Comments on: 6 Food Challenges for the Super Competitive (or Super Hungry)

By: CK

CK — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 23:17:00 +0000

I always wondered why restaurants don’t give leftovers to starving people in their own locality. However, someone told me that it’s because of liability issues. If someone gets sick, they can sue. Perhaps another sad sign of the times…

By: Tom

Tom — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 07:15:00 +0000

@ Logan

It’s funny you mention that they should use the food for people that can’t afford it. I live in NYC and as you may know we have the hot dog eating contest here. Every year at this contest which you say is keeping people that need food from getting it they give 10,000 hot dogs to the homeless and shelters.

By: gInKs

gInKs — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 02:21:00 +0000

Being fat isn’t a culture or a race. American’s most certainly don’t have a monopoly on being fat…it just seems like it!

By: Chris

Chris — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 23:03:00 +0000

You cant take BMI as an indicator or obesity. I’m a college athlete, work out every day, and my BMI is 30.1. That makes me obese, but my actual body fat percentage hovers around 8%. Most people would say I am in extremely good shape but if you only use BMI to measure obesity the results are skewed.

By: Jason

Jason — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 14:22:00 +0000

I’ve eaten at Denny’s before, it’s just a few minutes off I-80.

They also have a two pound in one hour challenge where you get back 50% of the price and a three pound 1.5 hour challenge that’s on the house if you’re successful.

It’s a neat little bar, if you travel I-80 check it out.

By: MN

MN — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 12:48:00 +0000

Just to add, the idea that all Americans are fat is like assuming that all British people have bad teeth and are drunk. It’s not nice, is it, because it’s not true.

Since my move to the UK, I went from a natural size zero to a more normal size 6. It’s not because I have made the effort to do so.

By: MN

MN — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 12:27:00 +0000

I guess what gets me is that everyone feels that they can bash Americans for being fat as though no one else in the world is capable of being obese. Walk around my town on market day, and as the only American here, I can guarantee that most everyone is fatter than I am.

I also find that when people bash “fat America”, it seems to make it ok to make fun of fat people. That’s never ok, just as it’s never ok to bash other cultures when your understanding of them is limited to stereotyping and an occasional visit.

By: MN

MN — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 12:10:00 +0000

@Logan

I will have to look that up. Regardless, obesity is an individual problem, and you will find that most obese people don’t actually run around participating in eating contests.

I’m not saying that there aren’t a lot of obese people in the States, but it hardly defines America.

Also, restaurants do not give food away, so what they do with their food, how they sell it, and what contests they hold are really their own business. While it would be nice of them to be more generous, that’s not how a business is run.

I don’t participate in such contests either, but if the starving is such an issue with you, do your part and don’t worry about anyone else.

By: Logan

Logan — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 22:26:00 +0000

@MN

I saw the study you were referring to, but a new one has since come out. The one you referenced is based on an 2005 study in OZ. However, a 2007 study in the US shows that a whopping 34% of Americans are obese (click my name for article).

As for me eating less, I certainly don’t participate in eating contests, or eat just to show I can eat a lot of something.

By: Logan

Logan — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 22:08:00 +0000

Certainly will look up the Australia fact…difficult to believe from what I saw when I was in the USA in August. :-P

As for starving people, it absolutely makes a difference. Instead of holding these contests or wasting this food on people who are already obese (or will just chuck it up), how about feeding the excesses to those who truly need it? It should be embarrassing for America (and other countries) to hold contests knowing full well there are people who could use a good meal.