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Here is an interesting article that compares modern life to the Amish.

They include the usual blah blah about eat less and move more, but notwithstanding the politically correct stance, the study itself is interesting.

I wonder if the difference might not lie in how much energy exercise burns, but on the effect of exercise on insulin sensitivity.

Quote:

Pedometers Show High Step Count, Low Obesity
How many steps per day are enough to keep you trim and prevent obesity? A pedometer study of an Old Order Amish community showed that their average man logged 18,000 steps per day and their average woman logged 14,000 steps per day, and they had one of the lowest rates of overweight and obesity of any community in North America.

Old Ways = Active Ways
While typical North Americans find logging 10,000 steps a day to be a challenge, requiring dedicated walking time to accomplish, the Old Order Amish achieved it with ease with their typical daily activities. In fact, the only day their average dipped as low as 10,000 steps was on Sunday, their "day of rest." The farming community was studied in March at a moderate-activity time rather than high-activity time of year such as during harvest. The Old Order Amish shun any technology developed after the mid-1800's. This pre-electrical, pre-motorized lifestyle involves much physical activity.
Pedometer Study
The 96 Amish studied wore pedometers for a week and recorded their daily steps and other physical activity. They also calculated the Body Mass Index (BMI) for each participant. Use of the pedometers and scales did not violate Amish traditions because they were borrowed. The participants were men and women, ages 18-75, in an Old Order Amish community in Ontario, Canada. The study was published in the January, 2004 "Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise," and conducted by David R. Bassett, Jr. and associates of the University of Tennessee.
High Activity = Lower Body Fat
None of the men were obese, and only 2 of the women were obese, an overall rate of 4% obesity as measured as a BMI of 30 or more. This compares to 14.9% obesity rate in Canada and 30.9% in the USA.

Overweight rates were also far below average. Only 26% were overweight, which is half of the rate for Canadians and one third the rate of the USA.

Of note is that the obesity rates for this community do not compare to that of more sedentary Amish communities where they work in tourist shops and furniture factories. In those communities the obesity rate is similar to their non-Amish neighbors. It might be predicted that it is the high-activity farming lifestyle that keeps this Amish community lean.
Eating Like the Amish
Their diet is not low-carb or low-fat. The study says, "The Amish diet is typical of the pre-World War II rural diet. It includes meat, potatoes, gravy, eggs, vegetables, bread, pies, cakes, and is quite high in fat and refined sugar." But it is balanced with a high physical activity level. This is more typical of marathon training or other endurance sport training, where carbs are considered fuel rather than shunned. This Amish community rarely snacks between meals and has limited access to fast food.
Up Your Activity
The moral of this story: modern lifestyles have greatly reduced our everyday physical activity levels, yet we haven't reduced our food intake to match. To prevent packing on the pounds, we need to move more and eat a little less. We have free programs to get you going.