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When traveling around the UK, one thing that really stands out is the disparity between the city and the country. People in London tend to be much healthier looking (except for the American tourists.) Out in the country, people tend to be overweight. How come?
I assume it is because of lifestyle. People in London walk and take mass transit. People who live in the countryside usually drive cars to work and the pub. When I am in London, I usually find myself walking at least five miles a day between tube stations and wherever I am trying to get.
I have a childhood friend who lives in a rural area of South Wiltshire. His house is a mile from the pub along a footpath. It is a fantastic walk, and great fun navigating home at night after a few pints!
Hi Steve,
It looks like you’re in the UK now and not in FoCo. Great weather here with the temp now in the low 60s, and it’s almost noon!
Enjoy your trip,
-Scott
Scott,
Sounds nice. Why do I have the feeling that we are headed for another long, icy winter?
At least I have a decent mountain bike this year to commute on snowy days ……
Steve,
I’d guess that the fat/fit disparity in the UK might have some parallels to that in the US. Studies have shown that in the US, many factors come into play in the fat/fit disparity, including education, income, population density (public transit+walking vs cars only), race, etc. In the US at least, the foods that tend to be cheap and accessible to lower income people tend to be on the unhealthier end of the scale. If you look at food in terms of dollars per calorie, healthy, fresh produce e.g. carrots, apples, etc are much more expensive than processed foods, e.g. chips, snack cakes, soda, etc. Of course the insane amount of subsidies given to the corn and soy industry doesn’t help at all….