AMA Made a move to classify Obesity as a disease

So, I commute to work on a commuter bus as I live 25 miles north of downtown Atlanta, and I heard some people talking about the recent news announcement the AMA is going to classify Obesity as a disease.  Well, the comments were basicly inline with those about welfare. "... Just a bunch of fat lazy people who stuff their mouths..." Akin to "Lazy people who will not get jobs". We, have a different perspective because we live with this every single day.  All of us have struggled with weight loss our entire lives (Flashbacks to Sears "Pretty Plus" or "Husky").  How cruel of a world to stand in judgment of others? Alcoholism is a disease, but we do not hate those who cannot turn away from the bottle... so why are we different?

I applaud this move by the AMA, not only because it benefits me (insurance, co-pays) but because it is a certain amount of validation that what I have experienced and others like me is real, and not just a manifestation of gluttony.  My father has had 4 heart attacks, and two bypass surgeries.  My mother is diabetic and in renal failure, therefore she is on dialysis.  My sister who is 42 and mother to three of the most precious little girls in the world (Okay I am partial) is on the kidney donor list. No, she is not diabetic but has been overweight her entire life.  My eldest sister is banded and that is how she maintains her weight. 

As you can see obesity, heart disease, diabetes, PCOS, high cholesterol was in the cards for me and that is why I made the choice to have the DS. This is bigger than self control, however I do agreethat food was a coping skill I learned from my family... But then we get into the whole nature vs nurture thing.  How do you feel about this?

I feel it is part of a much bigger picture, and a cultural one.  I know I'm not the only obese person in the USA.  There are millions of obese people in this country - and we can't all be 'lazy assed people who can't push themselves away from the table.'  Now close to half the kids in the USA are over weight.

Americans love their cars, and my transit system stinks.  We have buses, metro, Bart, Caltrans, etc - but the system isn't synced up very well.  And it's expensive to use.  And it's complicated to learn.  Is your transit system any better?  So we do not walk very much - but in other countries they walk every where.

In other countries, people go for walks after dinner.  The shops are open, many offices and business re-open, and people are not sitting in front of their TVs every single night for 5 hours of mindless mental dribble.  TV tends to be expensive in other countries.  Many people in the USA are dropping cable because the cost is too high.  That's a step in the right direction.  I hope cable companies continue to gouge us until we drop our addiction to 52 channels and get off our couches in the evening.

We have a plethora of cheap, crappy foods with a shelf life of nuclear waste.  Look at your local grocery store.  80% of everything in that store is simple carbs.  In other countries, you go to the farmer's market and get fruits and veggies, milk and butter, and bread.  You don't have 52 different kinds of boxes of sugar coated breakfast cereals to choose from.

I was raised by a woman who grew up in the depression.  This creates a certain mentality that tends to be passed on to the next generation - security isn't based on your education or skills - it's based on a fully stocked pantry and freezer.  Yea, there are a lot of unhealthy ways of coping through foods and my mother knew them all.  But no one stepped in when I was a kid to teach her any different.  They are just starting to do that now.  And to take morbidly obese kids out of the home and treat it as neglect. 

It seems every country that is prosperous, that is part of the first tier super powers, is battling the epidemic of obesity in their populations.  It's cheap, crappy foods readily available to a barely moving population with a good care system. 

It's still cheaper to lay about at home and eat junk than do almost anything else.  Sad but true.  Economic hard times make it even easier to sit and console yourself with a bucket of crap from the dollar store.   Mom and dad are afraid to let the kids out to play so they buy another video game or computer.   Few areas have a vibrant city culture worth walking about and exploring.   The mom and pop stores are gone and a trip to the big box jungle is another frustration to be endured and certainly not a pleasure.  Life isn't much fun these days so many comfort themselves with food.

Poor is always relative and believe me I'm grateful for what I have.  But it's a new experience for me to not have everything I need and many of the things I want.  I used to run and exercise almost every day.  Now  I work a low wage job and I can't because my feet just hurt too much and I'm too tired.  Honestly the crappy job is much harder on me than real jobs with good pay and benefits ever were.  I can see myself getting more and more worn out.  I guess I should just be happy for all the years life was good.  I have always believed, and my recent experiences have helped convince me further, that poverty contributes tremendously to obesity.  Back in the Middle Ages fat was a symbol of wealth.  Today you look at a heavy person and odds are they are not wealthy.

Did you know we subsidize WalMart employees because they are so poorly paid they qualify for aid?  We as a society are going to be paying a huge debt for all the people who can't maintain a decent standard of living.  And forget the healthcare thing.  What that's going to be for a huge percentage of the working poor is just another tax.  A tax we pay because we are poor.  In reality the penalties are a 'poor tax'.  So no help there.

I've been around here for more than a decade.  For that period of time I've been saying over and over that obesity is a disease, not a character flaw.  And I still believe that statement is true.