Something I've been pondering...

I've been doing my new part-time gig for about two months now. (For those of you who don't know, I work at a little kids gymnastics place-- I teach classes to pre-schoolers and do birthday parties). The gym I work at definitely caters to the upper middle-class, and though we have predominantly white patrons, we also boast a fair number of Indian, Asian, European, and Brazilian families. But anyway, demographics aside, I've been thining a lot lately about Americans' perspective on and relationship with food and eating versus that of other cultures', and here's what I've found interesting. First of all, there are rarely obsese or overweight non-American patrons (and I'm referring specifically to the adults I see when I lead birthday parties). Not that we have a lot of fat, white Americans, but if there is an overweight parent, chances are he/she is American. But I think one of the most interesting things I've noticed while working at the gym is how the foreign families (and women, in particular) nearly always indulge at the birthday parties. They readily eat pizza and cake and come armed with enough food to feed an army. And these women are beautiful-- tall and svelte with picture-perfect figures (not to mention the fact that they've all given birth at least once). At the American parties, the parents often laugh and shake their heads when I offer them a piece of cake, as if to say, "Why would I want cake?"-- it's not like it's a party or anything, right? I think that these trends are indicative of precisely why obesity is so endemic in our society. We have this lofty notion in our heads that by pereptually dieting and forgoing a slice of chocolate cake at a kid's birthday celebration and then returning home later that evening to bust open a pack of Snackwells and eat fat free cookies loaded with sugar and preservatives that we're the ones who are healthy. But that's a completely ridiculous mentality. The foreign parties I've seen know what a birthday party is. They recognize that it's a time to have fun, to relax, and to partake in the goodness of sweets and junk food without reservation or fear. They know that it's far worse to consistently deprive one's self of tempting treats. And yet these people, who eat like there's no tomorrow without a care in the world, are somehow the ones who are healthier. But to me, it makes sense. Our bodies aren't stupid-- they tell us what they need. If we're feeling a little calcium deficient, we crave milk or yogurt. If we're feeling a little sweets deficient, we crave a piece of chocolate cake. These are cravings that we should give in to. They only become dangerous when we give in on a regular basis, and don't exercise common sense or eat in moderation. I think it's a much healthier attitude to know when there's reason to celebrate, and to go with it. By making birthdays such a big and special event, many cultures have succeeded in simultaneously making everything that goes along with a birthday a big event-- including the food. And that's what's missing in our culture-- what's a piece of high-calorie chocolate cake when you've got a "healthy" box of Weight Watchers ice cream cones in your freezer at home?