Berkley Center

By simply walking from my dorm to the University College London (UCL) campus everyday and back, I walk two miles. Often, I walk upwards of five miles everyday. This is not unusual; the London streets are not only full of students walking to class but also business executives on their way to work, parents taking children for a stroll, and tourists taking in the sights. In London, walking is a primary mode of transport for thousands of people. Exercise is accidentally built into the everyday lives of many Londoners, which is a huge contributor to a healthy lifestyle. In contrast, at Georgetown, I barely have to walk one tenth of a mile to get anywhere on campus. Besides the runners that are deliberately trying to be active, I rarely see anybody going on long walks for exercise. Refreshingly, in support of student exercise, UCL actually discourages classes from meeting on Wednesday afternoons because that time is reserved for sports. Students regularly flock to the sports fields and engage in vigorous exercise before hitting the pubs for "Sports Night," where everybody cheers on their favorite teams and rests after several hours of physical activity.

However, as we all know, exercise is only one piece of the puzzle leading to overall health. Diet plays a major role, as well. The current state of malnutrition, obesity, and hunger in DC is frighteningly grim. In particular, Wards 7 and 8 are home to so-called "food deserts," which are areas where there is a significant lack of access to healthy foods, or to any food at all. Not surprisingly, Wards 7 and 8 also host some of the highest rates of obesity in DC; Ward 8 alone has an obesity rate of approximately 36 percent. One way to combat food deserts is to put fresh, healthy foods on the shelves of local corner stores to encourage residents to make better diet choices and to increase access to foods that may be otherwise unattainable.

This is exactly what London stores have done—and it appears to be paying off. London’s adult obesity rate is approximately 20 percent, which is low compared to that of DC’s Ward 8 at 36 percent. On my daily walk to school in the morning, I pass several corner stores replete with fresh foods—everything from ripe avocados to bright red tomatoes to plump, juicy plums. This produce is not hidden in a back part of the store behind racks of candy; the pineapples, grapes, and cucumbers are put on display in the fronts of these stores. Additionally, while notoriously unhealthy chains like McDonald’s and Burger King do exist here, you are more likely to pass multiple Pret a Manger restaurants, which sell cheap, healthy, natural food, on the streets.

Furthermore, whereas in America, everybody is so used to looking to our phones to solve all of our problems as well as entertain us, Londoners seldom turn to their phones for aid or distraction. Social situations are not fraught with anxiety that turns people to their screens; everybody is engaged in earnest discussion with one another instead of with their phones. Not only does a lesser reliance on phones allow Londoners to appreciate friends and free time more fully, but, given that a dependence on smartphones or video games often coincides with a sedentary lifestyle, reduced screen time can also reduce the risk of obesity.

Although London is not entirely free from food deserts or obesity, the infrastructure that I have witnessed just in these past two weeks seems to be pointing Londoners in the right direction. I’m finding that it’s almost easier to find a piece of fruit to snack on than a candy bar; but, even if I do indulge, I have several miles of walking built directly into my daily schedule.