Why French Women Don’t Get Fat: Mystery Solved

If you haven’t read Mireille Guiliano’s French Women Don’t Get Fat, good news: you don’t have to! I’ve painstakingly cracked the super-secret code that will save you from reading through 272 pages to find the answer.  And here it is: French people eat less.

We’ve known that for like 300 years or something, so this really isn’t a revelation. And yet people (Americans) still keep marveling –nay, obsessing – over how thin the French are, especially the women.

Exhibit A: American salad from Mixt Greens in SF on the left, complete with something like 16 servings of greens, 4 servings of pork, and a ton of creamy dressing. Exhibit B: French salad from Eric Kayser on the right with 1 serving of greens, 0 servings of meat, 1 small triangle of cheese, a few diced sweet potatoes, and probably a half teaspoon of olive oil.

And there you have it.  There are no special French high-metabolism genes; just willpower, cigarettes, and Chuck Taylors.

I hope we’ll all rest a little easier tonight knowing we can save ourselves $14.95 at Amazon now that everyone is in on the secret: portion control.

You’re welcome.