Japan's recently-passed legislation mandating the measurement of waistlines of people between the ages of 40 and 74 has many Japanese questioning whether they are fit or fat. With limits of 33.5 inches for men and 35.4 inches for women, the government hopes the strict guidelines will help shrink the overweight population in the country through dieting guidance and education. As a result, they hope to reduce new cases of diabetes and alleviate rising health care costs.
As airlines in the U.S. charge overweight passengers for the two seats they actually take up and Australia orders bigger, "mega-lift" ambulances to carry its larger patients, it is hardly news that obesity must be dealt with. But rather than accommodating our increased size, Japan, whose people are not generally perceived as overweight, is saying, "We are fat, and we are going to do something about it" by enforcing these new laws. Maybe the U.S. should too.
