Mrsmerryweather, I went from a 12 to a 14 very gradually. I went to a 16 after childbirth. The usual slow creep rather than a rapid move up from 12 to 16.
When I'm in my healthy BMI I'm usually a size 14. And have you seen clothes sizes these days? They mean very little. When I was a very healthy size 12 (I'm 5ft11) my best friend was also a size 12 (a very unhealthy 5ft 4) so the clothes don't mean much. Whatever the reasons for my weight gain or loss I really don't care to share them, and thank you but I'm really quite happy with my life/size etc.
And your post did literally say why are ALL of the people who eat in the street fat, which is why I objected.
Everyone dies eventually. cancer, diabetes and heart disease don't just take the fat. They take the smokers, the drinkers, the junkies, the casual drug takers and sometimes, get this, the incredibly fit! Fat is not the only passport to poor health. Drunks are often skinny as they only drink booze and don't eat meals. Smokers can often be skinny, because the nicotine suppresses the appetite. I do object to the view that fatness is the only precursor of poor health. Slim people aren't naturally healthy. This myth needs to die on the vine just as much as fat people are the only drain on the national health system.
I do believe in personal choice with food and if some people chose to overeat, that's up to them. In the same way people choose to smoke, drink, use drugs, etc.
The problem is, of course, when these choices affect the under 16's. What's the answer then? That's where I think the grey issue lies in terms of responsibility. The parents may not be capable of taking responsibility, so does the state step in? Schools already thrust healthy eating at our kids from a young age and this very act is often pilloried on here by parents who feel morally superior in this respect. But where do we educate these kids? How do we resolve this? That's where the personal responsibility angle falls down slightly in my view.