fatties

Well I consider myself to be on the portly side of obese (kinda cuddly in a nice santa/ teddy bear way rather than a large walking tub of lard. I know it is subjective, but for the moment I am the right side of the fat line, only just mind).
The obesity row has been going on for sometime, and looking around you can see a lot of fat people getting fatter (I can also see a lot of men wearing their trousers beneath their arses which is equally disturbing).
There are lots of reasons for the growth of girth (fuck that is good I am copyrighting that right now). The decline of competitive sports in schools, the lack of school playing fields, the growth of stranger danger which stops kids playing out in the street, the growth of sedentary activities such as computer games, tv/dvds and the internet, longer working hours, the prevalence of fast foods, the composition of foods the list can go on and on.
there is a class issue here in that often the most at risk are the poorest. the ease of fast food and ready made meals make them an all too often first choice (I have to put my hand up here and say “it’s a fair cop guv, guilty as charged”) rather than get hold of individual ingredients and cook a meal.
So obesity grows (well it could hardly shrink) and we are storing up problems for the future in the same way porkers store transfats (see now that is what I call comedy).

Sure there are people who are genetically predisposed to be on the large side, there are some who have medical conditions that make them pile on the pounds.
The fact is that most of us who carry a few too many extra pounds and stones around with us are victims of our own desires and laziness. We eat too much and we do too little so we become fat, fatter and fattastic
We can blame who we like but in the end we are the people who stuff our faces.
It is we who need to get a grip on our habits and resist.

The state can play a large part. It can do it through education by explaining that what a healthy lifestyle is and how we can maintain one, encouraging exercise. It can do it by law by requiring that food manufacturers adopt an easily understandable labelling system that allows the consumer to know what they are buying (a simple warning: “steer clear of this if you don’t want to break the scales” would suffice). the state could look to make sure that there are local leisure facilities available at reasonable prices.

All that said a little more moderation on the subject wouldn’t be a bad thing.
We’ll ignore the talk about body mass index, which goes out the window if you exercise a lot.
But it is hard to pass up on the hyperbole of obesity being as serious a crisis as climate change (here, dear reader, I am assuming you agree that such a thing is occurring).
Look I am the first to admit I don’t know the science behind climate change but I am happy to believe it is taking place and that it affects us all. We can see it with increased risk of flooding (hell even the rich are affected as it is buggering up their skiing), the growth of more screwy (it is a technical term) weather patterns in the uk. Globally more and more are at risk from hurricanes, tornadoes, and tsunamis. We run the risk of more skin cancer, but better tans, because the ozone layer is depleted. We are seeing the seasons in some regions change and this affects the ability to grow foods.

If the potential outcomes of climate change come about then the future of the world and humanity are somewhat bleak.
If more people become obese it just means they have to wear stretch pants and wobble along the street. Sure they will die earlier – but it is their choice.
I suppose there is the problem that maybe all the fatties jump up and down at the same time – then we would see a tsunami or two. Perhaps there maybe an issue of the methane released by porkers could bring about the quicker depletion of the ozone layer.

I am not denying it is a serious issue, it is an issue that is expanding – but it is also one in which the individuals have to take responsibility for their own lives and their own choices.
Next time I am reaching for that cream cake, I will stop and think twice and go get some fruit.