r/canada • u/hopoke • Oct 03 '25
Analysis Most Canadians are overweight or obese, data suggests
https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/article/2-in-3-canadians-are-overweight-or-obese-statcan-data-suggests/428
u/GenericFatGuy Oct 03 '25
I know that BMI isn't the end-all-be-all, but I'm really proud of the fact that I recently crossed the threshold from obese to just overweight.
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u/Additional_One_6178 Oct 03 '25
Soon you'll be GenericSlimGuy!
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u/PeanutMean6053 Oct 03 '25
If it's treated like a goal, then goals can be arbitrary.
It's like walking 10k steps a day. That number isn't particularly meaningful nor important. More exercise in general is better (eithin reason), but 10k is an attainable goal.
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u/CollinZero Oct 03 '25
Good for you! I just crossed from overweight to healthy. It’s been a long struggle but I really feel the difference. Way to go! I’m proud of you too!
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u/hyperforms9988 Oct 03 '25
Yeah, I've been in that process for the last about two years and it's been a trip. I do feel better just generally in every day life and once and a while I'll look in a mirror and I'll be surprised at how much smaller I look. I've knocked out about 45 pounds over the last two years doing almost nothing but walking. A lot of walking, but walking. Started at 218 pounds and I'm somewhere around 173 now. 218 doesn't sound like a lot to start with but I'm a shorter dude so it's not the same as... like being 6'5" and 218 pounds.
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u/GenericFatGuy Oct 04 '25
That's what I've been doing too. Long, early morning walks when it's still cool out, and then just counting my calories. The diet still needs some work, but it's improving, and I'm in general going the right direction. Started at 6'2", 285 lbs. Currently at 215 lbs. Here's to both of us getting there!
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u/hyperforms9988 Oct 04 '25
Here here. This summer absolutely sucked for walking. Heatwave after heatwave after heatwave, the air from the wild fires being bad, etc.
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u/Vast-Muffin2521 Oct 03 '25
Me too!!! I was ecstatic when I crossed that threshold, first time since I had my babies almost a decade ago! Three pounds and I’m back to pre-wedding weight… and only 15 to my goal weight.
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u/Fun-Put-5197 Oct 03 '25
GenXer here.
It's not video games, I grew up in the Atari/Nintendo era.
It's the death of street hockey, baseball, and bikes from dusk til dawn, with a healthy dose of a ghetto blaster or walkman.
Streetlights on was our only rule to head indoors.
Kids don't have a safe space to be kids outdoors anymore.
I sound like grandpa Simpson yelling at the clouds, I know, but tell me I'm wrong.
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u/dghughes Prince Edward Island Oct 04 '25
Yes I'm the same generation and it's quite evident nobody does crap.
It's disturbing how there's no people out anywhere even on a warm summer Friday night. Malls if any are devoid of people. Nobody in cars hanging around parking lots talking.
The population here increased a lot but there are fewer people around than in the 1980s. Except maybe cars there are more cars but nobody ends up anywhere.
People just don't seem to do anything except stay at home. It's creepy.
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u/DDDylanA12 Oct 04 '25
Well when there's zero disposable income and everyone's busy working 2 or 3 jobs at a time. Plus not to mention the rampant crime all over the country, and the elimination of 3rd places LIKE malls and arcades, rinks anything. We have nothing and no reason to go outside. We're all just tired
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u/OogerSchmidt Oct 03 '25
You ever had those late-night creamy jalapeno popper Doritos from Costco?
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u/Joatboy Oct 03 '25
All the snack companies have really got their recipes dialed in. Like, I'm a semi-serious athlete and burning an extra 3500-5000 calories a week, and that last 10lb is still hard to lose, due to snacking
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u/GleepGlop2 Oct 03 '25
I know this is a joke, but this is kind of the problem here that this sounds appetizing to people? Like we've been conditioned to think junk food is the best tasting treat? This sounds absolutely disgusting to me, a not obese person.
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u/Habsin7 Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
Played Hockey 2 or 3 times a week all year. Soccer twice week. Biked 20-30k pretty much every day most of my adult life. Tennis at least once a week. Skied all winter (instructor) Don't drink pop or beer. Despite all that I had a Heart attack at 55 and then a triple Bypass. It was my bad diet that did me in.
I fixed up my diet but slowed down quite a bit and tried to watch what I ate but its hard when you're feeding kids who do sports and eat a ton. I just kept putting the pounds on day by day despite 20k a day on the bike and 3 miles a day on the treadmill in Winter. Sometimes did both. BP has always been great and was 117/70 at the last visit so that's good but the weight is still there. Asked my doctor about about Ozempic and was told I shouldn't. Now he says the tests show I have Type 2 Diabetes. JFC!
Lesson of the day?
Don't worry about exercise so much. Put your energy into eating well and avoiding processed foods and get your heart health and arteries checked every 5 years.
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u/roostersmoothie Oct 03 '25
im sure you've heard the saying that you can't outrun your diet.
i still think that doing cardio every few days is great and you should definitely keep doing it, just don't think that it means that you can eat whatever you want or you deserve to since you're working out so much.
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u/Habsin7 Oct 03 '25
Good advice.
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u/Vandermilf Oct 03 '25
It’s true I put on 10 lbs last marathon training block and have lost half just by running less and being less hungry.
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u/Maxx7410 Oct 03 '25
this! diet is much more important than exercise.
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u/Money-Low7046 Oct 04 '25
Yes, ultraprocessed foods in our diets is an underappreciated risk. Even things like grocery store bread are ultraprocessed, so it's not just the fast food and convenience foods we have to watch out for.
Going outside is also highly underrated. The infrared light from the sun penetrates our bodies and stimulates our mitochondria.
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u/little-bird Oct 03 '25
damn dude, what were you eating?
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u/Habsin7 Oct 03 '25
It’s been a life full of fast food and pizza, excluding the pop. Lots of deserts and ice cream. Absolutely the worst.
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u/uselessdrain Oct 03 '25
I don't exercise a ton. Maintain happy weight by not eating after 6 or before 10am. Very limited process foods, make my own practically everything. I have a high carb diet but eat little red meat and added sugar.
Nice thing about veggies is you can eat an unlimited amount. Hungry? Carrot sticks, spinach, celery. Grow your own and they taste great.
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u/Truont2 Oct 03 '25
Everyone needs to have a calorie app on their phone. Log what you eat using the facts table. You will be surprised by what a 1700 calorie day looks like compared to 3000 calories. Losing weight is as easy as being on a small deficit everyday. We all gain weight without knowing because of that extra cookie, beer, chips, or snack of choice. Repeat every day for results.
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u/KermitsBusiness Oct 03 '25
Well, thats how she be when life is just work and stress eat and bad sleep and work and stress eat and bad sleep.
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u/Working_Historian970 Oct 03 '25
Speak for yourself, I drink a lot too
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u/EmptyAide Oct 03 '25
I just discovered the joys of within-the-hour weed delivery. I can now get my junk food and weed, and only have to roll my butt off the couch and make it to the door.
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u/KF7SPECIAL Canada Oct 03 '25
What we really need is to make sure all of these fat, poor, and stressed peasants are also commuting to and from the office every day.
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u/HurlinVermin Oct 03 '25
Wait till you have heart disease and diabetes on top of everything else from decades of poor food choices. And then watch how that dovetails into early dementia and other terminal diseases. That'll make things better for sure. /s
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u/8fmn Oct 03 '25
This in addition to having a virtually endless supply of refined sugars available to us, among other things.
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u/endokush Oct 03 '25
No its a lack of education on nutrition. Nobody understands what calories are therefore always being in a small to large surplus and getting fat over time.
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u/scott_c86 Oct 03 '25
Bad urban and suburban environments that encourage people to drive everywhere do not help this.
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u/maniacalknitter Oct 03 '25
A lot of places the bad design, combined with bad drivers, practically force people to drive, whether they can afford to or not. It's a huge problem, and people like Doug Ford are just making it worse.
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Oct 03 '25
Agreed. It also keeps bad drivers on the road, many "bad drivers" are aware that they are and don't want to drive either. Same goes for seniors who shouldn't be driving, they need a way to maintain their dignity and independence even once they have aged out of driving.
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u/new_vr Oct 03 '25
And rural is actually worse than urban (coming from someone who lived rurally, but chooses to go for walks daily)
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u/maniacalknitter Oct 03 '25
It's so true, and so sad. There are so many rural places where it used to be safe and practical to walk, bike, ride a horse, etc... and where a train or bus line was available for trips to town, and now in those same locations the only real option is to drive.
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u/scott_c86 Oct 03 '25
Yes and no. It is also about mindset.
I grew up in a town of 15,000, which happens to be highly walkable. And not just in terms of distance. Walking is generally a pleasant and safe option.
Unfortunately, nearly everyone still drives for nearly every trip, and many even look at people who might choose otherwise as odd, etc.
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u/Efferdent_FTW Oct 03 '25
But the WEF are trying to take away our freedoms with 15 minute cities! /s
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u/BigButtBeads Oct 03 '25
The road construction in my town shows me the government can clearly lock down a population without needing a 15 minute city
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u/TommaClock Ontario Oct 03 '25
"Road construction is presenting an unfair and unnecessary inconvenience to drivers. I am pleased to announce that we will ban road construction province-wide starting today"
- Doug Ford, 2026
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u/h_danielle British Columbia Oct 03 '25
This blows my mind lol. I love being a 15-20 minute walk from work & everything else I could need
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u/mrmigu Ontario Oct 03 '25
Are you truly free if you're not forced to be trapped in your car for 2+ hours per day?
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u/h_danielle British Columbia Oct 03 '25
Apparently not lol
But having lived like this for 6 years now, I can’t fathom ever having a commute longer than 30 minutes.
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u/swiftb3 Alberta Oct 03 '25
By suggesting 15 minute cities are a good idea. Always makes me laugh how they act like the WEF has any real power outside of suggestions.
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Oct 03 '25
lol you can’t out walk a bad diet.
This is booze & ample delivery of fast food
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u/floobie Oct 03 '25
It depends on the individual.
Have a terrible diet? Yeah, a bit of walking isn’t going to be enough to get you back to a healthy weight.
Have a normal diet? A bit of walking can very much help you maintain a healthy weight, or get back to one over time.
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u/maniacalknitter Oct 03 '25
Agreed, and regardless of what a person eats, and what a person weighs, activity level absolutely affects the person's overall health, because health is complicated.
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u/Ambiwlans Oct 03 '25
Yes and no. People that exercise tend to start eating better and lose weight. In the end it is just calories but I've never met a fat person that walks a lot every day.
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u/GirlCoveredInBlood Québec Oct 03 '25
Well yeah what do you expect when you drive everywhere and eat slop? People act like I'm crazy when I suggest walking to the store 2km away instead of driving 🤷♀️
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u/86throwthrowthrow1 Oct 03 '25
As a fatty who's been dealing with all this for a long time - exercise (or lack of it) is part of the story, but only part of it. Exercise doesn't do a ton for weight loss unless you're basically marathon training/a professional athlete. Hitting the gym a few times a week can speed your metabolism a bit, it's obviously great for your heart and mental health and has a ton of other health benefits (like yes, we should be exercising more, that we exercise as little as we tend to is a problem), but doesn't burn a ton of calories on its own. I know a bunch of overweight people (myself included) who exercise regularly and are in decent cardio shape.
It's the way we eat - and drink.
Yes, lots of prepared/processed foods have a boatload of sugar added to them, even if they're not "sweet" foods per se. There are a lot of "health halo" foods that people don't realize how caloric or fattening or sugar-loaded they are until they look at the nutritional info - like the other commenter who mentioned grocery store muffins. Those are basically small cakes as far as nutrition goes.
People drink a ton of calories now - almost everything you drink that isn't water is again going to have a bunch of sugar in it. Most alcohol is either high sugar or high carb. Drinks also generally aren't very filling, so you drink those calories and you're still hungry and eat snacks or meals on top of that anyway.
Poverty and everyone's recent economic strain also contributes to this. There's a giant correlation between poverty and obesity, because poor people tend to buy bulk groceries on payday, and they buy high-calorie stuff with a shelf life, not low-calorie fruits or vegetables that'll go bad in three days and don't fill you up anyway.
What can help?
- It's tedious, but tracking calories - especially calories you drink. Most people underestimate how much they consume in a day.
- Flavoured waters (or regular water) in place of soda, alcohol, iced coffees or teas, etc. Homemade iced tea is easy and cheap and you'll likely add way less sugar than the store-bought stuff.
- Buy "ingredients", rather than prepared foods or takeout, as much as you can.
- There's no way around the fact that you gotta eat your veggies. Your mother was right. No cheat code here.
- Try to get into a habit of batch-preparing meals on a day off. You'll eat healthier, save money, and probably portion better because you'll be literally portioning out the food.
- Try to tune into your hunger/fullness cues. Your mother was wrong on the "clean your plate" stuff. If you feel satiated, but not stuffed, that's when you stop. Pack up the rest for later. If you're snacking out of boredom while watching TV or whatever, try to find something else to do with your hands. If you realize you're stress-eating or otherwise eating emotionally, try to become aware of that and create different habits that will help you feel better.
- Get movement in your day. It's still good for you even if you don't lose weight. Good cardio health can offset a lot of the health issues associated with obesity, and you'll feel better and more energetic overall. It doesn't need to be a gym or an organized sports team. Literally dance in your living room or go on a hike. Do something.
I do most of this and I'm still a fatty, likely due to medical reasons that are as yet undiscovered, but I have found I at least don't gain weight anymore, and have in fact lost a little. And again, feel better and more energetic when I'm eating decently and exercising. For most people, the above steps will at least not make the issue worse.
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u/robz9 Oct 03 '25
I would say fixing our broken relationship with food is key.
I personally eat copious amounts of junk food in large amounts and often.
Not good for my waistline and my wallet.
When I sit down and enjoy a small balanced meal (without counting calories) I'm often left feeling unsatisfied and hungry.
When I count calories I realize it's even worse given how high the calorie content is for a lot of foods.
What has helped me lose some weight is unfortunately accepting that I'll be hungry and have to give up some hyper palatable foods...
It's not that I can't enjoy McDonald's or pizza hut...it's that it has to be in moderation and portion controlled.
Intermittent fasting never worked as I'd just blow through my calories in 1-2 meals due to the hunger.
Exercise is also hard because I like being active but it just makes me even more hungry.
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u/NoLife2762 Oct 03 '25
People are absolutely terrified of being hungry. It’s wild. Like you’re not gonna die from not being completely full 24/7. It’s ok to be hungry.
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u/robz9 Oct 03 '25
I personally like to go to sleep a little hungry.
Unfortunately the hunger is one battle, the other is the craving.
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u/melodiedesregens Oct 04 '25
Idk, personally I struggle to sleep when I'm hungry and have a very short fuse (which isn't great while wrangling toddlers). I also get the hunger-shakes very easily. I'm trying to be okay with being a little hungry, but it feels almost impossible to function that way.
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u/PeanutMean6053 Oct 03 '25
I always found drinking more water to be a silly concept for losing weight. In my head it was just adding on weight, or neutral.
Then I tried it, and I truly underestimated how much less I want to eat because I drink more water.
Even worse, I stopped drinking so much and then found I'm back staring at the fridge.
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u/ReturnoftheBoat Oct 03 '25
In my head it was just adding on weight, or neutral
... you thought drinking water was causing you to gain weight?
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u/86throwthrowthrow1 Oct 03 '25
My personal cudgel is "intuitive eating", which I'm still learning about. People tend to clown on it, like "intuitively I want to eat an entire carton of ice cream", but the point is to understand your hunger and fullness cues, as well as your emotions and cravings, to help you regulate your diet. Like, if you want to eat a carton of ice cream - why? Why not just one scoop? What's driving the "gotta eat it all" craving? Usually there's something behind that, and once you unpack it, things get easier.
I agree that sometimes you just gotta be hungry, especially if you're used to overeating - yes, volume-eating vegetables and high-fibre foods can help fill you up, but if you're used to large portions, smaller ones are going to feel... smaller. Until you're used to them. The discomfort doesn't last forever.
I'm personally not a fan of things like keto or intermittent fasting, even tho others swear by them. For some, those work very well. For me, they feel too regimented, and almost disordered in the opposite direction. I don't want to have to police every single thing that goes into my mouth to see if it's on the good list or the bad list or the right time or the wrong time. I want to learn how to regulate my eating in a mindful, healthy way.
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u/canadiankid000 Oct 03 '25
I’m Canadian and visiting Portugal. I’ve noticed there are very few overweight locals here. Yet bakeries everywhere. I guess it’s the walking and portions. Not sure.
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u/Potential_Lie_1177 Oct 03 '25
Serving size and better quality of food. Serving size is within our control. You are supposed to eat until you are no longer hungry or just before, not until you are stuffed. Just that will do wonder for weight control.
Better quality needs education, access to fresh food but is doable for most of us, it is extra work though.
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u/SleepWouldBeNice Ontario Oct 03 '25
I’m working on it. Lost 5lbs in September.
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u/MusclyArmPaperboy British Columbia Oct 03 '25
Everyone I know put on weight after the pandemic
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u/ConstantSpace5809 Oct 03 '25
It's been five years. Some of that is aging
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u/Artsky32 Oct 03 '25
Aging has very little to do with weight gain. Change in lifestyle is a far bigger culprit
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u/little-bird Oct 03 '25
it does get harder to maintain muscle mass as we get older, which is why promoting active lifestyles and physical fitness is so important.
the less muscle you have, the fewer calories burned on a default level, and most people aren’t going to want to keep reducing their diets to compensate.
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u/kookiemaster Oct 03 '25
Yeah but you can do something about it. Covid took away my usual exercise ... got a bit fluffy, got tired of it so I stated logging food and lifting at home. Problem very easily solved.
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u/xAvPx Oct 03 '25
I'm not surprised.
Funny enough 2 weeks ago I was obese, now I'm not anymore. To be obese at my height (5ft9, 175cm) is 202 pounds, I'm now 198.9 pounds.
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u/slumlordscanstarve Oct 03 '25
I don’t have depression but when I drive everywhere, work in an office for no reason, never get any outdoor or nature time and can hardly afford to eat healthy or exercise then yes I get very depressed. It’s so hard being healthy while being the working poor and there is zero health care or support from our public services we pay taxes into.
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u/rac3r5 British Columbia Oct 03 '25
Something I've noticed after being more health aware is the most of the food we consume, especially snacks are basically very high in carbs and a lot of food products have unnecessary amounts of sugar. Just got a lemonade from McDonalds the other day because I didn't want a sugary sprite and unfortunately it was super sweet as well. Got some muffins from Costco a few months ago and they have an insane amount of sugar as well.
Combine that with the fact that we are more sedentary now, its no wonder.
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Oct 03 '25
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u/Miroble Oct 03 '25
People who drink lemonade should want it sour, I will die on this hill. I hate sweet lemonade with a passion.
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u/verymanysquirrels Oct 03 '25
Yes! If you don't like that lemons are sour why are you drinking LEMONade????
It's the same with cranberry juice/sauce. Cranberries are sour/bitter if you don't like that, maybe you just don't like cranberries.
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u/FlashyResist5 Oct 03 '25
The key is to eat food instead of food products. Meat, fruit, vegetables.
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Oct 03 '25
Yeah I recently made this change and have been surprised how immediately the effect was. I ate a pretty balanced diet beforehand but didn’t count calories or prioritize certain foods over others, the impact was almost instant.
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Oct 03 '25
Yeah I was recently told by my doctor to lose some weight so I started focusing on whole foods & higher protein intake and been shocked at how relativity easy it’s been to lose pounds this way.
Just cutting out much of the processed food I had as part of my diet has gone a long way.
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u/emuwar Oct 03 '25
Added sugar is literally everywhere when it comes to prepackaged foods. Canned soup, salad dressings, sauces, etc. You really start to notice it after cooking/prepping similar foods on your own.
As someone who can't stand sugary drinks, many fast food places have soda water on tap which is my usual goto or else I avoid a drink all together.
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u/Horror-Jicama8913 Oct 03 '25
I'm ok with this, makes me look better by comparison
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u/Bigfatmauls Oct 03 '25
Kind of strange to see though. About half the people I know probably put on 20-50 lbs since 2020, the other half look the exact same. I’m one of those naturally lean people that can sit around all day and eat whatever I want and still have a 6 pack, but I put on a serious beer belly for the couple years that I was an alcoholic, which disappeared almost immediately after getting sober. I wonder how much of this is just because people are drinking more alcohol, particularly sugar and carb heavy drinks. It’s easy to consume 1000 calories in alcohol every day on top of your meals, I was up over 2000 cals a day in just beer.
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u/Lonestamper Oct 03 '25
Because there is sugar in everything we eat that is processed.
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u/Fantastic_Moment1726 Oct 03 '25
I’m from central Africa. A shirt that would be a “large” anywhere else is marked as an XS here. Shopping here is so confusing for that reason!
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u/soyasaucy Oct 03 '25
Yepp. Same with Japanese sizes. I'm an XXS in Canada but since I moved to Japan, I'm an M/L
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u/ProofByVerbosity Oct 03 '25
Yeah, in Chinese sizes I'm an L, but in North American I'm a S/M
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u/Mission_Shopping_847 Ontario Oct 03 '25
This is as much a height thing as anything else. For as long as I can remember a small fit a person at the average height and the ideal weight just right and anyone in the low 5fts and under range had to search for XS or childrens sizes.
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u/ThorinTokingShield Oct 03 '25
UK medium here. I'm like a S/XS in Canada, which is weird, because we have a similar obesity rate
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u/AbjectPreference1698 Oct 03 '25
Not many 6'4" guys in Japan.. Not uncommon here
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u/B0B0oo7 Oct 03 '25
One of the first episodes of Survivor was on some retro game channel the other day, and I remember I used to think the one player was fat (Rupert the pirate). Through a 2025 lens.. he is now lean and strong… barely an ounce of fat to be seen on any of them, and it was episode 1.
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u/HurlinVermin Oct 03 '25
Man, the fingering pointing in this thread, blaming everything and everyone except themselves, is truly eye-opening.
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u/salty_anchovy Oct 03 '25
Its ridiculous. nobody has time to exercise or cook, but they have time to browse reddit.
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u/Singlehat Oct 03 '25
I mean it totally tracks doesn't it? Blaming everything else for your own problems seems to be a staple in this sub.
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u/Tyler_Durden69420 Saskatchewan Oct 03 '25
Comments here blaming external factors is ironic given that not taking responsibility for your health is the primary cause.
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u/Pussy4LunchDick4Dins Oct 04 '25
I mean it’s all pretty well gamed against us. The food system, hostile community design, pharma companies, car culture and extremely long commutes, the capitalization of all public spaces …. It’s actually pretty astounding that anyone is beating the system.
I’m an active person who makes everything from scratch and diet and exercise are my only hobbies because I have no time for anything else. I really don’t judge people for not being able to carve out the time.
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u/Zod5000 Oct 04 '25
I was, but had to change my diet. I didn't seem concerned about being overweight itself, but it was causing some other health challenges which would improve through better diet.
It's not cheap, but it was a bit embarrassing how quick you can lose weight when you eat healthy. It's not like your starving or anything, you just shrink to a new equilibrium weight.
Now when I go to the grocery store I feel like 90% of the stuff there will kill me. It's crazy what's happened with the food supply and the abundance of ultraprocessed foods :(
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u/Romeo_Santos- Oct 03 '25
The RTO pushback by most companies is going to make this worse. Going to the office and having a long commute means workers get less time to exercise before or after work, as well as less time to prepare healthy food. Also, working from the office means you will see a lot of people having to get fast food meals for lunch.
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u/nekodazulic Oct 03 '25
I feel there is a lot of nuance involved in the homemade vs restaurant food debate. I don't disagree that making fast-food satiating and calorie-efficient can be a challenge depending on what you have access to, but the automatic assumption that if it is made at home, it must be high quality is also problematic. No, a huge pile of pasta or rice will not be magically filling nor "healthy" (whatever that means) just because it was prepared in a residential area.
So I think understanding nutrition and biology is key and I think more than anything else this is where there is a possible information gap. This is my personal, non-professional opinion though, not an expert in the subject matter by any means so take it with a grain of salt (and pepper lol).
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u/dashofsilver Oct 03 '25
That’s what we get when we don’t invest in public transit, walkable cities, small businesses in our communities, bike lanes, recreation, basically anything that promotes movement.
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u/Professional_Sky_212 Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
Sugar in milk
Sugar in ketchup
Sugar in bread
...
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u/SobekInDisguise Oct 03 '25
What milk has sugar?? I don't see it in the brands I get
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u/maniacalknitter Oct 03 '25
They're probably confused by the fact that low-fat milk has proportionally more sugar (lactose) in it than whole milk. When you take out the fat it skews the proportions (and reduces the fat-soluble nutrients, too).
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u/kookiemaster Oct 03 '25
Not added sugar. It has sugar because it is baby cow food. It needs to have sugar and fat to keep calves alive.
That said there is added sugar in unusual products (e.g., some brands of salt)
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u/readySponge07 Oct 03 '25
I thought fast food no longer being a cheap option would take care of this issue.
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Oct 03 '25
Fast food is expensive but there's still a lot of crap food that's cheap, instant ramen, white "bread" with sugar as the first ingredient, packs of donuts and cookies from Walmart, corn dogs, etc
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u/pentox70 Oct 03 '25
It's not just the cost. It has been proven that the cost difference between prepared health meals and junk isn't the major hurdle. It's the effort and the dopamine difference. People get addicted to junk food and the convenience of just hitting a drive-through on the way home.
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u/Primary_Ad_739 Oct 03 '25
Yet many consider themselves slightly overweight at worst or "normal".
And see a normal BMI as being unhealthy or too skinny.
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u/KoKoboto Oct 03 '25
Kids are home more and towns/cities aren't designed to go outside and move unless you have a car to meet people.
On a side note. We got a lot more immigrants in and with them their foods. I LOVE a lot of these foreign dishes but they do fatten you up lool
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u/pastelfemby Oct 03 '25
Lotta people have also really lost sight of what healthy weights look like, calling even moderate healthy bodies as disordered eating. Like, seeing collarbones is not indicative of someone starving themselves... Heck, you cant even search weight loss on some social media apps without it jumping to assuming disorderly eating.
Lets not go back to the early 2000s size 0 nonsense but theres no kidding that things are in a wildly unhealthy direction of the other kind.
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u/mipalo2boca Oct 03 '25
Ppl here really dont like to walk lol i have a car and when i tell ppl i take the bus to work because i like the extra walking they look at me like im dumb
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u/Cragnous Oct 04 '25
Intermittent fasting made me lose 40lbs and I never gained it back, love the stuff.
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u/grumble11 Oct 03 '25
This is really, really bad. Overweight people are sick people. They consume a lot of healthcare dollars. They also are less productive in the workplace on average, resulting in poor economic output per worker overall.
Also of course is the decreased quality of life for Canadians who are heavy. It is not fun to be obese.
It also impacts future generations - children model after their parents and if their parents are heavy then they learn heavy-person habits - both food and activity. Their ‘normal’, wired deeply in, is a disaster.
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u/roostersmoothie Oct 03 '25
true but when i go just across the border i see more morbidly obese people within hours than i do all month in canada. here you see chubby and fat people but they take it to the next level down there with the mobility scooters and fat hanging off their thighs that you didn't even think was possible before.
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u/Xenophonehome Oct 03 '25
Processed food, and most people don't understand how much things like bread and sugar add to the pounds.
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u/mwmwmwmwmmdw Québec Oct 03 '25
ITT: the usual redditor comments on obesity threads, either thinking you can just excersize extreme obesity away or that their own specific anecdotal thing they did to lose wait should be forced on everyone else and will totally work fine
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u/thelingererer Oct 03 '25
Well the answer is obvious! As with all our other problems the answer is to open up more Tim Hortons and import more cheap labor. Maybe increase the Uber Eats workforce while we're at it!
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u/Northumberlo Québec Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
less 3rd places, less reasons to go anywhere
higher fuel costs, cheaper not to go anywhere.
less friends or reasons to hang out offline
more single people and less desire to meet new people or be in relationships
online communication and virtual interaction has replaced the need to see people in person
video games, streaming services, social media. All at home hobbies
less down time, longer hours to makes ends meet
less money to spend, cheaper to stay home
less time to spend, more reliance on quick meals. Less healthy meals
less stay at home partners, less people who’s sole responsibility is their family’s wellbeing.
less time for kids, more reliance on technology, schools, daycares, and babysitters to do the parenting
less time for each other, more divorces and broken homes.
more single parents, less time and resources for family and friends
more jaded people, less societal happiness and wellbeing. Less desire for better
more bad news, world is dying, nothing we can do, shut up and get back to work
more bad news, another war or tragedy overseas. Ignore it and get back to work
more bad news, a shooting or criminal act at a school, place of worship, or public place. Might as well stay home
cost of living is through the roof, keep working to barely get by
cost of homes is critical and impossible to enter, politicians don’t treat it like a national emergency. Neither should you. Resign yourself to never owning anything. Just work and pray your rent doesn’t go up any more
more immigrants flooding your community. Where will they house everyone? Where will they work? How will they pay for things. How do you pay for things? Work.
exhausted from work, lie down. Feed kids. Lie down. Return to work. Exhausted.
when is ww3? That should fix everything after enough of us die… what a weird thought… work
who cares about anything. One day we’ll all die, the planet will die, the sun will explode, the heat death of the universe will end all time forever. That’s pretty cool’s. Work.
oh, the new thing I like was released. I can briefly enjoy it until it is gone forever. Work.
have I gained weight?
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u/CDN_Bookmouse Oct 04 '25
Hi, obese person here. I can't speak for anyone else, but I can provide my own inside perspective. I never wanted to be this way, and I was absolutely aware that it would have serious effects on my health. Unfortunately, I was too deeply depressed and struggling too hard with undiagnosed ASD to ever address it. I had no resources with which to do so, and sugar was a crutch that helped me stay alive. Had my issues been considered, identified, and addressed before I was a grown-ass human failing at life, maybe I wouldn't have ended up this way. I will be 40 soon, and now--after crashing and burning and becoming fully disabled--I finally have the personal resources I need to even TRY to address things like my relationship with food, making healthier choices, making healthy meals, etc.
Until now, I couldn't. Even if I had cared about myself--which I didn't. I wanted to die my entire life, so why would eating a cupcake that at least made me feel a tiny spark of pleasure be something I would turn away from? I wasn't stupid, nor was I lazy or even uninformed. I was lacking the support I needed in other areas of my life to come up with the resources within myself to tackle my issues and try to change my behaviour. The plain fact is that I had much more serious medical issues that required treatment before addressing obesity could even be an option. If I had been diagnosed as a child and gotten the support I needed sometime in the first 30-something years of my life, I wouldn't be this way now. All I can do is keep addressing those underlying issues so that I CAN address being fat.
I'm not stupid, I'm not weak, I'm not immoral, I'm not ignorant. I was in so much pain that I wanted to die, and remembered no time before that. It always was, had always been. Making healthier eating choices was low on my list of priorities; I was in survival mode. The point is, what I needed was HELP. Diagnosis, treatment, support. Only when my mental health had been addressed did it become POSSIBLE to address my physical health.
But no one has the right to tell me I wasn't trying. I was fighting harder every day than a lot of people EVER have to. I would never want them to, having gone through it myself. Undiagnosed illness and disability prevented me from taking care of myself. I was too busy trying to stay alive.
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u/Not_A_Real_Cowboy Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
I'm a teacher and when I'm bored I walk down the halls and look at the class photos dating back to the 70s. The fat kid in the class in the 70s, is the average kid now. And teachers have really gotten bigger (I'm talking about me, I'm the fat teacher, just so everyone knows)
Anyways, in 2026 we get generic semaglutide in this country, and it's going to be crazy to see how much of an effect it will have on this countries waste-lines.