Fat zombies, Pleistocene tastes, autophilia and the "obesity epidemic".
Canadians are fat and getting fatter: so say surveys up to and including the series of papers last August in Health Reports. By actual measurement, nearly a quarter of us (adults) are obese. So what? Obesity is clearly hazardous to health, but reports that 60% of us are "obese or overweight" border on fear-mongering. A body mass index (BMI) over 25 is not a death sentence, and obesity will not bankrupt the healthcare system. The trends, though, are worrying. So will we rebuild cities--and, especially, suburbs--to be more pedestrian-friendly, suppressing auto-induced urban sprawl? Will we take on the fast-food industry as we did tobacco? Obesity is not destiny; Vancouver's rate is only half the national average. Canada could do better.
Evans
Robert G
RG
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC.