Pleasantly plump people - genetic or laziness?

darkman2

Hi,


Do any of you think that being over weight is genetic or unavoidable? Or is it just down to sheer laziness and eating too much?? I ask because increasingly we see this argument that being obese or fat may be genetic and this dubious claim is naturally enough supported by the politically correct among us much in the same way as the argument that homosexuals are gay mostly not out of choice...........Now ive nothing against obese or gay people but I find these 'conclusions' absurd and a way to shove tolerance down our throats when mostly tolerance is not even an issue. Never mind tolerance though sometimes it does make me a little angry when I see rediculously over weight people scoffing their faces in a fast food restaurant or blatantly just too lazy to go for a walk. Is the assertion that Im wrong to be angry at seeing that because its genetic?...........Im well aware some people have medical conditions and may be over weight as a result, however, I think that is a tiny minority and the vast majority are over weight because of bad eating habits and just a feckless attitude.

Is this a fair point?

crybaby

I think its a mixture of the two, some people stuff their faces and stay skinny others dont, but im only talking about slightly chubby people with that point

Morbidly obese people have no one but themselves to blame

aidan_walsh

Insert insane generalisation, showing of lack of knowledge, and wild speculation here.

darkman2

aidan_walsh wrote:

Insert insane generalisation, showing of lack of knowledge, and wild speculation here.

Why would you want to do that?;)

mike65

Its all down to a mix of issues too complicated to go into here.

or

FAT= STOOPID

Mike.

Smellyirishman

It's no coincidence that when I do my weekly shopping, the giants in front of me are packing their bags full of 2 liter soft drinks, ice-cream and microwave dinners. There are some exceptions obviously.

Gran Hermano

"Pleasantly plump" ? ? ?

Can we not say lazy lard-ass in this politicaly-correct crazy
world any more? As long as people keep making excuses
for their own obesity why should I care.

aidan_walsh

darkman2 wrote:

Why would you want to do that?;)

Its generally how the thread is going to go.

darkman2

Having said that I do feel sorry for the freak babies born these days that wheigh more then a turkey at Christmas.......cant imagine its their fault that their parents did not mind their weight. So its parents I get most angry at. Very irresponsible.

MooseJam

it's laziness, genetics doesn't come into it at all, only to the extent of how your body deals with eating too much, for example one person may store extra food as body fat and another may not, but that only concerns over eaters, if you burn off the same amount of calories as you eat in exercise you will never be fat, so it's a combination of over eating and laziness

nesf

crybaby wrote:

I think its a mixture of the two, some people stuff their faces and stay skinny others dont, but im only talking about slightly chubby people with that point

Or put another way, some people put on fat easily, some really don't. With a handful of people at the extreme ends of the scale and most people somewhere around the middle. It's similar with gaining muscle.

That's just the base state of the metabolism though, not an excuse for a lifestyle of sloth and gluttony. Just because you put on fat easily doesn't mean your behaviour isn't the reason that you're 25 stone etc.

padi89

Laziness for sure.All i see in peoples trolleys is convenience food, too lazy to cook and too lazy to get off their ass.

heyjude

darkman2 wrote:

Do any of you think that being over weight is genetic or unavoidable? Or is it just down to sheer laziness and eating too much?? I ask because increasingly we see this argument that being obese or fat may be genetic

We often hear that over half of all adults are overweight and maybe a third are obese. Now there certainly seem to be more very overweight people than there used to be, so if these weight problems are genetic, then why weren't there huge numbers of overweight and obese people in previous generations, I mean that's where we get our genes from. We are continually being told that the number of people with weight problems is greater than ever before, which shouldn't be the case, if these weight problems were genetic. And people in the US are more overweight than people in Europe, which wouldn't have been the case if weight gain was wholly genetic, since most Americans have European origins.

I think its no coincidence that peoples' average daily calorie intake has also increased steadily over the past few decades and that the physical effort required in many of todays jobs is less than before, while many of todays pastimes are also less energy intensive.

So more calories in and less being used up, making weight gain pretty much inevitable.

It isn't PC for people to be blamed for their own weight problems, but apart from a small minority with medical problems that cause weight gain, most overweight people are overweight by choice - the choice that they made in what they eat and the lifestyle they pursue.

nesf

Genetic is not a synonym for unavoidable.

Dudess

darkman2 wrote:

Do any of you think that being over weight is genetic or unavoidable?

I think there are those whose propensity to gain weight is down to their genes - as in, they may be more prone to putting on weight more easily. But genes alone can't be responsible for obesity.

sheer laziness and eating too much?

You used the phrase "pleasantly plump" so I presume you're not referring to massively obese people. These may not be lazy at all. But yes, they no doubt consume more calories than they need.

in the same way as the argument that homosexuals are gay mostly not out of choice

Homosexuals don't choose to be gay. Do you seriously think there are men and women out there who actually fancy the opposite sex but choose to sleep with and be in relationships with members of their own gender?!

Is the assertion that Im wrong to be angry at seeing that because its genetic?

I think it's wrong of you to feel anger simply because it's none of your business. However if one of said people started moaning to you about how the world is so intolerant and woe is them etc, while munching into a big mac, then you'd have a right to get... maybe not angry, but annoyed certainly.

Im well aware some people have medical conditions and may be over weight as a result, however, I think that is a tiny minority and the vast majority are over weight because of bad eating habits and just a feckless attitude.

I'd agree with that to a point, but there are people who have psychological issues with food and food addictions. For example, experiencing sexual abuse or other traumas may cause a person to use food as a crutch and the fat literally forms a protective barrier around them.

Gran Hermano

Bottom line is these porkers have problems with their jeans not genes.
Solution is: eat less and/or exercise more equals decreased fat.
It's not rocket science.

darkman2

Dudess wrote:

Homosexuals don't choose to be gay. Do you seriously think there are men and women out there who actually fancy the opposite sex but choose to sleep with and be in relationships with members of their own gender?!

Rest of post - fair enough - this no. I dont think nature intended people to be born with the certainty that they would be morbidly obease nor do I think nature intended anyone to be gay. You think differently - fair enough. Id see it as a fundamental rebuke to the nature of reproduction and evolution which gay people cannot be part of for obvious reasons. If people want to be gay I dont care but anyone who thinks being gay is natural is pushing it too far IMHO.

Earthhorse

Laziness is genet

Blush_01

OP - two issues.
Firstly, and less significant, imho. Fat people are now getting so hungry that they've begun to eat their own faces in fast food restaurants? That's mad, ted! Where have you seen that?

Secondly, how in the hell can you compare being overweight/obese to being gay? As a fattie (that word makes me giggle) I know that a lot of my problem is in the choices I make - and I'm perfectly happy as I am, thanks very much, before anyone tries to "fix" me. But while getting to where I am might not necessarily have been a choice, being the way I am isn't necessarily a fundamental and unchangable part of who I am. Being gay (whether you choose to believe it's a choice or not, I'll have to allow you to dictate your own level of ignorance) is simply not the same thing. It's like comparing cheese with handbags, i.e. it doesn't work. If someone tried to divide 567 by lightbulb, you'd laugh and possibly worry about their mental health. Weight is 567. Homosexuality is lightbulb. They just don't compute.

Dudess

darkman2 wrote:

I dont think nature intended people to be born with the certainty that they would be morbidly obease nor do I think nature intended anyone to be gay. You think differently - fair enough. Id see it as a fundamental rebuke to the nature of reproduction and evolution which gay people cannot be part of for obvious reasons. If people want to be gay I dont care but anyone who thinks being gay is natural is pushing it too far IMHO.

:eek: You can't say something as outrageous as that and just expect people to ignore it!

darkman2

Blush_01 wrote:

OP - two issues.
Firstly, and less significant, imho. Fat people are now getting so hungry that they've begun to eat their own faces in fast food restaurants? That's mad, ted! Where have you seen that?

Secondly, how in the hell can you compare being overweight/obese to being gay? As a fattie (that word makes me giggle) I know that a lot of my problem is in the choices I make - and I'm perfectly happy as I am, thanks very much, before anyone tries to "fix" me. But while getting to where I am might not necessarily have been a choice, being the way I am isn't necessarily a fundamental and unchangable part of who I am. Being gay (whether you choose to believe it's a choice or not, I'll have to allow you to dictate your own level of ignorance) is simply not the same thing. It's like comparing cheese with handbags, i.e. it doesn't work. If someone tried to divide 567 by lightbulb, you'd laugh and possibly worry about their mental health. Weight is 567. Homosexuality is lightbulb. They just don't compute.

You misunderstand me. The only comparison I made, and it is a reasonable one, is that we are also being told that gay people are naturally gay (i.e nothing can be done - more then likely they will be gay) - same with obease people (i.e genetic defect or whatever so they have little or now choice at birth in other words) - same principle - a complete cop out of reality.

darkman2

Dudess wrote:

:eek: You can't say something as outrageous as that and just expect people to ignore it!

I dont care


1. because it is not outrageous as I can assure you the vast majority of the population feel the same


and 2. Its OT so why would it be discussed any further?

nesf

darkman2 wrote:

You misunderstand me. The only comparison I made, and it is a reasonable one, is that we are also being told that gay people are naturally gay (i.e nothing can be done - more then likely they will be gay) - same with obease people (i.e genetic defect or whatever so they have little or now choice at birth in other words) - same principle - a complete cop out of reality.

Would you agree that a lot of intelligence is down to genetics?

coffee_cake

darkman2 wrote:

Rest of post - fair enough - this no. I dont think nature intended people to be born with the certainty that they would be morbidly obease nor do I think nature intended anyone to be gay. You think differently - fair enough. Id see it as a fundamental rebuke to the nature of reproduction and evolution which gay people cannot be part of for obvious reasons. If people want to be gay I dont care but anyone who thinks being gay is natural is pushing it too far IMHO.

There is a considerable list of animals in which homosexuality has been observed naturally
"I see it otherwise" isn't going to prove you anything

J.S. Pill

darkman2 wrote:

Hi,


Do any of you think that being over weight is genetic or unavoidable? Or is it just down to sheer laziness and eating too much?? ...I think that is a tiny minority and the vast majority are over weight because of bad eating habits and just a feckless attitude.

Is this a fair point?

You're threading on a lot of toes here

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055114745

Dudess

darkman2 wrote:

Its OT so why would it be discussed any further?

Yes it's OT but that's not a get-out clause.
Imagine if I started a thread objecting to, I don't know, crap magazines in the dentist's waiting room, and happened to say that all men are potential rapists, would you just leave it lie simply because it's OT?

Jesus Wept

I think that it's genetic in lots of cases, I know a number of big people who don't eat all that much.

On the other hand, I eat quite a lot, and can't put on weight.

darkman2

It is not wrong for people to have the opinions that I have expressed. Many have those opinions and the only interest served is for the politically correct to stifle debate if everyone was worried about 'threading on toes'......are people really that fickle as nothing ive said is harsh by any stretch of the imagination.

6ix

In my experience, the overweight people that I have known have been so due to their poor diet and lack of exercise. Of course this is not always the reason, and one cannot generalise. I think a poll would be appropriate here, I'd be interested to see the results.

darkman2

Dudess wrote:

Yes it's OT but that's not a get-out clause.

Get out claus for what Its OT. If you want to drag the thread OT thats up to you.

Dudess

Basically I mean that you can't expect to not be challenged on such an offensive statement, just because it's OT.