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Edited by Dauth, 29 October 2008 - 10:44.

Rather than the result of a rich economy per se I would base the rise of obesity on the materialistic nature of the economy and the culture surrounding it.
I see the "Supersize Me" phenomenon as evidence of this: it's not particularly expensive to buy all this fattening food, indeed obesity tends to be prevalent among the poorest strate of society, it is the notion that more/bigger is better.
Ironically I think we're seeing this same notion with healthfoods: vitamin supplements, 'superfruits' that have twice/thrice/hundred times more vitamins/fibre/'friendly' bacteria...your body only needs x amount of vitamin C for example, once you reach that particular intake you can't improve your health by eating even more: it simply creates a surplus in your body of that vitamin/nutrient that comes straight back out the other end.
Edited by NanSolo, 29 October 2008 - 19:57.

Obesity is the result of the free market. People like sweet things. Artificially sweet stuff is cheap to make, a million times sweeter, but also a lot more dangerous (High Fructose Corn Syrup anyone?). Ergo, selling cheap sweet things for high prices is one of the goals of capitalism.

Compare and contrast to communism or feudalism - potatoes and bread. (Specifically, stereotypical Russia and Ireland).

Fat people may eat more, buy more clothes, etc, but this is just an artificial inflation. Much as their waistlines are artificially inflated. There are better ways to stimulate an economy then getting people to eat more.

I just noticed a typo in the title, it's meant to be is obesity a benefit to... not of. xD
my bad.

A developed economy gives people the choice to be obese, but it does not necessarily make them fat.

Greed causes obesity. Capitalism causes greed. Thus we conclude that capitalism induces obesity, can we not?

Capitalism does not cause greed. Greed is a human condition. Capitalism required greed to function, greed does not require capitalism.

Thus you cannot infer that capitalism causes obesity. Our feudal Lord were all bloated monstrosities, they certainly didn't live in a capitalistic society.

Then at least you can conclude that there is a connection between capitalism and obesity, as capitalism promotes greed because it requires it.

If anything obesity is detrimental to the economy. Lots of NHS money (For the example of England) is spent on obesity related diseases and conditions.

I do not think obesity is the result of a developing economy. A developing economy just means they have the option to overeat. With the mass produced, materialistic culture and the " I WANT IT NOW, I MUST HAVE IT NOW " culture and the inherent laziness of alot of people. Obesity will result.

Obesity could be a sign that a country has a healthy production (to supply the needs and luxury of its people).

But it is false to concur that obesity helps the economy.

In addition, the Dinka tribe in Africa regard obesity as beauty. So most of the women there are obese.(But I do not think that their obesity contribute to African economy).

Dauth, on 30 Oct 2008, 17:46, said:

Nor living in a communistic one.

And not all feudal lords were obese. But it is safe to say that they lived in feudal splendor.
Edited by The Wandering Jew, 31 October 2008 - 01:03.

The Wandering Jew, on 31 Oct 2008, 2:01, said:

Any society where wealth is being forcefully redistributed is a socialistic one.

Dr. Strangelove, on 3 Nov 2008, 4:02, said:

Taxes redistribute wealth, rich are taxed more heavily than the poor. A portion of the money will be spent on social programs or programs aimed to help the lower class. By your definition, almost all modern societies are socialistic.
Edited by Sharpnessism, 03 November 2008 - 21:08.

Sharpnessism, on 3 Nov 2008, 22:07, said:

They are.

Dr. Strangelove, on 3 Nov 2008, 19:12, said:

Actually, there has never existed a purely socialistic nor a purely capitalistic country in history (the nearest to the former is perhaps Cuba but even then there was some private ownership). Both economic systems on their own have their own flaws and most modern economies are a hybrid of the two systems varying from strong liberalism as seen in the States currently to the Social Democracies that exist in Scandinavian countries.

Anyway, back on topic, I believe this depends on how far a developing country is along the "development" scale. As long as country "X" has food security, there will tend to be some more obesity. However, this leads to an increased demand for food which will strain the available resources for other sectors of the economy such as industries. Furthermore, as others have mentioned, more obesity leads to a more costly healthcare program since there will be more and more cases of heart attack and the like. To reduce this obesity, the government will have to create an awareness campaign which will also cost money. Simply put, obesity is a burden on any economy especially the developing nations that are on the verge of being considered developed countries.

obesity in my thoughts is a byproduct of ever increasing rationalized macdonalized(efficient, quantity, prodictable, controled) society basically we do things increasingly with less physical labor in less time bringing cheap mass quantities of food thus not only has a caloric intake has doubled are work which normally would burn off those extra calories has lessened by a lot.
Edited by Cryptkeeper, 06 November 2008 - 19:18.

Scope, on 4 Nov 2008, 10:07, said:

Does North Korea count? Uh, strike that one. It has a totalitarian regime.

Scope, on 4 Nov 2008, 10:07, said:

So you mean to say that a certain country has "food security", there's a large possibility that people with more money (and with more "food desire") can buy far more Snickers than others?

(/stops typing and hurries to a nearest store to buy a Snickers bar).

Scope, on 4 Nov 2008, 10:07, said:

If a>b, and c>b, then a=b?

No, I do not think obesity directly is a hindrance to any economy. Obesity is a product of luxury, which, luxury is basically not a main factor in an economy.

Rather, obesity is a hindrance to health of the citizens, which can lead to heart failures (or stroke), and can reduce a nation's population (provided if the death rate is high). A low population can be a serious headache to a country (low quantity of labor, anyone?)
Edited by The Wandering Jew, 07 November 2008 - 05:05.

The Wandering Jew, on 6 Nov 2008, 23:56, said:

Perhaps I worded my opinion too briefly in that statement, but what I meant is obesity tends to be a burden on a developing country in the long run yet it is at the same time a byproduct of its economic growth.