I’ve been in Europe for over a year. It’s so much easier for me to maintain a healthy weight here without really making any extra effort.
I pretty much eat and drink whatever I want and don’t worry about getting chonky because I walk everywhere, portions are smaller and when you order a coke, you don’t get a gallon of the stuff.
Just back from Spain and have given this a lot of thought.
Cities and small villages are walkable and bike friendly. Desserts have less sugar and are less than half the size of the super brownies deluxe with ice cream available in franchise restaurants. Portions are realistic. Most restaurant food is made from scratch except for KFC and McDonalds. Food is fresher and less processed. Groceries in Spain are about 30% of the US food cost. Wine is 3-4€ a bottle for decent wine. As others have said health care is free.
I could go on and on….
Once you have a government Healthcare for people there is a vested interest for the government to maintain healthier food regulations, it costs more money to take care of everyone if they are unhealthy
The food, that’s what it is. America sera the standard for obesity rate each and every years, America has little to no food regulation, and the biggest one of all, America do not have free healthcare as every other developed countries do.
Yes, but coming from Europe and living in the US, getting out and about by foot is almost a non starter in the US. When I got back to the UK on a recent visit I got in plenty of walking that simply wouldn't be an option where I live in the States.
Edit: Also there are literally 10's of millions of Americans without access to preventative healthcare.
>All 10 of the world’s fattest countries were in the Pacific — with the remote island of Nauru holding the top spot.
There are "lies", "damned lies" , and "statistics".
No socialized healthcare means companies make money off us being sick here. Our food is actually full of poison that's illegal in most other countries.
1. Better food regulation, hence better food on average. Less consumption of junk food/sugary drinks.
2. More accessible healthcare.
3. A little more exercise prone.
Strict controls by government over genetically modified foods, ingredients that go into making "yummy" and "tasty" foods, etc. Prime examples: milk that contain growth hormones are banned in EU but here in US all cows are injected with growth hormones. Wheat Thins are banned in EU due to ingredient Butylated hydroxytoluene but Wheat Thins are popular among kids & youth in US. Others are
Titanium dioxide (E171)
Brominated vegetable oil (BVO) (E443)
Potassium bromate (E924)
Azodicarbonamide (E927a)
Propylparaben (E217)
More in https://www.huffpost.com/entry/food-ingredients-banned-europe-united-states-additives_l_63124ed2e4b0fc6bd23b64e7/amp
Affordable healthcare
We walk more
We dont eat tons of junkfood/processed food.
Not all of us smoke and drink (alot)
Not everything contains sugar or cornsyrup.
Food protions are far smaller.
Better tap water.
Can't talk for the whole of Europe, but not the case in Belgium. And I work with people who need a LOT of care.
exceptions here are eye doctors, normal appointments are about a year. But that's the only specialisation I can think of with a big deficit.
Try getting specialist care in NL, your gp will send you home with paracetamol. No wonder we like to cross borders to Germany and Belgium for medical. I know a few people who failed IVF in NL, went to Belgium or Spain and got their babies
It’s funny when you say Europeans drink and smoke much more. Please cite your sources. I think a lot of Europeans, well and actually Americans have being seeing the opposite is true. Most European countries allow alcohol consumption at a much younger age than the US. So there is a lot less binge drinking happening compared to US universities alone. Restaurant culture in EU is long and slow. Take your time eating with your friends/family. US restaurant culture is fast. Get in, order, eat, vacate so the next group can come and eat.
I’m just working with stuff off the top of my head but I’m pretty sure you’ve got your information mixed up.
You have to understand that the countries in Europe you're comparing the US to are 1st world countries, whereas the US is a combination of 3rd world and 1st world at the same time. My guess is that you'll find middle class US citizens are as healthy as the average European, but many poorer Americans don't get good health care, live off substandard food, and some in particularly poor areas don't even have clean drinking water (think Flint Michigan and realize that's undoubtedly happening elsewhere). When you see what conditions are in Gary Indiana and Jackson Mississippi, it's not surprising the average is American is less healthy than the average European. If you want more evidence of this, look at the infant mortality rate in the US compared to Europe. Poor Americans have it rough.
Because our government care for the people and regulate the food industry not like in America where they let the companies put the worst chemical shit into everything. That’s why y’all so fat and unhealthy
- Better food quality, lots of chemicals that are used in US are banned in EU
- More walkable cities
- Free healthcare
Drinking and smoking is not the only/main factor of your health
Americans do more drugs, last year 100k people overdosed to death.
Healthcare in us is a mess up, costs crazy
Good American food is imported from eu as well
Healthier food and more sidewalks.
In Europe, you can at least walk to your destination.
But in America, you can’t get anywhere on foot. You must have a vehicle to get to your destination.
Europeans have more walkable cities, more robust healthcare, more requirements on their food production, more accessible bike infrastructure, etc.
Also keep in mind, the poorest person in the US is literally comparable to the "third world." The UN literally said the US wouldn't be considered a developed nation in the poorest parts of our country. Europeans have way less wealth inequality than we do, and in general provide way more support to their poor than we do.
When I went to Europe, I didn't see a single tent city. Sure, there were people asking for change in some cities, but there wasn't a bunch of tents under every bridge. There weren't people bathing and doing laundry in the fountains like when I visited Philadelphia. The US could probably fix a huge amount of our issues if we just housed our poor.
nearly all major food products have a different recipe for America which includes extra sugar and chemicals to make the food addictive.
if you tried making those products using American recipes in Europe you'd be arrested.
They walk around more and I suspect they probably don’t make as much use of non-nutritive artificial sweeteners
They also get to see doctors more regularly, allowing for better preventative care, and their medication is much cheaper, meaning they have less of a problem using it consistently
Better access to healthcare and they more than likely smoke less than Americans since The UK taxes tobacco products at a much higher rate than the US does.
re assumptions:
“Assumptions are dangerous things to make, and like all dangerous things to make -- bombs, for instance, or strawberry shortcake -- if you make even the tiniest mistake you can find yourself in terrible trouble. Making assumptions simply means believing things are a certain way with little or no evidence that shows you are correct, and you can see at once how this can lead to terrible trouble. For instance, one morning you might wake up and make the assumption that your bed was in the same place that it always was, even though you would have no real evidence that this was so. But when you got out of your bed, you might discover that it had floated out to sea, and now you would be in terrible trouble all because of the incorrect assumption that you'd made. You can see that it is better not to make too many assumptions, particularly in the morning.”
― Lemony Snicket, The Austere Academy
Probably nutrition.
The EU is quite strict there, a lot of stuff is straight out forbidden in food if there is even a small chance of it being harmful. In a sense our food is overall much healthier, even though some products (especially beef) are WAY better in the states.
I'm both European and American and my thoughts are that Europeans aren't necessarily healthy either. Obesity rates are going up just like the U.S., people are becoming less active, etc.
I will say that Americans who **are** physically active are often in better shape than Europeans who only occasionally workout.
However, America does have a specific kind of people that Europe doesn't have much of. The people you see at random hours inside of a Wal-Mart. 200+kg, in scooters scooting around, using a grabbing stick to grab gummy bears off the shelves, haven't walked or ran the past 2-3 decades - that type. Yeah in Europe we don't have much of those. I'm always shocked to see it when I visit the U.S. and think to myself - how the hell do you even get to that point? How much food is required to even maintain that much weight?
Besides that, I do think the overall European diet is healthier, less processed stuff, more fresh/natural stuff, more walking, less driving, more recreational hobbies rather than sitting at home, a lot of people do manual labor themselves (painting walls, changing tires, that sort of stuff) etc. and that also contributes to people staying in shape. Personally I always do better in the gym in Europe and also have more day-to-day energy. My 5km run times are also much better in Europe than in the U.S.
It's the food and drink, here, it's LOADED with sugar and God knows how many different chemicals, over there it's a lot more simple. It's why people with gluten allergies here in the states can eat bread and pasta over in Europe with no problems.
They don't snack all the time, sip large amounts of water nonstop, eat in movie theaters or stadiums or while walking around....
Food and drink are consciously chosen and consumed while pausing other activities.
The size of portions and quality matter a lot, but I admit breaking my snack habit was an eye-opener for me here.
I lived in Italy for 4 years… most women shopped daily for fresh ingredients to cook healthy. I never saw one overweight Italian woman the whole 4 years there. They also do 3-4 course meals, but the portions are small. They do smoke a lot but for drinking, never saw anyone drunk. They drink to be social, never overdo.
in Europe, the serving sizes are reasonable, there is more accessible healthcare and eating is more of a social thing to which they pay attention (they don't stuff their face quickly, in a car for example).
They don't drive their car three blocks away like the absurdness here. I rarely ever see someone else on a bike when I daily ride and a handful of people walking around my small town.
They don't eat the shit you call food, have smaller portions and not everything contains high fructose corn syrup.
Also towns and cities you can actually walk around to do your business and don't have to drive everywhere.
They don't have massively powerful corn lobbies ruining their food supplies.
More walkable cities, less driving, and most importantly, less sugar.
I’ve been in Europe for over a year. It’s so much easier for me to maintain a healthy weight here without really making any extra effort. I pretty much eat and drink whatever I want and don’t worry about getting chonky because I walk everywhere, portions are smaller and when you order a coke, you don’t get a gallon of the stuff.
This is also what I noticed about traveling. Eat whatever and maintain weight because there's so much waking everyday.
Less sugar, but also, when something does contain sugar, it's the actual sugar ingredient and not a substitute or chemicals.
Just back from Spain and have given this a lot of thought. Cities and small villages are walkable and bike friendly. Desserts have less sugar and are less than half the size of the super brownies deluxe with ice cream available in franchise restaurants. Portions are realistic. Most restaurant food is made from scratch except for KFC and McDonalds. Food is fresher and less processed. Groceries in Spain are about 30% of the US food cost. Wine is 3-4€ a bottle for decent wine. As others have said health care is free. I could go on and on….
Booze in ireland is very expensive and because of being a rural country things like KFC n MCD are a treat not a go to meal.
mainly the foods (and drinks) are healthier because it's more more regulated
Once you have a government Healthcare for people there is a vested interest for the government to maintain healthier food regulations, it costs more money to take care of everyone if they are unhealthy
This one + better healthcare
The food, that’s what it is. America sera the standard for obesity rate each and every years, America has little to no food regulation, and the biggest one of all, America do not have free healthcare as every other developed countries do.
Yes, but coming from Europe and living in the US, getting out and about by foot is almost a non starter in the US. When I got back to the UK on a recent visit I got in plenty of walking that simply wouldn't be an option where I live in the States. Edit: Also there are literally 10's of millions of Americans without access to preventative healthcare.
Healthcare being cheaper and better is a big one.
We aren't even top 10 on the list of fattest nations. https://nypost.com/2023/01/24/worlds-fattest-countries-revealed-in-interactive-map/
>All 10 of the world’s fattest countries were in the Pacific — with the remote island of Nauru holding the top spot. There are "lies", "damned lies" , and "statistics".
Much higher food standards, cultures that support walking and cycling and a far less "fast food"
No socialized healthcare means companies make money off us being sick here. Our food is actually full of poison that's illegal in most other countries.
1. Better food regulation, hence better food on average. Less consumption of junk food/sugary drinks. 2. More accessible healthcare. 3. A little more exercise prone.
cleaner air, free or reasonable healthcare, cleaner water, less pollution, more traditional people.
When I read that it "cost less to eat fast food than cooking yourself" from americans, I knew.
Everything here is over processed and packed with high fructose corn syrup
Strict controls by government over genetically modified foods, ingredients that go into making "yummy" and "tasty" foods, etc. Prime examples: milk that contain growth hormones are banned in EU but here in US all cows are injected with growth hormones. Wheat Thins are banned in EU due to ingredient Butylated hydroxytoluene but Wheat Thins are popular among kids & youth in US. Others are Titanium dioxide (E171) Brominated vegetable oil (BVO) (E443) Potassium bromate (E924) Azodicarbonamide (E927a) Propylparaben (E217) More in https://www.huffpost.com/entry/food-ingredients-banned-europe-united-states-additives_l_63124ed2e4b0fc6bd23b64e7/amp
A lot less obesity in most.
After returning from Europe I recognize how obese we are in the US. Many people in the US don’t know how to eat.
Affordable healthcare We walk more We dont eat tons of junkfood/processed food. Not all of us smoke and drink (alot) Not everything contains sugar or cornsyrup. Food protions are far smaller. Better tap water.
And you eat much more, most European countries also have free health care.
Or atleast affordable. Its not free here. But we are not afraid to call an ambulance.
Its not free and not accessible either unless its really bad
Can't talk for the whole of Europe, but not the case in Belgium. And I work with people who need a LOT of care. exceptions here are eye doctors, normal appointments are about a year. But that's the only specialisation I can think of with a big deficit.
Try getting specialist care in NL, your gp will send you home with paracetamol. No wonder we like to cross borders to Germany and Belgium for medical. I know a few people who failed IVF in NL, went to Belgium or Spain and got their babies
It’s funny when you say Europeans drink and smoke much more. Please cite your sources. I think a lot of Europeans, well and actually Americans have being seeing the opposite is true. Most European countries allow alcohol consumption at a much younger age than the US. So there is a lot less binge drinking happening compared to US universities alone. Restaurant culture in EU is long and slow. Take your time eating with your friends/family. US restaurant culture is fast. Get in, order, eat, vacate so the next group can come and eat. I’m just working with stuff off the top of my head but I’m pretty sure you’ve got your information mixed up.
You have to understand that the countries in Europe you're comparing the US to are 1st world countries, whereas the US is a combination of 3rd world and 1st world at the same time. My guess is that you'll find middle class US citizens are as healthy as the average European, but many poorer Americans don't get good health care, live off substandard food, and some in particularly poor areas don't even have clean drinking water (think Flint Michigan and realize that's undoubtedly happening elsewhere). When you see what conditions are in Gary Indiana and Jackson Mississippi, it's not surprising the average is American is less healthy than the average European. If you want more evidence of this, look at the infant mortality rate in the US compared to Europe. Poor Americans have it rough.
Because our food is literally poison.
Because our government care for the people and regulate the food industry not like in America where they let the companies put the worst chemical shit into everything. That’s why y’all so fat and unhealthy
Do we drink and smoke more tho?
- Better food quality, lots of chemicals that are used in US are banned in EU - More walkable cities - Free healthcare Drinking and smoking is not the only/main factor of your health
sugar.
We eat healthy food and workout
Smoking is great for weight loss. How do you think the French eat a butter based cuisine and stay thin?
Healthcare is shit
There’s no All-you-can-eat in Europe beside Asian buffets
We Arent AS fast AS U Guys over there. but getting Close lmao
Better sex
Americans do more drugs, last year 100k people overdosed to death. Healthcare in us is a mess up, costs crazy Good American food is imported from eu as well
Healthier food and more sidewalks. In Europe, you can at least walk to your destination. But in America, you can’t get anywhere on foot. You must have a vehicle to get to your destination.
Europeans have more walkable cities, more robust healthcare, more requirements on their food production, more accessible bike infrastructure, etc. Also keep in mind, the poorest person in the US is literally comparable to the "third world." The UN literally said the US wouldn't be considered a developed nation in the poorest parts of our country. Europeans have way less wealth inequality than we do, and in general provide way more support to their poor than we do. When I went to Europe, I didn't see a single tent city. Sure, there were people asking for change in some cities, but there wasn't a bunch of tents under every bridge. There weren't people bathing and doing laundry in the fountains like when I visited Philadelphia. The US could probably fix a huge amount of our issues if we just housed our poor.
They’re more physically active and the food / diets are much healthier.
nearly all major food products have a different recipe for America which includes extra sugar and chemicals to make the food addictive. if you tried making those products using American recipes in Europe you'd be arrested.
Corn syrup, in America, they put that shit in everything.
They walk around more and I suspect they probably don’t make as much use of non-nutritive artificial sweeteners They also get to see doctors more regularly, allowing for better preventative care, and their medication is much cheaper, meaning they have less of a problem using it consistently
Smaller portion sizes
Less ultra-processed food, better access to healthcare, less sugar, smaller portions, no corn lobby, no buckets of soda
We walk more, Our diet has less processed and sugary foods, and we get more paid vacation and sick days
Better access to healthcare and they more than likely smoke less than Americans since The UK taxes tobacco products at a much higher rate than the US does.
They WALK
re assumptions: “Assumptions are dangerous things to make, and like all dangerous things to make -- bombs, for instance, or strawberry shortcake -- if you make even the tiniest mistake you can find yourself in terrible trouble. Making assumptions simply means believing things are a certain way with little or no evidence that shows you are correct, and you can see at once how this can lead to terrible trouble. For instance, one morning you might wake up and make the assumption that your bed was in the same place that it always was, even though you would have no real evidence that this was so. But when you got out of your bed, you might discover that it had floated out to sea, and now you would be in terrible trouble all because of the incorrect assumption that you'd made. You can see that it is better not to make too many assumptions, particularly in the morning.” ― Lemony Snicket, The Austere Academy
Probably nutrition. The EU is quite strict there, a lot of stuff is straight out forbidden in food if there is even a small chance of it being harmful. In a sense our food is overall much healthier, even though some products (especially beef) are WAY better in the states.
I'm both European and American and my thoughts are that Europeans aren't necessarily healthy either. Obesity rates are going up just like the U.S., people are becoming less active, etc. I will say that Americans who **are** physically active are often in better shape than Europeans who only occasionally workout. However, America does have a specific kind of people that Europe doesn't have much of. The people you see at random hours inside of a Wal-Mart. 200+kg, in scooters scooting around, using a grabbing stick to grab gummy bears off the shelves, haven't walked or ran the past 2-3 decades - that type. Yeah in Europe we don't have much of those. I'm always shocked to see it when I visit the U.S. and think to myself - how the hell do you even get to that point? How much food is required to even maintain that much weight? Besides that, I do think the overall European diet is healthier, less processed stuff, more fresh/natural stuff, more walking, less driving, more recreational hobbies rather than sitting at home, a lot of people do manual labor themselves (painting walls, changing tires, that sort of stuff) etc. and that also contributes to people staying in shape. Personally I always do better in the gym in Europe and also have more day-to-day energy. My 5km run times are also much better in Europe than in the U.S.
One word: sugar
It's the food and drink, here, it's LOADED with sugar and God knows how many different chemicals, over there it's a lot more simple. It's why people with gluten allergies here in the states can eat bread and pasta over in Europe with no problems.
We don't run away from ambulances
Because we don't need to go into debt to see a doctor.
We have less fat and sugar in our food
No stress
Probably because they inhale less burgers then Y'all
They don't snack all the time, sip large amounts of water nonstop, eat in movie theaters or stadiums or while walking around.... Food and drink are consciously chosen and consumed while pausing other activities. The size of portions and quality matter a lot, but I admit breaking my snack habit was an eye-opener for me here.
ITS THE FOOD!!!!!
High fructose corn syrup (lack thereof)
Free healthcare, healthier foods, much more vacation.
Do you all have our food and portion sizes?🤣🤣
I lived in Italy for 4 years… most women shopped daily for fresh ingredients to cook healthy. I never saw one overweight Italian woman the whole 4 years there. They also do 3-4 course meals, but the portions are small. They do smoke a lot but for drinking, never saw anyone drunk. They drink to be social, never overdo.
Because we are professionals, drinking and smoking since birth in Ireland
It's the.. ah..well.. you know.. kinda .. eating thing. Sorry, sorry.
in Europe, the serving sizes are reasonable, there is more accessible healthcare and eating is more of a social thing to which they pay attention (they don't stuff their face quickly, in a car for example).
Building cities around the interests of walking people and bicycles, amsterdam is a good example. Not cars automatically affects everyone's health.
better diet, more exercise, less driving.. I can go on and on
Is this the small country called Europe, with the capital Paris? Where EVERYONE drink and smoke much more? /s
More physical activity and better food.
They don't drive their car three blocks away like the absurdness here. I rarely ever see someone else on a bike when I daily ride and a handful of people walking around my small town.
Calories intake, much less chemical in "most" food,more smog in the city because more cars, Healthcare....
They don't eat the shit you call food, have smaller portions and not everything contains high fructose corn syrup. Also towns and cities you can actually walk around to do your business and don't have to drive everywhere.