….but apparently a new study out says that in 5-10 years they’ll be just as obese as North Americans. 
I mentioned this to my (Parisienne) co-worker and this is what she had to say:
Friend: Most women in France are skinny. But they stay skinny because they don’t eat. The only drink those meal replacements and avoid eating actual food.
FB: *shocked*…. But why!?!?! Food is one of the greatest pleasures in life.
Friend: I know. But they want a rich husband. They did a study on this actually, and the criterion for men to look for a (trophy) wife is she has to be blonde and skinny. The blonde and skinny women had the best advantage of finding a rich Frenchman with high status in society.
FB: What an awful way to live…
Friend: It is why I left. But now, I think they are getting used to eating cheap fast food and that’s why they’re getting fatter.
So there you have it. Nothing special, none of this “French women don’t get fat” crap because they eat rich fromage (cheeses) and other fatty things in moderation. Apparently it’s all a big load of BS….LOL
- Beauty pill poppers, take note!
- Emergency Chocolate
- Why does it seem like men cheat more than women?
- How much do looks play a role in our lives?
- How fat gets stored in your body and the history of eating grains
Rae
on Oct 10th, 2007
@ 10:18 PM:
Fantastic!! I’ve always thought it unfair, how they live in one of the most foodie cities in the world and, yet, happen to be stick thin.
Their missing out on fabulous food to be skinny kinda ups my confidence by about…gee, I don’t know – tenfold?
Melissa
on Oct 11th, 2007
@ 1:50 AM:
Good to know!
Fabulously Broke in the City
on Oct 11th, 2007
@ 5:17 AM:
Rae: Oh goody! Glad it helped….. Yea, they don’t eat. They smoke like chimneys, drink a glass of wine here and there and drink meal replacements.
Melissa: LOL.. tell me about it!!!
Naomi
on Oct 11th, 2007
@ 6:42 AM:
must be like here in Spain where the skinny women eat very very slooowwwlllyy.
Fabulously Broke in the City
on Oct 11th, 2007
@ 7:33 AM:
Naomi: Eating slowly is probably to wait for their stomach to fill up with what little food they’ve eaten, then stop.
Because I find when I’m hungry and I quickly gorge myself on food, I end up eating WAY MORE than I should’ve….
Which is actually much healthier and sound advice… if they’re eating fruits/veggies/protein instead of a health shake or something.
Shelley
on Mar 17th, 2010
@ 5:30 PM:
I have a good friend from France and she is not thin by anyone's definition. Then again, she's lived here in the UK for a long time and I know she likes her red wine. She says her family rave about how big she is when she goes home to visit. So she doesn't go home that much…