Actually, when one is using the term "affluence," one has to apply it to the society as a whole, not specific individuals. In our "affluent" U.S. society, food is both plentiful and relatively cheap. Poverty in the U.S. doesn't imply the inability to get food. However, "poor" Americans are more likely to get a superabundance of cheap, carbohydrate-laden foods, and this contributes to their obesity. They are also less likely to take advantage of weight-loss measures such as daily exercise that require self-discipline and an understanding of how their bodies work.
"They are also less likely to take advantage of weight-loss measures such as daily exercise that require self-discipline and an understanding of how their bodies work."
On the other hand, they're more likely to find employment that involves exercise, such as waiting tables, construction laborer, etc.
Bingo. The healthiest people I ever encountered -- in cardiovascular terms -- were Afghan hill people. They all had the cardio fitness of marathon runners -- resting pulse of 45, high O2 saturation, etc. Of course, in every other sense they were human wrecks, with every one of them hosting some chronic disease or parasite.
The reason for their fitness was their extreme, grinding poverty and the harsh conditions they lived in. Want to take some of your dried apricots to market and trade for some flour? It's nine miles over the mountains. See ya.
To be healthy we need to replace that daily activity with other exercise. Which brings us to the slightly illogical activity of running, etc. for the sheer necessity of it, but there it is.
Like some others in this thread, I always controlled my weight (ubeknownst to myself) with exercise, as I was in a very physical occupation that made physical demands daily and allotted several hours a day for physical exercise towards that end. Unfortunately, chronic joint disease has ended that for me -- I can't run, and some days I can't walk -- and I am having little success keeping weight off.
Extremely frustrating.
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F