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Overweight in the Netherlands. We are getting heavier. Whether it’s overweight, obesity, or morbid obesity; the number of cases in the Netherlands is increasing. And the end is far from in sight.
Overweight in the Netherlands, a lost battle.
We may have lost the battle, but won the war
Well, we seem to have lost more battles in the fight against obesity. Moreover, much more is needed than the current efforts to ever hope to win the war.
Today, Statistics Netherlands (CBS) and the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) released figures about people aged 20 and older that are not particularly hopeful*:
- Since the 1980s, we have gone from almost 0 to 100,000 people with overweight in the most severe class of obesity, morbid obesity (class III)
- The total number of people with overweight in the Netherlands (all classes) has increased from 33% to 50%
- The number of people with overweight (class I) increased from 4% to 11%.
- One in five Dutch people aged 65 to 75 is obese.
You could almost become despondent.
Obesity was more common among women than men, both in total and per class.
*class I, overweight = BMI 30-35, class II, obesity = BMI 35-40, class III, ‘morbid obesity’ =BMI higher than or equal to 40.
Overweight in the Netherlands after 50 years of fitness trends
The cause? Yes, we eat too much and move too little. But we’ve known that for decades, of course. The difference between what your body gets and consumes seems to be increasingly out of balance in a growing group. Despite countless diet books, blogs, and gurus, hundreds of fitness machines you can shove under your bed, and monthly new fitness trends.
These kinds of figures are important because physical activity and a healthy diet are often seen as purely personal responsibility. It’s easy to say that some just have no moderation when it comes to eating or are too lazy to move. If half the population is a ‘glutton’ or ‘lazy,’ then apparently you expect too much from that personal responsibility.
How realistic is it to think that you can solve this problem with a food pyramid and the tip to exercise for half an hour every day?
Knowing…
These kinds of figures are therefore important to demonstrate that physical education should not be another word for a gym class.
We haven’t changed.
The world around us has changed, and our bodies and brains still work with an old mindset. A mindset that is not prepared for the amount and type of food that we have readily available nowadays. ‘Physical education’ should not be a name for an hour of dodgeball. Physical education should stand for how we consider knowledge about food and exercise as a serious part of education.
There’s no good reason not to know how much you should eat and exercise. Although I’ve written hundreds of articles on this topic myself, some of which can be quite complex, you don’t need to have done lengthy studies to lose weight. With simple guidelines on daily exercise and nutrition, you can theoretically go a long way. And you don’t even really need those guidelines. Eat less and see if you lose weight. If you don’t lose weight, eat less. Exercise more and see if you lose weight. If you don’t lose weight, exercise more.
It’s hardly rocket science.
In theory.
But there’s still a whole world of knowledge out there that can help you achieve results faster than with this trial and error. For example, the simple fact that eating less relatively quickly leads to weight loss compared to exercising more. But of course, also the knowledge about the properties of different types of food and their effects on your body. More knowledge can lead to higher results with the same effort.
Whether you seek out such knowledge is still your own responsibility. Often, this knowledge is only sought when there is already overweight. When a wrong eating pattern has been followed for years and now needs to be unlearned. Something about closing the barn door after the horse has bolted.
Understanding Overweight in the Netherlands
And if you do go looking for information, you’ll find yourself diving deep into a sea of data, ranging from sheer nonsense to highly complex scientific papers.
Not everyone is able to extract the correct and relevant information from this. It still surprises me that people I see training vigorously at the gym several times a week know surprisingly little about nutrition and training. The commitment and motivation are apparently there. Either one thinks that more knowledge won’t add much, or one doesn’t know how to find this knowledge.
And doing…
But that motivation and commitment are naturally lacking in many. Even in a world where Google can provide the perfect diet and exercise routine for your body with a quick search, many people will still be overweight.
As mentioned, we are not programmed to have to cope with an ‘ob
esogenic’ environment. An environment where hunger fools you and you have to eat less than your brain asks for. In several articles, I have described things like hunger, satiety, metabolism, and even self-control as being innate to varying degrees.
‘Simply’ maintaining a healthy weight is therefore a constant battle against one’s own feelings for many.
A Creative Solution to Combat Overweight in the Netherlands
When we talk about the benefits of public transportation, we mainly talk about the effect on the environment and the traffic on the roads. New research shows that there is a correlation between the extent to which public transportation is used and the rate of obesity.
Research from the University of Illinois shows that higher participation in public transportation is associated with a lower percentage of obesity among residents of different areas in the U.S. [1]. The researchers compared and analyzed data from various counties. They found that a 1% increase in participation was associated with a 0.473% lower presence of obesity. This confirms earlier research that saw a decrease of 0.221 percent. Although the strength of the association varies in both studies, it is statistically significant in both cases.
Running for the Bus?
The researchers offer some obvious possible explanations for this.
If you take public transportation to work instead of driving, it often means you have to walk longer distances. Moreover, you never have to worry about your car driving away right in front of you. If we knew the most common reasons why adults run a sprint, ‘catching the bus’ would probably be at the top of the list. A nice alternative if you want to get in shape. 😉
But even if you don’t have your own transportation as an option, or exactly because of it. Access to public transportation can mean the difference between staying at home or engaging in weekly activities and exercising outside.
The study was a computer-driven analysis of the availability of medical facilities and transportation in 227 counties in 45 different states in 2001 and 2009. The analysis included factors such as leisure-time physical activity, income, health coverage, and public transportation facilities.
For the research, they tried to take into account as many factors as possible that could influence body weight. They did this by measuring over different periods.
“The new work takes a longitudinal approach, meaning that we examined differences between 2001 and 2009, allowing us to better control for factors that could otherwise influence the analysis… For example, factors like weather or physical geography that can influence the obesity rate of a county in both 2001 and 2009 are controlled since their impact is present in both time periods.
Douglas M. King, University of Illinois
Personal Effects Unknown
Although the researchers provide possible explanations as described above, the personal effect is unknown. One can only say that in regions where people take public transportation more often, obesity is less common. So, it doesn’t necessarily mean that a specific individual has less chance of being overweight by traveling more frequently by bus or train. Nor was the fact taken into account that since 2009, services like Uber and Lyft have become more prevalent.
The data shows, in any case, that investing in public transportation can have positive effects on public health. In this case, by reducing the risk of obesity.
That gives even more reason to complain about the fact that we seem to have the most expensive public transportation in Europe.
Our Solution
Helping you find your physical or mental FIT is our mission. Okay, that sounds rather lofty, but that’s our mission statement. Find your physical or mental health.
We have been contributing for years in the form of knowledge. In the articles on the blog, we try to convey both the basics and the latest scientific insights in an understandable way. But that’s not enough. To truly promote knowledge about exercise and nutrition often requires more. A helping hand that looks at your personal situation to determine which lifestyle needs to be worked towards and how this can best be achieved. Losing weight often turns out to be a lonely road, as recently became apparent again.
However, it doesn’t have to be.
That’s why we’ve been working on the development of the FITsociety app for a few years now, which has recently undergone major improvements again. In our view, it’s the platform to bring coach and client together. Finding the right coach can be just as difficult as finding the right information. A coach is still often seen as a luxury, or for people who want the physique of a fitness model. In today’s figures, I see confirmation that many more people need such help.
A basic need for a healthy life.
Fortunately, it seems that the government also realizes this after advice from the Care Institute and health insurer CZ. A proposal for reimbursed lifestyle coaching only needs to be approved by the House of Representatives. The proposal concerns people “who have a chronic disease such as diabetes or cardiovascular diseases, or are at risk of developing such conditions”. Overweight is, of course, seen as an important risk factor for the development of such conditions.
After referral by a general practitioner, coaching could be followed for 7 months, with the costs remaining outside the deductible.
We naturally hope that body weight will also be made discussable where necessary, by and/or through the general practitioner. Something that often does not happen, or too late.
The Solution
But no matter how fantastic we find ourselves, our app, and the coaches in it, we must recognize that even if we could provide everyone with a professional coach for free, the problem would not be solved.
At most, we would be much more successful in combating a symptom. After all, we don’t change the fact that there is a mismatch between our body’s settings and the influence of our environment.
The real
final solution is a bit scary, though. Reducing that mismatch cannot be done without drastic measures. For example, by changing the environment and considering unhealthy foods such as tobacco. We already do that to some extent. As Aldi announced this week that it will stop selling energy drinks to under 14s. Usually, they are voluntary actions where marketing probably expects that the good gesture will compensate for declining sales. Or they offer a ‘healthier alternative’ like the McDonald’s and Coca Cola’s of this world with light products and salads. However, these are drops in the ocean.
Actually, completely extinguishing the fire under that plate is impossible. I won’t be the only one demonstrating on the Malieveld if it were decided to ban all fast food. I don’t see a committee determining whether each type of food contains the right ratio of calories to nutrients happening either. Phasing out smoking as a right is one thing, but a Big Mac? Moreover, you can also get fat from grandma’s mashed potatoes. After all, overweight is determined not only by the amount of food but also by the type. Back to food vouchers then?
I myself look for the real solution more on the other side; adapting our bodies so that they can better cope with our fattening environment. A hope I have expressed here before. The hope that all those new medical insights will lead to medication that is much more effective and safer in burning excess fat tissue.
Until then, however, I’m betting on a coach who chases after your lazy ass.
And you can find that through the FITsociety app
