The Student Room Group

Whose to blame for British obesity?

Let's face it we're (the British) one of the most unhealthy countries on Earth.:cheers:

We eat processed cereals for breakfast like coco pops or corn flakes which have to have added vitamins because they lack any nutritional content.

For lunch we sit at our desks eating sandwiches and pasties from Gregs. Or drink starbucks coffees. Or have a McDonalds BigMac with a super size Coca Cola - which is basically just damp sugar.

Then for supper we might eat a microwaved meal or a take-away curry.

In between eating biscuits and cakes from the supermarket - not freshly made.

All our supermarket bread is highly processed with bleached white flour, soya(!!) flour and all sorts of additives.

So firstly whose to blaim that we're so unhealthy? McDonalds? Coca Cola? Capitalism? America? TV? Supermarkets?

And secondly what can we do about it? Should we just ban processed sugar for our own good? (At least then we wouldn't have the worst teeth too!)

Or should we just be proud of being a country of over-sized people?

(And if you don't think we've changed have a look at the Top of the Pops repeats from the seventies where everyone was about half the size!)
(edited 9 years ago)

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Lack of education, quite simply. Education would teach people the importance of exercise and to be more careful about what they eat. In fact the parents should teach their children this before they even start school. Too many parents think they can leave it all to school, eh? Well the most valuable lessons a child can learn is from their parents, so there.

Everyone should learn how to cook as well. The food you cook for yourself is likely to be more filling than processed or "ready-made" ones
(edited 9 years ago)
Not Jamie Oliver
I think it's the fault of parents! Children learn bad habits and they're hard to break i guess! There should be more education about it!
Hmm.... I think this is a difficult topic because obviously, you cannot generalize to everyone because every case is potentially different. But personally, I think it can be contributed to the current economy i.e. fatty, salty and sugary food is far cheaper than healthy options so for families with a low income, who are from lower socio-economic areas the only options available may actually be the unhealthy options due to the price.

Alternatively, I can totally understand how a lack of education about the matter can lead to obesity because I used to be overweight and the one thing that held me back from loosing it was the fact that I felt I had no idea how to lose weight, I didn't have the knowledge to do it.

I suppose as previously stated above some cases can be contributed to the parents however, I suppose it could be argued that these cases are due to the parents having a lack of education about the matter. However, from personal experience I know that children can "Secret eat" and pile on the pounds that way with no contribution from the parents. So therefore, I am very skeptical about the whole blame culture on parents thing if I'm honest.

So in summary:
1) Current Economy
2) Lack of education
3) Parents in rare cases, but this could be due to a lack of education :smile:
Reply 5
Capitalism is the explanation to everything. Unhealthy food, alcohol, bars and clubs, gambling, unemployment, drugs, crime, tax, prostitution and illegitimacy. Blame capitalism.
Original post by Stinkum
Capitalism is the explanation to everything. Unhealthy food, alcohol, bars and clubs, gambling, unemployment, drugs, crime, tax, prostitution and illegitimacy. Blame capitalism.


I'm sure the starving Ukranians of the Soviet Regime would disagree: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holodomor

Say what you want, I'd rather be a bloated capitalist pig than a communist corpse...
Reply 7
Original post by LouieSax
Hmm.... I think this is a difficult topic because obviously, you cannot generalize to everyone because every case is potentially different. But personally, I think it can be contributed to the current economy i.e. fatty, salty and sugary food is far cheaper than healthy options so for families with a low income, who are from lower socio-economic areas the only options available may actually be the unhealthy options due to the price.

Alternatively, I can totally understand how a lack of education about the matter can lead to obesity because I used to be overweight and the one thing that held me back from loosing it was the fact that I felt I had no idea how to lose weight, I didn't have the knowledge to do it.

I suppose as previously stated above some cases can be contributed to the parents however, I suppose it could be argued that these cases are due to the parents having a lack of education about the matter. However, from personal experience I know that children can "Secret eat" and pile on the pounds that way with no contribution from the parents. So therefore, I am very skeptical about the whole blame culture on parents thing if I'm honest.

So in summary:
1) Current Economy
2) Lack of education
3) Parents in rare cases, but this could be due to a lack of education :smile:


Parents are completely to blame for fat kids though.
Original post by noobynoo
So firstly whose to blaim that we're so unhealthy? McDonalds? Coca Cola? Capitalism? America? TV? Supermarkets?


None of the above. The blame lies solely with the individual who is to stupid or lazy to eat healthy food or excercise and instead opts to sit in front of the TV all day stuffing their face with ****.
Reply 9
You can blame your parents a bit but just try and find healthy food in a supermarket. It's quite hard.

In a 4 isle supermarket usually one isle will be alcohol. Another isle crisps and snacks. Another isle frozen ready meals. So pretty much 80% of the food in there is unhealthy.

And you can't really shop in a butcher or greengrocers as most have shut down from competition from supermarkets. We don't even get milk delivered to our doors any more.

And our parents saw all these adverts on TV for Kellogs Special K and Diet Pepsi and Low Fat Yogurt (fat is good for you it turns out!) and Margarine and thought they were health foods. So it's not really their fault. They were brainwashed like everyone else.


A country that thinks Marmite is a delicacy is not making good food choices!
Because of the way that human psychology can work, there could be an infinite number of reasons.

Thinking of life's events (to you or others) and getting depressed by them making you eat.

Thinking of your mortality and getting depressed by it making you eat.

Deliberately making yourself plump to try to be noticed more. (equating the more space you take up with being more noticeable to the world).

Becoming plump because all of the people who you gew up with are and wanting to show solidarity with them.

Becoming plump because you spent a lot of time when younger being thin and therefore you want to enjoy all of life's pleasures. In other words, being a bit of an epicurean.

Being a history buff and knowing that being plump could be desirable as regarded as a sign of wealth or old school education. Being plump as a way of showing that you are 'old school upper class' and therefore neither need to show middle class austerity nor working class gym addiction.

Being plump because you are in a such a good relationship that you are happy.

Being plump because you are poor or depressed and you'd still be poor or depressed without your plumpness but at least it can feel physically comforting to have plumpness- like a protecting blanket.

Being plump because it is socially acceptable- even encouraged- where you live by people of all classes because it shows a love of life and nourishment.

What should matter to a less superficial, more cultured society, is the quality of that plumpness. Are they are a pretty person- does it give them a Rubensesque quality? Are they clever- does it give them a professorial appearance?

Only a superficial society would let plumpness - or lack of - weigh so heavily on its mind. Anyone can lose or gain weight. You can't magically make your personality, intellect, memories or aspirations so much better in such a short space of time.
(edited 9 years ago)
This is an easy one. I blame the fat people who can't restrain themselves.
(edited 9 years ago)
Reply 12
Maybe the astonishing prices you guys have to pay for fruits and vegetables.
Whatever happened to individual responsibility?

When someone is obese, it is the result of their own actions. No one forced them, no one else is in any way culpable.
The parents 100%.

No matter what education you give to children the people they will look up to, their parents, they will copy.

Also up until their teens they really don't have a choice what they eat as their parents cook their food!

However of course I would say once you get to the age of 14+ then yes you should be taking responsibility for your own actions. If you want a McDonalds a day, go for it. Just have to accept the consequences.
Humans have generally starved and been diseased throughout history.

We are not psychologically or physiologically designed to be exposed to such a vast amount of tasty food for long periods of time. Therefore, most people just follow their natural instincts when thinking about food.

The other issue is that people really do not know what they are doing and the media is filled with misinformation. This eventually leads to children being overfed till they are obese which becomes worse once they are adults.
The people who eat the food are to blame for the obesity. We all choose what we eat and don't eat. (This is for adult fatties. For child fatties, the parents/guardians are to blame.) Some people regret this later in life, and that's why they diet to lose it all.
"There is an expiry date on blaming your parents for steering you in the wrong direction; the moment you are old enough to take the wheel, responsibility lies with you."

Those blaming parents are pathetic.



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Original post by LouieSax

3) Parents in rare cases, but this could be due to a lack of education :smile:


Why parents in rare cases?

Parents over feed their children. They become obese.

Like an addiction, if you are obese as a child/teenager, it is far more likely to be carried on as an adult.

I remember a Doc telling me about how Parents were offered education and help if their child was found to be overweight in a trial. Virtually, all of the parents refused because they felt their child was not overweight or their child would grow out of it or they were not overfeeding their child and etc. Excuse after excuse.
Original post by noobynoo
You can blame your parents a bit but just try and find healthy food in a supermarket. It's quite hard.

In a 4 isle supermarket usually one isle will be alcohol. Another isle crisps and snacks. Another isle frozen ready meals. So pretty much 80% of the food in there is unhealthy.

And you can't really shop in a butcher or greengrocers as most have shut down from competition from supermarkets. We don't even get milk delivered to our doors any more.

And our parents saw all these adverts on TV for Kellogs Special K and Diet Pepsi and Low Fat Yogurt (fat is good for you it turns out!) and Margarine and thought they were health foods. So it's not really their fault. They were brainwashed like everyone else.


A country that thinks Marmite is a delicacy is not making good food choices!


As someone who came to the UK less than a year ago, I can totally agree with this. Never had I suspected that there were so many types of Pringles, other crisps brands (I don't eat crisps, so I'm not quite sure about names, but they are a lot! :biggrin:), ready pasta/meal sauces, microwaveable rice, ready meals, cans etc. And most of the fresh food - veg, fruit, meat - is much more expensive, how would anyone be encouraged to cook when it will cost them more money and time?

I've also noticed (though this might be student culture rather than British culture) that if you try to be healthy, you get mocked. If you don't like Domino's, you're a sinner, and if you like salad, you're definitely mental. I can't understand why but it's baad!

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