Fat free Low calorie = Fatter population?

Has anybody noticed that since we as a population started eating things they tell us are "fat free and low calorie" we have all started gaining weight?  Since I went back to basics and started eating fresh (well as fresh as possible) food I get full faster and have much healthier habits.  I don't crave many things anymore and I find that I am more balanced as far as my moods and abilities to function.  Why is it we gave up our health for convenience?  Why is it we believe everything they try to tell us when all they are really trying to do is make money for their companies? If you think way back, the only obese people used to be the rich who ate things that were extravegant and very highly processed for their day.

Good luck to all, hopefully we can put our health before our convenience once again soon. 

I don't know about you but I gained weight from eating to much food.  To much bacon pasta, sauteed chicken with bacon cream sauce, hot wing with blue dressing (21 wings and third of a jar of dressing), two huge glasses of wine every night, with maybe one or two beers, pork fajitas, ton of cheesy quesadillas and pizza once a week with about 5 ounces of cheese a piece, at least 3 pieces.  Hmm no low fat there.

However since I've cut fat and calories I've lost 100 pounds.

Congratulations to you mfchill for such an awesome weight loss!!!!!  I think that maybe it's not so much fat free low calorie per se as maybe thinking we can eat a lot more of it.  That plus getting less and less exercise.  But mfchill does have a point.  It was more REALLY high fat stuff that piled the weight on me, too.

cheers to that! and congrats mfchill! 100 pounds is awesome. I need to lose 3 more to bost the same. Cant wait!

As for the post itself, i kind of see where you are coming from.  All the low fat choices and foods they have come out with are a little missleading to the un-educated public that is going into dieting. People think they can eat MORE because it says low fat, orrr they are trying to diet by eating the wrong foods (like 100 calorie packs) instead of obtaining their nutrition from the calories they intake, as I was in the beginning of this all.  Good discussion you got going here! :)

Just cos there's fat free low cal products doesnt mean people
a) eat them
b) Use them correctly (eg. use twice as much, but its only reduced cals 25% or something)
c) Eat and use them properly but dont exercise/binge/forget/starve too much  etc.

I gave up fat-free and low-cal foods.  I eat moderately and exercise moderately.  I read a book called Fat Fallacy which called attention to many fairly obvious questions that I hadn't considered.

I'll never be happy for a lifetime if I am eating foods that are not satisfying.  Also, my intuition tells me that I should put food in my body that it can recognize from a historical perspective.  If food comes from the earth with fat in it, then that's how I eat it.  It tastes better, is more satisfying and with proper mindfulness, I no longer over eat.

I'm feeling like this is going to be a real life change that I will be able to continue for the rest of my life.  Funny thing is, anyone I've ever known who was/is naturally thin, never consumes anything low-fat, no-fat or low-cal, unless that is the food's natural state. 

They all just eat healthily and eat reasonable portions... I enjoy my food again. 

The only things I eat that are labeled fat free are dairy products.  Like you, I cook from scratch and avoid processed foods.  Fresh food also helps me control sodium and increase fiber.

I try to avoid trans fats and saturated fats, but fats in general have gotten too much of a bad rap.  Yes, you can eat more grams of protein and carbs for the same calories, but the taste isn't the same.  And if they make it taste good, you end up with far too many carbs, often at a higher calorie content. 
IMO, if you're watching calories, you really don't need to worry about watching fat (excl. sat and trans).  Watching fat only helps to keep the calories down.

I was reading in Cosmopolitan the other day that they had this one test that gave people "low cal" and regular foods and the people who had "low cal" ate 20% more or something like that. The thing is that "reduced fat" or "low cal" labeled foods tend to be only 30-50 calories less or so...I almost want to start laughing when I see people reach for the "reduced fat" ICECREAM. If you look at the nutrient facts, it has about 30 cals less than the regular icecream...and it's still bad for you.

People who gain weight over fat-free and low calorie foods simply don't understand calories, or they just love food too much and eat outrageous portions of it at a time.

My city is trying really hard to crack down on the obesity epidemic. Our health care system is in bad shape, so they're trying a new angle. They are always showing news specials on how to cut your calories and such, and spreading awareness about various fast foods. Also, they're passing a law to make trans fats in restaurants and bakeries illegal. Oh yeah. It makes people upset, but it's for the best.

I think there may actually be a physiological reason that fat-free foods make you fat, and that it's no coincidence that obesity has skyrocketed since their introduction.

To make most fat-free foods palatable, sugar is added. Without the fat, the sugar carbs are absorbed much quicker into the bloodstream... it's like mainlining sugar. Your insulin goes crazy. You get shaky and feel hungry and hour later... so you grab more to eat.

Fat does not make you fat - too many calories make you fat. Fat is a fundamental nutrient in your diet. Without it, you can't absorb the vitamins and minerals you eat. Yep, all those salads with fat-free dressing? Worthless. You need a bit of fat to absorb the goodness in the veggies.

And then there's EFA's - essential fatty acids - that your body cannot manufacture on its own. This includes omega 3's. The fat free revolution has led to wacked out ratios of omega 6's to omega 3's, which leads to inflammation, which leads to a host of diseases.

15 years ago I was on a very low fat vegetarian diet. I only ate whole grains. I made everything from scratch, never touching processed foods. But very low fat - 10-15%. I had never had any mental illness in my life, and yet I went delusionally manic and wound up with a bipolar diagnosis. I now eat a diet of 25-30% fats including lots of omega 3's. No manic episode to speak of in about 6 years, and no medicines either. Coincidence?

Is it a coincidence that bipolar and depression diagnoses have exploded since the 80s, along with the fat-free revolution? I often wonder.

jenmcc:

I don't believe in coincidence.  I do believe they never tell us everything about the foods they try to pass off as good for us though.

I think the whole fat-free thing is not terrible. For example 1/4 cup of fat free blue cheese salad dressing has 70 calories. Oh and 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese has only 90 calories. The thing is that you still have to watch your portion sizes. Just because something is fat free doesn't mean it is calorie free.