You would have thought it was obvious: French people who eat fat-laden diets stay thinner than Americans because they eat smaller portions than we do. My wife has been telling me for years that people in Europe just don’t eat as much as Americans, and that’s why they’re thinner. The food portions in nearly every American restaurant are absurd. Generally in fine restaurants, you get an appropriate portion of food, but at your typical Chili’s, Applebees, or TGI Fridays, the portions are monstrous. Similarly, it wasn’t that long ago that the amount of food served in a Happy Meal at McDonald’s was what they served to adults. Now, of course, it’s the triple cheese burger with a pound of fries and a bucket of soda. Most people will eat what’s put in front of them, regardless of nationality, and in America we’re experts at putting a heck of a lot of food in front of people.