Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post Reply
atlas_shrugged
Posts: 534
Joined: 8 Nov 2016, 7:50pm

Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by atlas_shrugged »

I went with the missus as she was being jabbed against CV (she is a teacher and a pensioner this year). I was shocked at the level of infirmity and obesity. Chelsea tractors were disgorging motorised wheelchairs to make the 10 meter dash into the doctors surgery. It was like something out of the zombie apocalypse. The sheer number of overweight and immobile patients was shocking.

Our addiction to oil is a much bigger danger to health than this virus. These people needed serious exercise. Every single one of them needs a personal trainer including me and the missus.
Jdsk
Posts: 24636
Joined: 5 Mar 2019, 5:42pm

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by Jdsk »

One estimate of annual deaths caused by obesity in the UK is 30k:
https://fullfact.org/online/coronavirus-obesity-mortality/

There was a new strategy against obesity launched during the outbreak:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-obesity-strategy-unveiled-as-country-urged-to-lose-weight-to-beat-coronavirus-covid-19-and-protect-the-nhs
... has anyone heard anything since the launch?

The new body which will replace Public Health England won't have this in its remit. It's not clear who will then be responsible at a national level:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Institute_for_Health_Protection

And it's common in this forum to see the assertion that exercise won't cause weight loss. I don't think of that as Yes/ No.

Jonathan
User avatar
simonineaston
Posts: 8003
Joined: 9 May 2007, 1:06pm
Location: ...at a cricket ground

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by simonineaston »

If you are seeking an answer to the question, "How did I (we) get here ?", you may be in for a tough ride. You could do worse than nip over to iPlayer and get stuck in for the long meandering ride that is Can't Get You Out Of My Head, or if you want the short version, HyperNormalisation. Prepare to be confused, upset and frustrated, if you aren't already.
Best just to stick to regular bicycle rides, really...
S
(on the look out for Armageddon, on board a Brompton nano & ever-changing Moultons)
Stradageek
Posts: 1657
Joined: 17 Jan 2011, 1:07pm

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by Stradageek »

My rule of thumb is that exercise moves the weight around, dieting removes it.

I know a lady who has been putting on 'just a little' weight year on year and I calculated that all it takes is a less than a chocolate bar a week over what she actually needs, to find herself two stone overweight ten years later.

For me, therefore, the blame lays squarely with food companies who know that fatty, sugary food sells and they will NOT stop selling it.

Mine is an insiders view, I left Unilever because of my moral objection to their marketing ethos that constantly pushed food that had the biggest profit margin with no care for whether it was healthy or not.

For a more balanced view read 'Stuffed or Starved'
Pebble
Posts: 1934
Joined: 7 Jun 2020, 11:59pm

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by Pebble »

Stradageek wrote:
I know a lady who has been putting on 'just a little' weight year on year and I calculated that all it takes is a less than a chocolate bar a week over what she actually needs, to find herself two stone overweight ten years later.

'

I have had something similar with myself of late. I have put on over half a stone in recent months even though my weekly mileage has not dropped. I think I have found the culprit; since may be Nov I have got myself addicted to these rather nice sticky puddings that I have been guffing two a night, on examining the packaging I have worked out why they are so nice- 760 kcal for the pair :D So with them removed and my afternoon cake I am saving over a 1000 kcal per day. hopefully my weight will go back down.

Have started calorie counting again, last week kept it under 3,000 a day - I should be OK on that.
Tangled Metal
Posts: 9505
Joined: 13 Feb 2015, 8:32pm

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by Tangled Metal »

No idea about what causes weight loss but I got to 15 stone probably and a half but I stopped weighing nearly just before 15 stone. That's from 9.5 stone in less than a year. During a big extended family get together I got sick of family I hadn't seen for 10 years tell me I had put weight on and should watch my weight.

So back home and into my usual life I cut out about 25g packs of crisps and about 3 bars of chocolate a day. I also changed my gym sessions into more cardio including a switch from an ineffective stationary bike to a stepper. I got down to 13 stone 7 in about two weeks and that's been my weight for the next 15 years and counting.

I doubt that deep off in trash food made that change happen. I suspect it helped but I just ate more good quality, home cooked food instead. I also worked my behind off at the gym.i did 2 hour sessions with a sauna, steam room and swim to cool down and work any aches away. I also was active 6 days a week including 4 or 5 such gym sessions and one day doing a long walk in the Lakeland falls.

Of course I kept that weight loss tale to myself in the steam room chat. Except when someone was boasting about weight loss success. I still felt i needed to leave after that!
User avatar
pjclinch
Posts: 5470
Joined: 29 Oct 2007, 2:32pm
Location: Dundee, Scotland
Contact:

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by pjclinch »

Obesity and inactivity are related but separate issues. Recently published, Peter Walker's "The Miracle Pill" (see https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-miracle-pill/peter-walker/9781471192524) addresses the inactivity side quite well and is worth a read. Turns out you're better off a bit tubby though active than a skinny couch-potato.

Pete.
Often seen riding a bike around Dundee...
atlas_shrugged
Posts: 534
Joined: 8 Nov 2016, 7:50pm

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by atlas_shrugged »

Thanks for the useful feedback all.

Air pollution:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_pollu ... ed_Kingdom

So if we take the 30k figure above due to obesity and then add pollution and others:

30k Obesity
40k Air pollution (mainly transport)
1.7k Road deaths
2k? Oil related industrial accidents

We then get close to the 100k deaths/year that cause the UK government to go into total panic and close down the country. But these deaths due to our addiction to oil happen every single year. To remove obesity from our national public health is astonishing.
thirdcrank
Posts: 36776
Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 2:44pm

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by thirdcrank »

Re the addiction to oil, I've seen some sort of announcement from Shell that they have reached peak oil: from now on in they are deffo going to be producing less of it. (I say "deffo" because we've heard it before.)

Unfortunately, a lot of people will become addicted to whatever replaces it.
User avatar
horizon
Posts: 11275
Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 11:24am
Location: Cornwall

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by horizon »

thirdcrank wrote:Re the addiction to oil, I've seen some sort of announcement from Shell that they have reached peak oil: from now on in they are deffo going to be producing less of it. (I say "deffo" because we've heard it before.)

Unfortunately, a lot of people will become addicted to whatever replaces it.


Electric cars?
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
gbnz
Posts: 2554
Joined: 13 Sep 2008, 10:38am

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by gbnz »

Jdsk wrote: And it's common in this forum to see the assertion that exercise won't cause weight loss. I don't think of that as Yes/ No.


Exercise may have some benefits, I always find it keeps the fat off. But in terms of weight loss, dietary control is incredibly effective. I've always found that 1.5 Hr's daily at the gym, 1 Hr daily in the pool, 150 miles on the bike weekly make little difference. In contrast, a 10% reduction in calorie intake, minimal fat, maximising low GI carbs and protein, easily results in a stone a month weight reduction.

As a post lockdown, "fat" cyclist I merely need to head onto the program! The 500 daily sit up's were easy to get back into as part of the February program. But the diet? It still awaits!
thirdcrank
Posts: 36776
Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 2:44pm

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by thirdcrank »

Perhaps it's because this is a cycling forum and a lot of posters know that cycling tends to increase the appetite AND with or without an appetite, not eating on any sort of long ride generally leads to hunger knock aka bonk, something few risk twice.
irc
Posts: 5192
Joined: 3 Dec 2008, 2:22pm
Location: glasgow

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by irc »

thirdcrank wrote:Perhaps it's because this is a cycling forum and a lot of posters know that cycling tends to increase the appetite AND with or without an appetite, not eating on any sort of long ride generally leads to hunger knock aka bonk, something few risk twice.


Strangely, I have found on long tours I can drop weight at a rate of half a pound a day without bonking. Butwhen I bike commuted I needed to have a snack an hour before finishing work or I risked a bonk. Maybe the slow pace of touring allows fat burn without a bonk?
Stevek76
Posts: 2085
Joined: 28 Jul 2015, 11:23am

Re: Obesity epidemic and our addiction to oil

Post by Stevek76 »

Stradageek wrote:My rule of thumb is that exercise moves the weight around, dieting removes it.


There is a great deal of variance between people on how they respond to diets and exercise, I'm the complete opposite, as 183cm tall I have varied as an adult between 70kg and 90kg and that's always varied based on exercise levels and not what I eat. I've calorie counted before out of curiosity on this, I've been through relatively inactive periods, hovering around the upper end of that range and it doesn't matter if I'm downing 1,500 cal or 3,000.


atlas_shrugged wrote:Thanks for the useful feedback all.
40k Air pollution (mainly transport)
1.7k Road deaths


40k was an old estimate that was a rather crude effort by the RCP to combine the mortality burden from particulates with that of NOx. They basically said 'meh, we don't know what the overlap is so we'll just call it 50% and go get a coffee'. More recent studies have shown the overlap to be greater and estimates are presently in the low 30s. Still significant, however it should also be considered that the deaths figure itself is a bit of a creation, one that COMEAP aren't hugely keen on but the press like it as it makes a good headline so it stuck. From the way it's calculated each air pollution 'death' represents approx 11 life years lost but that's a major assumption, it may be greater deaths with fewer years lost or fewer deaths losing many more years each.

Worth bearing in mind when compared to road deaths though where, at least in the UK, the number of years lost is very likely higher than 11 on average.

Just being pedantic there rather than disagreeing with your main point which I agree with :). Also the overlap with CV is worth considering here, it seems likely to me that the UK's CV death toll has been exacerbated to some degree by the health levels of the population, even a year ago there was strong data that obesity and inactivity increased risks of being seriously affected.
The contents of this post, unless otherwise stated, are opinions of the author and may actually be complete codswallop
Post Reply