Apparently!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7404268.stm

Nice.

I am inclined to think that the obesity epidemic, global warming, and the global food crisis are all symptomatic of much bigger societal issues...not that any one group is responsible.

I think that blaming the obese for the problems in the world is the equivalent of blaming a single player on a team for the entire team's loss. After all, there are billions of dollars every year lost to the fact that people throw it away! It's over-consumption and most people in the U.S. are guilty, regardless of their weight! My opinion is that when everyone else does their part and it's still not enough, maybe then, they can start blaming a single group of people. Maybe we should blame alcoholics? Afterall, they are contributing to all those bottles! What about people who workout and carry around all those plastic water bottles? Those are one of the biggest offenders for environmental deterioration. The list could go on and on, but the point is that you don't blame people who are in a position that they don't want to be in (overweight) and not mention all the other guilty parties. We all have to be responsible for our actions and to make a collective effort to better this planet.

Hmmm, I'm thinking that global warming can be better attributed to gas bags like the author of that article blowing holes in the ozone by spouting their ridiculous opinions. Too bad we can't figure out how to harness the energy in BS...... problem solved

Piggy backing on what lucky said, my VERY SKINNY SIL is one of the biggest food wasters I know. She throws away food constantly (good food), and it really irks my mom and me. Just the other night we were there for dinner, and she was halfway to the trash with a platter with two leftover burgers and 3-4 ears of corn on the cob. My mom and I have a fit. Her excuse... "we don't eat leftovers." My DH had a burger for lunch the next day and my folks took the rest. SO WASTEFUL and consumptive.

BTW, I know I got on a tangent and went off topic, but the article really peeves me.

The world food crisis has more to do with crops being diverted for ethanol production, population explosion in other countries, and dictatorship politics then it does with obesity.

Global warming is not something that was caused overnight either. Various factors have contributed to it.

Blaming one group for a problem so massive is ridiculous! I know it's human nature to want to pinpoint something or someone to blame, but let's be real here...

Well let's hope the article was tongue-in-cheek.

I'm sure I'm preaching to the choir, but if you "don't eat leftovers" why not limit your preparation to what you will eat?

I either prepare for planned-overs or make pretty much exactly what I know my family will eat. Depending on the size of her family (and I got the impression it might be 2), one leftover burger and one ear of corn would allow for plenty of variation in appetite and a lot less waste.

What's with the "don't eat leftovers" thing anyway? I went to a co-workers house just after dinner once. There were just two of them. They had made three items for dinner (a full quiche, some type of vegetable casserole and one other casserole type item) and were throwing away all the leftovers. If you're going to do that, why go through all the effort of making three complete items? Learn how to make them smaller or only make one in an evening. I guess they figured it was their time and their budget and what business was it of any of the rest of us anyway!

ITA - there are only two of us eating normal food in our house (myself and my dd, not counting the baby) and there are never leftovers. I just make enough for us to eat.

The only time I ever throw food away is if I have a party and I over-estimate and make too much. I keep what leftovers will keep, but you can't keep dry curling sandwiches that have been out on a table all evening.

OMG! Gotta find someone to blame. Has anyone told Al Gore he needs to go on a diet?

There are many behavioral changes that almost all folks living in
western societies could adopt which would have the dual benefit
of helping to curb global warming and increasing individual
health.

Instead of motivating everyone to make these positive changes,
finger pointing stigmatizes (which does **not** motivate, IMO)
some people and lets the others feel like they are off the hook.

So, I think it is likely that articles like this, by trying to
pin the problem on a segment of the population, are actually
contributing to the problem.

I have to agree, fat people are to blame for just about everything going wrong in the world.

Only joking, I blame smokers (cos I don't smoke )

well the thing is there are some aspects of this that the general stereotype fat person is responsible for. granted most people on this site are here to lose weight and change their lifestyle but the ones who don't, drive when they should walk burning unneccesary fuel. especially in american where teh average car has an efficency of 21 miles per gallon as opposed to europe and japan where its nearer 40mpg.

over consumption is a big one and that i believe is caused int eh uk mainly by the post war generation being on rations, you never wasted food so it was engrained in them to clear their plates. but now food isn't short and most is higher calories we still clear our plates.

i also blame the intensive farming for the obesity and over consumption. on a food science thing i found out that to get the same nutritional value of vitamins and minerals from a modern day orange as a 1950's orange you'd have to eat 8 of them. so due to poor farming techniques we need to eat more to get the same benefit.

lets not also forget that being over weight makes teh fuel effiency of your car worse. top gear worked out that having a moustache costed and extra gallon of fuel a year for the average uk driver. so whats an extra 50lbs going to do.

the reason we are obese is profiteering farmers and engrained food ideas from a generation that didn't have much. but of course the government wouldn't try to re-educate us about that cos it would hurt farmers profits and make electing rural senators/mp's that much harder

cynical old git out

Too funny!!

ROTFLMAO!!!

Not everyone who drives does so instead of walking. There are lots and lots and lots of places that can only be gotten to by driving there. This includes everyday trips to stores, churches, doctors, etc.
No one forced me to overeat. That was a choice I made all on my own. Blaming someone else for my fat butt just doesn't wash. I'M to blame, period.
Sorry, this is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Can you print to link to the article? Yes, unecessary baggage in a car decreases fuel efficiency, but. . . a mustache? Ah, come on! I also just read an article that says ethanol -- yes, the 'fixer elixer' that uncle sam said would help us all w/the gas crunch -- actually decreases the fuel efficiency of your car. And we all end up paying MORE money for the same gas over the long haul. I'll see if I can dig up the article.Well, I don't know about anyone else but the reason I weighed in on the obese side is because I ate too much and moved too little. No farmer hit me over the head to overeat so that he could make a profit. And 'learned food ideas from past generations' can be unlearned. I don't blame anyone for my hand-to-mouth disease; just me!

in response to hat trick in order.
1. stores, churches and doctors. i'm in the uk as this is uk thread, most poeple in the uk have access to these facilities within walking distance. i.e under 3 miles.
2. intensive farming and obesity. (nice editing there on the quote) intensive farming means that the nutrional values of a modern orange means that you need 8 to match the values of a 1950's orange so due to intensive farming we need to eat more to get the benefit as our older relatives.
3. the moustache. no link as top gear is a tv show but i'm sure you can get the episode on youtube if you looked. all extra weight affects the milage of the car. its basic physics greater mass means greater friction with the road. calling the fact that few grams can affect milage over a very long period such as a year makes you either very dismissive or very ignorant.
4.ethanol is a poor fuel to use hempoline is a much better and faster produced fuel
5.previous generations teachings can be unlearned over time. but only after education and as i mentioned in my response which again you neatly left out in your editing, education is sparse as that would reduce consumption. reduced consumption is reduced spending and reduced spending is bad for the economy. consumption drives growth (no pun intended)
6. profiterring farmers reffers back to the neatly edited out part to do with intensive farming reducing the nutrient yield of our food requiring us to eat. more.

anyone can select small sections out of context from any document and make a weak argument based on it.

Sorry, this is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Can you print to link to the article? Yes, unecessary baggage in a car decreases fuel efficiency, but. . . a mustache? Ah, come on! I also just read an article that says ethanol -- yes, the 'fixer elixer' that uncle sam said would help us all w/the gas crunch -- actually decreases the fuel efficiency of your car. And we all end up paying MORE money for the same gas over the long haul. I'll see if I can dig up the article.

Its funny, I'll have to look for that episode. DH and I always watch the show together (DH is a mechanical nut!!) And the ethanol...its not good.. it decreases efficiency, it burns more energy to produce it and its driving up prices of other crops because the government and companies are paying the farmers more to grow corn. So now everything else goes up because there's a shortage. And the cost of the car costs more and breaks more often. DH belongs to a car forum and they've discussed hybird and Ethanol cars. They have figured out that it takes upwards of 5-10 years worth of fuel to cover the cost of the car in the first place... We drive a diesel Jetta.. we get 700miles on a 15gallon tank.. far better than any hybrid or Ethanol out there!!!