Are foodie shows making us gain weight?

Beavis Tran: You were sounding good until your ignorant comment about exercise and burning calories. 1. you can not exercise at all, consume a diet with a calorie level to match that and burn more than you consume just by existing. Your body burns a minimum of approximately 1,200 calories a day just to live, breathe, pump blood, etc. Any movement adds to that. If you weigh more, have higher muscle mass, etc. you burn additional calories just to keep yourself alive. 2. In addition, you can exercise enough to burn 1,500 calories a day (from exercise as opposed to support life systems) without dropping dead. Professional athletes do it daily and I do it about once a week at this point and about 3 times a week during my youth. Sure, my daily exercise of either and hour of sports with a short run/bike ride, weights and cardio (real cardio that gets your heart rate up, like running/ biking at a quick pace/ swimming/ rowing/ aerobics/ dancing. Walking IS NOT moderate cardio and walking for 30 minutes should be a prerequisite part of every person's daily life) for 1 - 1.5 hours, swimming and core work or something else for an 1-2 hours, only burns between 250 and 550 calories, but the one day a week I spend 4-6 hours straight running around exercising, I burn over 1,000 calories easily. A friend who often mountain bikes on difficult trails for hours can burn up to 2,500 in a single trip.

That said, the point isn't to burn 1,500 calories with exercise. You may burn that just keeping yourself alive, laying in bed all day long. The point is to burn a few extra calories and also keep yourself so that you have a healthy muscle to fat ratio and the strength to enjoy all the good things in life.

Watching Man vs Food always makes me hungry....

No I don't blame these shows for weight gain. I actually LOST weight watching these shows because I'm learning to cook at home rather than eat out, which allows me to control what I put in my food.

I'm pretty sure that over weight people are not the ones cooking the 'bad' foods that they see on TV, instead they are the ones hitting the drive-thru several times a day and have no appreciation for really good tasting food. (on a side note, I'm not sure why Paula Deen is so popular, her food looks gross and she seems so fake)

I watch cooking shows to learn techniques. I have food allergies, so I can't make most of the recipes anyways, but that doesn't mean I can't learn something from them.

Cooking shows have improved my health and diet. I've learned delicious cooking techniques, and now cook almost all of the food I eat. I eat "real" food; I can't recall the last processed food I've had. I savor my food, and enjoy it, eating until I'm barely full, not stuffed. Leftovers are for lunch at work. I'm not overweight, and since I now eat healthfully, my cholesterol has dropped 52 points!

I can't understand the appeal of food let alone cooking shows- sickening - I know a caloric intake is
important ( especially healthy calories)BUT They should show the whole gross process along with the
purportedly delicious food they make they should show the process of mastication , show what food looks like in your gut, the attendant expulsion of waste- ITS all part of the eating process - ain't it all equally glamorous as is morbid obesity- as for the gluttons out there- push away from the table don't snack etc,etc-
or try my stategy 1400 calories a day - total food intake time 10 15 minutes per a day- the appetite of
US society is disgraceful - donut anyone - yes with extra butter please! - And don't get me going about all the wasted food in this country- Dispicable!!

public schools id hear out jamie oliver hes got it right as far as michelle obama please take care of your own kids and leave mine alone to eat healthy it cost more back in the 50s 60s each school had their own kitchens everything cooked on site not frozen reheated like many schools do these days we never had pop machines we had water ice tea or milk maybe apple juice or lemon aid OJ nor did they have chips or candy machines you got a choice of veggies fresh fruit you know the hot meals tasted pretty good they had deserts but those cost extra we had time to eat its a big wonder kids dont have ulcers from the stress rush and why did you take out sewing home eco and shop kids really need those classes maybe kids would have mannors and wouldnt depend on nuke foods if learned how to really cook guys too

i wish people would shut up about obesty the world and food has gone thru some big changes after yrs of injecting live stock with growth hormons that are stored in muscel tissue peoples jobs in cubes kids are bussed schools are 1 level older 1s multi levels we suited up for gym class younger kids got to play outside total 1 hr foods get stripped then added stuff called enriched !artificcle this that tast like who knows i think if schools served big breakests and dinners for luch kids go home eat lighter as snack youd see weight come off cause its these big meals ate after 3pm that are going to fat also many of those cooking shows have great liter meals so stop pointing fingers it might surprise you changing to a small liter meal after 3 pm can do face it eat at 6pm kids go to bed 8:30/9 hello fat and hello turn off the games go for a walk talk with your kids and teachers lay off the homework

No one makes you eat the food you see cooked or baked, you have the choice to eat it, or just watch these shows for what they are entertainment.....Maybe we should stop blaming everyone else for the obesity problems in our country & the people that are obese take responsibilty for it.....If you have health issues, you should be smart enought to NOT eat "sticks of butter"...It's the same for children...Im a parent and I watch what my kids eat, teach them nutrition and not let them eat Mcdonalds everyday and suck down gallons of soda...so maybe stop blaming food tv and blame the REAL people behind the problem, those that shovel this stuff in their faces....America sure has become a country of blame everyone else, take no responsibilty....

After the original Iron Chef went off the air I pretty much stopped watching Food Network. By brother in law still watches and some of the concoctions that he has come up with after watching a few hours (last time I was there the tv was on in the background on food network)are scary...some of the combinations on Iron Chef were crazy but worked...his stuff is just nutty.

people who right articles like this are morons. Newsflash you twit and other who are addicted to TV, Putting food in your mouth and swallowing it makes you fat.

Times are changing, that's what is making us fat (I need to lose 25 lbs to get to my '74 high school weight). We were lucky to go out to eat a burger & fries once a week. We brought our PB & J, tuna, baloney or cheese sandwiches to lunch, with a couple of cookies & a piece of fruit & maybe some chee-toes/free-toes in a baggie. We had sit down meals at the table for dinner & weren't on the go constantly. We didn't drink iced coffee, Monsters or Red Bulls. Simpler times meant fewer choices. Check out the all-ya-can-fill-your-pie-holes buffets like C-C's, Chinese Food or the Golden Corral. I bet 80% of the people make at least 2 trips, food falling off their plates while heading back to their table/trough. Of the 80%, most could be split in half to make 2 people, some 3! Don't blame TV for making us fat; blame it for making us stupid! Idols, Dancin’ w/Stars, enter- a -location housewives, that's the dumb-ing down of America. We're fat because it's too easy to overeat & we're too stupid to see what we are doing to ourselves. Oh well, on the 21st of next year, who’s gonna give a rat's butt? Cya on the flip side!

This article is so left-wing! No TV show makes you fat! You make yourself fat by your lifestyle choice. Yes, some people have medical problems that cause weight gain, I'm not talking about them. Most of the US is fat by choice. Get off your butt, go to the gym a couple times a week, and eat fruits, veggies, and lean meats. It's that easy. Calories out must be more than calories in.

re:walters/deen interview -- WHY IS THERE LEFT-OVER (?) CHEESECAKE IN THE HOUSE ANYWAY \?

I think that actually preparing your own food does eventually encourage you to stick to healthier recipes, and to just be more aware than when eating out. It's like paying cash versus credit card: throwing all those sticks of butter into the bowl starts to make you cringe inside the same way putting down a stack of twenties "hurts" a lot more than swiping a card!

I cook a lot, and I love food. I don't get these channels, but I do a few special cookbooks with beautiful glossy color pictures of yummy, yummy recipes. I don't make them much, and when I do it is usually with less sugar or fat. Your tastes change amazingly fast, and if you swear off fatty/salty/sugary food for just a little while, it doesn't taste good to you when you try it again. You're satisfied with smaller portions, and you don't crave it as much. Moderation is the best, if you can make it work!

Georgie: First, there really isn't a need to be defensive. They were using her as an example. Second, though Giada DeLaurentis may cook some unhealthy foods, the mediterranean is one of the healthiest out there. Third, can you give some examples of healthy southern dishes? In my experience, most of what I've seen/tried is unhealthy, if you look through the majority of recipes in southern cook books, look at a southern restaurant menu or go to a southern food dinner, the majority of the foods, even the veggies are unhealthy because too much fat and salt was added during cooking. Furthermore, veggies are often cooked too long so that their nutritional value is decreased. I will never understand the concept of cooking veggies in butter/fat/heavy oil or cooking them until they are mushy. How is that even appealing? Heck, southern style cooking even makes things like BBQ chicken unhealthy. I think one of the only healthy items I consistently see in southern cooking is roasted beets. If there are other truly healthy dishes out there, I'd love to try them.

Can southern style foods be altered to be made healthy? Sure they can, but it takes a conscious decision to do so and once you remove all of the fat and salt are they even southern anymore?

That's why i don't watch Food shows because i get cravings otherwise i wouldn't get if i wasn't watching these shows. But my mom and sister watch them and they eat all day.

I'm not sure what comedian said it, but he said that the Food Network was 'porn for fat people'. I like to cook, too but there are healthier alternatives. There are magazines that have healthy recipes such as Cooking Light and Eating Well. I don't subscribe to either but I do have some of their books, which I'd highly recommend.

Please, this is ridiculous. Now we're blaming the food network? Anything other than pointing the finger at the person overeating or choosing unhealthy foods. I love food. I am a foodie. On the rare occasion that I watch TV, it is very likely that I'm watching the food/cooking network. I love to cook and I love to eat new dishes. Most of what I make/eat is healthy, but sometimes I'll splurge on a fatty item. Food network gives me great ideas for new things to try, but it is up to me and me alone to a)choose programming that is geared towards healthier foods, b) make foods that I see healthier when I make them at home c) control my portions. If anything, food network promotes my healthy eating because it makes me excited to cook meals at home and try new things. I eat almost no processed food, fill my diet with mainly fruit, veggies, lean protiens and healthy fats, I make delicious, enjoyable meals on a budget that are far tastier and nutrtionally superior (and at the end of the day, cheaper) to what most Americans eat, I keep my calories within a reasonable limit, I exercise just about everyday and aside from a brief period in my very early 20s when I was eating out all the time, not watching cooking shows and not cooking at home, I have never had a weight problem.

Paula Deen may be the poster child for an early heart attack, but she is not making people obese. People are making themselves obese by continuing to overeat, bury their emotions and food and blame everyone and everything other than themselves for their problem so that they don't have to confront it, get help and do the work to change.