Fat American. Fat America - why are there so many fat people in the USA? How will the obesity epidemic end?

The USA is a prosperous country where everyone has the opportunity to realize their plans and dreams. And also gain a dozen (or even a hundred) extra pounds. Today, according to statistics, 68% of US residents are overweight, and every third person has some degree of obesity. This applies to both adults and children. The first studies that showed such disastrous results were conducted back in the 1960s. Then one of the employees of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States, Katerina Flegal, drew attention to 24.3% of adults who were overweight. By the early 1980s, this figure exceeded 30%. However, such changes went unnoticed. Sales of XXXL clothing were on the rise, and the obesity epidemic began to take hold of America. Between 1970 and 2000, US residents began to eat 162% more cheese, 109% more lemonade, 102% more poultry, 18% more alcohol, etc. The military was the first to worry. In 2006, 40% of young men and 25% of young women did not meet army standards due to excess weight and could not be drafted into the ranks of the military. The command began to fear that soon there would be no one to fight in Afghanistan. Changes have affected all areas of public life: from the size of hospital wheelchairs to the width of doors in supermarkets. Both funeral homes and airlines had their heads broken. The former were forced to design new models of coffins capable of supporting a person weighing up to 500 kg, and the latter annually suffered losses of $250 million spent on excess fuel. Even veterinarians sounded the alarm: it turned out that half of the cats overeat and are prone to obesity. The average American now weighs 30 pounds more than they did in the late 1980s. If we talk about obese people, they have jumped over an even higher bar - try to imagine these proportions: height 175 cm and weight 250 kg. The leading state in the number of “fat people” is Mississippi (30% of the adult population), with West Virginia (29.8%) and Alabama (29.4%) just behind. In addition, Mississippi has the largest number of obese children aged 10 to 17 years - 44.4%. In the reverse ranking, Colorado takes first place, where the proportion of obese patients is only 17.6%. It should be noted that these states are also at the top of the list in terms of the percentage of the population poor and the number of McDonald's restaurants. Therefore, the conclusion naturally suggests itself: obesity is a disease of the poor, not the rich. The Zimbabwean authorities obviously did not know this fact when they developed “weight loss tours” specifically for overweight Americans. It was assumed that well-fed and satisfied US residents who wanted to lose weight would travel to an African country to cultivate local farmland and thus combine business with pleasure. Who is to blame and what to do? What is the reason for the rise in American gluttony over the past 30 years? Many theories have been put forward. Some researchers saw this economic reason – fatty foods food was cheaper compared to others. Others blamed manufacturers who modified products in such a way that consumers turned into food addicts, greedily devouring more and more sweet, high-calorie novelties. Researchers at Princeton University have found that fast food can be just as addictive as heroin. Sweet desserts and soft drinks make up 25% of all calories consumed by Americans, 5% from salty snacks and only 10% from vegetables and fruits. Traditionally, most people consider hamburgers, pizza and potato chips to be their favorite foods.
Naturally, the increase in the number of obese people in the United States is due to the expanding network of fast foods, or rather to the increase in portions of products. 50 years ago, a hamburger at McDonald's weighed 60 g, while now it weighs about 250 g. Today, a large portion of Coca-Cola is 1 liter, while previously it was only 0.25 liter. The same transformation occurred with the goods on store shelves. The 1980 bagel contained 210 fewer calories than its current equivalent. This increase in portions has distorted ideas about the maximum daily norm food. A characteristic factor specifically for the United States was the growth in the number of representatives Latin America among populations who are genetically more predisposed to obesity. But it is impossible to place all the blame on the fast food industry. The human factor is still decisive. Americans have written their names in legible handwriting in the book of the fattest people on the planet. Among them were: John Brower Minnock (Washington State, weight 630 kg), Walter Hudson (New York, 570 kg), Percy Pearl Washington (Wisconsin State, weight 400 kg), Carol Yeager (Michigan State, 727 kg, the fattest woman in the world), Billy and Benny McCrary (North Carolina, the largest twins in the world). The mother of 7-year-old Jessica Leonard from Chicago allows her daughter to eat as much as she wants, which is a lot: several kilograms of fast food and 10 liters of soda, which is 10 times the norm. “Otherwise my daughter starts crying,” the woman explains her actions. Meanwhile, the girl already weighs more than 200 kg and can hardly walk. In 2004, Congress passed a bill immediately called the “Cheeseburger Bill,” which prohibited the filing of lawsuits against manufacturers of products allegedly causing obesity. One House member said at the time that consumers need to understand that they have no right to blame others for the consequences of their own actions.
Everyone from health officials to members of Congress are pursuing initiatives to change the way Americans eat and live. Some corporations completely prohibit the distribution of products fast food in their buildings. In other companies, it is customary to pay employees who lose overweight, a bonus of $500 per year. In Alabama, the Health Insurance Board decided to fine officials $25 a month if they don't start losing weight. In other states, it was decided to create special military training camps for those who want to lose weight. How could such a problem turn out? A few years ago, a story went around the Internet about a man who could not be hospitalized because he did not walk through any of the hospital doors. This disease leads to the death of 300 thousand people every year. Every year the US government spends about 147 billion dollars to combat obesity and related diseases. The cost to the US economy from these problems is an even more impressive figure of 865 billion. “We as a nation can no longer turn a blind eye to the growing problems associated with obesity and unhealthy lifestyles,” said Jeff Bingaman, Senator from New Mexico . This issue was put on the agenda by Barack Obama during health care reform. Without a doubt, the fight against obesity has become the No. 1 challenge of American society in the 21st century. My personal opinion is that all this struggle will be absolutely useless until every ordinary American looks at himself in the mirror and, disgusted with his own reflection, wants to change his life. And this is unlikely to happen in the near future.

In the 90s, a tradition that still exists today took root in many countries - to idealize the United States. The reason for the emergence of such a captivating image of overseas life is Hollywood films, in which there are always athletic guys and But in fact, the reality is completely different from Hollywood ideals. Tourists arriving in America stay in in a state of shock, observing a huge number of people who have problems with overweight. In fact, Americans are the fattest people on the planet (although this is not yet an official fact). They treat this problem completely calmly and do not see anything terrible. This does not mean that US residents cannot be thin and cannot cope with extra pounds. Then why are Americans fat? The reason is that obesity is encouraged by environmental conditions - their lives are filled with moments that provoke excess weight gain. The whole truth about the American way of life is in this article.

Causes of obesity in the USA

Why are there so many fat people in America? The causes of obesity are the following:

1. Spread and increase of poverty. As a result of corporate cutbacks, the transfer of jobs to developing countries, and the economic disaster of 2008, poverty spread throughout the United States. Use healthy food You can, but semi-finished and fast foods are much cheaper, they are convenient to eat and easy to purchase.
2. Food desert. This term refers to poor urban, suburban and rural areas that lack access to fresh produce, vegetables, grains, and unsafe processed foods. A store featuring fresh and healthy foods, may be 15 miles from the city, while a cheap supermarket is located next to the house. This makes it difficult to eat healthy foods and be in great shape, as you need to put in a lot of effort.
3. There are only processed foods around. Even if you do not live in the desert, nearby stores offer frozen corn products, which are much cheaper than fresh vegetables and fruits in the supermarket. In addition, time plays a huge role, since warming up harmful products microwave is much faster than cooking healthy dish. Most Americans work 50-60 hours a week, so the problem of lack of free time arises. Thanks to processed foods, they manage to save money, but on the financial side, everything is not so rosy: treatment is more expensive, as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases develop.
4. Lack of territory for physical activities. One of the first recommendations given to those who decide to lose weight is to go for walks. fresh air. In the vastness of Boston, Philadelphia, and Chicago, there are areas where walking is preferred, but most Americans do not like pedestrians. As a result, residents prefer to travel by car rather than
5. Constant stress. Due to uncertainty about job stability, high rate unemployment, a malfunctioning medical system, life becomes nervous. People under stress may experience overeating and obesity, but this can be controlled. Research has shown that stress can trigger changes in metabolic processes. Even in the case of permanent physical training and controlling your diet, your weight will still increase.
6. Lack of sleep. Back in 1950-1970, working conditions were much better than they are now. At the moment, Americans are working more and more, their salaries are low, and they have less and less time to sleep. If in 1960 the duration of sleep was 8.5 hours, now it has decreased to 7 hours.

Variety of food

In America there is a huge amount of food that is presented in various variations. Regardless of the season, it is possible to get watermelons and other fruits, only frozen. Many of them look rubbery and even unnatural. The reason is that during cultivation, chemicals and pesticides are used.

Regarding snack bars and eateries, there is simply an unlimited number of them. Every city has Italian, Polish and Chinese cuisine. A type of fast food restaurant such as McDonald's serves residents indoors, outdoors, and even those in a car. Such food is inexpensive in the USA, and even if there is no money, a special coupon is provided once a month. If you have the money, it is better to purchase organic food that is grown without any chemicals.

American breakfast

Breakfast often begins with coffee, which is prepared in electric coffee makers. Americans eat certain cereals - with nuts, dried fruits and raisins. You can prepare a regular sandwich with sausage, ham, or a bun with processed cheese and bacon. The most popular breakfasts are cornflakes which are consumed with milk, toast with peanut butter and oatmeal with syrup.

American lunch

Lunch is not like that an important part diet in America is like ours, so few people spend time and effort preparing it. It often includes a large sandwich and salad. Some people eat guacamole for lunch, a Mexican dish eaten with corn chips.

American Dinner

Dinner is the most important part of an American's day. In the evening, they prefer to cook barbecue beef, pork or chicken. In the vastness of America, there are many stores that sell hamburgers, steaks, as well as chopped meat, which just needs to be fried on a grill. Sauces and various spices. Perhaps this is the reason why fat Americans are not new, as they prefer to consume meat dishes and hamburgers. In the evening!

Daily life of Americans

The entire life of Americans is concentrated around their home, so they are always busy with household chores. They do not visit stores every day, but stock up for the whole week. In stores it is customary to pay with cards rather than cash. Once a week the whole family gathers at one table and discusses what is happening. Teenagers work part-time in supermarkets, mow lawns, distribute newspapers and babysit. This experience is useful because children leave home immediately after school.

American lifestyle

Every morning adults go to work, and children go to school. Almost everyone drives their own car. Children can get their license at age 16, even though their insurance is much more expensive than that for adults. Most Americans work eight hours a day, but there are opportunities to work online.

Fat Americans: life in the USA

IN in public places Smoking is prohibited, and Americans drink alcohol only in the form of cocktails, where there is much more ice than the liquid itself. What do fat Americans like to eat? They eat at McDonald's most often. The population suffers from obesity, as it is difficult for them to give up fast food. To get rid of excess weight, they hold sports events and various races, in which even the president participates. Americans are very independent, because they are sure that everyone is the creator of destiny. Residents of America are very sociable, but they rarely invite anyone into their home, as they prefer to visit restaurants. Perhaps this is why fat Americans cannot overcome their problem, since they cannot get used to eating normal and healthy homemade food. They hate any criticism from others, especially about politics or presidents.

The fattest American

Emmanuel Yabrauch is the heaviest athlete, a sumo wrestler, whose weight is 402 kg. Previously, he weighed 558 kg, but due to the death of the fattest Mexican, Jose Luis Garza, he lost 230 kg. He performed many times in Canada, Japan, India, Poland, France, Estonia, Austria, Switzerland and Australia. Emmanuel manages to maintain this weight by visiting McDonald's, despite the fact that a sumo wrestler should only eat rice, because this grain gives the body flexibility and lightness. Lunch lasts two hours. Athletes sit near large tables, and in the center there is a vessel with a special fatty stew, in which there are pieces of marbled bull meat. In addition, there are various herbs, shellfish and rice on the table. It is customary to wash down food with a huge amount of beer. While eating, a trainer walks around the table to control the eating process, and as soon as the sumo wrestler stops eating, he is beaten. And Emmanuel adheres to this diet for 6 days, while he “eats” 10 thousand dollars.

Facts about Americans

• Potato chips are a common side dish for Americans.
• It is not customary to live with parents and relatives, only if complete absence money, at the same time in the USA they easily rent out their rooms completely strangers.
• Americans are crazy about animals, and it's hard to imagine a family that doesn't have a pet.
• Americans are not superstitious.

How will the obesity epidemic end?

We figured out why Americans are so fat. Is it possible to somehow prevent this? Experts are confident that already in 2020, Americans can confidently be called the fattest citizens in the world. It is likely that the country will wish to abandon such addiction and finally defeat it. Politicians are already beginning to panic that the country's economy will not be able to pay for all the health insurance of Americans who are overeating to the point of disability. argues that obesity negatively affects not only the emotional and physical health the entire generation, but also on the economic stability of the country.

Certain corporations are prohibited from selling food instant cooking in their offices, while others pay their employees a bonus of $500 a year if they manage to lose extra pounds. Some states issue fines of $25 if residents don't start losing weight. Special military training camps are being created, in which people who want to lose their weight are enrolled.

This struggle with excess weight will continue until all fat Americans look at themselves from the outside and feel disgusted with their reflection in the mirror and want to radically change their fate. This probably won't happen anytime soon. According to statistics, about 68% of Americans are obese.

Hello everyone, slim and not so thin! Today we have to work with scales, measuring tapes and a calculator, because we will analyze why Americans are so ummm... plump or something. Well, or whatever is politically correct? Oh yes. Horizontally challenged! So, is fat America a death sentence or is the devil not so scary?..

If you had asked me a few years ago what the average American looked like, I would have pictured him like this: But when I moved here, I saw that they EVEN play sports. 🙂 What a discovery.

Why does fat America stay fat?

As you know, our figure depends 80% on the food we eat (and, I guess, genetics), and 20% on physical exercise. So, where is the Americans’ “weak spot”?

Physical activity

The only difference between Americans and residents of other countries is that they drive everywhere by car. They don’t have the concept of “going down for some bread”, because... all shops are far away. There are often no sidewalks for pedestrians, and those who walk or bike are viewed with sympathy. Like, they can’t afford a car. Of course, there are no bike paths. This is not Europe! 🙂 Only Filipinos ride bicycles (for financial reasons), and Russian sailors walk. Well, why do they need a car if they are passing through? That is, by swimming.

Food

One day I actually watched a famous and praised film by an Australian director and actor Damon Gameau "That sugar film", where he traveled around the USA and said that it is very difficult to find here normal food. This is the absolute truth! If you're hungry, it's much easier to go to what's closest - and this is the incomparable McDonald's. They are here at every turn.

Not only do Americans often eat unhealthy food, but they also eat it in huge portions. For example, we sometimes order pasta at an Italian restaurant. The “dinner portion” size is a 20×20 cm container plate (essentially a frying pan of pasta) with fatty cream sauce. And for some reason the dinner portion is larger than the lunch portion. Do you think you need to eat less for dinner? No, no, we haven’t heard.

Let's try to find a pattern between obesity and the number of fast food restaurants and the amount of soda you drink. After all, fat America wouldn’t be the same without these states!

The fattest states:

1. Arkansas (35.9% obese: 41.7% adults and 20% children).
2. West Virginia (35.7%). This state has the highest incidence of diabetes at 14.1%!
3. Mississippi (35.5%). This state is the most “inactive” of all US states.
4. Louisiana (34.9%). The number of cancer patients due to obesity is increasing every year in the state.
5. Alabama (33.5%). 40.3% of residents have hypertension - Alabama ranks 2nd behind West Virginia.
6. Oklahoma (33%). Let's hope that Oklahoma will lose weight soon due to the many social programs being promoted in the state.
7. Indiana (32.7%). This state is also often included in the list of the most “unhealthy” states.
8. Ohio (32.6%). Moreover, childhood obesity is 17.4% of all children under 17 years of age.
9. North Dakota (32.2%).
10. South Carolina (32.1%). Childhood obesity here - 21.5%

States with the most McDonald's:

1. California - 1492.
2. Texas -1225.
3. Florida - 986.
4. Ohio - 822.
5. New York - 767.
6. Illinois - 738.
7. Michigan - 631.
8. Pennsylvania - 583.
9. Georgia - 511.
10. North Carolina - 475.

By the way, did you know that McDonald's in New York in Manhattan at 160 Broadway has marble tables, waiters, private areas, a piano, live music and a doorman?!

Well, so far I don’t see any relationship between the number of fat people and McDonald’s. Now let's look at our sweet tooth! The US drinks 154 liters per person per year, 13 liters per month, or 0.5 liter can per day. This is if every person. Well, in real life, 48% of all residents drink soda every day. My husband, for example, drinks up to 6 cans of 0.33 liters per day. Many people don’t drink soda not because they don’t like it, but because it’s too late - they’ve developed diabetes. I rarely drink soda, once every 1-2 weeks, I just don’t like it! I'm more and more into cakes. 🙂

So, the states that drink the most sugary sodas are:

1. Mississippi - 47.5% people
2. Louisiana - 45.5%
3. West Virginia - 45.2%
4. Oklahoma - 44.6%
5. Kentucky - 43.2%
6. South Carolina - 42.1%
7. North Carolina - 41.5%
8. Indiana - 36.2%
9. Ohio - 32.8%
10. Iowa - 31.5%

As you can see, the list almost completely repeats our list of fat states. What is the conclusion? You need to drink less soda!

You know what's interesting? I read in one article that the average American consumes 2638 kcal, the average American woman consumes 1785 kcal. Is that possible? - I thought. Then in another article I found information that a person tends to underestimate the food he eats by about 500 calories. That is, he believes that he ate less than he actually did. This is more like the truth. Read the article and figure it out for yourself.

Some still justify overweight salary, schedule, stress and so on...But let's be honest, we are under stress in Russia too, with a busy schedule and it is illogical low salaries! So no need for la-la here. Otherwise, I drank all evening, and in the morning I poisoned myself with a cookie. 🙂

Let's hope that today's fat America will one day get thinner. And we wish her good luck and great willpower!

Oksana Bryant was with you, bye-bye!

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An interesting article, or rather a study from an American-Russian site. Read, the most persistent myths about Americans, as most Russians see them, are refuted here.

Stereotypes are a serious thing. They arise relatively easily, and sometimes decades are not enough to destroy them. Myths about America and its inhabitants, so popular in Russia, are direct proof of this.

It seems that this is a country - open, accessible, here are its inhabitants - friendly and talkative - communicate as much as you want, travel, get acquainted, get to know the States and its inhabitants, learn the history, traditions and habits... But no! Something apparently prevents Russians from perceiving Americans as they are.

How else can we explain that immigrants from Russia who have lived in the United States for a long time see Americans and the country almost the same as those Russians who can watch a live Yankee exclusively on TV.

MYTH #1 (most popular): Americans are stupid.

Further, as a rule, in Russia they like to expand the topic: they don’t know the basics (for example, historical dates), they confuse countries (Iran with Iraq), do not remember the multiplication tables and count on a calculator... Russians sincerely believe that Russian education is better than American education and the level of general knowledge in the United States is much lower.

A lyrical digression on the topic: a few years ago, an unknown student from St. Petersburg, Leah Geldman, filmed another original work on the streets of St. Petersburg on the instructions of the institute. It was not a film, but a small survey - Leah herself, with a microphone, wandered the streets of the “cultural” capital of Russia and asked ordinary passers-by the most simple questions about famous people, events, literature...

To date, Leah’s 9-minute conversation with St. Petersburg residents has been viewed by about five hundred thousand people on the Internet alone. And this is not surprising: the residents of St. Petersburg delight with their immediate answers. Here are some of them: “Holocaust? This is somewhere in China...", "Hiroshima and Nagasaki are artists", "Che Guevara is some kind of revolution"... As they say, no comment...

As for higher education, and indeed education in general, indeed, the American approach to education differs from Russian standards. In American universities you can’t get away with coursework downloaded from the Internet, you’ll notice it right away special program, detecting plagiarism. You can't let them cheat - you could get kicked out of college for it. Dissertations here take years to be written, it is impossible to buy it. There are also fundamental differences:

— I once studied in Russia at a pedagogical university at the faculty foreign languages, says New York resident Victoria Abramova. – And imagine my surprise when, in the first year of Foreign Languages, we began to take higher mathematics (I remember there were matrices), then computer science, then natural science... I was indignant: I entered to learn languages; If I wanted to study higher mathematics, I would go to another department! And the dean answered me that Russian institutes train specialists with higher education, and in Russia this implies knowledge not only of languages, but general awareness...

10 years ago I came to live in New York and entered a local university. I chose French. And what? I learn only what I need to teach French to 5-6 year olds! No one can force me to hand over the printer device or provide the first medical care during childbirth - we also went through this in Russia... I can compare approaches to education in two countries and say with absolute certainty - Russian education is stretched out over time due to a bunch of unnecessary subjects.

Russians believe that education in the United States is simplified, while Americans believe that it is convenient and correct, since it provides knowledge that can really be applied in life.

Which of those who graduated from school in Russia or the post-Soviet space used cotangents or used logarithms in everyday life (this is algebra in grades 10-11), who writes in calligraphic handwriting as an adult (this, by the way, is taught to the entire first grade in Russia ), who speaks the English that is taught at school? In the USA, at the age of five you will be taught to read fluently, although your handwriting will be far from ideal, but no one cares.

The facts are that today “dumb” America ranks first in the world in providing services in the field of “ higher education for foreigners". In addition, the United States has long and firmly taken first place among the three leading countries in terms of the number of scientific discoveries. Just the other day, something new was announced – an AIDS vaccine.

Over the past 20 years in America, for example, the following have been invented: artificial heart and liver, self-cleaning windows, microwave, digital video recorder, infrared fire smoke alarm, keyboard for the blind, special glove for the deaf (converts gestures into text), vaccines against papillomavirus, shingles...

Someone may sarcastically remark that it is not the Americans themselves who invent, but scientists from other countries who come to the USA to work... Well, when will some other country create the same conditions for scientific research, like America, the palm will rightfully go to her. And to date, immigrants from the United States have received 326 times Nobel Prize(first place in the world ranking), while the Russians are 27.

MYTH No. 2 (perhaps this myth is no less popular than the first): All Americans are fat and love fast food.

Dry statistics from the government website cdc.gov: in 2010, in Colorado and the District of Columbia alone, less than 20% of the population suffered from obesity. In 33 states of America, about 25% of residents suffered from obesity, and in 9 of them (Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Missouri and West Virginia) such people were about 30%. In New York State - 24.2%. The same sources especially note that among African Americans and Latinos, the percentage of those whose body mass index (BMI) is more than 30 is significantly higher - for the past five years, with a small error, it has fluctuated from 50% to
the first and from 40% for the second.

Yes, America leads in numbers fat people, Russia is in second place on this list (54% of Russians are overweight, 22% of them are obese). True, few people take into account that in the United States a significant increase in statistics is given by numerous immigrants, many of whom cannot be called “real Americans”.

But in Russia, it is the indigenous population – Russians – who suffer from obesity, not migrant workers. Native, so to speak, Americans, as a rule, are slim, take care of their health, nutrition (they prefer organic, that is, natural) food and play sports. But those who come to earn extra money (including Russians, by the way) eat fast food, move only when necessary and drink alcohol.

MYTH No. 3: Americans are callous people, not as sincere as Russians, their smiles (oh, this is their favorite trump card!) are fake.

I’m afraid that if an ordinary American asks me why his smile in Russia is considered fake, and he himself is not soulful, I will have nothing to tell him... I also cannot explain that strange fact - why many Russians prefer sincere hatred in their eyes to a “fake” American smile. Perhaps it’s all about psychology or, more generally, a difference in mentality.

In Russia, smiling is a rare thing, rather typical of children. Only children can smile at strangers, adults almost never. Perhaps this is how it happened historically - Russians do not have much reason to be happy; the country and its population were more likely to survive than to live...

Perhaps, when the situation in Russia becomes less tense and the mood in the morning no longer depends on the cost of a barrel of oil or the dollar exchange rate, there will be more smiles for no reason. And then the smiles of Americans will become clearer and sweeter to Russians?

And Americans are a non-drinking nation. No, of course, they drink, but in reasonable doses and exclusively for reasons... What kind of spiritual communication is there between nations, when in Russia, to solve a problem, you can get drunk and cry into a friend’s vest, and in America you can go to a psychoanalyst?

When I was collecting facts for this article, on forums and in in social networks she called out, write, what kind of Americans do you see? It is interesting that the version about the callousness of this nation was especially popular among students, those under 25. For example, they wrote like this: “... they are wonderful, but they live exclusively by reason and pragmatism, unlike our little-understood careless, but still broad Russian soul!

One small BUT - if at night a callous and dry American is awakened by screams coming from the street, he will definitely call the police.

MYTH No. 4 is closely related to myth No. 3: Americans are dummies because they are unspiritual...

And as a continuation: they are not interested in anything except money... One simple question, as they say, is on topic - why do soulless, callous, greedy... Americans not have orphanages? There are temporary reception centers for children, where children do not stay for long - they go to foster families. That's all.

In 1945, there were about 600 thousand orphans in the then Soviet Union - of course, the war had just ended. Today, according to official statistics, there are 800 thousand of them (95% of them are conscientious objectors, that is, their parents are alive), two million teenagers are illiterate, and more than 6 million live in socially unfavorable conditions, that is, in families of drug addicts, alcoholics... Arguments - they say, Americans live richly, so they don’t abandon their children - they don’t accept them. There's just a cult of family here.

MYTH No. 5: Americans dress poorly and tastelessly.

Indeed, in Everyday life Americans will never trade comfort for elegance. No one here will understand the well-known Russian expressions: clothes make a man, people are greeted by their clothes... In the USA they prefer comfortable clothes made from natural fabrics; in the warm season, these are usually shorts and T-shirts... Americans know how to be very elegant on occasion. They don’t consider going to work or to the store a reason to dress up.

In addition to the five, so to speak, main myths, there are others. True, less popular. There is no culture in the USA, only a subculture, and the Americans themselves are uncultured people. Americans love to sue. In the United States, a low-income person is doomed to die if he falls ill because he will not be able to pay for health insurance. American teenagers are aggressive and often shoot at classmates and teachers with firearms.

Of course, Americans also have their own perception of Russians. Another survey conducted in 2007 in America showed that US-born residents represent Russian residents as “hardworking, educated, friendly, but poor, downtrodden and heavy drinkers.” Which of this is a myth and stereotype, and which is the truth?

Now I know where fat people live - they are in hypermarkets. That's where I met them large quantities. Apparently, they mostly stay at home, because they are almost invisible in public transport. Previously, as they say, there were much more of them and everywhere. Now they were forced to pay taxes and exercise, that is, to at least slightly monitor their diet. This did not help many, many remained terribly fat. I'll try to take a photo fat people and show it if my capabilities and conscience allow me to do so. I also know exactly why people become fat - they have all the conditions for this, they buy stuff that makes them fat. Staff is sold in hypermarkets.

So, Costco hypermarket. We visited there on Saturday after a massive clothing purchase in New Jersey. Costco is something our Carousels, Auchans, Ribbons and Metros have in common. We went there for a specific set of food, although, like in any hyper-market, they sell not only food, but also everything that an average person should need in everyday life. I took my camera with me, hoping to have a nice hunt for curiosities. Instead, I received another culture shock.

Help about taxes: It was a new revelation for me that in the USA everyone pays taxes when they buy something. A few more percent are added to the price listed on the label. NY has the highest taxes on everything.
There are no taxes on products in the USA. There is a tax on food (that is, on prepared food, in our opinion - cooking), takeaway food - there is a tax. There is also a tax + tip on food in a restaurant, so eating in a restaurant is extremely pleasant - you pay three times.
There are no taxes on some drinks: milk, juice, plain water, but there is a tax on other drinks: sweets, lemonade and alcohol (+ tax on glass or iron containers\cans).

The hypermarket premises are a gigantic hangar containing skyscrapers of shelves with hundreds of thousands of tons of all kinds of food. Consumer society as it is.
I took my camera with me because it seemed to me that here I could find something special, something that I would never find in other countries. Actually, that’s what happened, but I didn’t have the skill to convey everything as it is.
I'll start from the beginning.

You should go to the hypermarket, that is, for shopping, not just food, early. If you arrive late, there will be no parking space. An organized hunt for goods takes the whole day, and this is what happened to us - the whole Saturday was spent on shopping. In the hypermarket we only needed food, so we finished there relatively quickly, but we spent a lot of time on our clothes. I’ll return in the evening, pretty tired, and in no mood to do anything active. So it turns out that for many ordinary families, one day off is completely spent on shopping.

Food in the USA is not cheap, not at all cheaper than in MSC. To save more, it is profitable to go to hypermarkets to buy a lot at once, so that it lasts for a long time. For a long time - this is an appearance, although one can argue: depending on how you buy.

We parked quickly and successfully, although we arrived a little late. We took a cart and went traveling. By the way, the carts are all designed for parents with two children, while in Russia only one child can be seated in a cart. This is because in the USA, artificial insemination (IVF) has been developed, as a result of which most families have twins. For some reason, the masses of the population have problems conceiving, and they are forced to pay money to get pregnant. This is the result - wherever you look, there are twins. Yes, and of course you can put a third more goods in such a cart.

I didn’t look at the clothing stalls in the center of the pavilion either at the beginning or at the end of the trip, so I’ll talk mainly about the food.

Culture shock immediately overwhelmed me: what’s wrong with this food? why is it this size? Yes, the main feature of the hypermarket is giant food. Lots of giant food. I don’t know to what extent these photos of mine will be able to convey the scale of this food disaster, but I tried to capture the colossal difference. I was in an ordinary supermarket or grocery store - everything is in order there, all proportions are met, and there are no visible differences between Russian food and American food. Here we were not at a wholesale market or at a specialized warehouse - it was just an ordinary hypermarket with relatively cheap prices for all stuff.

We started our inspection with racks of canned goods: canned meat, fruits, sauces, fish - I couldn’t take a picture of it all. There are no small cozy jars, all sizes are what I would call dog sizes.

juice canisters with nothing untoward in them that sit in a landfill of boxes of pre-made mac and cheese.

These are ordinary semi-finished products, of which there are a lot in this hypermarket, as well as in the diet of an ordinary American. Semi-finished products are ordinary fast food, not even hamburgers with potatoes or fast food, which is sold on the streets. This is a guaranteed fat ass. This food sits there and doesn’t spoil; you just need to warm it up. Yes, yes - “warm up your dinner” is so often heard in cinema or written down in literature. I used to think that this meant heating up a ready-made dinner from a frying pan. No, this means reheating the semi-finished product. In addition to the dry and boxed options, this hypermarket had several huge refrigerators where other frozen semi-finished products were waiting to fill the huge refrigerators. Not only pizza, but also types ready food. The boxes are certainly large in size, as are the refrigerators.

Definitely mayonnaise. 1 gallon jar - 4 liters! Americans calculate distances and products using the old system. I can't get used to it. It's horrible.

Oil cans. All kinds of oils - olive, corn, sunflower.

On a canister corn oil written - healthy heart. If it weren't for so many, I would have thought about it.

Huge lunch box. Damn, there’s not even anything to put next to it for comparison. Approximately the same height as two ordinary ones

packaging with chips. Here you can understand the size of the bag - they stand on the floor, on ordinary platforms. Match the size of the platform and the package. Each family has one of these packages in their basket. Well, really.

Holy cause - toilet paper. A separate room has been allocated for it.

this sausage stick is as thick as my thigh

They look like ordinary pizzas, if not for the 60 cm in diameter.

ready packaged food. many varieties, sushi-sandwiches-salads-cakes, with a limited shelf life. Sold anywhere, even in a pharmacy

bits of meat. There is a lot of meat, very red, very lumpy, there is no finely chopped meat, there is a little minced meat, but everywhere these kusmans with different parts carcass Americans eat a lot of meat, frying it frantically over an open fire, which is not as healthy. This meat is good, but if it's vacuum sealed, it might be soaked in something that makes it soft even if you smoke it to the coals.

The steaks are perfect, as if made from plasticine, huge, thick and seem cheap as hell. The price is indicated for half a kilo - that is, for one pound. So consider it

A piece of meat costs 100 tanks, you can even read it there

These are pizza-sized vegetable pies.

In a separate terribly cold room, greens/salads, berries and cut fruits are stored for fruit salad. It is better not to buy this mixture, because it is processed special liquids. It’s also better not to buy salad here.

Look how big these green bananas are

And potatoes - it’s a pity, it’s not clear here. when it lies together, it is incomprehensible that this potato alone can weigh a whole kilo

sweet pies the size of a pizza - dada, with a 60 cm pizza.

They don’t cut fish into small pieces - only this size

that is, a kg of tilapia for our money is 360 rubles

large jars of nuts

A whole shelf is occupied by human vitamins - they are also all packaged in large jars, they are bright and large in size, they are all suitable for something - for example, for colds

five-liter jar with giant pickled cucumbers

As for the giant vegetables, it was not in vain that I raised the question. These are the peppers I photographed on the first day of my arrival

How did this happen? These are just genetically modified vegetables. They are everywhere here. Everyone eats them. The fact that they are modified is written in the press; no one hides this. Each person has a choice: eat ordinary huge vegetables at a regular price, grow them yourself, or buy exorbitantly expensive so-called “organic” vegetables.
Research on the harmfulness of such products is not carried out, because the entire American economy is built on these vegetable mutations. Therefore, the tomatoes here are not sweet, they are picked green, and then painted with a special gas so that they take on a marketable appearance.
And then he also asks where the problems with pregnancy come from.

Yes, and another important factor - vegetables and fruits are not washed here, according to GOST they are considered clean, the same with grass and salads. Therefore, you should never buy salads that have already been cut, just like cut fruits and all that.

I met a lot of fat people in this hypermarket.

As a quick reference: washing powders are sold in liquid form. Wonder Woman says they wash very poorly. This is done so that things are not washed, but thrown away, and accordingly, new ones are bought more often.

I'm done. I'll go think about something good.

APD. guys, you really fucked up. I repeat, read my text, read it and think before commenting. Who wants to defend the American paradise, go to your zhizhiki and write there as much as you like. I repeat that I never claim the truth in the highest authorities. I wrote about a place where there are a lot of fat people, and about those fat people who fill carts with huge processed foods and bags of chips. I wrote about GMO vegetables and chemicals that are common within walking distance. I don’t have to write after the main text for stupid people summary and the main thoughts of the post. If you don't understand, re-read it, or go to hell.
I'll stop responding to any comments because I'd rather write a post about Chinatown instead. Anyone who cares about information about American food, go to hell, but don’t try to persuade me that this is not the only store in the USA - and I know what it’s like, I didn’t write anywhere that it’s the only one, I still have a lot of posts about food prepared.