Nutrition. Americans are highly conscious of nutrition. Vitamin manufacturers and health food stores thrive. Popular magazines and newspapers treat nutrition as major news. For twenty years or more food companies have been capitalizing on this obsession by advertising their products as being "all natural," even if they are selling ice cream, candy and cake. Americans are also concerned about the fat and cholesterol content of their food and its relationship to heart disease, the number one killer. To many Americans, cholesterol is not just a food substance, it is an evil, like rape, murder or--in days past-- communism.

Weight loss is another American obsession, particularly among women. America is a rich country, and a fat one. One diet book after another shakes up the best-seller lists. Specialized books such as Thin Thighs in Thirty Days sell millions of copies. The diet industry, which includes special diet plans, foods, and weight loss centers, is a large one. The American struggle to diet or exercise away excess weight is never-ending. Out of all the world's major countries, the United States is by far the fattest.

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