Weight problem spreads around world

Bob Doyle, Columnist

A number of fine books on nutrition have appeared in the past few years, several by New York Times Columnist Michael Pollan.

A new engaging book is “The World is Fat: The Fads, Trends, Policies and Products that are Fattening the Human Race” by Dr. Barry Popkin, a professor of global nutrition at the University of North Carolina. Dr. Popkin started his nutrition work in India and has been studying communities in China and Russia for decades.

In his book, Popkin reminisces about his youth in Wisconsin. In addition, he focuses on four families: a Mexican family that has lived in U.S. for two decades, a suburban family near Cleveland, Ohio, a family living in rural India and another family living in a big city in India.

The most surprising idea in this book is: In the past, only the rich were fat, having ample food; presently, the poor in some countries are likely to be fat, even heavier than the wealthy in that same culture. Six major countries have the unenviable statistic of having two thirds of their adults being overweight or obese. The prosperous three are the United States, England and Australia. The less prosperous three are Mexico, Egypt and South Africa.

What does it mean to be overweight? Or obese? These categories are based on your BMI or Body Mass Index. Your BMI is your mass in kilograms (divide your weight in pounds by 2.2) divided by the square of your height in meters (divide your height in inches by 39.37 to get your height in meters).

More simply, your BMI = 704 x weight in pounds, divided by the square of your height in inches. For example, the author weighs 157 pounds and is 68.5 inches tall. So Doyle’s BMI = 704 x 157/(68.5 x 68.5) = 23.5 .

An overweight person has a BMI over 25. An obese person has a BMI over 30. A morbidly obese person has a BMI over 40.

Like any single number, the BMI can mislead. A weight lifting enthusiast may have a very muscular body yet with a BMI over 25 with little body fat. A person with small bones can have a BMI less than 25 but still have abundant body fat.

Finding your body fat percent would give you a better indicator of whether you are overweight or obese. Several of the better digital bath scales use a small electrical current to allow you to determine your body fat percent. As you get older, your percent body fat creeps upward as you lose lean muscle mass.

Returning to Popkin’s book, there are presently 1.6 billion people in the world who are overweight or obese. In contrast there are 700 million people who are malnourished. There are also 230 million people who have diabetes and 1 billion people who have high blood pressure.

In 1950, when the world population was about 2.7 billion (compared to 6.8 billion currently), there were then only 100 million overweight and obese people. Also in 1950, there were only 1/20 as many people with diabetes and high blood pressure. Why have these conditions increased so much in only two human generations?

Among the main reasons cited by Popkin, snacking, sugary drinks and portion size contribute heavily. In today’s America, youth get two-thirds of their calories each day from their main meals, the remainder from snacks and accompanying drinks. So snacking between meals increases their caloric intake by 50 percent over the main meals (such as 2,000 kilocalories from main meals and 1,000 kilocalories from snacks).

This habit of snacking among the young has spread into Mexico, South Africa, England, Australia and other countries.

As regards sugary drinks, Americans intake twice as many calories from these drinks than in 1965. In Mexico, where the quality of public drinking water is poor, there is a choice between soda and bottled water, both about the same cost. Naturally, soda wins. While the standard soda size in the U.S. is about half a liter (a pint), the Mexican serving of soda is one or two liters.

Portion size has increased in America because of fast food establishments, who are anxious to increase their income. These establishments bank on customers realizing that the bigger the serving, the more food you get for your money.

So if small fries cost $.99 and medium fries with twice the weight costs $1.59, then you get more fries for your money. The bigger the serving the more people eat. Fries taste so good, you just can’t help yourself. For the fast food eatery, it only costs a dime or so to supply the extra fries (from small fries to medium fries). So, serving large portions brings much more money to the fast food places and also increases their customer’s weight.

What realistic suggestions might stem this rise in weight? Acquire a taste for low-caloric snacks, such as fruit or oatmeal that are not injected with fructose corn syrup (as our popular carbonated beverages). Eat baked or broiled foods, not foods fried in deep fat.

Eat more slowly, as your stomach takes 20 minutes to react to the food you have just put into your mouth. If you eat quickly, you can’t tell if you have overindulged. Get a dog. It will love to walk with you each morning and each evening. But carry some doggy treats and some plastic bags to clean up after your pooch.

Our Spring Planetarium programs for the public have concluded. Our public programs will resume on Sept. 6 with “White-Blue Marble and Pale Gray Dot.”

This morning the moon swings from the morning to the evening side of the sun. By Wednesday, the crescent moon will be striking low in the western dusk. Look for the dully lit night side of the moon above the gleaming crescent. On Saturday night, the moon will appear near the star Regulus of Leo.

Bob Doyle invites readers’ comments or questions. Leave a message at (301) 687-7799 or rdoyle@frostburg.edu .