Cost of Food & Obesity Amongst Poorer People

StevieJ

For every recommendation from the powers that be there is some anti-hero who is looking to contradict (rightly or wrongly) , that is the internet for you
Probably best for your own sanity not to do too much research, I was only looking at house insulation last week.

See what I mean
http://www.askjeff.co.uk/cavity.html

posh*spice

Generali wrote: »

I don't know anything about cholesterol but I do know that an old boss who had been to Harvard Medical School laughed at me when I told him I didn't know my cholesterol levels.

For him it was like checking tyre pressures.

I know. I work for an American company and so work with a lot of Americans. They are all look at me as if I'm mad that I don't have millions of annual tests - including cholesterol testing. I was talking to a colleague about heart disease - his solution to avoiding having a heart attack was to get an annual cholestrol test/ take statins. Errrr how about going for a walk? Go to the gym? Relax a bit more? Drink less? What's more, Americans have to have all these annual tests otherwise their insurance is invalid.
Then, to discover the science behind it all is ropy, well that's just shocking! You would never ever know that talking to a yank. They just accept this stuff as fact - like gravity or friction. The American medical system is corrupt.

sharnad

wotsthat wrote: »

Basic metabolic rate is the calories you'd use if you spent 24 hours/ day asleep. I don't know how accurate the formulae are but I got 2000 calories/ day - seems about right - I'm in an office job and need 2400 calories/ day (if I don't exercise) to maintain my weight.

How did you get 1391 - seems quite low?

I get 1391 as well

~Chameleon~

sharnad wrote: »

I get 1391 as well

That's fine as long as you remain comatose 24/7

PasturesNew

I randomly wandered in for a cholesterol reading a few years back.... got a 4% reading.

Anybody fancy another pie? It's kebab/chips for my tea tonight.

ruggedtoast

My friend's mum is pretty advanced in years now, she's pretty much been an alcoholic all her life and is also now overweight.

Instead of helping her with her diet and the underlying reasons she drinks, her doctors have prescribed her with medication for her diabetes caused by her weight, statins for her cholesterol and something else for her high blood pressure.

The statins cause depression as a side effect so she's on anti depressants to counteract that.

The blood pressure medicine stops her sleeping so she's on tranquilisers so she can get to sleep.

Sooner or later those medicines will start causing their own side effects, where does it end? Somewhere there is a drug company making a lot of money out of this nonsense.

olly300

FTBFun wrote: »

Isn't exercise supposed to be a recommended activity for people with depression, though?

Latest medical research says there is no evidence it works.

However I've read something anecdotal from a running group that says it's not the exercise that has helped people but the regular group activity with people who understand.

Then again two people I know who have been on different sides of the disease have said that talking regularly to a random stranger in a non-clinical setting helps some people.

Also anti-depressive drugs can actually increase appetite though some may initially decrease it.

~Chameleon~

olly300 wrote: »

Latest medical research says there is no evidence it works.

That's rubbish. The study was looking at the advice given to exercise rather than the exercise undertaken. There are numerous studies that prove exercise can help lift mood due to the endorphins released, and I know from my own experiences this is true.

The difficulty is in motivating a depressed person to exercise. Taking myself as an example again, I'm well aware of the benefits of exercise yet I'm currently struggling to get my backside into the gym, even though I know it will make me feel vastly better, and as a result I'm gaining weight

I know what I need to do, but doing it is another story.

PasturesNew

posh*spice wrote: »

I mean !!!!!! would you reallllllly put a statin in your mouth based on this evidence!!!

No idea. I've no idea what a statin is .... and the above had big words in it

Oh gawd... sorry .... resurrected a 12 day old thread.

Go me
Catching up....

Desperate_Housewife_2-2

unfortunately for people on low incomes, most of the special deals in the shops consist of rubbish. Fatty poor quality food is the cheapest so people on low incomes eat that. Studies have shown that many mothers know what foods are good for their families but cant afford to buy them.

On top of this are problems such as getting to the shops and back (public transport is costly and difficult to negotiate heavy grocery bags) Also the decline of local shops which stock fresh healthy fruit and veg.

Also the problems of storage of foodstuffs in the home, lack of space and costs to run freezers mean poorer people cant store foodstuffs efficiently.

Its a shame that there is a judgemental attitude to people on low incomes on this site, food poverty is a real problem in this country and parents are missing meals so their children can eat. Just look at the upsurge in food banks.

Lastly, the growth of ready made food and convenience food has meant a decline in peoples knowledge of how to cook from scratch. Lack of knowledge or even confidence in what to cook and eat means some people dont know how or what to eat.