From planes to stadiums, in church pews and cinemas, and even on ferries and buses, the growing girth of the population across the United States has presented the country with a problem of sizable proportions they don’t fit in. Not fashionably, or socially speaking they literally don’t fit anymore.

 

All over the country, seat-makers for movie theatres, ballparks and public transportation have been widening seats as much as four inches to accommodate patrons, while some restaurants are investing in larger booths and clothing designers finding themselves using a lot more elastic in their waistbands.

 

While these outcomes may seem comical and somewhat ridiculous, they are but a small symptom of a much larger dilemma that is not limited solely to the US. Obesity is fast becoming the world’s next major epidemic, and the question of where to point the finger of blame is rapidly heating up.

 

Unfortunately, to the dismay of healthcare experts, (and the delight of diet trend-setters), most people who want to shed a few pounds think less about long-term lifestyle changes and more about quick fixes that fit easily into their increasingly sedentary lives.

 

As parents struggle to manage both the quality and quantity of the food they and their children consume, the question of what to eat is putting a huge strain on an ailing and increasingly paranoid population.

 

The fat of the land

Currently 64.5 per cent of US adults are classed as overweight, and over 30 per cent classified as obese. In Europe, the UK has seen the fastest growing obesity problem among its neighbours, with cases of childhood obesity tripling in the past 20 years.

 

For concerned healthcare specialists, obesity is a ticking time bomb that will continue to consume a lot more medical spending, time and lives in the future.

 

"Obesity results in greater use of medical services than smoking, problem drinking and even aging. As a family physician, I spend at least 60 per cent of my day discussing and treating obesity-related disorders" says California physician Julie Bolton. "It’s heartbreaking to see young adults with diabetes and dangerously high blood pressure who are at risk of debilitating, even deadly, strokes and heart attacks."

 

Perhaps the most worrying aspect of the dilemma is the rapidly growing risk to children and young people. An estimated 22 per cent of British children are now classified as obese, and since 1980, there has been an astonishing 42 per cent increase in America’s childhood obesity rates. The disease, traditionally associated with later life, has made a shocking impact on the younger generation.

 

Findings from an Isis Research survey show that almost 70 per cent of healthcare specialists at a recent cardiology congress in the US believe that obese children under 14 are at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and almost 40 per cent believe that type 2 diabetes can develop in children as young as ten or below.

 

In addition to obesity and diabetes, specialists are also gravely concerned about the sharp rise in allergy and intolerance sufferers. Isis Research revealed that 75 per cent of surveyed allergologists believe that thenumber of people suffering from food allergies will increase in the future, with 55 per cent being under the age of 19.  Almost half the allergologists cited diet and lifestyle changes as the main reason for this predicted rise.

McScapegaot

Food brands at large stand accused of a veritable spree of misdeeds excessive use of additives and pesticides, forcing genetically modified food on an unwitting public, environmental degradation and exploitative advertising.

 

In addition to fending off lawsuits accusing the company of failing to clearly and conspicuously disclose the ingredients and effects of their food, fast-food juggernaut McDonald’s were recently dealt perhaps the single-most vicious food attack in recent history.

 

Launched by independent film-maker Morgan Spurlock, the film Super Size Me is a dark, disturbing and damaging comedy chronicling Spurlock’s 30 days spent eating nothing but McDonald’s for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Audiences around the world have watched with morbid curiosity as Spurlock gained 11 kilograms, boosted his blood pressure, and sent his cholesterol soaring up 65 points during the 30-day experiment.

 

But McDonald’s representatives argue that Spurlock’s experiment was not only foolish, but also unfair. No one eats McDonald’s food three times a day, every day, and no one should, says chief executive of McDonald’s Australia, Guy Russo. What Spurlock set out to do, which was double his daily calorie intake, deliberately not exercise and over-eat, was totally irresponsible.

 

Albeit reluctantly, many fast-food brands, including McDonald’s, now acknowledge that their products can contribute to an unhealthy diet, and a huge wave of health and fitness campaigns have been launched in an attempt to meet their critics head on.

 

"We’ve been taking the issue of obesity seriously for a few years now," says Russo, referring to the introduction of salads, additional nutritional labelling and new low-fat options. The menu now includes adult-friendly, low-carb Happy Meals, and nutritional facts and figures have been made readily accessible in booklets, posters on serving trays, and online.

 

In addition to their high-profile sponsorship of this summer’s Olympics, the company has also initiated a wide array of sports and fitness programmes to encourage a healthy active lifestyle, including an Olympic Day Run that was conducted in nearly 150 countries.

 

And it isn’t just the Golden Arches scrambling to dodge the obesity bullet. Burger King, public enemy no. 2 on the fast-food hit-list in the US, now sponsor the Presidents Challenge Physical Activity Fitness Awards Program, and plans to pay about US$1 million for awards signed by President Bush for children who pass fitness tests.

 

Many major food brands are actively changing to avoid being demonised in this battle. Literally hundreds of health-conscious, low-carb products have flooded onto the market, ranging from Heinz'd low-carb ketchup to

 

Krispy Kreme’s low-carb donuts. Exercise, activity, and low-fat low-carb diets are vigorously promoted across the board the question is: is anyone listening

 

Don't belive the hype

In spite of all the criticism from healthcare specialists, anxious governments and anti-fast food activists, a recent study surveying over 11,000 people in the US, UK and several Asian countries challenges the popular assumption that food retailers and brands are to blame, and shows that people are ready to accept that individuals are accountable for the obesity epidemic.

 

In the US, UK and Japan, over 80 per cent agree that it is the responsibility of individuals to get obesity under control. The study, conducted by Universal McCann, showed that people not only acknowledge that they are responsible for their own obesity problems, but also that personal inactivity is largely to blame, with almost 70 per cent of respondents in Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong seeing lack of exercise as a direct cause of increasing obesity rates. For food producers, who by now have become used to taking the rap for fattening up the world’s populace, these findings present a complex and confusing challenge.

 

"It starts to ask a few questions on what people are looking for," says Universal McCann executive vice-president and regional director for Asia-Pacific Allan Medforth. "It’s all about meeting consumer needs what does the consumer now expect?"

 

With responsibilities shifted back to the individual, it seems that the best customers can do is arm themselves with as much information as possible before deciding what to have for dinner.

 

If brands really want to give consumers good information about their choices, they should at least put calorie counts on menu boards right alongside the price, says Jeff Cronin, a spokesman for the US-based Centre for Science in the Public Interest. Then consumers could see them at the point of decision-making.

 

If the food industry can cater to this burgeoning generation of informed, nutrition-savvy consumers, there are great opportunities for brands to explore ways to help people live and eat healthier, as well as cleanse their tarnished image in the process. Meanwhile, as brands continue to scratch their heads over how to address these concerns, both customers and retailers need to come to terms with the fact that the obesity war takes place on both sides of the counter.

 

And even Spurlock, who has in many ways become the Michael Moore of junk-food whistle-blowers, would agree that the road to recovery is a two-way street. “My film is about corporate responsibility and individual responsibility," he says. "The company says they’re doing their part. Now people have to do their part. People need to realise what they’re putting into their mouths."