A day or two ago I was reading an article about obesity and dieting woes on a news website. Which news website I don't remember. Most likely CNN.
Part of that article dealt with the futility of fad diets which purport to magically melt the pounds away, effortlessly, magically succeeding where all other diets have failed.
One bit of information struck me as odd, that being that over 30% of the American population have no understanding of the rudimentary reality of the fact that if one consumes more calories than ones body uses that that excess calorie consumer is going to gain weight.
I have observed up close and personal the feeding habits of a person with no understanding of the concept that eating calories in excess of ones caloric needs is going to be stored as fat.
This particular person whose eating habits I've observed up close and personal is morbidly obese. She knows she is morbidly obese. She knows she overeats. And yet she continues to do so.
A few examples of what I observed of this person's feeding habits.
She was going to Weight Watchers. And at that point in time she had actually lost quite a bit of weight, now all re-gained, plus a couple hundred new pounds. She had been to a Weight Watchers meeting before picking me up to take me from one location to another. On the way she asked if I was hungry. I indicated I was. So, we stopped at a Metzel's. We ordered the turkey dinner. She asked for an extra side of cranberries. I asked if this turkey dinner was okay with Weight Watchers. She said she'd add up the points and make up for it later. Whatever that meant.
And then, with the turkey dinner finished, the waitress showed up and asked if we would like dessert. I said no thank you, while the Weight Watcher ordered a double hot fudge brownie sundae. I was appalled. And more appalled when I saw the big plate covered with brownies, ice cream, hot fudge and whipped cream.
She ate the whole thing.
A week later I was with the Weight Watcher and others at an excellent Indian restaurant. By the time dinner was over I was completely satisfied and full. The Indian restaurant offered no desserts which met the Weight Watchers sweet needs. And so, as we drove away, the Weight Watcher directed her husband to go to a nearby fast food joint where she special ordered something she must have special ordered many times previous, that being a large container intended for a milkshake, but instead filled with soft vanilla ice cream and hot fudge.
A few days after observing the milkshake-sized hot fudge indulgence I was in a grocery store with the Weight Watcher.
I saw her put fresh green beans in a bag and into her shopping cart. I thought, well this is a level of healthy I've not often observed from the Weight Watcher.
Next in the cart was bacon. What is the bacon for, I asked? To cook with the beans, replied the Weight Watcher.
Next she stood as if mesmerized by a box of chocolate chip cookies, as if trying to resist the impulse, when she suddenly struck with a swift grab and tossed the cookies into the cart.
Next in the cart were three donuts.
Near the donuts was an in-house Starbucks. The Weight Watcher ordered a super sweet vanilla drink. I asked the super sweet vanilla drink maker how many calories were in the drink. Around 1,200 was the number she uttered.
Recently I read somewhere that some designator of such things, designated obesity as a disease. I don't remember if the determination was that it is a mental illness type disease, or not. But I suspect that is the reality, that being that underlying mental health issues are the underlying reason for the irrational behavior of sticking way more calories in ones mouth than one needs to live a healthy life....
