Date: 12/30/2003 1:34:00 PM
From Authorid: 18928
interesting!  |
Date: 12/30/2003 1:42:00 PM
From Authorid: 36704
I disagree, it's cheaper to buy a bag of oranges or apples than it is to buy a bag of doritos. Fresh fruit and vegetables are not expensive. I would say it's more that they see junk food as one of the few luxuries they can afford. They may not be able to afford to take their whole family to movies or go on vacations but they can buy junk food to enjoy while they sit around and watch tv. So I don't think it's that they can't afford the healthier food just that they buy the other stuff as "treats" for their families.  |
Date: 12/30/2003 1:52:00 PM
From Authorid: 19092
I gotta go with Base on this one. Plus, today as opposed to times since lost, there is much more "inactivity". We were always very active growing up. Like neighborhood football games, softball, dirtbikes, etc. etc...Today, kids sit around and play computer or video games. Adults sit in front of computers, kinda like what I'm doing now...LOL. We need to get off our butts and get active again.  |
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Date: 12/30/2003 1:57:00 PM ( From Author )
From Authorid: 62410
True true King Caspian, but the poor I think they are talking about in this study are the ones who can't even afford a bag of dorritos... the ones who live on fatty hamburger, potatoes and mac and cheese -- it's all carbs and fat. |
Date: 12/30/2003 2:08:00 PM
From Authorid: 59876
that can be true about the fruit, but it is also true that many super starchy foods like potatos, instant potatos, mac and cheese, etc. are dirt cheap. lean meat is not cheap, but fatty roasts and greasy chicken are. all the cuts of meat we buy for this house must be super lean because of my mom's heart attacks. the more you reduce the fat, reduce the sodium, reduce the sugar, the more expensive the bill gets. i can buy a big bag of lays potato chips for a buck nintey nine on sale, but have yet to get wow doritos for less than four bucks. my family eats tons of fruit and we buy it at costco at a great price, but for that priveledge, we fork over a hundred dollars a year. not only that, fruit does not satisfy cravings. personally, i think education and balance are the keys. ever since my mom had her heart attack right before halloween, i have stil eaten whatever i wanted, but i am also extemely aware of the consequences of each choice i made as soon as i start eating it.  |
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Date: 12/30/2003 2:14:00 PM
From Authorid: 36704
Mac and cheese and potatoes may be cheap but you can get canned vegetables and generic soup cheap also which has less carbs and less fat. Just because someone doesn't have a lot to spend doesn't mean they can't eat healthy. |
Date: 12/30/2003 2:25:00 PM
From Authorid: 33925
Being poor is not an excuse to eat unhealthy. I was a coordinator in a program a few years ago that helped low income people learn to cook healthy meals for their family plus learn to shop within a strict budget and still feed their family the things from all the food groups daily. Fruits and vegetables are not expensive, and even cheaper when you grow your own. As for meat, its not expensive to raise a cow or pig yourself and then have the meat cut for you. It gives you enough meat to last a very long time. You can eat very well on a very limited income.  |
Date: 12/30/2003 2:36:00 PM
From Authorid: 40530
I think that this may be true and may not be. My friend is called Emily, and her mother has her and another girl, Frannie, no father helping them out. She has to work and look after her children, as well as shopping and keeping the house clean. She doesn't have time to cook, she has to grab what she can get, which means that these things may be fatty. I know that it's easy for people to eat well with not much money, but they need time to prepare the food. Good post  |
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Date: 12/30/2003 2:41:00 PM
From Authorid: 19092
I live on that stuff, and I'm not even poor, LOL. |
Date: 12/30/2003 3:48:00 PM
From Authorid: 20497
I do agree that there is an issue here that needs to be dealt with.......... bu there are many causes of obesity........ many  |
Date: 12/30/2003 4:05:00 PM
From Authorid: 62023
I grew up in a large family, where dad worked and mom stayed home. There were many "lean" times as far as the money coming in. We did have a few snack foods around, but still none of us were overweight. I think it had a lot to do with activity, and the fact that Mom was at home to prepare home-made meals and snacks. We were always outside playing and not lying around watching TV, or playing video/computer games. I think it's also the convenience food factor that's really doing the most damage. Convenience foods - prepackaged, loaded with corn syrup, enriched white flour, partially hydrogenated oils and other additives - are cheap, fast and the first thing busy moms and dads will grab. You add that to lack of activity, and there you have it. I think low income families can afford healthy alternatives (we did), but need sound nutritional advice. Doctors do not give a lot of nutritional guidance to their patients. Community efforts to educate people are on the rise, and maybe that's what will make the difference. I wish all pediatricians would counsel new parents on lifetime nutritional and exercise habits more thoroughly. Maybe that's where it needs to begin. Great topic!  |
Date: 12/30/2003 5:59:00 PM
From Authorid: 54968
Interesting post.  |
Date: 12/30/2003 6:09:00 PM
From Authorid: 62503
wow... quite interesting  |
Date: 12/30/2003 8:02:00 PM
From Authorid: 34476
I think that only in America do the "poor" have a weight problem .....  |
Date: 12/30/2003 8:05:00 PM
From Authorid: 24732
I think it probably has more to do with their location. If your family has more money you usually live in a nicer area with more places to excercise and move around. Some poor people live in neighborhoods with crime in them, so they are discouraged from going outside. Who wants to jog
around in a neighborhood with drive by shootings going on around you? Sure they could excercise inside, but that would be unlikely.  |
Date: 12/30/2003 10:22:00 PM
From Authorid: 3321
Having been there, still kind of there, and in college at that, the cheapest foods are those highest in carbs, fats, and trans-fatty acids. Just look at your grocery store shelves. Pasta, bread, macaroni and cheese, snack cakes, etc. It is all food that is not healthy when the diet is entirely centered around it. On the other hand, I'm lucky if I can afford to buy lettuce and salad dressing once every few weeks. I enjoy eating healthy, but the college budget doesn't allow it, and nor does the budget of someone at poverty level allow it. Its common sense.  |
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Date: 12/30/2003 10:26:00 PM
From Authorid: 3321
Yes, but Base, a can of vegetables doesn't make a meal like a box of spaghetti does. Its pretty clear those of you who disagree have never been worried about whether you'll be able to even eat more than once in a day-just go look at your grocery store-what person with 4 or more mouths to feed and $5 to spend on dinner is going to get a few cans of vegetables when 2 boxes of pasta and a couple of jars of sauce will feed the family for 2-3 days. Use your head. |
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Date: 12/31/2003 1:19:00 PM ( From Author )
From Authorid: 62410
Lady Luck: Your scenario is only meant for people who own a piece of land... most poor people I know don't make enough money to have a piece of dirt to grow their own veggies or raise a cow -- not to mention, it totally leaves out urban dwellers. Not all poor people live in the sticks. |
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Date: 12/31/2003 1:21:00 PM ( From Author )
From Authorid: 62410
Good point CASSEOPEIA - I agree, lack of activity is a major factor. |
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Date: 12/31/2003 1:24:00 PM ( From Author )
From Authorid: 62410
Nice arguement PERSEPHONE. |
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Date: 1/1/2004 10:48:00 AM
From Authorid: 36704
"84% of the poor say their families have more than enough to eat, 13% say sometimes they do not, and 3% say they often do not have enough to eat" Having to eat spaghetti three days in a row isn't going to make someone overweight. The ones that have more than enough to eat can buy better foods. Sometimes people run short of money, it happens. If it happens all the time for years, the person's an idiot. |
