Young people in other countries are remarkably thinner than Americans

[Anonymous]

Is it just me or have "OMG Americans are so FAT" threads replaced the "but really how do I look like old money?" threads?

I didn't think I'd miss the "sigh, I wish I'd been born a WASP but I'm determined to pass for one" yesteryears but here we are.

[Anonymous]

The last time I went to Japan I weighed 110 pounds and I had to buy size LL (large large) in pants. I am now closer to 130 after kids and I am dreading going there next year! The secret is tiny portions. The small US Starbucks cup is the same as the large in Japan

[Anonymous]

The secret is that you are only looking at rich people in the most expensive cities, and you are thinking that those people represent a whole country. They don't!

If you went to the most expensive parts of NYC you'd also find a lot of very thin people, guys. Are you traveling to the European equivalent of Union, New Jersey, to see what people there are built like? I am going to guess not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The last time I went to Japan I weighed 110 pounds and I had to buy size LL (large large) in pants. I am now closer to 130 after kids and I am dreading going there next year! The secret is tiny portions. The small US Starbucks cup is the same as the large in Japan

Same. Was American small but Japanese large. Shopping was a nightmare— a sales assistant literally had to find the large sizes in the back a few times. And I was about 120 lb.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The secret is that you are only looking at rich people in the most expensive cities, and you are thinking that those people represent a whole country. They don't!

If you went to the most expensive parts of NYC you'd also find a lot of very thin people, guys. Are you traveling to the European equivalent of Union, New Jersey, to see what people there are built like? I am going to guess not.

I mean, I don’t want to pick a fight. But I work in intl development. I stay in some of the ritziest neighborhoods in the world and also stay in some of the poorest neighborhoods in the world— and everything in between, on several continents. And all kinds of people were smaller.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This isn't necessarily a comment on obesity, so much as an observation of different body types among young and young-ish (let's say, people under 30 or women under 35 who haven't given birth) people in the USA versus Europe.

I am a normal weight, athletic American. Most people around here would describe me as on the thin side of normal, but with a booty. I usually wear a size 4.

I spent three years living in various countries abroad, and at the time (I was in my early 20s) I had to fight off some nagging body image issues due to how thin everyone was. Again, it's not the lack of obesity - there were plenty of overweight and obese people, especially older women and middle-aged men. Most young women were probably 50kg or less. They didn't work out like crazy like I do, they just ate less. Portions are smaller and having three square meals + snacks just isn't really a thing. This isn't to say they didn't indulge on occasions, especially parties and holidays, but if we were just having lunch during a normal day, usually a coffee and a piece of fruit would be enough. It wasn't even like there was a diet culture, other women just said they weren't hungry and were just used to eating less. They certainly walk more than most Americans, but weren't gym crazy or into running like me.

I tried to reassure myself that my body was probably healthier, being more active and athletic and getting sick less (a lot of these women would often fall ill with colds and need to stay home for several days), but it was hard not to envy how elegant and feminine their thin bodies were and I felt chunky and androgynous by comparison.

I wonder how much Americans are just predestined to be bigger - even those that eat healthy and exercise. Like if all the chemicals and toxins in our food have genetically altered Americans in some way.

Also worth mentioning is how there was not a single overweight child... I found it so remarkable how active European children are, like it was the good-old days or something before screen time. During school recess, for example, everyone was playing an active game of soccer. Children actively PLAYED whenever there was time outdoors, supervised or not. They were not just standing with snacks and talking or looking at their phones and tablets.

Interesting. The European governments disagree with you.

1. 40% of the 10-11 year old children in England are obese or overweight (25% obese, 15% overweight). -- https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN03336/SN03336.pdf
2. 35% of children in Spain are obese or overweight (15% obese, 20% overweight). -- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21074906/
3. 32% of children in Italy are obese or overweight (10% obese, 22% overweight). --https://www.alliedacademies.org/articles/whats-going-on-pediatric-obesity-report-from-italy-10571.html

That's ranging from 1/3 to nearly 1/2 of the children. Do you just not see them, like they are invisible, or ...?

Yeah, in the UK kids are as fat or fatter than here. In general, the UK seems to have the same issues with weight that Americans do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in Southern California and most kids are thin. Maybe it’s where you live.

it's definitely where you are in the US. Go to Appalachia or the South. They're all fat AF.

Appalachia checking in.
Holler!

Seriously, tho, I was at a pizza buffet yesterday and thinking the same thing. how sad it is to be young and fat. Especially kids. Like 70% of the kids are overweight in my town.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The last time I went to Japan I weighed 110 pounds and I had to buy size LL (large large) in pants. I am now closer to 130 after kids and I am dreading going there next year! The secret is tiny portions. The small US Starbucks cup is the same as the large in Japan

Same. Was American small but Japanese large. Shopping was a nightmare— a sales assistant literally had to find the large sizes in the back a few times. And I was about 120 lb.

Same but Thailand. A size 5 is an XL there. And NO WOMAN has size 10 feet! And apparently Thai women do not have as much public hair as us white American gals (or so I was told during a brazilian).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The secret is that you are only looking at rich people in the most expensive cities, and you are thinking that those people represent a whole country. They don't!

If you went to the most expensive parts of NYC you'd also find a lot of very thin people, guys. Are you traveling to the European equivalent of Union, New Jersey, to see what people there are built like? I am going to guess not.

I mean, I don’t want to pick a fight. But I work in intl development. I stay in some of the ritziest neighborhoods in the world and also stay in some of the poorest neighborhoods in the world— and everything in between, on several continents. And all kinds of people were smaller.

Well yes, extremely poor people also are skinny because they literally don't have enough to eat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The secret is that you are only looking at rich people in the most expensive cities, and you are thinking that those people represent a whole country. They don't!

If you went to the most expensive parts of NYC you'd also find a lot of very thin people, guys. Are you traveling to the European equivalent of Union, New Jersey, to see what people there are built like? I am going to guess not.

I mean, I don’t want to pick a fight. But I work in intl development. I stay in some of the ritziest neighborhoods in the world and also stay in some of the poorest neighborhoods in the world— and everything in between, on several continents. And all kinds of people were smaller.

Well yes, extremely poor people also are skinny because they literally don't have enough to eat.

Some get Kwashiorkor or swollen belly due to protein deficiency.

[Anonymous]

European food keeps me full. Dark rye bread keeps us full. I don't think of my next meal as I'm eating lunch, but I do it here.
NE young people don't smoke as much as the ones in south. We bike, hike, swim, walk, and ski a lot.
If you don't move around there, you are considered lazy and that's not a good thing.
Being out and about keeps us away from food. We have lots of trails for everyone to enjoy and fewer signs that read "private property".
It's ok to feel hungry. We know we won't die of it.
The skinnier girls simply eat less. Their bodies need less.
Car is for driving to work or somewhere over 3 km. We cannot wait to get home and ditch the car.
We love fruits since they are the exotic. All package snack is the opposite of exotic food. We also don't fry out food. We grill it and/or boil it. We eat a lot of meat and fish instead of bread.We eat a lot of warm food and a lot of non-creamy soups.
Sandwich is an opened faced with one slice usually and not two pieces of bread. We eat lots of fresh vegetables since almost all families have piece of land and farms are nearby. There's also the endless campaign about eating local food.
We don't have 1000s of dressings and sauces for every food.
We don't pour dressing on salad. I dip my salad into dressing and skip every other bite. It just too much dressing for me.
There are marathons, hikes, bike races and who knows what else and all have rewards. Just scan that you made the trip and after then trips, you get your reward. Here your reward is in the cereal package, at the bottom I think. Oh, and we don't eat the sugary cereals or drink sodas like here. Kids will you let them, but grown-ups know better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The secret is that you are only looking at rich people in the most expensive cities, and you are thinking that those people represent a whole country. They don't!

If you went to the most expensive parts of NYC you'd also find a lot of very thin people, guys. Are you traveling to the European equivalent of Union, New Jersey, to see what people there are built like? I am going to guess not.

I mean, I don’t want to pick a fight. But I work in intl development. I stay in some of the ritziest neighborhoods in the world and also stay in some of the poorest neighborhoods in the world— and everything in between, on several continents. And all kinds of people were smaller.

Well yes, extremely poor people also are skinny because they literally don't have enough to eat.

Some get Kwashiorkor or swollen belly due to protein deficiency.

Yes, good point. Not all extremely poor people are skinny from head to toe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:European food keeps me full. Dark rye bread keeps us full. I don't think of my next meal as I'm eating lunch, but I do it here.
NE young people don't smoke as much as the ones in south. We bike, hike, swim, walk, and ski a lot.
If you don't move around there, you are considered lazy and that's not a good thing.
Being out and about keeps us away from food. We have lots of trails for everyone to enjoy and fewer signs that read "private property".
It's ok to feel hungry. We know we won't die of it.
The skinnier girls simply eat less. Their bodies need less.
Car is for driving to work or somewhere over 3 km. We cannot wait to get home and ditch the car.
We love fruits since they are the exotic. All package snack is the opposite of exotic food. We also don't fry out food. We grill it and/or boil it. We eat a lot of meat and fish instead of bread.We eat a lot of warm food and a lot of non-creamy soups.
Sandwich is an opened faced with one slice usually and not two pieces of bread. We eat lots of fresh vegetables since almost all families have piece of land and farms are nearby. There's also the endless campaign about eating local food.
We don't have 1000s of dressings and sauces for every food.
We don't pour dressing on salad. I dip my salad into dressing and skip every other bite. It just too much dressing for me.
There are marathons, hikes, bike races and who knows what else and all have rewards. Just scan that you made the trip and after then trips, you get your reward. Here your reward is in the cereal package, at the bottom I think. Oh, and we don't eat the sugary cereals or drink sodas like here. Kids will you let them, but grown-ups know better.

Who is the “we” you are talking about? Rich urban people?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are much stricter food ingredient regulations in Europe, to the point that "American" brands don't even have the same ingredients there.

Higher quality food, plus socialized medicine, plus mass transportation and walking all led to less obesity.

The food thing is really important. US processed food is disgusting. Almost everything has sugar or some other gross additive to it. Now if you go to a playground and see what most parents are giving their kids to snack on, it's no wonder they are all overweight.

[Anonymous]

Americans and UK folks are horribly fat. When i grew up in the 60s and 70s there was "the fat kid" in class. Now it is the majority of the class.

Just look at the sh*t in the shopping carts at the checkout line. You just know how fat the family is.