Those who can't see their toes,
when they stand upright and look down, are corpulent in all probability. Those out of breath after walking up just a few stairs, are not getting enough exercise. And those people with skin impurities, with grey rather than pink skin, or dark rings around the eyes, are perhaps not eating the right foods. Many people are probably not at all aware that they eat too much or that they eat the wrong foods, or that they do not get enough exercise.

A small amount of food can sometimes contain a lot of calories – calories that we cannot burn up in the course of the day. Moreover the flood of technical innovations means that we are often able to avoid taking a quick walk or using stairs. People use the mobile phone to arrange meetings, drive nearly everywhere by car, use escalators, and tend to spend most of the day sitting at a desk.

On an EU average
28 % of men and 23 % of women are overweight or seriously obese. There are, however, considerable differences from one member state to the next: Amongst the men the most overweight are the Greeks, Spaniards, Luxembourgers and Englishmen; in the Netherlands, by contrast, far fewer men have excessive fat reserves. The ranks of overweight women are headed by Portugal and Greece, with France and Denmark at the bottom of the list.

Unpleasant consequences
Obesity can have unpleasant consequences: Joint problems, diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease... Adiposity is a serious illness – it is up to the individual to stem this problem.

The solution
Nobody has to stand on their head for the whole of their life and chasten themselves so as to have a healthier, leaner body.

The important things are:

• Patience: What has gathered in the reserves over many years will not go away from one day to the next. Nutritionists and dieticians even recommend that people should not lose more than six kilos in weight per year.
  
  
• No foodstuff is forbidden: Also with chocolate and other sweets, the magic formula is "in moderation". A handful of jelly babies, which contain no fat thanks to the use of gelatine, or a piece of chocolate should be enough each day. 
  
  
• Fruit and vegetables: Can be eaten without any reservations  – what makes them increasing weight is generally the sauces or the manner in which they are prepared. 
  
  
• Potatoes, rice, pasta: Are accompaniments that merely satisfy hunger and, through their high content of complex sugars, bring long time energy. They are only increasing weight  when they are prepared with lots of oil, cream etc.
  
  
• Try to cook good tasting, voluminous but low calorie dishes. Here gelatine can give you excellent support. Many delicious recipies with low calorie dishes are available. And the good news is: It is so simple to use.
  
  
• Drinking: Alcohol contains lots of calories! Alcohol has nearly as many calories as fat! And juices, milk, shakes und cream-based cocktails are also packed full of calories. Suitable drinks are water, spritzer, fruit teas.
  
  
• Sport, sport and more sport: Unfortunately there is no escaping this. Only then can the body burn up superfluous calories and melt the fat reserves. Stamina sports such as walking, jogging, cycling and swimming are best suited to burning up calories.
  
  
• The consolation: Those with more muscle mass, burn up more calories – even if they don't take any exercise.