[Elfsea] Why I may move to Scotland

Giles Guthrie dkevinscott at yahoo.com
Sun May 16 06:20:53 PDT 2004


This settles it!  I'm moving to a land where I'll be
one of the beautiful people!

--Giles

http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=559032004 

Men prize Rab's beer belly over 'puny' six pack 

JULIA HORTON

HEALTHY eating campaigns are doomed to failure because
many Scottish men would rather have a figure like Rab
C Nesbitt than Ewan McGregor, according to new
research.

Scientists found that a large number of the Scottish
males they interviewed prized their beer bellies
because it meant they did not look weak.

The trend was so pronounced, according to the study,
that some men of ‘normal’ weight even wanted to be
fatter.

The team from Queen Margaret University College,
Edinburgh, concluded that the Scottish Executive would
be better encouraging men to take more exercise rather
than worrying about what they eat.

Dr Kerri McPherson, who carried out the study, said:
"The research clearly showed that Scottish men would
rather be overweight than considered puny. Worryingly,
not only did overweight men not want to lose weight,
normal weight men actually wanted to gain weight.

"This would put them at increased risk of
weight-related health complications, such as
Scotland’s big three: coronary heart disease, cancer
and stroke."

The research was carried out on 80 shift workers in
Edinburgh and Glasgow, who were shown a series of
drawings of a male figure in his underpants, starting
with a skinny physique with protruding ribs and hip
bones, right through to a grossly overweight body
shape with a big beer belly.

Despite a culture full of images of slim movie stars,
models and musicians, all of the men picked as their
ideal body shape one of the pictures showing a
clinically overweight male.

McPherson said: "Men can try to increase their body
weight through fat or muscle. But the reality is that
they do not put in the effort in the gym to do that
through muscle, so the weight is put on as fat."

And she believes that the findings mirror the views of
men throughout Scotland, and the rest of the world,
regardless of class.

"I would imagine that this goes across the
socio-economic spectrum," she said. "It does tend to
be lower socio-economic classes who are tarred with
the brush of being unhealthy, which can come down to
finances and access to health facilities.

"But the phenomenon of wanting to be big will go
across the board. These are the types of men which
women express a preference for."

She is calling on the Executive to focus increasingly
on encouraging men to exercise more, rather than eat
less, as she believes they are more likely to do that.

And she also suggests that public health campaigns
should use men’s vanity to encourage them to be more
healthy.

"Contrary to popular belief, men care greatly about
how they look. We are suggesting that body aesthetics
could be used to bolster the message to people to be
more healthy.

"It is not just overweight men who need to be targeted
by healthy-living messages. Normal weight men also
need to be encouraged to maintain their weight at a
healthy level."

Her findings are echoed by George McAulay, chairman of
the UK Men’s Movement.

He said: "I used to have a terrific physique and now I
have a terrifically bad physique, I am fat and flabby.

"But I am very strong and I see young guys in the gym
looking at me enviously because of the weights I can
lift. They would sooner have the bulk than the
litheness and agility.

"Since time began, young men and boys, and women, have
been impressed by the well-built male because it is
indicative of basic raw power. But we should be
looking beyond that."

Obesity levels in the UK have soared in recent years.
Already topping the European obesity league table, the
number of Britons with weight problems has trebled in
the last 20 years, partly as a result of eating junk
food.

Recent Scottish Executive statistics revealed that 43%
of Scottish men were overweight with a further 20%
categorised as obese. The one glimmer of hope in
McPherson’s research was that the obese men in the
study expressed a desire to lose weight, even if their
ideal body shape remained overweight.

McPherson said: "These men were already suffering from
health problems, which is probably why they wanted to
do something about their weight."

The Scottish Executive Healthy Living Campaign is
aimed at ridding Scotland of its obesity problem
through a combination of healthy eating and regular
exercise.

People are encouraged to eat five portions of fruit
and vegetables each day and improve activity levels as
part of their daily life, such as by walking up stairs
instead of taking the lift.

A Scottish Executive spokeswoman today defended the
Executive’s record on obesity, but acknowledged that
changing people’s attitudes was an uphill battle.

She said: "Campaigns do work. Many people used to
think that drink driving and domestic abuse were
acceptable.

"There is nothing puny about being fit and healthy.
Clearly we need to encourage men to take more
responsibility for their own health and we are under
no illusions that changing Scottish attitudes will be
easy.

"Our Healthy Living Campaign is for the long term, to
encourage changes in attitudes towards healthy eating
and healthy lifestyles. This won’t happen overnight
and success will be measured over decades."

A mass of evidence

RECENT statistics from the Scottish Executive revealed
43% of men in Scotland were overweight, with a further
20% classified as obese.

A simple calculation known as the body mass index
(BMI) is used to gauge whether a person is overweight.

The BMI is calculated from an individual’s weight
and height, and is compared to a standardised chart.
For example, a BMI score of between 26 and 40 is
classified as overweight or obese.

The overweight, especially the obese, are at greater
risk of heart disease, cancer, stroke and other health
problems.

Last week, Scotland’s deputy chief medical officer
Professor Peter Donnelly warned that a combination of
poor diet, obesity and lack of exercise is the biggest
threat to life expectancy levels.
	




	
		
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