That, but I would add the turn to legalized bribery, which allowed corporate interests to avoid public accountability (that captures a lot, from advertising on children’s television to obscured classifications, allowing designed addictive formulations, and even zoning), relatedly, regulatory capture, rhetorical attacks on the so called nanny state (look at how Michelle Obama was attacked for her healthy foods initiative), and even the timing of the Iowa caucus. Not to mention lax antitrust enforcement, in part fortuitously exposed in lysine price fixing. Plus, suburban lifestyles and lack of parks to escape “urban”, and even shutdown of public pools and other recreational facilities after they were desegregated. Public pools used to be a thing, but that ended rather than integrate.
Although intuitively appealing, eating and activity habits lack clear evidence for contributing to obesity … Widespread misconceptions about obesity
Guesses in order of impact: 1. Stress 2. Sugar and processed foods 3. The phone 4. Outdoor activities decline 5. Sex and intimacy decline
Like shooting ducks (and wive’s tales) in a barrel … Physical activity does not influence obesity risk: time to clarify the public health message Add: I remember reading a study that showed that North Americans get as much physical activity as mammals in the wild.
I'm going with tobacco. Everybody used to smoke chew or dip. Nicotine is a stimulant that ignited metabolism. Now it's taboo and way less common. ....also. today, everybody's a foodie.
The crap in our food. I've seen many social media posts from people who have thinned down and feel so much better once they move out of the US.
If you buy fresh food and make it yourself the only crap in it is what you put in it. Now if you’re too lazy, don’t have time, or just don’t like cooking there’s a restaurant in the area that will serve you healthy food. Insinuating you have to move to another country to eat healthy is hilarious.
It is a contributor though. The extra weight makes the organs work harder. Higher blood pressure, the liver, kidneys and pulmonary system all have to work harder to support the extra weight over "ideal". That said, I have seen overweight people in their 90s. My grandmother is a prime example. Smoked over a pack a day for 75 years, ate pretty much whatever she wanted, lived to be 95 before a stroke finally did her in. Can't boil down the increase to a single cause, but between the over processing of most foods (e.g., higher sodium content, changeover from sugar to HFCS) and the increased sedentary screen watching that should account for quite a bit of it.
Regardless, you can buy stuff in a box in other countries that is still fine to eat. Here, a whole lot of it is poison.
One word - cars. When I was going to UF, there weren’t any cars. We had to walk from Gainesville to Jacksonville for the Florida/Georgia football game. I also went to all the basketball games, including the road games. When I went to the Maui Classic, I was emaciated after that swim. PS, there also weren’t any boats.
