How Men Face the FatProblem

It is a pleasure tosee men of a certain age worrying about their weight. Listening to them is notsuch a pleasure .Because the men are new at the game,they don't hesitate to

discuss the fatproblem incessantly.However,women of the same age do not discuss the fatproblem,especially not in mixed company.They prefer to face the problem with

quietdignity.Discussing the problem might only draw attention to some stray bodypart that may be successfully tucked away under an article of clothing.

The age at which aman begins to explore the fat problem can vary.The actual problem can manifestitself in the early 30's,but broad-range discussion usually starts later.

There are earlynonverbal symptoms .I've watched the rugged journalist who shares my apartmentsneak by with a Diet Coke.His shirts are no longer neatly tucked in to

display a trimwaist. Recently he has begun to verbalize his anxiety.He tells me,with asheepish grin,that he is taking his suits to Chinatown to havethem"tailored", Still-older

men have lost theirdignity and rattle on unabashedly.Often,wives and children play important rolesin their fat-inspection rituals. Take my oldest brother,a former college

football player. Hisdaughter says that several times a day he will stand at attention and call out,"Fat,medium or thin?"She knows the correct answer:medium.Thin wouldbe

an obviousstretch,and fat may not get her that new video.According to his wife,he standsin front of the mirror in the morning(before the day's meals take theirtoll),puts his

hands behind hishead and lurches into a side bend,then clutches the roll that has developed andsays,"Am I getting fatter?"His wife is expected to answer,"Youlook like you

may have lost a fewpounds."

And then there arethe exhusbands,a pitiful group.They are extremely vocal. When I go to themovies with one,he confides that he is suffering from great hunger because heis

dieting.He hasn'teaten since the pancakes and sausages he wolfed down that morning.He pauses inhis monologue while he buys his popcorn.After the movie,we sprint to a

restaurant,where heagain pau- ses to devour a basket of bread.Before he orders his chaste saladand soup,he grows plaintive.

Do I think he's fat?Women of a certainage do not discuss the fat problem,especially in the presence of men.

A.Right

B. Wrong

C. Not mentioned