The Men Who Make Us Fat

[BendtheBar]

Thanks To Tannhauser for passing this along.

The Men Who Made Us Fat (Part 1 of 4) - YouTube

The Men Who Made Us Fat (Part 1 of 4) - YouTube

[BendtheBar]

The Men Who Made Us Fat part 2 of 4 - YouTube

The Men Who Made Us Fat part 2 of 4 - YouTube

[BendtheBar]

The Men Who Made Us Fat (Part 3 of 4) - YouTube

The Men Who Made Us Fat (Part 3 of 4) - YouTube

[BendtheBar]

The Men Who Made Us Fat (Part 4 of 4) - YouTube

The Men Who Made Us Fat (Part 4 of 4) - YouTube

[BendtheBar]

Watched this last night. Very informative.

[Tannhauser]

One of the things I found fascinating was the idea that the food industry gradually moulded popular culture to invent new meal-times (i.e. snacks), so they had more opportunity to sell things.

I'm not sure I completely buy it, but it's an interesting notion.

[bruteforce]

Originally Posted by Tannhauser

One of the things I found fascinating was the idea that the food industry gradually moulded popular culture to invent new meal-times (i.e. snacks), so they had more opportunity to sell things.

I'm not sure I completely buy it, but it's an interesting notion.

I think there's more to the story than just what is shown in the documentary, but I really enjoyed watching it. I would argue that automobiles have more to do with the fattening than most other single causes. Now, this is based only on personal experience, but when I am walking from place to place 3 things happen.

1. I have less time to eat since it takes longer to get where I am going
2. I am less hungry for junk
3. I am burning more energy and increasing my overall health

Will walking 10 miles a day let me eat the way I want? No, only monthly liposuction could do that. But if I even walk just 2 miles a day, good things happen to my blood tests and my waist line. Couple that with the diet that works for me, and I'm good to go.

Are grains evil? No, over consumption is. In my opinion, its easier to over consume grain products than other products. Its damn hard to get morbidly obese by eating steak and broccoli. (Not that I wouldnt be up for trying if someone wants to buy the steak). Fats aren't evil, but consume the wrong ratio of the wrong type and its not good for you either.

I haven't seen any issues anyone has raised with protein that hold any water, it seems to be the one macro-nutrient no one wants to go to war with, but then again, the gov't says I only need around 50g a day, which is ludicrous. I'm not advocating 500g a day either, that is equally excessive. Unless you're Andre the Giant in which case who is going to say anything?

I will say that a high fat, high protein, low carb diet is the only diet I can be healthy on. I'm diabetic, whether my blood work shows it or not. By controlling the amount of insulin released, I can stay sensitive to it and stay healthy, but when I allow myself to (even in moderation) enjoy high carb fare, my cells because desensitized again. It sucks, but I know what I need to stay healthy. Others may not need to be this restrictive, but I would universally advocate reducing sugar intake to nearly nothing, in season fresh fruits excepted, and then, once again, in moderation.

[Tannhauser]

There's a lot of wisdom in what you say.

This comment puzzled me, though:

Originally Posted by bruteforce

then again, the gov't says I only need around 50g a day, which is ludicrous. I'm not advocating 500g a day either, that is equally excessive. Unless you're Andre the Giant in which case who is going to say anything?

What makes you say that 50g protein is ludicrous? It seems low to me as well, but that's because I'm used to comparing that figure to that claimed from sources (e.g. personal trainers).

[bruteforce]

Originally Posted by Tannhauser

There's a lot of wisdom in what you say.

This comment puzzled me, though:



What makes you say that 50g protein is ludicrous? It seems low to me as well, but that's because I'm used to comparing that figure to that claimed from sources (e.g. personal trainers).

My point of view on 50g of protein max is that it severely limits the type of food you can take in. There's protein in grains and legumes, so if we have a meal of a decent burrito with beans, rice, and some ground beef, we're already pushing the limit of the amount of protein allowed. Then, in order to get the amount of calories you need, you would need to consume food of a lower nutrient density in order to meet your caloric needs, increase fat beyond the suggested levels, etc.

I wish I could recall the author, but the article was called something along the lines of "The Murders in Eden" in which archaeologists or paleontologists or some similar discipline looked at the bones of our ancestors and found that when the switch to agriculture happened, two profound changes took place.

1. Children multiplied
2. People were shorter

The surplus of calories allowed more children to be born, but the shortage of protein kept them shorter. Today, many cultures still eat bizarre things to get ahold of protein. I think the gov't guidelines might be better served giving a range for protein consumption, with 50g being the bottom, and advising the populace to adjust their overall caloric intake accordingly. I can't say what the maximum would be, but for the average sedentary individual, surely there can be no harm in hitting 100g of protein a day and reducing high impact carbs to spare their pancreas and metabolic pathways.

I'm also going to throw this out there, even though most of the weight lifting community would stone me for it (not MAB, but those outside of here). I view whey protein as a refined food and limit my intake accordingly. Because it isn't mixed in with its normal accompaniment, its hit the blood sugar rather more harshly than it would otherwise. I'm not against whey, but I must limit how much of it I use.

For people who don't have a metabolic disorder, I advocate a sensible diet. Steaks with the fat on them, but not huge gobs of it, a potato with a little butter and sour cream, some veggies, is a fantastic meal. But its easy to over to it, grabbing a 20 oz steak, 2 pound potato, and half a stick of butter.

[Goat]

Originally Posted by bruteforce

But its easy to over to it, grabbing a 20 oz steak, 2 pound potato, and half a stick of butter.

Half a stick! I would rather skip the potato, with that piddly amount of butter.