consequences for our society than something like gay marriage, which some posters appear obsessed with.

And with the pressure on the healthcare system potentially even bigger financial problems than bailouts and government borrowing

[armaghniac]

One problem is the amount of pointless sugar and salt etc in processed foods which don't really need it. Most of these products would do just as well with half as much.

[J70]

There is an approach right now by a lot of the food and beverage companies in the US to be seen to move away from high fructose corn syrup in favour of "real" cane sugar. As if Coke made with cane sugar is really that much healthier that the other stuff! Yeah, there is some difference in fructose:glucose ratio and how the body metabolizes it, but does it really matter that much with the sheer amount of sugar that is crammed into these processed foods?

Each whole fruits, meat and vegetables and you'll go a long way towards avoiding obesity.

[Jell 0 Biafra]

Skip meat altogether and you'll be grand.

[Eamonnca1]

"Look at your man out for a run. Dick!"

"Look at your man out cycling. Dick!"

"Look at your man out for a walk. Dick!"

"Look at your man going to the gym. Dick!"

"Look at your man playing tennis. Dick!"

[omaghjoe]

J70 your spot on the problem is not the type of sugar but sugar itself

Its literaly a great big fat merry-go-round in the US between these food companies and the health industry. This is how it works:


• Food company saturates kids programming with sugar loaded convenience food
  
• Convince parents they are better off buying processed convenience food than cooking real food
  
• Soon the whole family will be eating sugar loaded food for every meal and wanting more, and even better since sugar is addictive needing more and more!
  
• Once hooked on these foods they eat more and more, and buy more and more of the food company's products so the food companies profit handsomely!
  
• When the inevitable diabetes comes calling, in rush the healthcare industry to save the day with their medicine costing on average $8K a year!
  
• Meanwhile said family continues to eat the same processed rubbish emptying more and more of their disposable income to feed their sugar addictions and guarantee they are stuck with diabetes for life and guaranteeing both the food company and the healthcare company a customer for life!

The tobacco industry were amateurs in comparison to this shower!

In America with a privatised healthcare system there is no incentive for governments to do anything about it.

However European governments and the EU need to take a stand, as an obesity and diabetes epidemic will destroy the efficiency of their public healthcare systems.

[Eamonnca1]

J70 your spot on the problem is not the type of sugar but sugar itself

Its literaly a great big fat merry-go-round in the US between these food companies and the health industry. This is how it works:

• Food company saturates kids programming with sugar loaded convenience food
  
• Convince parents they are better off buying processed convenience food than cooking real food
  
• Soon the whole family will be eating sugar loaded food for every meal and wanting more, and even better since sugar is addictive needing more and more!
  
• Once hooked on these foods they eat more and more, and buy more and more of the food company's products so the food companies profit handsomely!
  
• When the inevitable diabetes comes calling, in rush the healthcare industry to save the day with their medicine costing on average $8K a year!
  
• Meanwhile said family continues to eat the same processed rubbish emptying more and more of their disposable income to feed their sugar addictions and guarantee they are stuck with diabetes for life and guaranteeing both the food company and the healthcare company a customer for life!

The tobacco industry were amateurs in comparison to this shower!

In America with a privatised healthcare system there is no incentive for governments to do anything about it.

However European governments and the EU need to take a stand, as an obesity and diabetes epidemic will destroy the efficiency of their public healthcare systems.[/list]

You've pretty much nailed it. I'm not sure if they're all in cahoots together as part of a deliberate conspiracy, but they might as well be since the outcome is the same.

[haranguerer]

J70 your spot on the problem is not the type of sugar but sugar itself

Its literaly a great big fat merry-go-round in the US between these food companies and the health industry. This is how it works:

• Food company saturates kids programming with sugar loaded convenience food
  
• Convince parents they are better off buying processed convenience food than cooking real food
  
• Soon the whole family will be eating sugar loaded food for every meal and wanting more, and even better since sugar is addictive needing more and more!
  
• Once hooked on these foods they eat more and more, and buy more and more of the food company's products so the food companies profit handsomely!
  
• When the inevitable diabetes comes calling, in rush the healthcare industry to save the day with their medicine costing on average $8K a year!
  
• Meanwhile said family continues to eat the same processed rubbish emptying more and more of their disposable income to feed their sugar addictions and guarantee they are stuck with diabetes for life and guaranteeing both the food company and the healthcare company a customer for life!

The tobacco industry were amateurs in comparison to this shower!

In America with a privatised healthcare system there is no incentive for governments to do anything about it.

However European governments and the EU need to take a stand, as an obesity and diabetes epidemic will destroy the efficiency of their public healthcare systems.[/list]

You've pretty much nailed it. I'm not sure if they're all in cahoots together as part of a deliberate conspiracy, but they might as well be since the outcome is the same.

Yep, its always someone elses fault. Usually big business.

[topcuppla]

Kids need to exercise more and get to bed earlier, it is alright blaming the salt content in food etc. but getting kids out and about whether at swimming, sports or just out on their bikes more would help greatly.  Kids also need to get to bed earlier, xbox's and playstations mean kids are sitting up longer which invariably means they are eating late at night, if you want to avoid getting overweight stop eating after 7pm!

[Franko]

J70 your spot on the problem is not the type of sugar but sugar itself

Its literaly a great big fat merry-go-round in the US between these food companies and the health industry. This is how it works:

• Food company saturates kids programming with sugar loaded convenience food
  
• Convince parents they are better off buying processed convenience food than cooking real food
  
• Soon the whole family will be eating sugar loaded food for every meal and wanting more, and even better since sugar is addictive needing more and more!
  
• Once hooked on these foods they eat more and more, and buy more and more of the food company's products so the food companies profit handsomely!
  
• When the inevitable diabetes comes calling, in rush the healthcare industry to save the day with their medicine costing on average $8K a year!
  
• Meanwhile said family continues to eat the same processed rubbish emptying more and more of their disposable income to feed their sugar addictions and guarantee they are stuck with diabetes for life and guaranteeing both the food company and the healthcare company a customer for life!

The tobacco industry were amateurs in comparison to this shower!

In America with a privatised healthcare system there is no incentive for governments to do anything about it.

However European governments and the EU need to take a stand, as an obesity and diabetes epidemic will destroy the efficiency of their public healthcare systems.[/list]

You've pretty much nailed it. I'm not sure if they're all in cahoots together as part of a deliberate conspiracy, but they might as well be since the outcome is the same.

Yep, its always someone elses fault. Usually big business.

Agreed.  There's enough advertising and info out there regarding the dangers and promoting the need to eat healthy.  People need to accept responsibility for themselves.

[johnneycool]

Kids need to exercise more and get to bed earlier, it is alright blaming the salt content in food etc. but getting kids out and about whether at swimming, sports or just out on their bikes more would help greatly.  Kids also need to get to bed earlier, xbox's and playstations mean kids are sitting up longer which invariably means they are eating late at night, if you want to avoid getting overweight stop eating after 7pm!

Kids need exercise, of that there's no doubt, but they also need parents as role models showing them that going out for a walk/run/cycle/swim is a normal thing that normal people do, not just the lycra clad 'fitness fanatics'.

Also,
  processed food is everywhere you go. Even the milk, bread and what not is processed to an extent, never mind the preprocessed package meals pumped full of MSG, salts, sugars and fats. You can't even go to a butchers now where the bacon and chicken fillets aren't pumped full of some shít or other.

Some of this is to keep the cost of food down, but at what expense to our long term health?

[topcuppla]

And parents to tell them to get the feck off the xbox and get to bed, also I would advocate no fizzy drinks in the house, at meal times in our house everyone drinks water, if the kids come in thirsty from playing they drink water, if we go out they get juice as a treat.  Parents have a major role to play and should take mores responsibility instead of easy options when kids harp on.

[screenexile]

Having got big into training and stuff the last few years it's plain to see that the problem with obesity is not exercise but the type of foods eaten. I'm as big a culprit as anyone but making small but good changes to your diet will bring you down to a healthy weight so much quicker than going for a run every few days!!

I'm glad I realise that now so that I won't make the same mistakes with my own kids!!!

[TheOptimist]

In my experience with my own kids, I can have all the good intentions in the world, but then when they're at the Granny's and Aunty's they are fed with whatever they look for. So the sugar addiction will come.

Still though, they eat well in my house and always will. Diluted Juice is the one thing they take too much of and I am working on weaning them of it.

The amount of teenagers (boys in particular) drinking big cans of Monster and that is scary these days though.

[OakleafCounty]

It's too easy to blame the government and the multinational corporations. Yes, they should definitly be doing more. The fact that checkouts are still surrounded by sweets is a joke. Sweets should be in the far corner of the shop and not at the checkouts.

However, when I see an obese child the person I hold responsible is the parent(s). It's up to the parent to make sure their child is eating the right balance of foods, excercise and getting enough sleep. The hard part isn't knowing what to do, it's doing what you know.