Why Americans are so fat?

(And other Westerners, too)

Why are Americans so fat?
(And other Westerners, too.)

Thank you for reading this week's installment of Life Intelligence as I try to make the world a better place by telling you how to live your life 😊

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This topic bugs me a lot on many levels. It's one of those messy subjects people take sides on, assign blame, and rationalize. I thought long and hard about bringing it up, but here you have it. I want to be helpful, so hopefully, I will be.

If you know me personally, you know how important health and wellness are to my existence. I do yoga, work out, hike, walk at least 5 miles every day (Lulu makes me), and eat as healthy as I can, organic foods, a well-balanced diet, blah blah blah. The result is that at 50 I frequently am told that I look 35. But the best part about it is that I have energy, no aches and pains, and I save a lot of money on clothing I don't have to buy since I am still size S.

The part you may not know is what it really takes to do all this. It's not just what I eat and what I do but the ongoing education. I've spent the equivalent of a master's degree studying the subject, constantly evaluating what supplements I should be taking, what works, what doesn't, tweaking my diet and exercise regime, managing proper sleep, etc. As I knock on the door of menopause, my homework became even more complicated. I have to balance my hormones and the natural changes of aging proactively. Questions such as "will I get fat, too?" get answered daily by the scale in my bedroom. So far, the answer is "I am not fat yet." Hahaha. So far, so good.

So, naturally, I come out heavy on the side of "personal choice and agency." I know some drew the shitty genetics card and, at least to a degree, have that to blame for their weight situation. At the same time, the last time I went to BLSA in Baltimore, the National Institute of Health scientists running the different tests heavily focused on epigenetics – the study of how environment, lifestyle, and genetics interact. The short version of the story is just because you have a gene for something, it doesn't mean it will get switched on. You guessed it, your lifestyle and environment have a lot to do with what genes get switched on and off.

That's a big blow to "I can't help it."

But there are also other reasons people "can't help it." I am fortunate not to have kids. Actually, very fortunate not to have kids. It keeps my stress level down and gives me extra time to study all that health stuff, and frees up financial resources to implement them.

If you think I am still crazy for thinking that I am lucky not to have kids, you should walk a mile in my life-coaching shoes. I see many parents of adult children with the craziest conflicts between them. I am sure none of them saw it coming when they conceived. Kids are expensive to raise, and not just financially. I am not saying you shouldn't have kids. I just hope you are making the right decision based on your ability to raise them and provide for them. But I digress…

Socio-economic factors play a role in how much people work, what they eat, how much stress and free time they get, and by an extension, what they can really do for themselves. I am sure you've noticed that the healthy, fit, and youthful people out there are those with means. The ones falling apart, growing older faster, and seriously obese are mostly much lower down the income scale. This is the exact opposite of the images a century ago depicting the rich as fat and the poor as stick figures.

You must ask yourself why? I do. The answer is not just because the well-to-do can afford personal trainers, plastic surgery, and Lululemon pants that make them look good.

This German documentary does a great job of explaining how bad things have become in the "developed" Western world. The statistics are scary! Massive amounts of the population in the USA and Europe are obese. It's expensive to be obese – personally and on the systems that provide care. I am sure you already know that obesity is considered a co-morbidity of some of the leading causes of death – cardiovascular disease, diabetes, stroke, cancers, etc. It's like you can't get one of these unless you are also obese. Or at least, you are much less likely to get one of these if you are not fat.

The sad part is that children as young as 12 have diabetes, too. Watch the documentary. You will also learn that they place most of the blame on food producers, the mega-companies who lobby governments to get their way.

Some of the highlights are:

• Sugar is a huge reason why people plump up. Not just because eating it is empty calories but because of the way the body stores it.

• Soft drinks are the worst and ruining entire populations. (Sugar again) But some countries are fighting it and winning the battle against Big Soda.

• Processed food is cheaper than produce. Poor people can only afford processed foods.

• Processed foods are also addictive because of the formulations going into them.

• Same regarding fast food – cheap and addictive.

• Processed foods are easier, too. Opening a can of soup takes half a minute. Cooking soup takes at least an hour. Who's got the time if you work three jobs?

• Fast food and processed foods are not satiating in the same way whole foods are. So, people eat more of them.

• You can't burn the calories you put in from junk food as easily as the industry will have you believe. You can eat a burger in 20 minutes. You will have to jog for 3 hours to burn off the calories.

What the documentary doesn't say is that people like me shop in the same grocery stores as all the obese ones, but we don't buy soda or junk food. I drink water. Water is cheaper than soda, with zero calories and zero sugar. It's healthy. This means just because the food industry wants to fatten its bank accounts, it does not automatically absolve me of my personal responsibility for what goes in my mouth.

I am lazy when it comes to cooking. So, I make a pot of soup or whatever meal, portion it into bowls, and stick them in the fridge, thus working once to eat multiple times. When I divide the cost of produce into the meals I produce, I come out ahead. On the other hand, making a salad takes a lot less time than waiting at a drive-through burning gas. For me, processed food is actually more expensive and even more inconvenient. All that packaging needs to go in the trash, which means I must make more trips to the dumpster outside. I'd rather be hiking. It also takes up room in my fridge and pantry, which is limited space. It means I must make more trips to the grocery store. I'd rather walk my dog.

I believe the "convenience" of processed and fast foods sold to people is a major inconvenience if you consider the time and energy people spend going to doctors and pharmacies and on sick leave.

Wealthy people stay in better health because they eat more whole foods. They can afford chefs, organic farm food boxes delivered to their doorstep, locally sourced fancy meals at restaurants, etc. They just eat better quality food. Period! And yes, personal trainers, yoga lessons, Lululemon pants, etc. Period. Again. LOL.

It seems unfair to blame everything on personal choice, knowing how much time I spent learning to be healthy and managing my well-being. But personal choice IS at play, definitely. Instead of donuts, people could snack on apples. Instead of McDonald’s, pack a homemade sandwich, even if it's not organic. Instead of watching TV, walk. Walking is free. Hiking is free. Lots of dancing out there is free. No personal trainer necessary. They even have free outdoor gyms in parks and playgrounds. Get a bicycle from a garage sale and ride it to work. I did that when I lived in Hawaii. My $50 bike lasted me 6 years! Even cheaper than public transportation.

At the same time, the companies feeding people absolutely need to be more responsible with what they offer. Clearly, they value profits more than lives. Although, if their customers live longer, shouldn't this mean more goods sold??? I don't know the math on that, but I wonder.

Part of me also wonders if entire systems – medical care, pharma, food manufacturing, have morphed into monsters preying on the addictions and weaknesses of populations instead of taking care of their well-being because it simply makes more money. Naturally, shouldn't the government be there to balance the situation? If I ruled the world, I would outlaw lobbying.

I mean, we elect representatives who supposedly advocate for the rights, freedoms, and well-being of their constituents. We, the people, don't need lobbyists to advocate for the rights, freedoms, and well-being of corporations and put money into the pockets of said "elected representatives." But then again, we might have to stop treating corporations as people.

What a mess.

One person cannot undo systemic conflicts of interest. But one person can choose what to do with him/herself. There's also the Butterfly Effect. Individually making healthier choices influences others to do the same.

And free market dynamics - if enough people choose against buying soda, the decreased demand will force soda manufacturers to make healthier drinks available if they want to keep their market share. 

Or else statistics will turn out to be self-fulfilling prophecies.

51% of the world's population — or roughly 4 billion people — are expected to be overweight or obese by 2035, a significant jump from the 38% of the population who were overweight or obese in 2020.

 Currently, about 42% of Americans are obese. And by 2030, nearly half of the US population will be obese, according to new research.

That's just very scary on so many levels!!!

What is NOT helpful? Normalizing obesity. If we normalize something, we'll live with it. But we are very much normalizing obesity. We are telling people that they are beautiful when obese and should love their bodies just the way they are. If they truly love their bodies, they shouldn't let them suffer under all that extra weight. If they love their bodies, they must do everything to ensure they are healthy, vibrant, and strong. No excuses.

"No excuses" leads to no diabetes, fewer heart attacks, no high blood pressure, better sleep, way fewer aches and pains, and way more and better sex. The CDC says. Except for the sex part, which is what I say… Prove me wrong. I've heard from enough disillusioned spouses complaining about their significant others gaining so much weight that they no longer feel attracted to them. Superficial, you say??? I say, unfair. If pressed, I could make the case of why ballooning up out of proportion after you get married is a breach of the marriage contract, excluding some rare diseases that are out of one's control.

Obesity is a problem on the dating scene, too, unless you have a fetish of this sort. People know this, so they lie outright on their dating profiles. Obesity is not just an attractiveness turn-off. It alludes to possibly other issues with the person – depression/mental health stuff, physical health conditions, self-control questions, and lifestyle compatibility concerns. That's because obesity is a package deal with things you don't want in a package if you are healthy and active and want to stay that way.

It's the honest truth very few want to admit, especially in a culture that shames you for "fat-shaming."

I hope I won't get fired for saying this. Oh, wait! I am self-employed.

The bottom line is, if we don't want an obesity epidemic to kill off young children 7 years from now, we better start discussing this issue honestly from ALL angles. Then, we better tackle government regulations to prevent Big Food from profiting by the pound, feed healthy lunches at school, close all drive-throughs, and place the parking lots for fast food restaurants a mile away, making people walk to and from. OK, maybe not the last one. But definitely, feeding people real, whole foods will be a good start. Some good examples in that documentary I mentioned of how different countries have helped their populations stay healthier. So, watch it.

I know it's easier to gain weight than to lose it. But the longer one stays obese, the less life they have ahead of them, especially good quality of life! It's worth trying to shed the extra pounds.

And not obesity-related, but still health-related. I made this announcement in my last post, but here it is again. I donate my time and body to the National Institute of Health for their Baltimore Longitudinal Study on Aging. I am going there in June for another four days of extensive testing of everything. I am a data set to them. They poke around. Take blood. Stick me in an MRI, make me dress in sensors and walk around, and test my strength, memory, nerves, hearing, and proprioception. Collect my pee. I sleep in a hospital bed and get woken up at 5 am to get hooked up to their computers. They ask me a million questions about my life, diet, and exercise. Do stress tests of all sorts. They even test new technology on us volunteers, such as a system for early detection of Parkinson's disease. I am a lab rat for four days. I don't get paid. I pay my own travel expenses, too. I do get a $10 coupon for the hospital cafeteria daily 😊 And I get that warm, fuzzy feeling of contributing to something greater than myself. I geek out on the science, too. I love that part.

Except, this time I got a sticker shock. Airfare was 3x more than what I paid before and now I also have to pay for a Lulu sitter while I am gone. And yes, I won't be working for five days, which for us self-employed types is kind of a lot. Just the travel and Lulu expenses add up to about $2000 this time around.

I bought the ticket. I booked the doggy sitter. I am ready to go. BUT, if you want to help me out, I'll take it!!!! I'll be updating you from the hospital. I will probably post a few videos and definitely write about everything I learned while I was there. So, you will get a whole lot of health information right from the source!

Thank you for considering it! Donate here – any amount you wish!

I had 3 donations last week!!! $230 out of the $2000-ish! I AM SUPER GRATEFUL! Thank you, fine folks!!!

I will only ask one more time. I don't really want to bother people more than that.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for your support, too!

Need help to figure yourself out? I can help!
My services: www.valentinapetrovaconsulting.com

Yours truly,

V.