{"id":1919,"date":"2019-10-14T19:01:03","date_gmt":"2019-10-14T23:01:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=1919"},"modified":"2022-03-08T10:28:57","modified_gmt":"2022-03-08T14:28:57","slug":"why-are-americans-so-fat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/why-are-americans-so-fat\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Are Americans So Fat? 4 Reasons You Haven’t Considered"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The most famous disease of Western affluence is obesity, a symbol of our privilege and the excesses it fosters. Why are Americans so fat?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many people want to blame sugar or fat, and the American sweet tooth and addiction to refined foods<\/a> certainly play their parts. But are there other, more significant reasons Americans are overweight? As we’ve made a collective effort to cut down on sugars and fats, our rates of obesity have continued to climb. Why are Americans overweight? Learn the surprising factors.
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America’s Obesity Problem<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

More than two-thirds of American adults are overweight, and one-third are obese,<\/strong> and this isn\u2019t just a problem for adults. Obesity in children is on the rise as well. Of children ages 6 to 11, 18% are overweight, and of children ages 12 to 19, 21% are overweight. <\/strong>A further 15% are at risk of becoming overweight.
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Aside from making many everyday tasks uncomfortable or painful, obesity is a problem because it\u2019s linked to numerous health issues, including diabetes and heart disease.
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How We Treat Obesity in America<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Going on diets and popping weight-loss pills have become national pastimes. In 2006, we spent $147-$210 billion on obesity-related medical treatments and an additional $60 billion out-of-pocket on weight-loss programs and supplements. So why are Americans so fat?
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Problem #1: We rely on gimmicks.<\/strong>
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Everyone wants a quick fix, and companies know that to get customers, they need to promise rapid results.
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And sometimes, we can<\/em> lose weight quickly from certain diets, pills, and methods. But these programs often damage our health (and our waistlines) in the long run.
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Problem #2: We think of obesity as independent of other diseases.<\/strong>
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This takes the issue of obesity out of its context. If we try to treat obesity without taking into account the diseases linked with it, we\u2019ll end up less healthy overall, and probably still won\u2019t weigh less than before.
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Problem #3: We place too much emphasis (and blame) on genetics.<\/strong>
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Researchers have identified several genes thought to be related to obesity. Their aim is to control weight by developing a drug that inactivates these genes.
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But blaming obesity on genes is unproductive. At the moment, we can\u2019t control these genes, and believing that obesity is our fate keeps us from adopting healthy lifestyle changes that minimize our disease risks and help us lose weight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Problem #4: We eat too many animal products.<\/strong> <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Let’s see why cutting them out may be the secret to solving the obesity epidemic<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Solution to Our Obesity Problem<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As we\u2019ve all heard before, diet and exercise are the keys to weight loss. But we may not have tried a whole foods, plant-based (WFPB) diet.
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Diet<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Studies show that a plant-based diet is effective for long-term weight loss. For example, vegetarians and vegans weigh five to thirty pounds less than their meat-eating fellows. Additionally, BMI decreases the longer you\u2019ve been a vegetarian or vegan<\/a>.
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Participants in intervention studies who ate low-fat, whole-food, primarily plant-based diets:
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