How Nauru Became The World’s Fattest Country
A weird story of how colonial exploitation caused rampant obesity.
No, America is not the fattest country in the world. That title belongs to the small island nation of Nauru. Found in the Pacific, it’s famous for two things — phosphate deposits and wide waistlines.
According to the World Health Organization, it is estimated that over 70% of the island nation's population is obese. So it comes as no surprise that the island is plagued by high rates of heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. One study even notes that over 40% of the country’s population suffers from type 2 diabetes.
So how did people in Nauru get so fat? The direct cause would be its dependence on processed food. But the real culprit? A survey of its history points to it being years of uninhibited exploitation of the island’s resources.
Shrinking resources
In the 1800s, European ships regularly traded guns and alcohol with Nauruans for food. These two things nearly destroyed the island in a decade-long civil war, which resulted in an alcohol ban and the confiscation of many guns…
