Positive:
Less fast food nasties (KFC for example) which I frequented quite regularly back home A little less meat, as its too expensive! Negatives: Many fruits I enjoyed 365 days a year are often expensive here, and not available much of the year. Not a huge variety of restaurants outside big cities. Most asian restaurants are prohibitively expensive.
I've always loved big salads, and thankfully it's normal to eat salad at least once a day here - but in the UK no-one gets it!
Everyone eats processed junk; it's advertised remorselessly on all media and just look at all the fatties!
First day in CH it was noticeable how few XXL people there were. That was 6 years ago, now they're beginning to 'spread'.
I miss good, affordable fish. Costly meat is bought less often, but this is sensible. Meat, like jet travel, SHOULD be expensive. The cheapness has it's costs (yeah, I'm a lefty pinko sans Porsche...)
I shop everyday for fresh produce and the only frozen stuff is ice-cream in my freezer, compared to living in the UK when I shopped maybe twice a week at most.
Saying that, now I want ice-cream. See ya...
(Tried it with good Balsamico? Or pumpkin-seed oil? Mmmm...)
Easter egg, anyone?
I do find the farmers markets horrendously expensive, even for organic, mega-fresh stuff. If it was a smidgen more affordable - especially to the lefty pinkos amongst us - then I'm sure the supermarket chains would feel the impact.
Anna's Best, anyone? Betty Bossi?
Ps, Migros are to launch eggs in a tetra-pak. Or the yolks alone. Or the white. Good Grief...
One thing I'm never tempted with is McDonalds, KFC etc no matter what county I'm in. I really hate the culture back home where kids are rewarded by a trip to McDonalds for a Happy Meal. I'd rather take my kids to a restaurant for a proper meal.
Overall, our diet is healthier.
Except cakes. We eat far too much of them. And chocolate.
eg. Way less fast food options, way less options for ready-meals in the supermarkets.
Also, there isn't so much of a pub culture here which probably helps a lot when it comes to reducing alcohol intake.
A lot of traditional Swiss food is very fatty so not really much benefit to be had by switching to a 'Swiss diet'. I'm not a vegetarian but it seems to me that there are a lot less vegetarian options here.
Overall, I think I could have a better diet if I was living in the UK because there's more choice there and the food is much cheaper. It's just that I am weak and the temptation to go for junk food is strong....
Most of my better level of fitness actually comes from the outdoor lifestyle which is much more developed here than in the UK. Having reasonably decent weather combined with mountains makes for great opportunities for exercise in the summer and winter.
Gav
Interesting...
While grocery stores here are smaller than the UK or America, even the layout and stock of food is...geared towards eating healthier. The frozen food section of my local Coops are tiny, as a percentage of isle space, than their American counter parts. The fresh produce section is also relatively proportionally larger.
(Was there not a thread complaining about the lack of variety in the crisps here? )
That's the unhealty side of the vegetarian. :P
I think being Veggie here is a lot easier, I am tempted to go veggie again myself due to the price of meat!!
Speaking of meat, the fact that the swiss have strict laws on meat means i must be healthier due to the quality of meat I do eat, even though I complain about the price of meat here i would say its the same price as organic meat in the UK and the quality here is probably as good as UK organic meat.
I also like the fact that there are lots of small supermarkets joted around rather than large hypermarkets you see in the UK, in the UK i would shop maybe once a fortnight and do a big shop therefore not always getting the freshest food but here having a smallish supermarket on my doorstep i tend to shop more often and buy fresh bread, fruit and veg most days
I went back to the UK recently and popped into ASDA I had forgotten how huge UK suppermarkets were, i actually got a bit confused with all the choice that was available and ASDA has never particularly been known for choice as it is!!
Nicky
Watching the ads on UK television, it's clear that there is a trend to sell food as a consumer item rather than as something you need to eat to live and keep yourself healthy. There are just so many adverts for various processed food and drink products.
My guess is that it's only a matter of time before Switzerland becomes as consumerised in this area too. Certainly, there's ever more processed cr*p in the shops and people seem to be spreading out more than they were six or seven years ago. Makes me feel more at home with my waistline
But it's not a good thing, definitely a downside of consumerism. The upside is that choice of foods and freshness should also improve with better developed food retail, so at least people who are minded to can eat better.
Gav
Having lived in the US before coming here to CH, I must say I "welcomed" to a certain degree the lack of convenient choices. It forced me to adapt to what I had, and trust me, I think we can definitely live with a lot less. I also think the more choices we have, the more unhappy we (humans) become......just my 2 personal cents....
Also - is the title misusing the word "Healthier" when used with the verb that way? "More healthily" springs to my lips....
Reasons :
a) Lack of choice
b) limited hours to shop
c) Commuting
d) Short shelf life of the fresh food
e) Ridiculous levels of MSG and aromat used on the meat and additives in the prepacked food.
Eat a packet of "Jumpys" crisps and judge the effects.
Some of that is due to swiss shopping, some to my no-stop lifestyle. AT least in London you could grab a sandwich from somewhere post-10pm on your way home from work...
dave