Relation between obesity and church activity

[Gail]

I couldn't decide whether to put this in the Theological Townhall to avoid religious comments, but just for interest's sake:

From: Huffington Post

Religion and Obesity; Report Associates Religious Activity With Weight Gain

Quote:

The nation's churches and synagogues have a weight problem.

The multiple health benefits of an active faith life tend to stop at four-course Shabbat meals and church supper tables groaning with fried meat, biscuits and gravy, new research shows.

In one study of some 5,500 women and men ages 45 to 84, participants were more likely to be obese the more religiously active they were. Each step of the way, from those never attending worship to those attending weekly, greater religious activity was associated with significantly higher rates of obesity.

And in a separate study of a predominantly Orthodox Jewish community in Chicago, more than half of adult respondents were overweight, including 24 percent who were obese. Even more troubling, 26 percent of the children in the study were obese, twice the rate found in the general population.

The integral role food plays in many religious rituals and social functions and a desire not to stigmatize overweight members are among the reasons researchers offer for this anomaly in findings related to religion and health.

The only sermons that would get less approval than those asking members to cut back on eating would be those asking for money, said Shanna Granstra, a Baylor University researcher studying religion and obesity.

"It's a difficult issue to tackle," she said. "Food is almost like sex, especially considering how obsessed our culture is with food."

Religious activity is generally associated with good physical and mental health.

Six major studies of mortality risks in the last 10 years found frequent worship attenders were anywhere from 18 percent to 35 percent less likely than non-attenders to have died during the time period studied, says researcher George Fitchett of Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.

Rising obesity rates, however, are a notable exception to the generally positive record, Fitchett said. He presented his findings on religion and obesity at the recent joint meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion and the Religious Research Association in Milwaukee.

People who attended services or otherwise participated in organized religion weekly were 62 percent more like to be obese than those who never participated, according to data from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis of adults ages 45 to 84 sponsored by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.

In a separate study of 2,500 healthy women and men, researchers following up with participants 18 years later found 32 percent of frequent worship attenders became obese. In comparison, just 22 percent of non-attenders became obese, Fitchett reported. The data was taken from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults study funded by the heart and lung institute.

Solving the problem is not going to be easy, researchers say.

A full table, either at a church supper or a Sabbath meal, is symbolic to many of "God's blessing to us that we can have this bounty," Fitchett says.

The researchers who studied the Jewish community in Chicago found many participants did not perceive their weight to be a problem. For example, 70 percent of parents of obese children said that their child was about the right weight or underweight, researchers reported in the Journal of Community Health.

There is also a sense that religious leaders have to pick their battles.

Unhealthy eating is lower on the list of pastoral concerns, researchers say, than problems like drug and alcohol abuse, which have greater potential for destroying the lives of individuals, families and other members of the community.

Granstra says some religious leaders may think: "We've taken away everything else, it's hard to take away this one acceptable vice."

Perhaps the most difficult challenge in addressing obesity is how to bring up the subject without offending or stigmatizing overweight people in the pews.

Obese white women already are far less likely than healthy-weight women to attend religious services, Granstra found in her research using data from the Portraits of American Life Study.

Maureen Benjamins of the Sinai Urban Health Institute in Chicago, a lead researcher in the community health survey in Chicago, suggests focusing on "a positive, pro-social message" that everyone can benefit from physical activity and healthier eating habits.

"If you keep it at that general level, you don't have to worry about people being stigmatized," she said in an interview.

Religious groups also may want to consider offering workout classes and nutrition seminars to all members so no one feels singled out, researchers say, instead of addressing the topic from the pulpit.

And it would not hurt to offer more fruits and vegetables as alternatives at congregational meals, Fitchett says.

Given all the protective health effects of religious participation, and the social value of community meals, however, don't expect donuts to disappear from Sunday morning coffee hours or latkes to be left off of Shabbat plates.

There is a time for every indulgence under heaven.

David Briggs writes the Ahead of the Trend column for the Association of Religion Data Archives.

[ClubV12]

I haven't seen much fried meat, biscuits and gravy at the common meal after church lately.

But "we" are not off the hook so easy! I see plenty of cookies, cakes, pastries and such. I was also surprised to see that MOST folks are quite reasonable in how much they eat and desert, if taken at all, is modest. For many members of my church they are so thin it would take two of them make a shadow.

Oh, we certainly have a fair degree of folks who would do well to loose a few pounds, like me... I am really thankful for our health message, which I have begun to live by more closely in all respects. Exercise, fresh air, food, drink, being careful how much I eat and when. Maybe someday it will take two of me to make a shadow? It's a worthy goal. :)

[Gail]

:) Has it passed your mind that one day the smaller sizes might be a witness in themselves?

[fccool]

I'm wondering if the stats are similar for Adventist church. I'd think that these would be lower, given the church emphasis on importance of nutrition and exercise.

I think this is a very undervalued jewel of Adventism that really should be explored more through both inreach and outreach. In past year and a half, we've had cooking classes, but generally this subject rarely comes up as a concentrated effort from the pulpit. It really should.

As far as the higher rates of obesity of those involved in ministry... it could very well be the amounts of stress one has to endure while balancing work, family, and church. It's really tough. I can admire people who year in and year out can find the time for all of the three and maintain the high level of enthusiasm. Unfortunately, the high level of stress wrecks havok in terms of weight gain, especially when people sacrifice quality food and exercise time for these activities.

If there's a healthy way out, then perhaps these could be combined? Perhaps an exercise room below the church, or in the school gym, and good quality food available for those who sacrifice their time to service? I don't think it would be that hard to accomplish.

[olger]

"Fat is an easy commodity to come by, in America" (Fred Garber).

[ClubV12]

While I try not to look for others for my personal Christian standard, I still rely on church members for fundamental advice. Like recipes... I have one church lady on "speed dial" so I can call her from the supermarket for tips when I'm not sure what to get or how to prepare something.

Regarding "bolted and unbolted" flour, as Sister White call's it: I bring a set of sockets with me when shopping for this mysterious "bolted flour". That way I can unbolt it and take it home if I ever find it.....

[phkrause]

While I try not to look for others for my personal Christian standard, I still rely on church members for fundamental advice. Like recipes... I have one church lady on "speed dial" so I can call her from the supermarket for tips when I'm not sure what to get or how to prepare something.

Regarding "bolted and unbolted" flour, as Sister White call's it: I bring a set of sockets with me when shopping for this mysterious "bolted flour". That way I can unbolt it and take it home if I ever find it.....