Everyday Systems

A retired colleague came to visit. He and his wife moved to Italy more than a year ago. He had noticeably lost weight. He said they're still eating plenty of pasta, etc, but they walk more AND there is almost no food available in Italy outside of restaurants and grocery stores. None at gas stations and certainly not at any store like Home Depot! Not two or three fast food places in a block, etc.

Sigh. Yes, it would be very convenient to have less available (although Americans do a good job of having more available at home, too). But we can create our own Italian bubble here!

I understand that Italians don't snack between meals, also.

I think you're right. My friend didn't mention it, so I left it out. But I've seen it talked about online. I think the fact that not as much is available and the tradition of not snacking work hand in hand. Though snacking and waistlines are spreading among the younger generation, of so I hear.

Dear Oolala:

I must weigh in (no pun intended) on this one. I have an opinion about it.
No (!!!) offense to our fellow No-S tribe members in Germany.
And maybe I am totally wrong to compare Italy and Germany.
And maybe I am just plain crazy but...

I think there is something "in the environment" in Europe that makes its food less obesogenic! I mean, like, I feel there may be something different there about the air or water. This is totally unscientific but I have noticed that every time I go to Germany, I consistently drop weight without trying and without cutting back. And that's weird! When I go elsewhere on vacation (to Mexico or Pennsylvania or Texas, say), no such thing happens. Is it just a weird coincidence? And during my 30th high school reunion in Germany, almost nobody was overweight, let alone obese!

I sometimes suspect that, aside from there being better cultural eating habits in Europe, they are also perhaps (???) lacking something over there that tends to make us fat here, like certain chemicals in the environment maybe. But I could be totally wrong!

Wouldn't THAT be something! I'm surprised someone hasn't capitalized on this!

In my opinion it all boils down to movement, if you put eating habits aside for a while. We simply walk more, and our cities and towns were made for walking and spending time outdoors, not on purpose perhaps, but urban areas in Europe, especially in the older parts of towns, are quite compact and encourage movement. I'm European and I also travelled a lot on the continent, from Estonia and Latvia through Scandinavia to the Balkans. There are parks everywhere, wide alleys lined with trees and riverbank promenades, bigger and smaller green areas, playgrounds, and of course public transport. I've never been to the US, but from what I hear from my American friends I imagine that living in suburbs is impossible without a car, and cities and towns are much more sprawled than here.

Elyssa wrote: I think there is something "in the environment" in Europe that makes its food less obesogenic! I mean, like, I feel there may be something different there about the air or water. This is totally unscientific but I have noticed that every time I go to Germany, I consistently drop weight without trying and without cutting back. And that's weird! When I go elsewhere on vacation (to Mexico or Pennsylvania or Texas, say), no such thing happens. Is it just a weird coincidence? And during my 30th high school reunion in Germany, almost nobody was overweight, let alone obese!

I sometimes suspect that, aside from there being better cultural eating habits in Europe, they are also perhaps (???) lacking something over there that tends to make us fat here, like certain chemicals in the environment maybe. But I could be totally wrong!

Chemicals wouldn't surprise me at all--seems almost every day I'm hearing about something the US allows to be used in food that some other country has banned because they say it's not healthy. (I've wondered if that also applies to what we feed animals, pesticides, and so on... Seems like the US answer to all kinds of problems is more chemicals.)

Yes, Americans like a separate house and yard for families. You need density for good public transport. Then Americans need a car to get around and to lug all the food since they won't shop often. It means they also have more food around which encourages more consumption.

I don't think people here can walk off the bigger portions we're used to.

But Elyssa says it seems independent of those things because though her habits are probably similar in visiting other places, she loses in Germany.

Elyssa, do you move around as much in the U S o rMexico? Aren't the portions bigger? Mexico has an overeating problem, too. Don't know about their movement habits but I have a idea that urban Mexicans don't move a lot more than Americans do.

Dear Merry & Dear Oolala:

Well, like I said... it's totally unscientific. But I have DEFINITELY noticed that weight comes off much more easily in Germany and this baffles me. Now, to be sure, I was raised there and my weight problem started there. Nevertheless, since working on my weight intensely since 2007, I have noticed that trips to Germany make the weight drop (not by a lot, but without changing much of anything).

I agree Mexico has a big overeating problem, definitely the highest-per-capita soda consumption in the world. And nobody in my husband's village walks much anymore; they all have pick-up trucks and ride around in them. In Mexico City, well, I guess it all depends. My sense is that there is not too much walking there.

One thing that is much better in Mexico, at least traditionally, is that food tends to be fresh. When we finish a meal at my sister-in-law's house in Mexico City, the question is "who will go to the market to buy food for dinner?" (And that is food to be cooked for dinner, NOT take-out). Her fridge is tiny, even though the family is big. Also, if they eat chicken, it's fesh. They can cook chicken, then leave it sitting outside on the stove in a covered pot for a few days and nothing starts to rot.

But see - back to Germany. I really don't think the Germans move that much more compared to Americans and Mexicans... I mean, how much more would they NEED to move to stay at a better weight compared to us Americans if it's just a matter of physical activity? It's not like they are all so incredibly active. Sure, they take walks on Sundays. The famous "Sonntagsspaziergang." But I strongly doubt that they move THAT much more than the Mexicans, who tend to be chubby like us. I think your average New Yorker in NYC walks a lot more than your average German, for example.

I see the Germans (and remember, I am one of them!) sitting around in coffee shops and bistros, smoking cigarettes, drinking beer, eating cake, and yet they don't seem to "blow up" like we do. My husband, who is Mexican, has a more unbiased view. Since his first visit there years ago, he has always said: "Why aren't they all fat? The stores sell nothing but sausage, cheese, bread, and pastries. They are always sitting around in those cafes. I don't see them running off to the gym as we do."

So, I just don't know. I find it mysterious and I would LOVE to know the answer... Have a good night & talk to you soon


~ Elyssa

No matter what other influence there is, it is very likely that they also end up eating a fair amount less on average than citizens in heavier countries. Also, if most people never became overweight, they can eat more than formerly overweight people of the same weight.

But there could be something more subtle at work. Gut stuff? The air, as you said?

In the meantime, No S!

I wonder if this is regional. Whenever I visit the south of Germany I gain weight and I notice a lot of really heavy people! So I guess if you eat enough of those sausages and don't move much, you can gain weight there. Just my observation.

Of course. I don't think any population gets away with eating more than they burn, though people who've never gained and then lost can usually eat more without gaining.

I've read some sites that claim to tell what the real eating habits of the people of certain countries are. I was surprised to read that Belgians eat pretty often, and a fair amount of the snacking out and about, at least according to the site I read. Maybe it was more of tourist site that subtly pushes eating as a marketing strategy.