FROM AIR CONDITIONING TO OVERWEIGHT

Could AC Be Making Us Fatter? Air conditioning might be among the modern conveniences taking its toll on our waistlines.

Stefanie Romine, July 5, 2012 (Shine via Yahoo)

“…[There was a] New York Times Opinion section debate on air conditioning Should Air-Conditioning Go Global, or Be Rationed Away? which went into the environmental, political, [and] economic arguments]…In [Does My Ari Conditioner Make Me Fat?] in the International Journal of Obesity, biostatistician David Allison, Ph.D., and colleagues suggest that America's reliance on AC might be a contributing factor in our obesity crisis…[O]ur reliance on central air and heat means we expend less energy, thus burning fewer calories, because we don't have to work as hard to heat up or cool down our bodies.

“While climate control is just one of countless contributing factors that have led to the obesity crisis, it is interesting to note that of the 10 states with the lowest obesity rates, all but two (California and Hawaii) are in the northern half of the country, while seven of 10 of the heaviest states are located in the South (Ohio, Indiana, and Delaware are the heaviest states up north).”

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“…Europeans who live in climates similar to the southern states are not as obese…[W]hile not singling out AC use as a primary cause, it should be noted that southern France and Italy, for example, rely on heavy shutters, thick walls and other old-fashioned forms of climate control…[I]n both developing and developed countries outside the US, AC use is less prevalent--in Italy, France, Spain, Turkey, Guatemela, and Honduras…[I]n other countries, you feel the heat, and a little bit of sweat doesn't gross people out. It's summer, it's hot, we're supposed to sweat!

“I gave [air conditioning] up for good last summer…I don't feel the effects of the heat as I did…I still take the same precautions: sunscreen, hat, layers, plenty of fluids, but spending time outdoors is a treat not a punishment…I do everything I can to avoid heating up the kitchen, so I turn to lighter food…[I drink lots of water]…[I take] cool (lukewarm, really) shower[s]…I wear as little as possible that's still decent…I keep an oscillating fan on my desk, we keep ceiling fans running all the time, and use a box fan [at night]…To cope with the afternoon sun, I lower the blinds…[S]ummer's hottest days are easier to deal…[and my] seasonal allergies have all but disappeared, too…”

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