Obesity

“At the root of the condemnation of fatness and overeating was concern about the effects of America’s growing prosperity and technology. In the largest sense, the panic about fat was a reaction to modernization. . . . Post-War prosperity, with all the changes it wrought, was precisely what made medical and national leaders lead the campaign against overweight” (Seid, 128). . . There seemed to be a fear that if the new prosperity were misused, a debacle might ensure like that which followed the prosperous twenties. . . . concern that the backbone of the whole nation might be weakening. This caused special panic as the Cold War got under way. Competition with Russia heated up, and keeping American’s morally and physically fit, especially American children, seemed essential if that battle was to be won” (130).