sugar, oh lordy, lordy

[Napoleon]

how weird is it that all the top countries on that list are Pacific Island nations!!

what's the deal with that???

Obviously FISH makes you fat!

Thank you Cristina for making fish too expensive to buy here!!

 

[cafeconleche]

I think another factor is that being overweight is a sign of beauty and prosperity in some of those Pacific nations.

 

[Uncle Dermot]

Well the minor detail is that in Europe you also earn in euros. Well, presumably. 5 euros are like 25 pesos, and I do not find that cheap for a dessert. Actually, that´s an EXTREMELY cheap cake here. Most bakeries I´ve seen sell very few cakes for less than 40-50 pesos. And I sure as hell don´t plan on spending 50 pesos on a cake!!

An average salary for an office job in Italy would be around 1200 euros a month, while here it is around 700 euros, if in Italy you pay 1.20 EUR for a factura that's 1/1000th of your salary, but if in Argentina you only pay 20 cents that's 1/3500th of your Argentinian salary...so it is still cheap if compared to Europe

 

[KatharineAnn]

I guess I´m wondering who told you that 700 euros is an ¨average¨ office salary here? Maybe for someone in a professional position or with experience, but definitely not for your run-of-the-mill desk job....If what you say is true I know a lot of people who are getting royally screwed by being paid far below ¨average¨.

Oh! Not to mention the percentage of people who are able to access an ¨average office job¨ here!! I think the newspaper said a couple months ago that 80% of Argentinians made less than 2000 pesos, or about 400 euros, per month. true that this takes people outside of buenos aires into account, but i think it´d be fair to assume the 80% of people in buenos aires do actually earn less than 700 euros per month, thus making it really not very average at all.

 

[MizzMarr]

how weird is it that all the top countries on that list are Pacific Island nations!!

what's the deal with that???

I was wondering whether it had to do with the preponderance of coconut in the traditional diet or imports resulting from colonization. I googled it and found a couple of articles, here's a snippet that looked at a specific pacific island:

Studies by New York's Rockefeller University have detailed the heavyweight status of adults among Kosrae's 8,000 residents, finding more than half to be obese. A total of 82% are overweight. One in eight adults has diabetes.
The Rockefeller scientists are still studying causes, particularly genetic underpinnings of overeating, overweight and diabetes.
The woman in charge of noncommunicable diseases for the island's health service is cautious about the "why" of Kosraean obesity. But "basically we eat a lot of food," Dr. Vida Skilling said in an interview at Kosrae's little hillside hospital.
"We eat servings that are two or three times what are served in the United States."
The eating habits are on display in the aisles of Thurston's general store, where the few shelves are packed with big cans of Crisco, corned beef and Spam (fat per serving: 140 of 180 calories), jars of mayonnaise, boxes of heavily sugared cereal, 50-pound sacks of rice, and no fresh vegetables.
"They like Spam, beans, peaches in the can," said store clerk Ruth Arthy, 44. "They fry Spam slices, or mix it with canned spaghetti."
​

I guess that, and a lack of physical activity, and (as cafeconleche pointed out) an appreciation of fat as beauty would explain it!
(article here: http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2004-05-09-islanders-obese_x.htm)

and as Katherine pointed out, I think not only does it matter where you come from for perspective on what you think is fit/fat/obese, but also where you're living in the city. I see a lot more fit and polished people when I'm in Palermo, Recoleta, and some of the other barrios that are more well-to-do and that tourists also frequent than when I am in Caballito or some of the further flung barrios. Some of that has to do with wealth and status. I also see a higher ratio of obvious plastic surgery over in those barrios but that's another topic!

 

[A&A]

The locavore and organic movements (in general this means healthy eating!) are gaining major (!) momentum in the States.

I have to respectfully, but strongly disagree. Except among upper middle class, college educated, urban liberal elite, Trader Joe/Whole Food/Food blog set this is totally not the case. If you travel the country (which I did this last Summer through the South) it is McDonald's, Arby's, Burger King, Wendy's, Sonic (mmmm Sonic), rinse and repeat. There are no Alice Water's/Blue Hill "gentleman farmer" restaurants anywhere to be found. And "organic" is a marketing ploy of the highest order.

I cannot imagine any more locavore than here where 98% of the food on the shelves comes from Argentina. And anything else is stupid expensive as it should be. I would bet that that "locavore" steak you are having in San Fran came a lot further than the steak you are having in Palermo Soho without the whole "locavore" "look at me save the Planet" garbage.

Until people in the US accept that, no you cannot get watermelon in February, no that 64oz. Diet Coke is still not healthy, and the term "super size" is no longer relevant, we will only begin to scratch the surface. Can you really believe average Joe American would accept that no, there are no (pick a favorite item) because its out of season. Happens all the time here.

The whole thing is an elitist myth propagated by Agro-Farms/Food Industry and a couple of snobby chefs with restaurants that most people cannot even afford to eat at on a regular basis. FDA did not even have a requirement as to what "organic" was up until a few years ago (i think 2008). http://usda-fda.com/articles/organic.htm


...whew...I'm sweating and breathing heavy like a fatty at an all you can eat buffet...

 

[andebobandy]

how weird is it that all the top countries on that list are Pacific Island nations!!

what's the deal with that???

So, I'm not even trying to be funny here, but a few years ago I saw a documentary on why on small islands lizards became giant (kimono dragons) and other mammals (like Sumatran rhinos) became small, and it was theorized that it was an issue of growing and conversely diminishing food sources. Because the lizards had a larger dietary range they were able to survive and thrive in the smaller environment because they were able to eat way more things than the solely herbivore counterparts. I think because humans will eat just about anything, getting fat on an island wouldn't be that tough. We could extend that metaphorically to the isolation of modern American culture, but I haven't had enough to drink to go down that road.

 

[mariposa]

KatharineAnn,

"Really also it is well known that high fructose corn syrup is a LOT worse for the body than regular sugar, as the body has more trouble metabolizing it and it turns into fat."

i think that's wrong. all sugars are really bad sugars. all of them.

 

[starlucia]

I never knew alfajores contained beef fat! I'm horrified as I'm vegetarian and loved them

Yep... it's in many packaged foods I've run across here, including alfajores, most galletitas (other than Granix brand), medialunas, pan de campo, even Oreos. I'm just glad I always read the label first.

 

[Che Boludo]

Yep... it's in many packaged foods I've run across here, including alfajores, most galletitas (other than Granix brand), medialunas, pan de campo, even Oreos. I'm just glad I always read the label first.

Yeah, I was surprised by how many things have cow fat here. If the label is only in castellano, look out for "grasa bovina."
Speaking of reading the label and sugar: why is it that barely anything here lists sugar content on its label?