Being skinny and GDP

[sinui]

I read this on this blog: the writer compares bmi in different developing/developed/3rd world countries and the matter of being SKINNY...
Japan was the only country which as the GDP increased, weight remained 3rd world-like..



The comment by VESPERS is also interesting, would like so feedback on it.

Now keep in mind it's a BLOG and has NO references. Just want some opinions, and if possible from pros =)

(thought my old title was misleading so remade it)

 

[Camy]

Ok, you wanted my view, so sure if the GDP is really low, people starve, they are underweight, now if the GDP is high people have a lot of money which equals a lot of food and they get fat. But it ain't that easy.
I live in a country with a GDP of 700 dollars which makes it one of the lowest countries (high in the lowest category but still lowest). People here are not starving though (mostly), but they eat a very unbalanced diet, because carbs are cheap and veggies are expensive, so people eat a diet based on carbs and fat. Not surprisingly people here are obese, not everyone, but a lot of them. The same happens in Mexico, the GDP in Mexico is way higher than here in Ghana, still they are not up there with Europe or the US, Mexico has a very large number of obese people. Why? Because junk is cheap and gyms are expensive.
When you are poor you will have to settle with what you can pay, and you will be working a lot, so not a lot of free time. If what you can pay is junk full of fat, and your job is to sit all day selling stuff, then you will get a lot of cals in and not so many out. If you are in a rich country only have to work 8 hours a day and can afford nice food then you can afford to be skinny too, because you will be able to pay for a gym, a trainer, workout DVDs and a DVD player.

Also in Ghana we have almost no anorexia bulimia problem. I mean sur ethere are some kids who do have ti, but the % is way lower than in Europe. Why? I am guessing when you are poor you do not give that much importance to your looks, it is more about survival. If survival renders you chunky, well you know what count your blessings, you had enough to eat at all times!

If the GDP is ridiculously low (Niger has a GDP of like 130 dollars, I think) then more people are starving, more people fall into the undernourished category and more people are "skinny".
So while the blogger pointed out something interesting with Japan having more skinny people, it does nto surprise me, it is in a way easier to be skinny if you have more money than if you have little!
Camy

 

[sinui]

=) thanks for your long informative reply! ... btw I have no opinion on the blog at all. I think statistics are skewed the way you want and they never show everything and can be interpreted differently too. Just wanted to spark some discussion.

First I'll agree that in westernized countries, or fast gowing developping countries: poorer people tend to eat more? junk food. But that isn't always the case and isn't because they're poorer. Education has its part to play and also how you have been taught by your parents and environment. Portion size are also major problems.

Saying that healthy food is expensive is a bad excuse to keep eating crap.
It's much cheaper to eat healthy home cooked food than eat junk outside whatever country you're in. Two: eating less is also cheaper, so eat less.
Unless you're in a starving community like the current Zimbabwe where any food is a luxury or in countries so poor they don't have junk food.

In greece, 50 years back people were horribly poor. Besides it never was a rich agricultural country. People weren't fat because they didn't have access to junk, and they cooked healthy home food as take outs didn't exist.
Too easy access to ready meals is more the problem than the cost of raw products.

Gyms are indeed expensive. And I agree that only relatively rich people have the time and money to afford it. Whether it's the cause that "poorer" people are overweight and rich people are skinny is stretching it. The only reason gyms are needed is because some people eat too much to begin with.

It's true tho that as you get more comfortable you have more time to worry about looks. But you can't generalize this into poor vs richer.

Where I disagree:
Unfortunately genetics has a lot to do with obese tendency and diabetes and latin-americans are first handedly more prone to it.

Not having free time doesn't mean weight gain. You just eat less. What might account for the overeating is probably an association of: new found steady food source, stress due to low work conditions and life conditions, lack of information on healthy cooking and portion sizes. Saying that rich westerners move more is non-sense. I spend all day in an office. I just know how much i need to eat to avoid gaining weight.

Just because you eat unhealthy doesn't mean you eat too much. It might lead to it as sugar and fat are known to increase hunger and cravings, leading to more eating.

^^; and it's not easier to be skinny if you have more money than less. Come on, look at the US, the UK, China! That's just japan, other countries have shown that as GDP increases, people get more comfortable, they eat more. And it's normal. We've been made to do so. The contrary is weird which is why japan was such an odd case.

=) hehe hope you don't take this as any offence. I prefer to point it out to avoid any misunderstandings!

 

[Jeanette401]

Saying that healthy food is expensive is a bad excuse to keep eating crap.

Sure, to the educated! Unfortunately, the lower income countries/areas also tend to be ones with lower education. Given that the for the vast majority of it's existence, the human species has been struggling against starvation and not obesity, just going with your standard instincts would encourage you to eat more. So I think it's very plausible that in areas where the population is not well educated (especially about nutrition) and they can afford pre-packaged, quick food that it'd be very common for people to go for the quick fix rather than making things from scratch. Especially if they're working 60+ hours a week just to make ends meet. Even though it would make sense to just eat healthier and less food... well, if these areas were better educated, would they have such a low GDP to begin with?

The question of Japan being an odd case... well, it could be in part that BMI is not the most useful measurement. Actual body fat would be better. What if it turns out that Japanese women have the same amount of fat, but far less muscle? I have no idea if this is the case, but given genetic differences, it's certainly a possibility. Or it could just be that they have better education, or that they have different customs...

Either way, I do think the curve of how easy it is to be skinny makes a dip and rise - very poor it's easy to be skinny. Comfortable, but sort of 'upper-lower' income and it gets harder, when you start going up again and can afford the time & expense of going to the gym, or buying healthier pre-made options (Whole Foods can have some eye-opening prices!) it gets a little easier. When you're Bill Gates rich and can afford a personal trainer and a chef it probably gets easier still

 

[Scorpiogal]

That comment by Vespers was actually more interesting than the blog entry itself (I think.) Can you just picture the outrage amongst the public if it was suggested that BMI standards change? LOL. Vespers made a very interesting point about "small-boned" and "big boned" too. I don't have a strong opinion about the article, but very interesting. Thanks!