environmental causes of obesity?
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elkid
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 Posted: 10/21/04 - 11:32 Post subject: environmental causes of obesity?
Fat-Tax Man Collects Millions From Feds
An obesity researcher who's pushed for Twinkie taxes, marketing prohibitions, and even zoning laws to restrict where restaurants and convenience stores are located has received a fat check from the federal government. Once again the recipient of federal taxpayer dollars to regulate our eating habits, Tulane University's Tom Farley has now been awarded $3.6 million from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to investigate "the environmental causes of obesity."
What the heck are "environmental causes"? Writing in a 2001 issue of Washington Monthly, Farley explains: "The temptations of easily accessible food are too great. We don't need another diet. We need a way to make healthy eating unavoidable." It's hard to see where the occasional birthday cake and ice cream fits into that draconian vision.
To combat the scourge of "easily accessible food," Farley proposes:
Regulations: "We can't ban junk food, but we can regulate it ... We can limit the places in which it is available."
Taxes: He endorsed "slapping a tax on soft drinks and junk food."
Zoning restrictions: "There is no reason we can't, through zoning and planning, regulate the location, density, or hours of junk-food outlets, especially around schools."
In his quest to demonize foods he thinks should be out of reach, the government-funded Farley even stated in 2002: "I want to get to the point where people are in the hallway and see a vending machine and say, 'That's bad, that shouldn't be there,' in the same way as if they saw a cigarette vending machine."
http://www.consumerfreedom.com/news_detail.cfm?headline=2666
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RexRacer
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 12:16 Post subject:
I can think of a few enviro factors favoring obesity, like the number of hours ones a$$ is parked behind the wheel of their car instead of walking.
Also, the access one has to nutritious whole foods, which is pretty lacking in many urban and rural areas
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Gogirlgo
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 12:17 Post subject:
One thing that doesn't help is that the cost of produce is a lot more than the cost of crap.
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Pug
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 12:49 Post subject:
Sometimes i just want a snack.
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robp
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 13:20 Post subject:
| RexRacer wrote: | I can think of a few enviro factors favoring obesity, like the number of hours ones a$$ is parked behind the monitor of their computer instead of walking.
Also, the access one has to nutritious whole foods, which is pretty lacking in many urban and rural areas |
I disagree w/ part II Rex. Just about everybody has access to a grocery store. I think people are just too damn lazy to pack themselves a healthy lunch or make a decent dinner. IMO, if your life is so hectic that you don't ever have time to cook then you need to re-prioritize. Good health should be everybody's number one priority and it starts with healthy eating habits.
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phillycat
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 13:26 Post subject:
| robp wrote: |
I disagree w/ part II Rex. Just about everybody has access to a grocery store. I think people are just too damn lazy to pack themselves a healthy lunch or make a decent dinner. IMO, if your life is so hectic that you don't ever have time to cook then you need to re-prioritize. Good health should be everybody's number one priority and it starts with healthy eating habits. |
I agree with you a bit robp, but it is a well known fact that inner-city grocery stores tend to carry less than fresh produce at higher costs then at suburban grocers. I don't think it is an excuse for obesity, but it does present a case for how corporate america is playing a role.
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robp
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 13:32 Post subject:
| phillycat wrote: |
I agree with you a bit robp, but it is a well known fact that inner-city grocery stores tend to carry less than fresh produce at higher costs then at suburban grocers. I don't think it is an excuse for obesity, but it does present a case for how corporate america is playing a role. |
So less than fresh produce at higher costs is corporate america's fault? It wouldn't have anything to do with the costs of having to ship said produce longer distances or the stores possibly having to charge higher prices due to high theft losses, etc.? Everything is more expensive in urban areas from what I can tell.
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cherylpf
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 13:34 Post subject:
| robp wrote: |
I disagree w/ part II Rex. Just about everybody has access to a grocery store. I think people are just too damn lazy to pack themselves a healthy lunch or make a decent dinner. IMO, if your life is so hectic that you don't ever have time to cook then you need to re-prioritize. Good health should be everybody's number one priority and it starts with healthy eating habits. |
I see your point and agree, but also I think healthy options may be less accessable price wise. As Go mentioned the prices of healthier choices (fresh produce, whole grain breads, lower fat dairy items, lean meats, as examples) are much more expensive and the products are less available than the processed, sodium, saturated fat and preservative filled choices.
And I believe corporate america has a huge role, yes.
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sonnylax
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 13:40 Post subject:
Agreed Rob. Bottom line - Folks need to take more responsibility for themselves.
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elkid
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 13:45 Post subject:
It's certainly a lot cheaper to buy crappy processed foods out of the box from the supercarb aisle than it is to buy healthy alternatives from the protein aisle.
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phillycat
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 13:45 Post subject:
| robp wrote: |
So less than fresh produce at higher costs is corporate america's fault? It wouldn't have anything to do with the costs of having to ship said produce longer distances or the stores possibly having to charge higher prices due to high theft losses, etc.? Everything is more expensive in urban areas from what I can tell. |
It is a fact that produce is less fresh and cost more in urban areas where the majority of the population is of lower income. There have been several studies that attest to this. I have experienced this both when I lived in Detroit and now as I live in Center City Philadlephia. There are differences between quality and price just going from one neighborhood to the next. Do I think that this takes away any of one's own responsibilty to eat healthy and not become obese?? No. Definitely not. But then again, I have the luxury of being educated and not living in low income neighborhoods.....
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robp
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 13:48 Post subject:
| cherylpf wrote: |
I see your point and agree, but also I think healthy options may be less accessable price wise. As Go mentioned the prices of healthier choices (fresh produce, whole grain breads, lower fat dairy items, lean meats, as examples) are much more expensive and the products are less available than the processed, sodium, saturated fat and preservative filled choices.
And I believe corporate america has a huge role, yes. |
I thought we were talking junk food here - McDonalds type crap. You don't need to buy whole grain this and extra low fat that to eat healthy. Other than 2% milk, I refuse to buy low fat anything because it usually equals low taste in my opinion. If you're going to feed your kid a couple of greasy cheeseburgers, french fries and a liter of Mountain Dew for dinner every night, he/she is probably going to be a lard ass.
Now I'm getting hungry.
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robp
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 13:51 Post subject:
| phillycat wrote: |
It is a fact that produce is less fresh and cost more in urban areas where the majority of the population is of lower income. There have been several studies that attest to this. I have experienced this both when I lived in Detroit and now as I live in Center City Philadlephia. There are differences between quality and price just going from one neighborhood to the next. Do I think that this takes away any of one's own responsibilty to eat healthy and not become obese?? No. Definitely not. But then again, I have the luxury of being educated and not living in low income neighborhoods..... |
I'm not denying it's less fresh and more costly. I'm saying it is that way for a reason, like just about every other commodity available in urban areas.
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cherylpf
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 13:57 Post subject:
| robp wrote: |
I thought we were talking junk food here - McDonalds type crap. You don't need to buy whole grain this and extra low fat that to eat healthy. Other than 2% milk, I refuse to buy low fat anything because it usually equals low taste in my opinion. If you're going to feed your kid a couple of greasy cheeseburgers, french fries and a liter of Mountain Dew for dinner every night, he/she is probably going to be a lard ass.
Now I'm getting hungry. |
I agree, you don't need to buy "low fat" anything to be healthy. But, I do think you need whole, real foods though, not processed, in order to get all your nutrients in your day without going over your energy requirements, and ultimately, obesity is caused by more energy taken in than energy output. I think you can get crap as bad as Mcdonalds at the grocery store, and unfortunately for cheaper than a healthy balanced diet.
There is a whole lot of things wrong with nutrition in our society but I believe price an availability to be a big part of it.
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Ms. Jenn
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Posted: 10/21/04 - 14:02 Post subject:
This guy is getting paid a whole lot of money to be everybody's mother and/or teacher.
He's hoping through regulation of fast food (limiting hours and location) and through high taxes on that food (when we all go there out of convenience, laziness or just because of a craving) that we Americans will learn to avoid those places and thus reducing the obesity problem.
It's worked great with Alcohol, Cigarette, Fuel and Gambling taxes.
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