Fat America

In America there are an awful lot of fat people. No, not as fat as you saw in McDonald's last week, with three chins and a huge butt. If there are as many large people in Russia, they probably don't leave their homes, because when you weigh 400 pounds, your legs literally won't support you, and moving around requires a specially reinforced wheelchair. The wheelchair-accessibility of public places in Russia is a separate theme. The fact is, we are hardly as obese as they are in the States, because our food is not so horrible and not designed to constantly stuff children and adults with super-fats and huge quantities of sugar and carbohydrates. To be fat in America is very simple. It's much more complicated to be healthy.

According to the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 36 percent of Americans older than 20 suffer from extreme obesity; another 33 percent have not yet crossed over into the "obese" category, but their weight is significantly higher than normal. What is even more frightening is that 18 percent of children ages six to 11 and 12 percent of toddlers ages two to five are in this category. "Obese" means that a person is practically 100 percent heavier than the weight which is considered normal for his height.

Of course, for some people suffering from such extreme obesity, the cause is some underlying disease. But the main "culprit" in the American tragedy is an affinity for food, which is compared to a dependence on cigarettes, alcohol or narcotics. Again, it's scary to me to see 15-year-old children eating donuts and Big Macs. This choice is made for them by their parents, and afterward the child will have a great struggle with his excess weight, his stretched-out stomach and the habit of eating his fill of any kind of junk.

Everyone surely knows how enormous portion sizes are in the States. Any average restaurant, if it is not expensive "fine dining," will feed you to bursting point. Pounds of pasta, big desserts with thousands of calories each. Huge platters filled to the edge with food. When I first arrived in the U.S., I was embarrassed to even answer the waitress' question, whether I wanted to take my breakfast leftovers with me. For us, this is not very acceptable. There, it is a logically-based custom: If your belly is not stretched to fantastic proportions, it is impossible to eat these enormous meals at one sitting.

But the problem isn't even in the quantity. It is the quality. In Russia, according to recent data, the use of 14 types of genetically modified organisms is allowed — various sorts of corn, potatoes, rice and beets. Growing genetically modified vegetables and grains on Russian territory is forbidden, and foods containing more than 0.9 percent GMO must be marked accordingly. In America, experts estimate that 80 percent of the food contains GMOs; polls show that Americans want to know what is in that percentage. But powerful biotechnological lobbies actively interfere in the government on this matter; food producers in the States are not obligated to show the presence and quantity of genetically modified ingredients. The government is "assured" of the safety of GMOs for human health by the very same companies that produce the GMOs and earn billions of dollars from them.

Regarding what genetically modified corn or soy might do to you, there are many versions, each one scarier than the next. In one scientific study, rats which were fed GMOs their whole lives became ill and died of cancer; in another, they became unusually aggressive; in a third, the second generation of rats turned out to be infertile. While other scientists argue whether they can trust these results, Americans are left to guess whether they are threatened by this beautiful, odorless strawberry or that soy milk. It is quite possible that the full consequences of consuming genetically changed foods may become known only in the next generation, which grows up on them.

One thing is clear: GMOs definitely influence the human metabolism and how the body uses food. People here are not simply plump, they get fat on all sides, until they turn into some formless thing, more like some horrid monster from "Star Wars," than humanoid. Girls of 12 to 14 years could pass for 25 years old — their bodies at that age already resemble those of grown women. Around 70 percent of Americans suffer from some kind of allergy — that is also connected with the use of genetically modified foods.

More and more people in the States cannot tolerate dairy products and gluten, a protein in grains. In local stores a multitude of packages have appeared with "gluten-free" bread, crackers and pies, and cow's milk is being replaced by coconut, rice, and almond milks. People need to look for healthier variations of their usual foods, because they cannot eat a simple piece of bread with milk — this food will make them sick with inflammation of the intestines and other delights. Where did all this come from?

Experts on healthy nutrition say that modern American bread has more gluten than the loaves of 20 to 30 years ago. Drinks contain more sugar, and meat contains more fat. One of the trainers at my gym conducted an experiment for us with a small handful of jelly beans, little multicolored candies popular in the States at Easter. She said that for a healthy balance, a person should eat no more than seven to eight teaspoons of sugar per day. There was just that much in the handful of innocent candies. The next time, the trainer showed us a piece of butter a little bigger than the size of a fist — a cheeseburger and french fries from McDonald's contain that much fat. These revelations are scary and make one start to think: What exactly are we eating?

It is important to add that the harmful food in the States is much cheaper and more accessible than the healthy food. It is much simpler to drive to Burger King on the way home than to drive to a health-food store for a pound of grass-fed, antibiotic-free beef. Organic free-range chicken is more expensive than an unbelievably huge chicken quarter covered in grease, which any respectable pig would envy.

Some raw-food and food-combining advocates who are especially inclined to paranoia say that any food in America which is advertised on television and sold in a colorful package is probably harmful to one's health. Doctors are already equating sugar to a toxic substance, and talking about limiting its sale to children. Of course, on that score they will have to fight with the Snickers lobby.

Meanwhile, Americans are getting used to the idea that every second person in the country will get cancer at some point in their lives, and every fourth will die from it. They are already tired of hearing how "plastic / toxins in shampoo / GMO carrots / sunscreen / insert whatever word here" will give them cancer, so they live according to the YOLO principle: You Only Live Once. They buy pounds of ice cream, overeat and drink sweet soda by the gallon.

Doctors say that in 2020 two-thirds of Americans will be in the "obese" category, making America the fattest country in the world. Maybe in this particular "contest" the States would like to give up their passion to win always and everywhere — politicians already fear that the country's economy cannot pay for medical insurance for all the fat people who are sometimes eating their way into disabilities. According to Michelle Obama, the physical and emotional health of a whole generation, as well as the economic well-being and security of the country, depends on a solution to this issue. The wife of the president even established her own organization for the fight against childhood obesity: "Let's Move!"

Meanwhile Americans watch the show "The Biggest Loser" about rapidly slimming fat people, and with surprise, ask their slim friends what their secret is. Oh, if only there was a secret! But it is all very simple: healthy food, an active lifestyle and stairs instead of elevators. However, as with all simple things, Michelle Obama will have to repeat it to them again and again.