I’m the first to admit that the Daily Mail is not my ’serious’ paper of choice, it’s my ‘gossip rag’ lunch/coffee break read. (Honest guv!).  And so I readily take most stories with a huge pinch of salt, or a huge belly laugh of incredulity.

This story however, made my jaw drop.  The family in this story, all obese, claim their size is genetic.  They claim they ‘don’t have time’ to diet, that fruit and veg is too expensive, and they ‘don’t know how’ to lose weight. 

So, they can’t fit in a couple of walks round the block every day in between all that TV viewing?  They can’t swap that weekly litre of wine for some cartons of fruit juice (for probably less money)?  They can’t swap their chips for jacket spuds, or their cereal (I bet it’s cornflakes) for muesli, or even contemplate trying any other fruit after deeming pears a no-go as they ‘taste funny’?  They can’t use some tins of beans as weights to lift each day to burn off some calories (ie no money needed to join a gym)? 

I fail to see how they can’t know how to tackle their weight problems given they watch TV literally all day.  How many programmes must they have seen about weight loss/exercise?!  Yes, I can take that it’s genetic to a point, and yes maybe they all tend to the large size, we’re all different and some people are bigger than others.  Not obese, bigger. But to actually not even attempt to help yourself whilst being happy to live on benefits for the rest of your life in front of the TV because you’re too big/ill to work is unbelievable. 

I don’t know what the answer is.  Obviously better education as they have no idea how to eat well.  But again, they’ll have seen all that on the TV they’ve watched religiously all day every day.  You can’t help people who won’t help themselves.

I should say, by the way, that there are plenty of people who are struggling with weight issues, but at least they’re trying, by eating healthily and taking some exercise.  But to sit around and moan about it and not make some easy lifestyle changes, for health reasons if not for immediate weight loss, astounds me.

Rant over.

1. Steven
   Mar 17th 2009

   It’s difficult to generalize why people are obese, some do have genuine medical conditions such as thyroid issues. But in this case, even I can diagnose the problem. You look at their shopping list and it’s clear that they are simply uneducated on how to eat. Unfortunately people aren’t taught how to eat, you just pick it up from your parents and if you’re lucky like you and me we turn out fine. The killer quote is the fruit and veg one, they are behaving like children who won’t eat their greens.

   p.s. Immigrant scum in sick swan shocker!

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