Micro

It's funny (sad?) that we have more ways to work out than ever, and certainly more diets (some that work, some don't), but Americans still face massive obesity issues. Why it would be easy to dismiss us as lazy McDonald eating fat fucks, I have to think there is more to it. Is it the "perfect storm" of several things, or can we point to one thing?

I'll just generalize some factors and you can agree/disagree as you will.

1. High fructose corn syrup replacing sugar.
2. Portion sizes (SUPER SIZES).
3. High carb/fat snack items. (...snack in general like potato chips)
4. Time (or the lack of) - eating at [Insert Fast Food Joint] in 3 minutes, versus 30 minutes in the kitchen.
5. Lack of nutrition education.
6. Desk jockeys - lack of manual labor jobs by Americans.
7. Diets - yes, diets. Fad diets replacing just reducing calories and exercising has caused an overall increase because the fad diets are unrealistic, difficult to stick with and usually cause weight gain after the fact.

Personally, I don't think I could point to any ONE of the above. It's probably different reasons for different people, but I think we certainly aren't doing much as a country to change things. Sure, places are eliminating transfats, but that's not going to be enough.

People may laugh, but I find this to be a bigger problem in this country than terrorism could be. Rising health care costs due to the multiple problems caused by obesity are going to put a huge strain on the economy. It's also just a general health concern. I'm confused why more action isn't taken. No, I don't think there needs to be government intervention, as they "intervene" enough already, but I don't know why more insurance companies or employers don't pay for things like gym memberships and weight loss clinics.

A healthy healthcare member is going to live a lot longer and pay out a lot more premium (with less cost), so it only makes sense to subsidize a gym membership or some other program.

So, I've already said I can't pick one in my list, but I will so it will fit my topic. I'm going to say number 2. with portion sizes, but I honestly believe it's much more than that. That said, you CAN go to many restaurants and eat your daily calorie intake in just the appetizer alone...