Originally posted by miko2d
I will post a more substantially on the subject, but it is not the "fast" food or "fatty" food but unnatural, artificially produced "food" that is the root of the problems.
Forget girls getting chunkier. How about significant fraction of girls reaching sexual matirity by 7-8 years of age?
The dramatic increase in mental disorders among boys? The prevalence in allergies an asthma? Fertility problems in men and women.
This whole thing is really scary.
miko
You imply that unnatural foods are causing all ^ of the above? Now, I am not qualified to accuse any one cause, but I think it's safe to say there are many factors outside of 'unnatural foods' (if they even have an effect).
Increased mental disorders among boys? I think the answer can be found in a broader spectrum (including food) of social problems. Doctors throwing pills and medications to anyone with a minor problem is a problem. Kids with ADD taking medication to slow them down or kids with dislexia being prescribed aderol is not the answer. Some kid has a problem, cannot discover a path to deal with it, and mom/dad/doctor says he has XXX Disorder or some nifty sounding name... and promptly throws pills at him/her. Thats just my minor rant and is of course not a 'main contributor' to any specific subject.
Anyway, back to the subject.
Video games and nintendo. Yes, I was three or four when my family first bought a Nintendo. Before that, we had Intellivision and Atari. I was active in many youth sports and other youth rucus. Plenty of time off the couch... and still had time to sit in front of the tube with a controller in my hand. That was normal back in the 80s/early 90s.
The social scene was also changing from the 80s/90s. From the 80s mantra of "jocks r00l and n3rdz drool" had changed. Almost everybody wanted to be cool, like Arthur Fonzerelli cool... or captain of the football team cool. That wore itself out and evolved as the 90s crept in. No longer was the high school football captain and QB "THE Guy." I think music had a large impact. The Grunge movement in the early 90s (Nirvana, Sound Garden, etc) changed the mindset of students. No more putting on a front and caring too much about physical apperance played a part for white/suburban kids (just look at the change in clothing styles). How this affects eating habits, I can't tie in just yet.
Also, the rap genre began to come into full swing (heh, Run DMC, even the fresh prince) and changed black youth outlook and mindset. Rap/rock/whatever is not specific to any one group. I'm not trying to generalize or stereotype; just offering a point of reference.... music had a large impact on the midnset of a majority of youths.
The early 90s "MTV era" was pretty good imo. MTV started to suck when they decided to can Beavis and Butthead and the 'Real World' season got into its 2nd or 3rd.
Also, around this time (mid 90s) the PC movement began to come into play. I still remember keeping track of the terminology for disabled or mentally challenged or [insert PC word for retarded persons here] and how it changed over the years. Retard > Disabled > Mentally Challenged > Alternatively Advantaged (!?). Many of you agree PCness has become silly. Everyone seems to be "concerned" with the "emotional well being of others." Blah
OK - So , anyway we're seeing a social change among youths. Technology is ever increasing... from 8bit Nintendo (ok, atari systems too) all the way XBox and kick bellybutton blazing computers. I'm sure we all remember Doom and Mortal Kombat. Remember how much of an uproar these two caused? Violence like that today is relatively childsplay so to speak. Now, I am in no way linking video game violence with the "numb" mindset when it comes to violence presently. An almost infinite number of factors can be to blame.
Lastly: Going off of the "increasing number of youths with mental disorders" statement, I will agree to a certain extent. In my opinion, the femininization of the male can seen as a cause. Keep in mind I am not blaming any person, organisation, or anything yet. Look at American society in the 50s compared to the 90s/today. We see, in some instances, a role reversal. In one particular household, the man could be caring for the kids, cooking & cleaning, while the wife is away at work. In another case, we could observe two male or two females as the parents. Doubt you'd see that in 1950s suburbia... .00001% of the time perhaps. Households today are very very diverse and I dont think a single majority of family arrangements can be used to argue with. Hell, some households cannot be considered a 'family unit.'
The balancing of the patriarchal/matriarchal "rule" in a household certainly reflects on the children. And that is multiplied as the children have children of their own. Not many Dictators in home anymore... its a democracy (or ****ed up homes may have anarchy =] ).
I personally see no harm in a 50/50 balance between the genders. No sense in making unwritten rules for who can and cant wear the pants in the family. It's outdated and has evolved over the last 50 years. I feel society is constantly seeking equilibrium... dont fight it; you'll need a ****load more energy putting it back in "order." Society has entropy.
Now, for the boys that have mental disorders... sure, it could be the food, it could be them living under high voltage power lines too, and it could also be the normal flow and change of society that has happened since cavemen sat around campfires.
please excuse my wall of text. If you can find one clear point and argument in there, let me know. ^ Just a bunch of ramblings and $ .02
