My wife has family in Oregon and I'm always shocked at the drastic change in climate when we visit in the summer. Beyond that, the next most shocking change is the relatively small percentage of overweight people you see. My wife and I both notice it. The traditional "southern diet" is downright terrible. In addition, many are uneducated about a proper diet and are trying to eat on-the-cheap, due to income levels. Once upon a time, the wealthy were the only ones who could afford to be larger individuals. Now, the lower-income groups are hitting themselves with a double whammy of tremendous daily calorie intake combined with a substandard amount of actual nutrition. Don't give the body what it needs to operate correctly and you have health problems. Add 30-70 extra pounds of fat to the equation to stress the bodily systems even more, and you see why obesity is the health epidemic that it has become. It won't be long before the typical American life span starts to decrease. Food may be slower-acting, but it can kill you as surely as cyanide.....
