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Says Harvard's Mayer: "There's no one except an exercise nut who's as physically active as the sedentary person of the last century. And if there's any physical activity left now, you can be sure there are several large corporations searching for ways of eliminating it. Look at those advertisements for extension telephones; all those steps you save probably add up to five pounds a year in fat."
Choice of foods is as crucial as quantity. Americans, who eat more than 1,000 lbs. of food a year, consume less potatoes and starchy foods than their ancestors. But they also eat far more sugar, which provides quick energy as well as calories, and fats, some of which may lead to atherosclerosis, the buildup of fatty deposits in the arteries. Sixty years ago, Americans ate 87 Ibs. of sugar a year; today they eat around 120. Back then, they consumed 39 Ibs. of fats and oils annually; now they take in 55. Fats account for around 17% of the annual intake, flour and cereal products for about one-fifth. Says George Briggs, a professor in Berkeley's department of nutritional sciences, "I think our poor food choices are a national disaster."
Eating habits are also harmful. Many Americans skip breakfast entirely, or have only a cup of coffee. Lunch is often a quick bite. This increases the temptation to nibble snacks and to overeat at the evening meal. Even then, the meal may be a poor one. "The mother doesn't get the satisfactions from preparing food that she once did," says Berkeley Nutritionist Helen Ullrich. "So she wants to be out of the kitchen."
Restaurant meals can also be risky. Few contain the variety of vitamins and minerals needed for health. Some are nutritional time bombs, high in what Harvard's Mayer calls the "deadly trinity" of cholesterol, sugar and sodium. When it comes to gobbling snacks, young people are the worst offenders, consuming as much as half their caloric needs in potato chips, cookies, cakes and other foods high in calories, low in protein; adults are almost as bad.
Berkeley's Briggs believes that food processors are at least partly to blame. Despite the attempts of many in the food industry to stress nutrition, he observes, the industry does not feel that nutrition sells. It feels that flavor and taste are the moneymakers.
Ignorance is also a major factor. Less than half of the states have nutritionists at the administrative level on their boards of education; most students learn little about nutrition in high school or college. Many physicians are of limited help. Says Dr. Michael Latham of Cornell University's Graduate School of Nutrition: "Nine out of ten doctors in New York City would give wrong answers to dietary questions."
Evidence of medical uncertainty is abundant. Some doctors feel that iron enrichment of bread would go a long way toward easing the anemia that is widespread in the U.S., particularly among adolescent girls. Others feel that fortification is dangerous for people who have ample iron in their systems already. Experts are also uncertain about the amounts of vitamins and minerals needed for good health.