A Critical Analysis of Dietary Survey of Elderly in New Zealand

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214.231 Applied Nutrition Issues
SJ Smith, ID: 06067298
Assignment 1: Dietary Assessment of New Zealanders, Obesity and Dieting
Part 2

The linking of obesity and overweight conditions with body mass index (BMI) should be avoided when addressing health related issues. By linking the two issues, an effect is created out of something that is not wholly the cause, the issue becomes oversimplified and the real issues ignored. In order to make positive changes surrounding obesity and being overweight, a number of other inhibiting issues must first be addressed. A move must be made away from lumping BMI and obesity in the same boat. The centralisation of obesity as the issue must be removed. And the individual assessment of the underlying cause factors must take the focus in its stead.

The BMI of a person is their weight (in kgs) divided by the squared value of their height (in metres). As this is simply a mathematical equation and omits essential health details such as body composition, it should only be used as a common measure and guideline at the very most. A study by Gronniger (2006) found that mortality rates only greatly increased at a BMI of 27 or above (usually classed as being the upper end of the overweight category), and that the optimum weight range appeared to be 23-24 for women and 26-27 for men. With research such as this, the use of BMI as a measure of defining a ‘normal’ weight range becomes questionable. Further, when BMI is coupled with the centralisation of the issue of obesity or being overweight, it can leads to weight conditions being pin-pointed as the problem for any individuals who fall above that range. Normal weight range is simply described as having “enough body fat to meet nutritional needs but not so much as to incur health risks” (Whitney and Rolfes, 2008). So in order to assess an individual’s body fat or weight, it must be correlated with their health as well as other factors such as: whether the individual is a smoker, what ethnicity they are, their age group, sex, amount of lean body mass and other ecological dynamics that contribute to their overall weight.

A flow on effect of specific research conducted on the effect of BMI and its relation to obesity, resulted in claims from media sources that being overweight could be a good thing. The research found that those who had a BMI that fell in the ‘overweight’ range (25-30) could indeed be perfectly healthy individuals and in some cases actually be protected from weight-related issues such as heart disease (Flegal, Graubard, Williamson & Gail, 2005). Although research has been conducted on the positioning of fat on the body frame and it’s resulting differing effects on health concerns related to being overweight, no conclusive evidence has proven being overweight is ‘good for you’ as the media sources stated. Such claims can be attributed to a misinterpretation of information, either by intentional misrepresentation in order to publicise a story or an accidental misreading of the original sources.

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An article entitled “Good to Be Fat” (2007) is a reactive response to the study conducted by Flegal et al. (2005) and the resulting statements from US media sources that being overweight was good for you. This reaction article is in agreement with the Flegal et al. (2005) study and points out few flaws, while expelling the ‘good for you’ myth the media portrays. The reaction article mentions that while the media sources reporting on the Flegal et al. (2005) study did accurately include the study’s results, the information given led to the misleading impression that being overweight was a ...

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