General Medical issues thread

[Pushka]

Interestingly if I do the standard BMI calculation I come out as obese.

Those BMI don’t work for everyone though. And especially for umm, height challenged people. And muscley types too.

Im not into fat shaming but I’m also not into normalising the increasing girths of the population who then rationalise it against a disease when there are many other issues they can take responsibility for.

 

[love_the_life]

Those BMI don’t work for everyone though. And especially for umm, height challenged people. And muscley types too.

Im not into fat shaming but I’m also not into normalising the increasing girths of the population who then rationalise it against a disease when there are many other issues they can take responsibility for.

Are you calling me 'height challenged'?
But yes, I agree withe the concept that you do have to take responsibility for what you eat. Part of the problem, I think, has been the 'Americanisation' of portion sizes - the amount of food on some plates is mid-blowing. And I bet many have heard people complain about the small portion sizes on some cruises (which for me is plenty) and then the advice to just order two main meals. I've even seen Australians do it now.

 

[Pushka]

Are you calling me 'height challenged'?

A little. On the other hand you can put your hands flat on the ground with knees straight. I’m impressed.

 

[cove]

My BMI would be much better if I was 50% taller so I blame my parents.

 

[Pushka]

My BMI would be much better if I was 50% taller so I blame my parents.

There you go. Genetics!

 

[JohnM]

Choose your parents carefully, kids .

 

[JohnK]

well I don’t believe in “shaming” anyone, but I am certainly not going to sit by and watch a very good friend eat himself to death and not try and encourage him to eat less.

I wish more people had said something to me when I went from ~99kgs to ~115kgs in less than 6 months after giving up smoking. Less than 2 years earlier I had gone down to ~93kgs so a huge weight increase in a short time.

Funnily enough this was the time my golf game started declining and my -itis issues started getting worse as the strain of the weight is too much on the body.

I'm currently ~120kgs and not feeling well. Lots of aches and pains. I'm trying to lose weight but struggling. A couple of times in the past 10 years I've gone down to ~104kgs and another time down to ~108kgs and each time felt great. I'll keep persevering.

But society has a huge problem and we're not doing enough. Most bodies are getting wider and wider. Once stretched it's very difficult to unstretch. You go home from work and the amount of vending machines selling junk in front of you is out of control. These should be banned.

The other thing is the availability of junk food. If you're obese the last thing you should be eating is an 800 calorie snack on your way home, or before a full lunch or aftera full lunch.

And no I don't agree with shaming but something needs to be done otherwise health spending will continue to increase.

 

[Katie]

I meant to add that the program didn't give a 'leave pass' to just shove everything and anything into your mouth and blame genetics. It was more that some didn't get fat on the 'traditional' stuff - which explains some of the people we see who go the full pizza and burgers thing, without much exercise and are still thin!

I remember reading a study in the Weekend Australian magazine years ago about weight loss. It was an Australian study, though IIRC there were international participants. One finding around the weight loss was that when people had lost a significant amount of weight, for months and even sometimes years afterwards, their bodies still reacted in certain ways as though they were still obese. Their bodies actually somehow tried to keep making them put weight back on. I remember there was one lady who found she had to exercise something like 6 hours per day to keep her weight loss off. I can't remember much more than that, but I found it fascinating to learn how the body - at least as far as this study claimed - fought you on weight loss. People are so often criticised for having low will power when they regain weight, but maybe that's not the complete picture.

On a more anecdotal note, in talking to a friend whose parents migrated from Italy, she does not experience the bloating/fullness sensation that I feel from eating pasta. Is there something to be said about her genetic influences coming from Italy??
I've heard similar anecdotes from relatives, with someone of Norwegian heritage marrying someone of Sri Lankan heritage, and as they compared how their bodies reacted to various food types, found they were quite different, and attributed those differences to the traditional foods of their (or their grandparents') home countries.

 

[Pushka]

I remember reading a study in the Weekend Australian magazine years ago about weight loss. It was an Australian study, though IIRC there were international participants. One finding around the weight loss was that when people had lost a significant amount of weight, for months and even sometimes years afterwards, their bodies still reacted in certain ways as though they were still obese. Their bodies actually somehow tried to keep making them put weight back on. I remember there was one lady who found she had to exercise something like 6 hours per day to keep her weight loss off. I can't remember much more than that, but I found it fascinating to learn how the body - at least as far as this study claimed - fought you on weight loss. People are so often criticised for having low will power when they regain weight, but maybe that's not the complete picture.

On a more anecdotal note, in talking to a friend whose parents migrated from Italy, she does not experience the bloating/fullness sensation that I feel from eating pasta. Is there something to be said about her genetic influences coming from Italy??
I've heard similar anecdotes from relatives, with someone of Norwegian heritage marrying someone of Sri Lankan heritage, and as they compared how their bodies reacted to various food types, found they were quite different, and attributed those differences to the traditional foods of their (or their grandparents') home countries.

Isn’t there a natural tendency to stock up on fat stores when food is plentiful in case of famine later? Biblical use of words there! The issue is these days the famine in Australia with some sad exceptions never comes.

 

[Flying mermaid]

I remember reading a study in the Weekend Australian magazine years ago about weight loss. It was an Australian study, though IIRC there were international participants. One finding around the weight loss was that when people had lost a significant amount of weight, for months and even sometimes years afterwards, their bodies still reacted in certain ways as though they were still obese. Their bodies actually somehow tried to keep making them put weight back on. I remember there was one lady who found she had to exercise something like 6 hours per day to keep her weight loss off. I can't remember much more than that, but I found it fascinating to learn how the body - at least as far as this study claimed - fought you on weight loss. People are so often criticised for having low will power when they regain weight, but maybe that's not the complete picture.

On a more anecdotal note, in talking to a friend whose parents migrated from Italy, she does not experience the bloating/fullness sensation that I feel from eating pasta. Is there something to be said about her genetic influences coming from Italy??
I've heard similar anecdotes from relatives, with someone of Norwegian heritage marrying someone of Sri Lankan heritage, and as they compared how their bodies reacted to various food types, found they were quite different, and attributed those differences to the traditional foods of their (or their grandparents') home countries.

your body definitely fights you on weight. I don’t have all the scientific terms, but basically it is geared to compensate for weight loss, particularly quick losses. Hormones kick in and you become really hungry. Your body is also geared to conserve energy when deprived, so both of those make trying to lose weight a miserable exercise. Apparently the longer you have been overweight the more the hunger hormones kick in, so even when you are eating a normal amount your body insists it is still hungry. Some people are also genetically programmed to produce more hunger hormones.

What works for me is eating tiny bits less each day, until I start losing and then keeping on that until I reach my target weight. It seems to fool my body that I am not depriving it. Takes longer but then I don’t like diets - eat what I always do, just less of it.

 

[Flashback]

Choose your parents carefully, kids .

You can choose your friends but you can't choose your family!

 

[Milboo]

Those BMI don’t work for everyone though. And especially for umm, height challenged people. And muscley types too.

Im not into fat shaming but I’m also not into normalising the increasing girths of the population who then rationalise it against a disease when there are many other issues they can take responsibility for.

But you do - you judge people based on what you see on their plate in a cafe, knowing nothing about them.

Back in my Uni days, I was about a size 18. A close friend was a size 6-8 and probably was 30kg lighter than me. She ate junk food almost every day and did not exercise. I was more balanced in my diet and played 2-3 games of indoor netball a week, rollerbladed (it was the 90s), swum and hiked around a campus to lectures. But she was perceived as being the healthy one even though I ran rings around her.

And before people spend too much judging women who are larger in the bum, thighs and legs. They may be one of the 11% of women who suffer from lipoedema (no, not lympoedema). And live daily with painful legs that feel like your feet are weighed down with concrete, easy bruising, swelling and mobility constraints. And knowing they live with a condition that is outside of their control given its genetic and usually triggered by puberty (pregnancy and menopause also affect it) and have it as a life sentence unless they undergo liposuction (that gets no recognition on Medicare). And otherwise need to get to wear uncomfortable compression to help manage it. And no - no amount of dieting or exercise shifts lipoedema fat.

Written as I sit with my aching legs up on the couch after ironically being too active today, eating ice cream (direct from the tub no less).

 

[cove]

Had a call from my family member saying he was being released from hospital yesterday and would need 6 weeks of quiet time to fully recover from the removal of his cancer ridden bladder. His mate is a pathologist and advised him to get the bladder removed as the type of cancer was aggressive and a killer if it escaped thru the bladder wall.

 

[love_the_life]

Had a call from my family member saying he was being released from hospital yesterday and would need 6 weeks of quiet time to fully recover from the removal of his cancer ridden bladder. His mate is a pathologist and advised him to get the bladder removed as the type of cancer was aggressive and a killer if it escaped thru the bladder wall.

Friend of my mother had a similar operation though she was late 80s. They did a very good job.

 

[tgh]

4102.0 - Australian Social Trends, 2007

 

[Pushka]

Dammit. Now I’m desperate for ice cream. Luckily I can’t leave home because the front door has just been painted and has to stay open for 8 hours.

 

[Flying mermaid]

Dammit. Now I’m desperate for ice cream. Luckily I can’t leave home because the front door has just been painted and has to stay open for 8 hours.

The thought of ice cream made me desperate as well - I love ice cream! So I went and had a teaspoonful and then because all my joints and muscles are killing me (rain?), I weakened and had a second teaspoon.

I really thought I was making progress with my statin induced problems, but the last two days have been miserable. I tried to pick up my 5kg dog yesterday and almost dropped him - just couldn’t take the weight. I am sure the rain has made it worse! 4 weeks on Monday since I stopped and 4 weeks until we go away. Have to get it better by then! Am doing some gentle exercises - stretching etc. I used to walk at 6 on the treadmill and steepest incline, now 4 on the flat feels like I am pushing it.

 

[tgh]

Treadmills are boring instruments of torture.. take a dog and walk somewhere interesting….

 

[Flying mermaid]

Treadmills are boring instruments of torture.. take a dog and walk somewhere interesting….

I do both - dogs get a walk every day - although when we have the beagles that has changed to the dog park, as the last time me we took them for a walk they saw a rabbit an almost pulled Mr FM over and their extend a leads tangled around my legs and caused some bruising . Now we load all 4 dogs in the car and go to the dog park, unless Ms FM and SIL are around. Not anywhere as good exercise wise as a walk, but what can you do,

I actually like my treadmill - I have an audio book that I listen to, so it’s not boring and because I have it at home, easy to use when I have some spare time.

 

[Pushka]

The thought of ice cream made me desperate as well - I love ice cream! So I went and had a teaspoonful and then because all my joints and muscles are killing me (rain?), I weakened and had a second teaspoon.

I really thought I was making progress with my statin induced problems, but the last two days have been miserable. I tried to pick up my 5kg dog yesterday and almost dropped him - just couldn’t take the weight. I am sure the rain has made it worse! 4 weeks on Monday since I stopped and 4 weeks until we go away. Have to get it better by then! Am doing some gentle exercises - stretching etc. I used to walk at 6 on the treadmill and steepest incline, now 4 on the flat feels like I am pushing it.

How about swimming?