[ufukbay]

I don't want to argue that the government can help to raise awareness but isn't it more like personal choice in the end? I'm not obese but with a BMI of 27.8 definitely overweight. How is anyone else is going to help me to lose weight if I don't realize myself that something is wrong and most important of all that I need to change something?

I can decide if I want to drive to McDonald's or to the grocery store to buy some vegetables or other healthy ingredients to prepare a more balanced meal. The first is obviously easier and kinda more convenient but if you look at what it does to your health then maybe not so convenient at all.

What I'm trying to say is that for example I used to love Coke and even drank some for breakfast. I'm not the typical coffee addicted developer but I pumped myself with energy drinks instead. After my brother forced me to get my sugar levels throughly checked this year I saw that I was close to be diagnosed with diabetes and figured that there is no other way than to change my diet.

[skywhopper]

The problem is that for a lot of poorer communities where obesity is most rampant, there is no "grocery store to buy some vegetables or other healthy ingredients" anywhere nearby and owning a car is not a given. So yes, making good choices is important, and most posters on HN are lucky enough to have healthy options easily accessible to them. But a lot of people, even in the US, do not have realistic healthy options available to them.

[superuser2]

We can end the subsidies that make McDonalds fare so much cheaper than buying healthy ingredients, for one thing.

[ghock]

"The first is obviously easier and kinda more convenient but if you look at what it does to your health then maybe not so convenient at all."

Presumably for the same reason you drank too much sugary drinks, there was an immediate reward and you didn't comprehend the long term effects i.e. it wasn't an informed decision. I doubt that the doctor was very surprised with the outcome.

The latest episode of americas test kitchen radio touches on this topic and while I don't agree with everything they do have some good points.