To say that the average American isn’t oversized, if not obese, is to be ignorant to full extent. Statistics clearly show one apparent fact: while the average American weighed 166 pounds about half a century ago, the average American now weighs around 191 pounds on average. The question, however, is what brought about such a drastic change? Why has the average weight of Americans increased by so much?

Hint: It’s Not Just Junk Food

The aforementioned questions aren’t something that is completely out of the blue. The drastic change in the average weight has been researched by canvassers over and over again. The conclusion presented to the general public is that the culprit is the habitually frequent consumption of junk food, such as burgers and fried food from food chains like McDonald’s, etc. But, is that really the only reason why people are visibly growing in size – and not in a healthy way? It’s difficult to agree that that’s the only reasoning because there are plenty of families that have completely banned junk food from their diets but their offspring is no different.

Could It Be The Size Of Our Kitchens?

While everyone talks about the significant weight gain, no one really talks about how it could be the average size of our kitchens that have been dictating the average size of a person. The estimate size of the average kitchen was 80 square feet half a century ago, while the average size of a kitchen in this day and age is 225 square feet – it’s ironic, to say the least. Back in the day, the kitchen was a sacred room in every house, and was used solely for the purpose of preparing food and washing dishes right after. Once the food was prepared, the food was brought out to the dining table – which was then the place where people would gather, take out a serving in their plates and sit elsewhere to finish their meal.

In this day and age, kitchens feature everything from electronic dishwashers, huge refrigerators, kitchen islands to mini bars, tables, bean bags, and whatnot. It doesn’t take an expert to realize that with a kitchen so big and well-equipped, the entire family is bound to do plenty of other things in there such as playing board games, doing bills, etc. Not to mention, kitchens are no longer small secluded rooms, but they’re huge open spaces with no doors and direct access to everything else in the house, such as the television, etc.

Such a setting is bound to make the family spend more time in and around the kitchen and the food. And as long as food is in your sight, it’s bound to end up in your mouth. Contrary to this norm, the average weight in the olden days is proof that taking out portions in your plate instead of having a buffet or feast inside the kitchen itself, while doing all the activities like playing board games, doing bills, etc., says a lot more about the weight problem in America.