The Fattest People On Earth!

Fun facts day! From the Globe and Mail's If entire world was as heavy as Americans, that would equal an extra billion people: study—

If all of the world’s population was as overweight as Americans, the resulting increase in global human weight would be equivalent to adding nearly an extra billion average-sized people, says a new study...

Based on 2005 data, the world’s overweight people account for an extra biomass equivalent to 242 million average-sized people, the study says.

These fun facts are from RTT News' Obesity Puts Pressure On Earth's Resources: Study—

Here is one more reason why obesity and overweight need to be tackled on a war footing. They put undue pressure on Earth's dwindling resources, say researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. This is because people's weight - and not just the population size - determines the energy requirements of the human race.

Using data from the United Nations and World Health Organization, the researchers, led by  Professor Ian Roberts, computed a table of the heaviest and lightest nations. The table was based on theoretical Total Energy Expenditure calculated from FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) tables for adults in 2005.

Heaviest 10 nations

1. The United States
2. Kuwait
3. Croatia
4. Qatar
5. Egypt
6. United Arab Emirates
7. Trinidad and Tobago
8. Argentina
9. Greece
10. Bahrain

Lightest 10 nations

1. North Korea
2. Cambodia
3. Burundi
4. Nepal
5. Democ. Rep. of the Congo
6. Bangladesh
7. Sri Lanka
8. Ethiopia
9. Vietnam
10. Eritrea

The researchers estimated the weight of the adult human population was 287 million tonnes in 2005, out of which 15 million tonnes was due to being overweight and 3.5 million tonnes due to obesity.

The fattest people on Earth! And here's some mindless extrapolation—

The population of the United States for example is expected to increase from 310 million in 2010 to 403 million by 2050.

And every one of them will be fat, dumb and happy.

Most of that increase will come from immigration but newcomers tend to adopt the diet and lifestyle of their new countries, with the resulting increase in body weight.

“The increased global demand for food arising from the increase in body mass is likely to contribute to higher food prices.

Ya think?????

Because of the greater purchasing power of more affluent nations (who also have higher average body mass), the worst effects of increasing food prices will be experienced by the world’s poor,” the study noted.

Well — that's a surprise! And of course the poor ones are also the fat ones. There's a good reason for that according to researcher Marion Nestle. This text (and the video below) are from the Daily Ticker's Why We’re Fat: It’s the Government and Wall Street’s Fault, Marion Nestle Says.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) predicts the obesity rate will jump from 36 percent in 2012 to 42 percent by 2030. Around the world, 10 percent of adults are obese, and an estimated 3 million deaths worldwide are caused every year by obesity-related illnesses. In the U.S, 70 percent of adults and 17 percent of teens and children are either overweight or obese...

Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition, food studies and public policy at New York University, and one of the leading nutritional experts in the nation, has been trying to change how people eat for years....

Wall Street "forced food companies to try and sell food in an extremely competitive environment," she says. Food manufacturers "had to look for ways to get people to buy more food. And they were really good at it. I blame Wall Street for insisting that corporations have to grow their profits every 90 days."

Traders and analysts may have shifted food companies' focus to producing profits over health, but changes to government policy also contributed to people's relationship with food, she notes.

Large government subsidies given to the corn, wheat, soybean and sugar industries allowed farmers to reap high returns on their crops. Farmers could grow these commodities cheaply and were encouraged by the food industry "to plant as much as they could. Food production increased, and so did calories in the food supply," Nestle writes in her book...

"People perceive fruits and vegetables as being very expensive," she says. "And in fact they are relatively because since 1980 the index cost of fruits and vegetables has gone up by 40 percent.

Whereas the index price of sodas and snack foods have gone down by 20 to 30 percent. So there's something wrong with the way we're pricing foods, and that has a lot to do with government policies. I think we need to create a society that makes it easier for people to eat more healthfully."

In accordance with my new glass half-full policy, which admittedly I have been lax about lately, I want to to tell you that there is some Good News in all of this. For the hoi polloi, there's nothing as effective as perpetual economic recession and government insolvency to keep those unwanted pounds off. And there's nothing like the destruction of the Earth's biosphere if you want to pare the global human population down to a manageable size.

Thus we anticipate a reversal of these deplorable trends in the future. That's the Good News.

 

Comments

[Anywhere But Here Is Better]

In the bonfire of the venalities, the greater the fat the bigger the blaze.

[Ben]

YAY! We're number one! We're number one! USA baby! Time for a celebration Dave, how does a big fat juicy triple burger with cheese sound?

[threetorches]

Can't wait for the new "war footing" discussed in the article.
Those fat, evil Americans will be forced to adopt the healthy and productive ways of the lean and fit North Koreans.
With our new Dear Leader in charge, thanks to the war footing and all, we can look forward to a healthier, happier, and more equitable world!

[IDontExist]

The average daily caloric intake may have risen slightly in the US over the past few decades. The US average daily caloric expenditure however has declined steadily for more than six decades.

[Ben]

Man, the other day I saw a guy eat four double-stackers from Burger King - not one, not two, not three, but FOUR!

- The BK Stacker sandwiches are a family of hamburgers featuring the same toppings that targets the late-teen–to–young-adult and male-oriented demographic groups. The BK Stacker is a hamburger consisting of anywhere from one to four 2.0 ounces (57 g) grilled beef patties, American cheese, bacon and Stacker sauce served on a sesame seed bun.

I saw this guy just chowing down on that crap in the mall, eating himself to an early grave.

[Mister Roboto]

Well, before this post turns into an orgy of fatty-bashing, I would ask DOTE readers to consider this study:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/08/health/08iht-snfat.5614611.html?_r=1

That said, a good way to take off at least some pounds, besides getting in a certain amount of aerobic exercise such as running or brisk walking every day, is cut sugars, wheat, and refined white carbohydrates out of your diet, most of all soda-pop.

[Eric]

Government issued dietary guidelines (aka the 'Food Pyramid') are also to blame for much of the obesity problem. Also, since obesity correlates strongly with poverty, the population of the US is likely to become even more obese in aggregate with people buying the cheapest calories they can find, sugar and carbs.

The guy chowing down on multiple cheeseburgers would probably lose weight if he simply tossed the buns, eschewed the fries and ate only the beef, tomato and lettuce (even though it's crappy industrial beef).

[L. Murray]

In the past, but not that long ago, fat, in particular fat women were preferred as more beautiful, and partly because fat was an indicator of wealth. These were the people who built the world we're currently destroying. Personally I'm about 175, w/a 34-35" waist,6' tall, and 60+. I eat burritos, subs, McDonalds, Taco Bell, or whatever I'm in the mood for. I especially like the occasional Baconater from Wendys, with Potato Cakes from Arbys. Why am I not fat? Oh, and exercise is walking to and from the car, although I do ride my exercise bike a bit. I think there is far too much said and worried about Americans fat. If we're fat it's becausse we can afford to be. I find it facinating that on both lists with the temporary exception of the US, every other entry, heaviest and lightest is a third world country. Where's Europe?

[John Andersen]

Dear L. Murray,

The source of your food doesn't matter at all? Just wondering.

[Mike Roberts]

Where's Europe, L. Murray? It's number 9! Greece is in Europe - just. I'm not sure all the rest are "developing" nations, either.

I never considered myself fat but at 180 pounds, I was starting to feel a little chubby. Gardening got it down to about 160. A change of diet got it down to 140 and now I almost never feel hungry (that's saturated fats for you). I didn't cut out everything that Mr Roboto mentioned but I did cut out (almost) all refined foods - including sugar. No tinned or packet food any more, no chemicals, nothing cooked in vegetable oils. [Obviously, "no" is poetic licence; I'm sure I eat some rubbish from time to time but it's rare]

[Anywhere But Here Is Better]

L. Murray - you're a lucky guy. I'm guessing you either have a superior metabolism or you eat those things moderately, or both. Most people eating nutritionally poor albeit high calorie fast foods do tend to get heavier and thicker waisted with age.

Interesting comment about being fat because we can afford to be. I'm not sure this relates to obese people who fall into the lowest income groups. Eric's comment about poor people 'buying the cheapest calories they can find' seems a truism.

Where's Europe? I would think that the UK isn't far behind on the heaviest list - we're probably #11. Alongside the invasion of US fast food chains and American style supermarket pricing policies, we have an expanding obesity problem and concurrent epidemic of type 2 diabetes.

Diabetes in particular may be Nature's blind way of responding to the population explosion.

[teri]

Not surprising about the US being the fattest. Our food producers are allowed to put corn syrup in everything - they'd stick it in fresh tomatoes and bananas if they could figure out how - and that stuff affects how your body handles calories, not to mention that it adds empty calories in and of itself. Also, our food is nutritionally different than it was decades ago. Thanks to big ag like Monsanto, we no longer practice crop rotation in the fields or use a variety of seeds; this leads to the inevitable decline in nutritional value. Fruits and vegetables grown in the US have about 10% of the nutrients they once had. Despite the immense numbers of calories we eat, our bodies think they are starving because we can't get the vitamins and minerals we need from the food available to us. The end result is that our metabolism slows down and our appetites increase as our bodies hoard calories and signal us to "eat more" in an effort to obtain these nutrients.

Naturally, the poorer you are, the less likely it is that you can afford fresh fruits and vegetables or whole grains. (Or anything packaged or canned without corn syrup added - it's a free additive and filler for the food industry thanks to the subsidies given the corn producers. Check out the prices of canned goods without corn syrup vs those with it.)

Increasing obesity in America is, ironically, a sign of increasing poverty.

[Charlie Thornton]

It may not matter much in the context of the articles here, but there was another correlation made to the data.

Much like his counterparts at the University of North Carolina, Prof. Roberts too blamed a lack of physical activity on the sharp increase in weight gain.

"One of the most important determinants of average body mass index is motor vehicle gas consumption per capita," he said. "So, it is no surprise to see many of the Arab countries in the list - people eat but they move very little because they drive everywhere."

http://gawker.com/5919384/planet-girth-study-finds-world-is-way-too-fat-north-america-to-blame

Dave's main point still stands. I also thought it funny to see the same wire story with three different conclusions.