Challenge: Make 60% of the American Population Clinically Obese by 2008

Challenge: Make 60% of the American Population Clinically Obese by 2008.

With a POD no earlier then 1980.

EDIT:Currently according to a study done in 2007, America has a 26.6% obesity prevalence.
 
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In a lot of cultures around the world, especially pre-modern, being overweight was seen as a positive thing. A sign of wealth and fertility. Maybe the west could have a revival of this. I would think a combination of this and the current factors leading to obesity, bad diet, sedentary lifestyle, etcetera, could push it up to 60%.


As for a POD, when did the super-skinny thing start in the fashion industry? Maybe a few different figures in fashion, with different tastes, could change this.
 
I dunno... the Movement for Fat Acceptance wins some court cases over airline seats and anti-obesity directives?

Or a larger underclass that typically would be more obese than a wealthier, educated class?
 
In a lot of cultures around the world, especially pre-modern, being overweight was seen as a positive thing. A sign of wealth and fertility. Maybe the west could have a revival of this. I would think a combination of this and the current factors leading to obesity, bad diet, sedentary lifestyle, etcetera, could push it up to 60%.

Though I believe it has been seen as a positive thing because it was so rare, ie. you had to be especially skilled and wealthy to achieve rotundity (for yourself or your wife) when food was relatively scarce. When virtually everyone is capable of stuffing themselves several times a day, girth is simply not a way of distinguish yourself from the poor and unskilled anymore, thus making it a less prestigious quality.
 
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