Living In USA

Fortunately, there is a counter-trend to combat obesity. In the past decade, there has been a rise in the availability of healthier food in the form of organic (grown without pesticides or herbicides) produce and whole foods. Every city has at least one healthfood store, and there are even some supermarket chains (e.g., Freshfields, Wild Oats, Bread and Circus) that specialize in healthier, although costlier, food. Organic food is more widely available than ever before, often found at regular supermarkets as well as at specialty stores. There is also a "slow-food" movement to counter the prevalence of fast food. Begun in Italy in 1986, there about 80,000 members of Slow Food International worldwide (about half of them in Italy), a nonprofit organization designed to preserve and support the pleasures of the table. The international movement was founded in Paris in 1989, and Slow Food boasts more than 70 chapters throughout the United States. Consult www.slowfoodusa.org/ for information on a chapter near you.

The same Men's Fitness survey mentioned above also names the fittest cities in the U.S.: Honolulu, San Francisco, Virginia Beach, Denver, Colorado Springs, Seattle, Boston, Portland (Oregon), and Tucson topped the 2004 list in this category.

Although not yet technically considered a disease in its own right, obesity is nonetheless an epidemic in the United States. According to the American Obesity Association, the rate of obesity in the United States roughly doubled between 1970 and 2000, to over a third of all adults. Even more alarming is the rate of childhood obesity, although these increases are partly due to a 1998 change in the way obesity is calculated. According to the U.S. Bureau of the Census, in 2003 Americans ate an average of twenty-five pounds of candy each! Our love affair with the automobile, along with road construction that is decidedly bicycle/pedestrian-hostile, has made it difficult (and in some cases impossible) in many areas to walk from one place to another. Combined with the plethora of television programming and the rise of video games, the reality is that we get very little simple exercise. Amazingly, some people will go so far as to drive one or two miles to a gym in order to walk on a treadmill!

In addition, many foods are extraordinarily high in fat content, and our portions are quite large by almost any standard. Although some fast-food places have recently discontinued "super-size" from their menus, the "large" size is quite large enough. The fat content of many menu items is increased without noticeably increasing serving size. It is not just hamburgers, however, that should be viewed with caution. During that same period, one chain's small vanilla shake doubled its fat content. Another fast-food chain increased the saturated fat content of its french fries by 60 percent.

Fast-food giants gear their marketing toward children, hoping to develop loyal customers who will prefer the particular taste of their food items. According to Eric Schlosser in his book Fast Food Nation, McDonald's operates more playgrounds than any other private entity and is one of the largest distributors of toys in the United States. It uses a clown (who is depicted in advertisements as a child's one true friend) as its spokesman.

Not all overweight people are obese. In order to be considered obese, a person must exceed a body mass index (BMI) of 30, which is a ratio of body fat to height. This ratio, however, fails to distinguish between fat and muscle, differences in bone density, and other factors when determining whether a person is overwieght. Nonetheless, the social costs of obesity are high — lost productivity, increased healthcare costs, and shorter life spans can all be attributed to obesity. Each year, Men's Fitness magazine publishes an index of the fattest cities in the United States. While Detroit came in first in 2004, five of the top eight — Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Fort Worth, and Arlington — are in Texas.

Smoking is now prohibited in restaurants in much of the country. No doubt the days of a cigarette between courses or at the end of a meal will someday be gone forever, which you may find refreshing or stifling depending on your feelings about smoking. The original rationale for these bans was health concerns about second-hand smoke, which is supported by some research studies but refuted by others. In reality, public support for these restrictions is high because fewer people smoke, and nonsmokers have become accustomed to (some would say self-righteous about) their right to cleaner air.

In the 1970s, restaurants were required to provide nonsmoking sections, which were typically small rooms or even just a few tables. Gradually, the non-smoking areas became larger and the smokers were banished to smaller tables. In many restaurants, even in locales without legal bans, smoking is not permitted at all on the premises.

The terms used in ordering or buying food can lead to fulfilled expectations or surprises. Use the wrong words and your coffee may turn into liquid candy or your entrée burned beyond recognition.

Meat
If you order steaks, roast beef, hamburgers, prime rib, and so on, the waiter may say, "How would you like it?" meaning whether you want your meat rare, medium, or well done. If you order it rare, the meat will be red inside; if medium, it will be pink; if well done, it will be completely cooked (and sometimes dry).

"Rare" is likely to be cooked just a little; "well done" to be very well cooked. If you prefer, you can indicate something in the middle by saying "medium rare" or "medium well."

Coffee
If you order coffee or tea, the waiter will sometimes ask, "Would you like cream?" If you would not, answer "Just black, please," meaning no cream or sugar. Sugar is generally already on the table, and often milk or cream is also, and the waiter brings the coffee black. Many people now ask for "decaf," meaning decaffeinated coffee. In New York City, "regular" coffee means liberal amounts of both cream and sugar. Elsewhere, it merely refers to coffee that hasn't been decaffeinated.

Coffee is a popular American drink at all hours of the day. It varies enormously in quality; you will just have to experiment to find places that make it the way you like it. Espresso and other specialties are often available, but you have to ask for them. Coffee-house chain stores, such as Starbuck's, Peet's, and Seattle Coffee Roasters, have sprung up in nearly every American city. These offer heartier, darker coffee than traditional American coffee, and a dizzying array of "specialty" coffee drinks as well as pastries and other food. A variety of kinds of tea is also available in these shops.

Tea
Tea is much less popular than coffee in the United States. It is often quite tasteless; perhaps we make it poorly because we don't drink it as much as other nationalities do. In public places tea is usually a shock to the new - comer. A cup of hot water (no longer boiling if it ever was) is brought in with a tea bag in the saucer. You are supposed to put the bag into the water and leave it there until the tea is as strong as you like it. In private homes you will sometimes find it brewed. Herb teas have also become popular in the United States.

Other Drinks
Next after coffee, Americans are likely to drink Coke or other soft drinks, milk, or fruit juices. Iced tea is usually good and is very popular in summer, as is iced coffee. Both can be served either sweetened or unsweetened, although unfortunately not often at the same place. If you want to drink water, you may have to ask for it, except in the more expensive restaurants. Tap water is safe anywhere, but you can request bottled water if you prefer the taste.

Eggs
The waiter at a restaurant will ask you, "How do you want your eggs?" Your answer can include any one of a wide range of possibilities: boiled, fried, scrambled, or poached; with or without ham or bacon or sausage. You also indicate the number of eggs you want. Most Americans consider one or two eggs normal. Boiled eggs are emptied into a cup — rarely, if ever, eaten out of the shell. Fried eggs may be "sunny-side up," meaning fried on one side only (with the yellow face showing);"over," meaning well fried on both sides; or "over easy," meaning fried lightly on both sides.

The addition of one or two slices of bacon, ham, or sausage may be quite expensive. Take a look at the price on the menu before ordering. Usually a listed breakfast is less expensive than ordering side dishes.

French Fries and Coleslaw
French fries are fried potatoes — usually sliced thinly like Belgian fritte, but sometimes they are sliced into wedges more like British "chips." You often get them with a meal whether you order them or not. The same is true of coleslaw — sliced cabbage and mayonnaise. If these are served with the meal, there is no extra charge for them.

Hot Dogs and Hamburgers
Usually hot dogs (frankfurters) are eaten in a long bread roll. The meat can be either beef or pork. You have your choice of adding tomato ketchup (spiced tomato sauce), mustard, pickle, relish, or onion (chopped and raw). Some people put all of these on at once! There is no charge for such condiments.

Hamburgers are one of the few purely American dishes. They are the staple of the fast-food chains (McDonald's, for example) and vary significantly in quality from restaurant to restaurant. They are supposed to be made of pure beef, with varying percentages of fat, though sometimes soybeans are mixed in with the meat. In both restaurants and fast-food places, unless you specify what you don't want, your burger usually comes with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, and a mayonnaise-type sauce.

Generally speaking, American food is considered rather bland by those accustomed to hot or spicy cuisines. Salads are very popular and are served all year round. Many people in this country have become weight and calorie conscious and are trying to keep down their weight. This is evident in menus offering low calorie (or in many cases, low carbohydrate) or "weight watchers" meals. Grocery stores now offer a huge array of low-fat, "light," no-fat, or "low-carb" foods, from ice cream to soup to snack foods. "Diet" drinks (meaning without sugar but full of artificial sweeteners) such as ginger ale or cola are also popular. If you do not want low-calorie items, read the labels carefully to avoid disappointing choices.

Waiters in restaurants tend to assume that everyone drinks coffee, especially at breakfast and after dinner, but you do not have to do so! Some people drink coffee (regular or decaffeinated) or tea with their meal; others drink wine or just water. When dining out, you can ask for tea, milk, soda, beer, wine, or water if you prefer these to coffee. Restaurants cannot serve beer, wine, or liquor unless they are licensed to do so. Normally, when eating in a home, it is considered polite to drink whatever is being served and not to ask for something different — unless the host gives you a choice or unless you prefer water.

The main course in American meals is usually meat, fowl, or fish, but rarely is more than one of these served at the same meal (except that sea - food can be used as an appetizer — shrimp cocktail, steamed clams, pickled herring, or smoked oysters, for example).

Most Americans eat quickly during the day — that is, breakfast and lunch — unless it is a social, business, or family occasion. Racing through daytime meals is part of the fast pace described earlier. Lunch breaks at work are limited to a half hour or an hour. There is also another reason for eating fast — others in public eating places are waiting for you to finish so they too can be served and get back to work on time. Each one hurries to make room for the next person. The evening meal, however, is usually leisurely and a family time — unless, of course, there are children (especially teenagers) involved in sports or other late-afternoon activities.

There is a real difference in leisure and timing here between a meal that is "social," meaning shared and enjoyed, and one that is "just a meal."

It is possible to be served a meal at any hour — including all night — in most large cities and many small ones, though you may have to look around a bit.

Some places offer Sunday "brunch"(or you might be invited to a brunch at someone's home). This is a combination of breakfast and lunch, served about 11:30 or noon for late Sunday sleepers. If you are outside a major city, it may be difficult to find a place that is open after 8:30 or 9:00 p.m., though lunch counters, diners, and fast-food shops usually stay open late.

In people's homes there is considerable variety as to eating times. The main meal is usually served in the evening, except perhaps on Sundays or holidays, when it may be eaten in the afternoon. In cities people often eat dinner about 7:00 or 7:30 p.m. Outside the cities most people dine earlier, at 6:00 or 6:30 p.m., or sometimes even earlier. The hour for cocktail parties is usually 5:00 or 5:30 p.m.

Some American bars are loud, smoky (in some cities, smoking is now prohibited in bars as well as restaurants — see below), and crowded; others are rather dark and meant for quiet conversation. Some bars are now a common meeting place for singles and can be quite lively, with a dance floor and loud music. Some bars cater particularly to gays and lesbians.

Unless you name the brand of alcohol you want, you are likely to get a less expensive "house" brand, which for most people is perfectly acceptable. We don't usually order beer by the pint or half pint, as you would in some countries. Ask for a glass of draft (usually ten to twelve fluid ounces, or one-third of a liter) or a bottle. There are many varieties of American beer, and it is served very cold. Imported beers, ales, and dark beer, are gaining popularity. Japanese, Chinese, and Mexican beer is often available in good restaurants and bars as well.

U.S. whiskey tends to be sweeter, more full-bodied, and cheaper than the whiskeys of Scotland or Ireland. Canadian whiskey is light. The main U.S. whiskeys are bourbon (made from corn) or a blend of several grains, known as "blended whiskey" and often incorrectly called "rye." If you want real rye whiskey, be sure the bartender understands. He or she will generally serve the blended type unless you make your desire clear.

If you like your drink at room temperature, be sure to say "No ice, please." Americans like most of their drinks ice cold.

An increasingly popular type of pub is a "brew house" or microbrewery. These feature a variety of beer and ale styles, some usually made on the premises. There are usually very good restaurants on site as well.