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Lambert Adolphe Quetelet (1796-1874), the Belgian
mathematician, is famous for his 'Body Mass Index' (also called the
"Quetelet Index").
Though we can argue about racial differences in physiognomies, this
index remains the official measurement for obesity around the globe to
this day. BMI is calculated as weight in kilograms divided by the
square of height in meters.
By that token, the U.S. and Australia rank No. 1 and No. 2
respectively, not respectably. Over 60 percent of these two countries'
populations are overweight.
Considering that the two countries also have the dubious distinctions
of being the highest per capita polluters on the planet, common sense
says that affluence also has its downsides.
It is heartening to see that Australia wrote a $200-million cheque last
week for the rehabilitation of Indonesia's forests as part of the
effort to reduce global warming.
Environmentalists everywhere can also take comfort from the fact that
the opposition in Australia is committed to signing the Kyoto Protocol
if they are voted in at the next election.
Both major political parties there are talking up the need to rapidly
develop and export "clean-coal" technology, and Indonesian business
would do well to exploit obvious opportunities from that laudable
pursuit.
But I digress. How do Indonesians fare on their weight as well as their
attitudes to food? Is there a connection between the two? These
questions are based on trends continuously measured by Roy Morgan
Single Source, Indonesia's largest syndicated survey. That study is now
expanding to include over 27,000 respondents this year, projected to
reflect the behavior of 90 percent of the population over the age of 14.
The good news is that Indonesia is doing very well on Body Mass Index.
Three out of four adults are within the "Acceptable Weight" range. Only
12 percent are overweight and less than 1 percent are obese. Another 12
percent are underweight.
What is noticeable, though, is that there are many more women
underweight than men, as well as overweight or obese. Bad jokes about
poverty and weight are irrelevant as there is no correlation between
the two.
In fact, the proportion of overweight women in comparison to men is
highest in rural Indonesia. On the other hand, there is a definite
connection between affluence and weight. The more money there is in the
family, the greater the likelihood of there being a family member who
is overweight. This is understandable, because financial comfort
facilitates conspicuous consumption across the board. People with more
money to spend do just that. They spend it, not only on living the good
life but also on charity, making Americans and Australians among the
highest per capita contributors in the world.
Other than the fact that overweight women are "constantly watching
their weight" more than others, and tend to exercise less, there are no
other significant differences in behavior.
Their attitudes to food, entertainment, religion and the environment
are similar to their normal-weight counterparts in each segment of
society. Due to the fact that most Indonesians are within the
acceptable weight range, most visitors to fast-food restaurants aren't
overweight. Of the overweight visitors to such restaurant chains, the
majority are women.
Weight gain becomes particularly significant in Indonesia after the age
of 35, remaining a problem later on in life. With sports or formal
exercise not as popular as doctors would like them to be, not much
physical effort is made to address the problem.
Unlike many countries in the affluent West, obesity is not an issue for
the overwhelming majority in Indonesia. In Indonesia, it is a condition
that mostly affects the affluent.
If there is a lesson here, it is simply this: moderation is good. Waste
not, want not. Most marketers have difficulty in promoting moderation
as they are driven most of all by the need to increase sales. Many fall
into the trap of achieving ever-higher sales targets, even at the cost
of margins or by launching cheaper brands that cannibalize their own.
Is the converse possible? Food for thought. At least it's not fattening.
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