Its effecting all income levels, but I suspect not evenly. The pattern I see (which is anecdotal) is higher income people appear healthier (i.e., are on average less overweight).
Sometimes I wonder if that's cause or correlation. That is, ill and wealthy just don't go together.
I am rich enough to not need a second job, of which the time I have not working allows me to educate myself on nutrition and cook for myself regularly.
But has is also a function of decisions, which is also related to knowledge / awareness. No doubt, lower income areas have less / worse selection. But that kinda doesn't explain why the better off don't choose and consume those same things as they are just as available to them.
I am a strange mix of privilege and poverty. I was in gifted programs in public school and I have six years of college. I also am a woman and I have serious health issues.
I am getting healthier and I am getting more well off as a consequence. I think a lot about the details of the very complex relationship between health and wealth.
It is a really complicated thing that cannot be pinned down to any one thing. Education, social fabric, enhanced personal agency, greater de facto rights and a whole raft load of stuff tends to be involved in who is both rich and healthy and who gets access to neither.
I do agree with you. There's no magic bullet. But I still have a hard time comprehending why soda is a good choice. Even juat switching to water would make a difference. I think.
Some sodas have medicinal effects. I have a genetic disorder, so my diet is absolutely not the root cause of my health issues. I was diagnosed late in life. That empowered me to finally start getting healthier. With getting healthier, I consume less diet coke.
A couple of excerpts from my food blog:
I basically live on diet coke. Coca cola products contain extract from the coca plant. This has medicinal benefits. No other cola products have this. Other cola products tend to be mostly sugar water -- though I do sometimes drink ginger ale because ginger helps with nausea.
Sometimes I wonder if that's cause or correlation. That is, ill and wealthy just don't go together.