Page 17 | Overweight Brits abroad

Artyfart · 2023-08-01T07:57:49+00:00

I know this will upset people but it’s time to face facts and I’m talking about myself here too. Just got back from second holiday abroad this year when once again it was painfully noticeable how overweight British people are compared to our European neighbours. We stand out a mile! Every time I saw someone fat I’d wait for it and…. British accent. We look a state and it’s time to do something about it. No wonder the NHS is on its knees. I came back more determined than ever to lose weight.

DeliciouslyDecadent · 01/08/2023 12:47

People never seem too worried about the state of the NHS when they are advising posters on here to have their fourth/fifth/sixth child. Or when they're off ski-ing. Or crowing about their edgy weekend drug use. Or when it's "wine o'clock". Only when it comes to fatties.

The vast majority of the NHS budget is eaten up by

Diabetes (£billions a year in drugs, appointments, amputations, loss of mobility.)
Heart disease and stroke
Cancer (40% of cases are lifestyle/ diet linked)

That amount of investment is NOT spent on maternity care or skiing accidents.

Ohhelpicantthinkofaname · 01/08/2023 12:47

Ohhelpicantthinkofaname · 01/08/2023 12:38

I have noticed that British people seem to be fatter younger. By middle age there doesn’t seem to be much to choose between nationalities. But there seem to be a lot more obese British teens and 20 somethings than other nationalities, when abroad.

Thinking about it, I went for a night out in town for the first time in years recently and was surprised by the amount of obese youngsters. Loads more than there would have been when I was that age. But I guess a lot of teens lives are a lot more sedentary than they were when there wasn’t so much tech at your finger tips.

Should be a lot less sedentary when not so much tech at your finger tips. Ffs!! 🤣🤦‍♀️

cassgate · 01/08/2023 12:48

We are in Gran Canaria at an all inclusive resort which is mainly filled with Germans. There are a lot of overweight people here. Smoking is also much more noticeable among the Germans.

DeliciouslyDecadent · 01/08/2023 12:48

It costs the NHS £1.5million an hour every day to treat diabetes.

drunkpeacock · 01/08/2023 12:49

Yes I completely agree op, anybody with more than a stone to lose should sit alone in a darkened room crying and nibbling carrot sticks until they are of a weight that is pleasing to the aesthetic sensibilities of mumsnetters (and anybody else in need of a good old judge) 🤦🏻‍♀️

Or... we could all mind our own business, stop judging one another's bodies and stop playing "guess the nationality of the fattie"
Which is a weird pastime by the way.

Basketballqueen · 01/08/2023 12:49

Just spend a month travelling through France, Spain and Portugal and there are overweight and obese people everywhere. EVERYWHERE.

Basketballqueen · 01/08/2023 12:50

Spent.

LyingWitchInTheWardrobe · 01/08/2023 12:50

Artyfart · 01/08/2023 12:30

In the uk my size isn’t noticeable, I’m pretty average. Over there, I noticed that I was in the minority. That spurred me on to want to lose weight for health reasons. I also noticed I very was sweaty and out of breath in the heat compared to my family

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Hopefully, as you lose weight you'll step up your exercise and become fitter as well because if you're 'pretty average', you shouldn't be sweaty and out of breath just because of the heat. Good luck!

MysteryPop · 01/08/2023 12:51

Inkpotlover · 01/08/2023 12:46

I think you've misinterpreted me, or I didn't make my point clear enough. I'm not saying fat shaming is what we should be doing, but rather the denial on this thread makes it clear that people do not realise how serious the problem of obseity is in this country, we need to do something drastic to change things.

I am you. Been on-off dieting since I was told I was a 'big girl' in my teens. Bulimic in my 20s and early 30s. Technically obese now. I am currently, however, fat shaming myself into being healthier.

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You can't shame yourself to health. You have to respect yourself to treat your body well.

There are so many posts here lamenting the denial but who is denying the obesity crisis? Where are these denial posts? No one at all is saying there isn't a problem with obesity. People are denying that it's just greedy, lazy Brits but no one is denying the obesity crisis. Just disagreeing on the causes and potential solutions.

Basketballqueen · 01/08/2023 12:51

And the number of adults and teenagers smoking here in those countries is astonishing to me- particularly the ones smoking at tables when people are eating, and/or in-front of children.
Hardly any capers but lot of smokers. That to me is far worse than carrying a few pounds extra in weight

RattleRattle · 01/08/2023 12:53

This reply has been deleted

This user is a goady troll so we've removed their posts.

Original poster

Artyfart · 01/08/2023 12:54

drunkpeacock · 01/08/2023 12:49

Yes I completely agree op, anybody with more than a stone to lose should sit alone in a darkened room crying and nibbling carrot sticks until they are of a weight that is pleasing to the aesthetic sensibilities of mumsnetters (and anybody else in need of a good old judge) 🤦🏻‍♀️

Or... we could all mind our own business, stop judging one another's bodies and stop playing "guess the nationality of the fattie"
Which is a weird pastime by the way.

Yes that’s what I spent the whole holiday doing 🙄 I spent most of my time hiding in darkened room seeing as I’m one of them.
The amount of people on here who can’t believe you could just casually notice something in your surroundings whilst engaged in other activities is astounding.

OP posts:

Endlesssummer2022 · 01/08/2023 12:54

There are lots of overweight people across Europe. What sets the Brits apart is that the weight is part of an overall bad package when compared to other countries. It’s the cheap, badly made clothes, bad hair dyes, the skin (not because of paleness, but general unhealthy look), the slouchy posture, the bad tattoos (not even Americans draw over themselves as much so this sets us apart) . It all just makes Brits stand out on holiday.

TheGoodBanana · 01/08/2023 12:55

Freeand · 01/08/2023 09:30

Sounds like the shittest holiday ever just hovering around fat people waiting for them to speak.

This made me laugh out loud in the office! (lunch break)

99victoria · 01/08/2023 12:56

We've just come back from 2 weeks in Greece. We stayed in a small hotel (30 rooms) and I think about 90% of the guests were British. I can honestly say that there wasn't a single fat person there. I'm a size 12 and I really don't remember anyone there being significantly bigger than me

drunkpeacock · 01/08/2023 12:57

The amount of people on here who can’t believe you could just casually notice something in your surroundings whilst engaged in other activities is astounding

😆😆😆😆😆
Yup, starting a dramatic thread worthy of the Daily Mail, that's ever so casual Op!!

1dayatatime · 01/08/2023 12:58

UK is the fourth most obese country in Europe behind Israel, Malta and Turkey. Switzerland was the lowest.

amp.theguardian.com/society/2022/may/03/obesity-epidemic-proportions-across-europe-world-health-organization-who

There is also a massive correlation between obesity rates and Covid deaths which was one of the big reasons the UK Covid deaths per capita were so high.

Original poster

Artyfart · 01/08/2023 12:58

Endlesssummer2022 · 01/08/2023 12:54

There are lots of overweight people across Europe. What sets the Brits apart is that the weight is part of an overall bad package when compared to other countries. It’s the cheap, badly made clothes, bad hair dyes, the skin (not because of paleness, but general unhealthy look), the slouchy posture, the bad tattoos (not even Americans draw over themselves as much so this sets us apart) . It all just makes Brits stand out on holiday.

Honestly it was the general unhealthy look that stood out most.
A curvy buxom Italian mamma glowing from a diet of olive oil, fish and sunshine simply doesn’t look the same even if she’s also a size 16

OP posts:

bluedelphiniums · 01/08/2023 13:00

Justashley · 01/08/2023 09:31

Not sure if the hypocrisy in this post was intentional or not.

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😂😂

Inkpotlover · 01/08/2023 13:00

MysteryPop · 01/08/2023 12:51

You can't shame yourself to health. You have to respect yourself to treat your body well.

There are so many posts here lamenting the denial but who is denying the obesity crisis? Where are these denial posts? No one at all is saying there isn't a problem with obesity. People are denying that it's just greedy, lazy Brits but no one is denying the obesity crisis. Just disagreeing on the causes and potential solutions.

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Yes you can shame yourself to health – it's absolutely what's working for me now. I turned 51 a few weeks ago and finally gave up the denial that I wasn't THAT overweight. I am. I have a BMI of 30+. I have been treating my body like a dustbin to the extent I struggle getting up stairs without needing to catch my breath and my body aches. So I am taking responsibility. I went to my GP and had a slew of blood tests – thank you NHS – to check all my levels. I have high cholesterol and blood sugar that if left unchecked will cause me serious health issues as I get older. I have done that to myself. Now I am working from a mindset of health rather than losing weight. I am no longer in denial.

As for your other point, I meant all the 'but, but... what about the Germans!' posts and the 'mind your own business' etc.

jonahjones · 01/08/2023 13:00

Freeand · 01/08/2023 09:30

Sounds like the shittest holiday ever just hovering around fat people waiting for them to speak.

🤣 this made me laugh. sounds like she's invented a new holiday game. it could be made more fun by noting down the regional accents so then she'll know which region of the UK is the fattest.

MotherofGorgons · 01/08/2023 13:01

I am surprised by Israel being the most obese country.

Maireas · 01/08/2023 13:01

Artyfart · 01/08/2023 12:58

Honestly it was the general unhealthy look that stood out most.
A curvy buxom Italian mamma glowing from a diet of olive oil, fish and sunshine simply doesn’t look the same even if she’s also a size 16

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So, it's not the size or shape... it's the style then?
Is that what you're saying?

Maireas · 01/08/2023 13:01

MotherofGorgons · 01/08/2023 13:01

I am surprised by Israel being the most obese country.

It's not.

1dayatatime · 01/08/2023 13:02

@cassgate

"Smoking is also much more noticeable among the Germans."

+++

I noticed this as well, I read somewhere that Germany is the only country in the world that has higher rates of smoking amongst women than men (not by a big margin though).

Also there are still cigarette vending machines on the streets in Germany as well which as a Brit is very 1970s.