A reader on obesity

A reader writes in:

Obesity is the new thing for the statists.

Unfortunately, nutrition science is now more shonky than climate science.

It’s not a matter of calories-in — calories-out; or we that are eating more and exercising less.

Traditional people’s didn’t run around much.  Hunter gatherers lay about in the sun!

It’s been understood for over a hundred years that it’s a matter of dysregulation and the focus has been on the cause and especially the recent cause for the dysregulation.

Think of everything else about an animal and the concept of homeostasis.  It’s the same for satiety and nutrition.  Animals on their own food don’t get fat.  You fatten them by feeding them different food.  We know that from zoos and feedlots.

The science is hard because controlled experiments are very hard.

It would seem that the shift from saturated fat to refined carbohydrate has caused a major disruption.  The issue here is sugar regulation and insulin and insulin sensitivity.

It’s increasingly likely that the cause of the obesity crisis is nutrition experts getting government to demonise saturated fats and the resulting increase in refined carbs and seed oils.  The problem also appears to transfer epigenetically to children.

I am not wanting to lecture you but simply to highlight what is a fascinating and truly shocking area.  Most of what we popularly think is so is not and has been knowing as not for decades.

It’s vey much like the argument over markets versus central planning.  Positions are entrenched without knowledge.

A couple of good places to start are Gary Taubes Why we Get Fat and Nina Teicholz The Big Fat Surprise.

The point is that the very people calling as experts for a tax on sugar are the very people who caused the obesity crisis and the sickness and death of millions.