Germans consume more fat, almost as much sugar, but only 14.7% obese vs USA 35%

Asian traveller wrote:

Pho rider wrote:

I worked in the big cities in Vietnam, in the fairly prosperous white collar areas. Everyone, and I mean everyone, is skinny. They do almost zero exercise. Nobody bikes. Little walking. They are paranoid of the sun and ride their scooters from right next to where they live to right next to where they work. If they go out for lunch, they ride their scooters down the block when walking would probably be faster.

That's only one example, but I don't think the walking and biking hypothesis for low obesity, which is reasonable, is actually a major factor.

It's not walking and biking alone.

Healthy food is a major factor too.

American's eat mostly crap and that's why they look crap too.

I think it’s probably the same story in the UK. Outside of London, especially in the north, almost everyone is really fat.

This sums it up nicely.

Better genetic stock. Europeans are generally gifted both mentally and physically.

The Brits who went over to America were obviously genetically poorer. Probably why they ran away from Europe in the first place.

semenyagoat wrote:

germans are also pretty overweight. Italians on the other hand are more lean. Man being there in the city you can see fit women everywhere. The big difference in the USA is mostly a lot of really really fat people. Whenever i am in the usa i wonder how those people function at all

This article and maps attache below really show how bad the situation is in the US. Never mind fat and sugar, the amount of calories the average American consumes is ridiculously higher . They are also not as physically active as Germans, French etc. Look at the US map - its frightening. And the other issue is that the media loves to glorify fat people.. and pretend its beautiful and acceptable. (until the coronaries and diabetes kick in over time. Then -not so much )

The European social contract plays a big factor. My French friends have two kids. Mom got two years paid maternity leave from her job for each kid. So, she was home cooking meals for everyone for four years. After that, she went back to work full time, which was 35 hours a week. Not a minute more. She still was able to pick up her kids from school and be home with plenty of time to prepare meals. And then they get to take six weeks off in the summer and just go hang out at a vacation rental in the mountains. When they do go out to eat, traditional foods dominate at restaurants. While those may be full of fats, they are generally from rich sauces, buttery breads/pastries and fatty meats. You never see anything like loaded nachos or meat lover's pizza in Europe.

In the US, everyone works 24/7 and has no time to cook. Everyone relies on fast food and pre-packaged meals and snacks. Also, people have no free time. People spend 90+ min a day just commuting. They work from 8 to 6 and then come home and spend another hour or two on their computer. They go in on weekends and skip vacations or take a minimal 2 weeks a year. So, food becomes a replacement for recreation. Instead of going to a play or spending time gardening for fun, people in the US only have time for pleasure during meals. So, they go and get the biggest calorie/sugar and fat bomb they can find and wash it down with lots of booze.

This is a great explanation too.