Letters to the Editor
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Another cute problem solved
I wonder how much thought Mr Wansink has given to a side of the overeating problem briefly mentioned by Barbara Ehrenreich in Nickel and Dimed. She observed that the homeless, unemployed, and underemployed frequently find themselves obliged to eat unwisely because of their limited ability to store food bought in bulk.
It's easy to criticize a poor person for blowing her food stamps on packaged and/or prepared foods that are limited in nutritional value, loaded with excess fat and carbohydrates - or both. If she lives in a $180/week motel room, though, leftover fresh lasagna and fresh Greek salad she made is going to perish pretty quickly, since such rooms rarely feature refrigerators. Too, baking is pretty much out of the question for the same reason. In fact, storage space of any description is likely to be severely limited, as are facilities such as ranges and kitchen tables.
It gets worse: if the only employment she can find is two part-time jobs - when does she have time for a lunch break that involves anything healthier than a bag of Doritos and a Dr Pepper? Especially if neither workplace provides anything as revolutionary as an employee refrigerator.
Speaking of sodas: does anyone recall, personally, consuming 6 1/2 ounces of Coca Cola in a glass bottle that cost five cents? Credit Pepsi for offering a larger portion for the same price. Now, we find conscientious mothers buying 2-liter bottles of soda for the price break - and little Spanky chugging the whole thing in the course of an evening. No wonder he's on Glyburide and 40 units of insulin a day.
Labor costs have risen so high that the large sizes (and larger portions, in restaurants) are easy to sell, since their labor cost is the same as that for a smaller portion.
Which, of course, brings us back around to SuperSizing - scooping 8 ounces of fries carries the same labor cost as scooping 4 ounces of fries - and the customer thinks she's being fiscally responsible - although Herb has certainly been sitting farther from the dinner table, lately, since he's developed that gut.
Identifying cute reasons for overeating is fine; identifying the reasons that aren't so cute might actually be useful.
Naah.
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I'll chime in on the size debate!
At age 18, I wore size 8 and weighed 104 lbs. At age 29, I wear size 0, and weigh 100 lbs. Believe me, I didn't get any smaller, but the clothes sure did get bigger.
In fact, it's gotten so bad that I can't even shop in normal department stores anymore. There, my choices are usually limited to a single style of girls size 14 jeans, often with garish red hearts and/or sequins. For the longest time, my clothing was dictated by whatever happened to fit, not by any sense of inner style (except to avoid the obviously awful). When you've only got one choice, you can't pretend that you are choosing.
Finally I discovered upscale and designer stores. There, I guess, they cater to people my size. Thinness is present only among the wealthy?? It's kind of neat to discover designer fashions for the first time, but the truth is, I'd be perfectly happy in "normal" clothes. If one of those discount clothing warehouses like Target would just carry a decent selection of 0's, they'd see quite an uptic in business from those of us who haven't supersized.
As for how I've managed to stay thin- it's called exercise. Just a little bit, every day. And I avoid anything packaged, sodas, and juices, except OJ when I'm sick. Honestly, no matter what it says on the outside, if it's processed and encased in cardboard or plastic, it's not good for you- don't kid yourself. Otherwise I eat as much as I want of whatever I want whenever I want (incuding ice cream, desserts, etc). No anorexia here!
It's actually really easy and tasty to eat well and I've always been a little confused as to why more people don't. Maybe we all need cooking lessons?? My personal hint- when you do cook for yourself, slather on the salt and oil; you cannot possibly add as much as a restaurant or a bag of potato chips, and if you don't, a lot of your food will taste mediocre and you will end up eating out instead.
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food used as comfort
As with other types of substance abuse which also predictably lead to illness and early death, a very high fraction of dieters will relapse, and they will gain back much or all of the weight lost.
Relapse occurs because the underlying psychological distress and inability to self-regulate negative impulses are rarely successfully addressed. Part of successful substance abuse treatment can be identification of and coping with cues or “triggers”: the odor from a bong or buttered popcorn; the sight of a Big Mac or a syringe; and especially the social pressure to use exerted by other users, whether around a holiday table or a keg.
But even if all of the external cues, like those discussed in the interview, could be eliminated or managed (and with food this is practically impossible), what remain are the internal triggers – those feelings of worry, fear, emptiness, rejection, loneliness, inadequacy, etc. – that lead the user to reach for food (or other substance) for comfort, to manage the negative feelings. Until some level of insight and self-regulation of these feelings is gained, risk of relapse will remain high.