Obesity is becoming a bigger and bigger problem in our Anglo-American nations, and one by-product of being overweight is greater vulnerability to heart disease.

In a recent report from Dallas published in The American (A U.K. based newspaper for ex patriates), these startling facts were presented: "The cost of heart disease is expected to cost the nation billions of dollars this year as more and more people become fat. Heart attacks, strokes, high blood pressure and other cardiovascular diseases will cost the nation $274.2 billion, up six per cent from $259.1 billion in 1997, the American Heart Association reported.

"Heart disease is the nation's number one cause of death.... Overweight or obese people are more likely to develop heart attacks and strokes even if they have no other risk factors.... In 1995, the most recent year for which figures are available, 960,592 people died of cardiovascular diseases in the United States, an increase of nearly 11,000 from 1994" (January 9, 1999, emphasis ours).

Heart disease is also plaguing Britain. Wrote Jenny Hope, Medical Correspondent for The Daily Mail: "Heart disease remains Britain's biggest killer, accounting for half of all deaths and costing £10 billion a year.... Half of those deaths could be prevented by a healthier lifestyle-such as cutting out smoking, eating more fruits and vegetables and less fat, and taking more exercise" (November 3, 1998).

However, in spite of the enormous threat to health from heart disease in Britain, nearly five times as much money is spent on trying to prevent AIDS.