Dillards 46: Now with Pants and a Possible Nose Piercing

[SorenaJ]

I believe portion sizes are the cause of obesity. 

[KnittingOwl]

On 12/7/2017 at 1:01 PM, Inky said:

Michaels used to carry different coloured duct tape - not sure if they still do. 

 

Red Green is responsible for popularizing it in Canada. (I skimmed a few pages - hope this isn't a repeat).

Red Green like “if the women don’t find you handsome, they should at least find you handy”? My family used to watch it on PBS in the states. We still make references. 

[SilverBeach]

4 hours ago, SorenaJ said:

I believe portion sizes are the cause of obesity. 

As someone who has been fighting the battle of the bulge from adolescence until the present time, I can tell you it's not nearly that simple. 

[Thorns]

On 7.12.2017 at 3:58 AM, closetcagebaby said:

I love my kindle and primarily buy or rent ebooks, but I have to have physical copies of some romances to read in the bath!

Amazon just released a waterproof kindle... It fills a void I did not know existed... I need it!

Edited to ad @HarryPotterFan since we obviously share the same wants 

[lomo6]

There are obviously myriad reasons that our collective waistlines have expanded rapidly in recent decades, and I agree that portion sizes are a major factor, and something that distinguishes North America from Europe (although many European countries are experiencing increases in obesity as well). 

I recently inherited slightly nicer dishes from an elderly relative. They were probably purchased in the 60s. The dinner plates are about 10-15% smaller than the cheap ones I bought from Target a few years ago, and the bowls, salad/dessert plates, cups, and drinking glasses are basically half the size. The first time I ate pasta out of one of those bowls, I had to go for two full servings to eat what I consider a "satisfying" amount. With the Target bowls, I felt like I was just having one helping when eating the same amount.

I think other factors include suburbanization and increased car-dependency, as well as decreased "natural" activity levels, even for office workers (when was the last time you had to carry a heavy stack of files across the office?). 

Finally, I think there's been a growing reliance on convenience foods as more and more families have single parents or two parents working 50-60 hours/week. 

 

 

[SilverBeach]

I come from Southern heritage where large portions were the norm. Not everyone, or even most of the people in my family, was fat. I just don't think it's as much of a factor as some of you do. I think obesity standards are overly rigid and based on Caucasians only. I managed to practically starve myself into "normal" weight and it was unsustainable. My health was better with a bit more weight on me. As with everything, people and bodies are different. 

[2manyKidzzz]

9 hours ago, PennySycamore said:

@2manyKidzzz, I read a column in the New York Times a few years ago that raised the question of whether or not there were really more people "on the spectrum" or whether the definitions were so broad that more people fell under it.  I read the list of criteria for being on the spectrum and every single one human member of our family would fall on the spectrum because we had met several criteria.  Except that I don't think we do.  We're just weird!  

I do think one of my daughters has ADHD and definitely know that one son-in-law does.  There are those who argue that those individuals with ADHD don't suffer from a lack of attention, but notice everything.  Earlier in human history, that was an advantage.  People with ADD/ADHD are "born to explore".

I have also heard/read about this theory about broad definitions. I certainly don’t know. I know that a friend of mine was working at a preschool/daycare and in her class there were 11 boys, 8 of whom were being “tested” for these issues. Seems like a lot. 

There are more pesticides, vaccines, antibiotics used and these can’t help but make an impact on the human body. Someone earlier mentioned their child was in a study studying glycophosphates (SP) 

Everything can make a difference. I don’t know and am not saying that I do.

[lomo6]

23 minutes ago, SilverBeach said:

I come from Southern heritage where large portions were the norm. Not everyone, or even most of the people in my family, was fat. I just don't think it's as much of a factor as some of you do. I think obesity standards are overly rigid and based on Caucasians only. I managed to practically starve myself into "normal" weight and it was unsustainable. My health was better with a bit more weight on me. As with everything, people and bodies are different. 

I totally get your point. I don't come from thin stock myself and have been overweight at various points in my adulthood despite eating lots of veggies, cooking for myself 90% of the time, and working out regularly. And the super thin, Pilates-toned bodies that most female public figures maintain well into menopause constitute an unrealistic extreme standard for the vast majority of women. 

But there's a difference between what works best for an individual/differences between regional or cultural aesthetic preferences, and major population-wide changes that impact a country's health and mobility on a broader scale. The US and many other Western countries are currently undergoing the latter, and I think it's worth investigating the root causes.

[nokidsmom]

46 minutes ago, lomo6 said:

I recently inherited slightly nicer dishes from an elderly relative. They were probably purchased in the 60s. The dinner plates are about 10-15% smaller than the cheap ones I bought from Target a few years ago, and the bowls, salad/dessert plates, cups, and drinking glasses are basically half the size. The first time I ate pasta out of one of those bowls, I had to go for two full servings to eat what I consider a "satisfying" amount. With the Target bowls, I felt like I was just having one helping when eating the same amount.

A few years ago, I decided to get new Corelle dishes as my most of my old ones (circa mid 90s) met their end on the kitchen floor at some time or another.  So I had someone like two dinner dishes, 1 bowl, etc.

Anyhoo, I ended up purchasing luncheon plates for dinner plates instead of the actual dinner plates. Dinner plates were huge, I ended up just getting one to use as a platter.  Now I was getting square dishes as opposed to round ones and the round ones seemed to me to be the same size as before, I don't know, I didn't compare.  Square shape will have more surface area still it struck me how big the dinner plates were.

[singsingsing]

50 years ago, many (dare I say most?) people with something like ASD or ADHD would simply not have been diagnosed. Unless their symptoms were so severe and impossible for society at large to ignore, they would have been branded nervous, a bit slow, 'touched in the head', eccentric, etc. 

I was born with ADHD. Knowing what I know now, looking back over my childhood and watching old home videos, it's blatantly obvious. But no one even raised it as a possibility until I was in my late 20s. I was not actually properly diagnosed until the age of 29, this year, in 2017. This was after years of intense struggle and misery in almost every area of my life. Imagine what it would have been like 30 years ago. I think I can safely say that I never would have been diagnosed at all.

I won't dispute that there may be environmental triggers for ASD or ADHD or other related disorders. But please consider the fact that these disorders were rampantly underdiagnosed up until very recently, and we are in some ways playing catch-up now. Also consider that we as a society now see people with disorders like this more and more out in the open, openly acknowledged, treated, and advocated for, whereas before they might be the secret family shame, forced to hide their issues, or even locked up in a mental institution. Consider also that a great many childhood illnesses, pregnancy complications, birth defects or labour emergencies, which once would have often been fatal to the child, are now very survivable. Please consider all of these things before pointing the finger at "toxins" or "chemicals". People want to feel as though they're in control, that if they can scrupulously avoid the scary toxins they or their child will be safe. It's unpalatable to think that it may be caused by something completely out of your control - genetics, an unavoidable issue during pregnancy or delivery, or even random chance - but it's true.

[SilverBeach]

@lomo6, investigate root causes yes, but not oversimplifying the problem. That's good. I've accepted that I'm going to deal with weight for the rest of my life, and I no longer judge myself because I'm fat. I'm not at my largest or smallest, and Im OK with it. Fat can have a psychological impact also. Like I said before, it's complex, with medical and social factors coming into play.

[Knight of Ni]

Vaccines do NOT cause ADHD/Autism etc. They are the single most important public health advancement in human history. Every time someone mentions them in connection with other disorders it does horrible damage. 

[Dugg@rTime]

10 minutes ago, Knight of Ni said:

Vaccines . They are the single most important public health advancement in human history.

Hmm, sanitation and potable running water maybe?

[SilverBeach]

Antibiotics have been transformative for public health also. And hand washing by health care professionals.

[Dugg@rTime]

15 minutes ago, SilverBeach said:

@lomo6, investigate root causes yes, but not oversimplifying the problem. That's good. I've accepted that I'm going to deal with weight for the rest of my life, and I no longer judge myself because I'm fat. I'm not at my largest or smallest, and Im OK with it. Fat can have a psychological impact also. Like I said before, it's complex, with medical and social factors coming into play.

I've been reading stuff on the gut biome and while our knowledge of how it affects the rest of out body is still in its infancy there definitely seems to be some link between what flora we have and our tendency to overeat/ make "bad" food choices. It's been nicknamed the second brain due to its ability to influence us like a brain might. I watched a tv program where someone who'd had a fecal transplant to correct (some ailment I don't remember right now) and her food tastes changed afterwords. She craved/ fancied different foods to before. The conclusion being that her new flora wanted different food sources for themselves. It's obviously too simplistic to be a direct correlation but the "eat less move more" mantra is in itself simplistic too.

[12 Hungry Safety Pins]

Let's not forget the invention of beer as it was a much healthier drink than medieval water! :-D

[Ali]

4 hours ago, singsingsing said:

I was born with ADHD. Knowing what I know now, looking back over my childhood and watching old home videos, it's blatantly obvious.

ADHD is underdiagnosed in girls. It shows up a little differently in girls. Girls tend to be better at hiding learning disabilities by trying to avoid drawing attention to themselves.

[singsingsing]

8 minutes ago, Ali said:

ADHD is underdiagnosed in girls. It shows up a little differently in girls. Girls tend to be better at hiding learning disabilities by trying to avoid drawing attention to themselves.

Aaaand, welcome to the story of my life in a nutshell.  

[Jess]

3 hours ago, Knight of Ni said:

Vaccines do NOT cause ADHD/Autism etc. They are the single most important public health advancement in human history. Every time someone mentions them in connection with other disorders it does horrible damage. 

I should just copy and paste this response everyone this happens because this is exactly how I feel. People who intentionally mislead others on these issues are threats to public safety and no better then murderers. 

As to obsisity I think your all right. Portion sizes, types of food, abundance of food, and shifting cultural values all have a role to play. 

[Rachel333]

Last year I was diagnosed with inattentive ADHD. (That wording really annoys my doctor, as he thinks it should still be called just Add and that saying ADHD without hyperactivity "is like saying pepperoni pizza without pepperoni." ) I definitely never thought of it because I am so different from the stereotype of someone with ADHD, but when I read up about inattentive ADHD, especially as it appears in women, it sounded so much like me.

My dad is very similar, though he's not been diagnosed, but apparently most people with ADHD also have a parent with it. Interestingly to me, both my dad and I drink a ton of caffeine and it doesn't affect us very much, while the rest of my family is very sensitive to caffeine. My doctor says that he thinks my dad and I have both been unconsciously self-medicating with the mildly stimulative effects of caffeine.

[3SecondSideHugger]

I used to work on a healthcare team diagnosing Autism Spectrum Disorder in a research center. We were producing research to identify early signs in as young as 6 month olds. I’ve never seen an accurate portrayal of ASD in the media. Ever. Temple Grandin does amazing things- her media is worthwhile. 

 Part of our criteria for diagnosing ASD includes the IMPACT on the persons life. It is not a checklist. You may have a few characteristics, but is it negatively impacting your abilities? It is a series of observation, testing, measuring function, etc to receive a diagnosis. I still currently work largely with an ASD population and I did see some kids diagnosed young with what is probably just a language delay, that catch up with intervention and still continue to be labeled ASD  even though they show 0 signs a few years later. Sometimes parents pressure for a diagnosis for whatever reason. Sometimes kids have sensory difficulties or language delay and doctors give an ASD diagnosis because it will qualify them for insurance purposes to receive treatment that a family could otherwise not afford. 

I had such promise working at the research center that we would one day find some direct causes. We know risk factors now..(parental age, sibling with asd, etc) that we did not have confirmed when I was working in research. I still have great hope that we will discover so much more in my lifetime. 

[kacarlton]

Last year I was diagnosed with inattentive ADHD. (That wording really annoys my doctor, as he thinks it should still be called just Add and that saying ADHD without hyperactivity "is like saying pepperoni pizza without pepperoni."

Slightly off topic but I can’t resist. I eat at a local cafe every week that has flatbread pizzas on the menu, only they don’t have cheese. So I order the pepperoni pizza without the pepperoni. [emoji23]

[Knight of Ni]

I’ve read that new research is showing that the age of the father has some correlation to autism. 

[3SecondSideHugger]

9 minutes ago, Knight of Ni said:

I’ve read that new research is showing that the age of the father has some correlation to autism. 

Yes. There was also a recent study that showed babies born by C-section had higher rates of autism **not causation** just showed a link of possible underlying factors (maybe genetic) that led to the c section and also autism... typing on mobile I hope that makes sense

[Shadoewolf]

Undiagnosed and under-treated thyroid issues also play a big part in obesity. Doctors usually only test the TSH. If it hits normal range then they don't push further..Ask anyone who is hypo (under-active) how much you can diet and exercise and not get anywhere. And part of that is because badly treated thyroid issues can cause adrenal fatigue, which for most people presents as high cortisol, the stress hormone that causes our bodies to store fat. Hypothyroidism also makes most people tired and can present with arthritis type aching in the joints. Finding the motivation to work out when you feel like crap is tough. To say it’s simple as eat clean and exercise is just not the case. Now I admit, I DO roll my eyes a bit at the lady in McDonald's who is so big she needs a scooter, but proceeds to order and eat 2 full Big Mac meals. And I want to smack parents whose kids are already huge by the time they're 7 or 8 and the food in the check-out line is nothing but cookies, chips, sugar laden cereal and processed junk. I know there is 'some' genetic factor there. A few kids on my son's hockey team are bigger boys.  But those kids also skate hard 1.5 hours a day, 3 days a week and aren't winded. If they're bigger, it's because they are solid, not because of food or lack of exercise. 

Also, I invite people to check out your local butcher. Not the supermarket but a small kinda place. Even better, find a place that does Halal or Amish farms. Look at the size, color, and texture differences in meats that come mass produced vs. those that aren't. Your typical Tyson chicken breast is bigger than my hand but locally farmed chicken without all the additives can fit 'in' my hand. The color and grind texture of beef from mass fed cows is entirely different than what your local farmer is eating.  The US allows our food to be full of crap that other countries have banned completely. 

I'm going to say the same with depression. It's not so simple as a person just taking their meds and they'll be better. And sometimes the side effects of the drugs are worse than the disease itself!  Hubby has depression and Bi-polar II, and finding the right med combination has been both timely and costly, even with insurance. Paxil made him suicidal. Lexapro made him unable to produce any sort of emotional response, even when his beloved grandfather died and left him like a zombie most of the time.  Celexa didn't help for his symptoms. Effexor blew his already high blood pressure into stroke range. Trileptal is counter-indicated for anyone with a history of kidney stones. Insurance won't cover some of the newer drugs and they're $1,000+ a month without insurance. Hubby is finally on the right combo but it has taken YEARS. And with psych meds you never really know how it makes a person feel inside their own head.