Let’s Adopt the Italian Style of Living to Address Obesity
So I was in Rome, yet again, a couple of weeks ago for work but also a few additional days of pleasure. I know, I know, it’s a tough job to have to go to Rome so often, but I guess someone has to do it… (I can just feel the darts coming my way from Belinda). As is custom in Rome, there was much sight-seeing, walking, eating and coffee drinking, not to mention gelato eating.
The Spanish Steps
Growing up in Italy, I was always surrounded by good food. Plenty of fresh in-season fruits and vegetables, fresh pasta, fresh out of the oven pizza, gelato, the list goes on. It was always about good quality fresh ingredients. To this day, my favorite meal consists of opening up the fridge and bringing out fresh veggies for a salad, a selection of cheeses, a selection of cold cuts (prosciutto, salame), olives, and any other tasty bits and pieces. You then slice up some freshly baked bread and hey presto! Dig in!
Little fruit & veg shop in Jewish Ghetto part of Rome
Italian cuisine is pretty rich in carbs. Bread and pasta are staples to the diet and these are big no nos in our new “diet” culture to bring down our weight in the U.S. and the U.K. Growing up, I never saw obese people in Italy, sure there were some well-rounded folks around but that was not the norm. Generally, people enjoyed their food, pasta and all, but stayed slim. How could that be? Well, I boil it down to some pretty common sense reasons:
- Low usage of processed foods,
- Fresh fruit and vegetables that have stayed on the plant/tree long enough to gain all the proper nutrients
- Small portions (a standard pasta portion at an Italian dinner table is 100gms, about 3.5oz)
- Lots of walking
- Drinking plenty of water
- oh, and a touch of vanity!
Casa del Cafe - one of the most famous bars in Rome by the Pantheon
The common breakfast in Italy is cappuccino and a pastry standing at a bar. Nutritionally, this is not the best start to your day, I get that, but let’s just look at the fact that it’s a small portion and you have it standing up. Lunch is generally the main meal of the day there although with the Western work ethic hitting Italy too these days, dinners have become more substantial. Most Italians, especially in the south and in the warmer months, make it a point to go out for a walk each day. In the evenings this is very much a social activity as you will go down to the town square and walk around or many seaside towns have special walkways along the sea-shore. Everyone is out there, young and old, walking sticks, dogs and all.
Standard breakfast al bar
With food being such an integral part of Italian culture, Jamie Oliver would certainly not have the problem of kids not being able to identify a tomato or cauliflower in a line-up. I recall some 15 years ago sitting behind two young married men on a plane having a discussion about the best approach to cook a ragu (basic bolognese sauce). Only in Italy! ha ha.
My solution to obesity: let’s all just move to Italy to loose weight, lol!
I should add that there is a downside to all of this, and that is that obesity is a growing concern amongst Italian schoolchildren now. Sadly, the world of cheap processed foods and video games has started to infiltrate Italy too. I came across this old WHO report from 2005 which outlines many of the issues there: Obesity a Heavy Issue for Italians. There are programs popping up there too, and hopefully they will not reach the crisis level that the U.S. currently faces.
Category: Europe, Featured Articles: Food Politics, Featured Articles: Health & Nutrition, Food Politics, Health & Nutrition, Travel & Culture
Isn’t funny how simple the list really is to losing weight when you think of it? This beats any dieting gimmick out there. I’m all for fresh foods and lots of walking!
I think you have pretty much spotted the main causes of overweight… In Spain the thing is similar (with hints of change for worse) and I guess you’d have to add some kind of “national” pride on our own cuisine.
Move to Italy? I’m in! Your photos make me want to get on a plane to Rome. I think you hit on a lot of good points here. Wouldn’t it be great if fresh food and exercise were the next “diet trend” in the US?
I’m all for it! Maybe I need to take a trip to “research” this life-style a little more…
This is my kind of diet! Sounds good especially the moving to Italy part
I would love to live there!!!!!Italy is an amazing country….beautiful, a lot of history and you can be skinny…..It sounds perfect to me
Beautiful post. I have always been wondering on this obesity issue. I was shocked to find so many fat and obese people around when I came to Scotland and more shocked when I watch TV that US is even worse. This was quite unheard of back home in Malaysia or other Asian countries. When I was in South Korea, I was amazed that almost all the men there had so slim figure….flat belly….more impressive than those back home! I think food and lifestyle must be the main cause. Let’s eat well and stay slim
I’m in for moving…I think everyone is getting busier and busier each year they don’t stop to enjoy their food and take care of themselves…such a pity
sweetlife
I loved this post. I couldn’t agree more!!
Rome is one of my dream place! I hope to visit there some day. Your photos are stunning. Hope you’re having a great time!
Cheers, Kristy
“Brava, figlia mia”! You’ve had the best of so many worlds to date – born and early years in “Italia”, adolescence in the “Emerald Isle”, uni in Scotland, a few years in dad’s native land in the “new world” and now back to the “old world” to start something new. Not bad, eh? In my humble opinion you couldn’t be getting it more right in the food arena
Thank you Daddy
Not that you are biased at all 
There was one other additional point that I thought of today about Italians mostly being slim, and that is that they generally don’t drink lots of alcohol. Sure, wine is a staple with most meals, and they will enjoy a beer with friends, but never 10+ beers a night. That was a huge shocker for me when I moved to Ireland, and also seeing the quantities of beer that Americans can put away. Anyway, thank you everyone for your comments!
Wonderful piece! I love your colorful photos! And I agree about the problems and solutions to obesity. It’s hit Native American communities hard core in the U.S. Drastic change of diet and infiltration of processed foods dumped into communities. The same is happening in my own community in Peru now–we need to stay away from bagged crap and stick with the natural.