Federal programs overfeed fat people

[CardiacCoug]

This article was amazing to me. The federal government buys food that makes poor people fat, but the part of the cycle that Mona Charen forgot to mention is that eventually the government has to pay for all the obesity-related health complications that food subsidies caused. If food programs were reduced, that would probably help reduce medical expenses as well. Win-win. Of course that will never happen.

http://article.nationalreview.com/43...nt/mona-charen

A funny thing happened on the way to preventing hunger among America’s poor — the nation got fat. And the populations most prone to obesity are the poorest. A 2006 study published in The American Journal of Public Health found that 35 percent of low-income three-year-olds were overweight — double the rate for the rest of the population. The prevalence of obesity among low-income women is 50 percent higher than among wealthier women, and the poor are disproportionately overweight at all ages and in both sexes.

[SeattleUte]

Good find.

Then the government will turn around and sue food makers for causing the government to spend more in health benefits. This circle is what happened with cigarettes.

[marsupial]

I have never been on WIC but I thought the only foods you could get on WIC were things like formula, milk and cheerios. Is that not the case?

It is ironic how things have changed. Rich people are thin and poor people are fat. Processed food is cheap. You can get a lot of calories for very little money these days. That is the problem. Real nutrition from whole foods, however, is expensive.

[Slim]

I have never been on WIC but I thought the only foods you could get on WIC were things like formula, milk and cheerios. Is that not the case?

You can get just about anything with foodstamps though (which is actually fooddebitcard)

[Surfah]

Government cheese is packed with calories. Like Slim said EBT cards can be used on most any food. Some Papa Murphy's even accept them.

[Moliere]

It is ironic how things have changed. Rich people are thin and poor people are fat. Processed food is cheap. You can get a lot of calories for very little money these days. That is the problem. Real nutrition from whole foods, however, is expensive.

This is very true. Fast food is cheap and too accessible. As are potato chips, coke, ice cream, and a lot of other empty calorie foods.

One other thing is that poor people tend to less educated on nutrition and diets. That lack of education leads to poor eating habits, which leads to weight gain, which leads to obesity and other health issues. It's a sad cycle and too common. More education on proper diets and nutrition would go a long way....well it would at least if people would also follow what they know.

[frank ryan]

Government cheese is packed with calories. Like Slim said EBT cards can be used on most any food. Some Papa Murphy's even accept them.

Papa Murphys does take them because they don't sell already cooked food.
You can get anything food-related as long as it is not prepared

I think food stamps are one of the more successful government run programs. A lot of children don't go hungry because of the program.

[CardiacCoug]

I think food stamps are one of the more successful government run programs. A lot of children don't go hungry because of the program.

They don't go hungry, but they are overfed and then face a lifetime of obesity-related health problems.

[pellegrino]

Papa Murphys does take them because they don't sell already cooked food.
You can get anything food-related as long as it is not prepared

I think food stamps are one of the more successful government run programs. A lot of children don't go hungry because of the program.

what is the definition of "not prepared?" It seems like the only thing that keeps papa murphy's pizza from being classified as "not prepared" is that it hasn't been cooked. Would a calorie loaded frozen dinner qualify as not prepared?

Edit: I should say that I am in favor of the food stamp program, but I am ignorant as to how it is administered.

[frank ryan]

what is the definition of "not prepared?" It seems like the only thing that keeps papa murphy's pizza from being classified as "not prepared" is that it hasn't been cooked. Would a calorie loaded frozen dinner qualify as not prepared?

Edit: I should say that I am in favor of the food stamp program, but I am ignorant as to how it is administered.

You could get frozen dinners. But deli foods, like chicken strips would be a no-go

[frank ryan]

They don't go hungry, but they are overfed and then face a lifetime of obesity-related health problems.

The fact that a government program feeds people does not make it responsible for the obesity problem. More education and community health resources would help, not cutting food stamps.
Are food banks also part of the problem?

[pellegrino]

You could get frozen dinners. But deli foods, like chicken strips would be a no-go

That seems ridiculous to me. In many cases the frozen dinners are just as bad if not worse than the deli foods, but because they can't be consumed immediately they aren't considered prepared foods. I would think that the gov would want to promote healthy living with their food stamp programs. There's a lot of crap out there that under this definition of "not prepared" really shouldn't be eligible for the food stamp program, if an aspect of it is to promote healthy food.

[frank ryan]

That seems ridiculous to me. In many cases the frozen dinners are just as bad if not worse than the deli foods, but because they can't be consumed immediately they aren't considered prepared foods. I would think that the gov would want to promote healthy living with their food stamp programs. There's a lot of crap out there that under this definition of "not prepared" really shouldn't be eligible for the food stamp program, if an aspect of it is to promote healthy food.

I don't think I disagree with you. I suspect one problem may be that increasing nutritional education and program oversight would cost money, even if it would ultimately save money spent on healthcare.
All that said, it is still a great program.
Having access to government assistance doesn't cause poor people to develop bad eating habits, if anything it makes them less reliant on fast food.

[CardiacCoug]

The fact that a government program feeds people does not make it responsible for the obesity problem. More education and community health resources would help, not cutting food stamps.
Are food banks also part of the problem?

I think food stamps are a good thing.

But while they originally served an invaluable role in preventing malnutrition and starvation, now they seem to function in large part to fuel obesity, diabetes, heart attacks, kidney failure, strokes, arthritis, and other health problems in poor people.

I agree that education on nutrition is important. But maybe cutting back on food stamps is also part of the solution.

[pellegrino]

I don't think I disagree with you. I suspect one problem may be that increasing nutritional education and program oversight would cost money, even if it would ultimately save money spent on healthcare.
All that said, it is still a great program.
Having access to government assistance doesn't cause poor people to develop bad eating habits, if anything it makes them less reliant on fast food.

If your definition of fast food is cooked in a commercial kitchen then yes, it does prohibit them from relying on fast food restaurants, but that doesn't mean they buy better food. Have you seen the frozen food sections of most grocery stores? In most they take up to 1/3 and in some as much as 3/5 of the store. Most frozen dinners (and especially the cheapest ones) are horrible dietary options. It seems to me that those on food stamps are able to easily trade one bad fast food option for an equally bad frozen (still fast) food option.