Du Pain

This has a been a small but repeated news item recently.  95% of the French eat bread at least once a day, according to the reported study.  Even such a seemingly high percentage still reflects a huge reduction in quantity consumed per person (130 grams versus 600 grams) from the beginning of the 20th century.  

This is, of course, part of one of life's great mysteries - why Parisians are not fat. 

I, on the other hand, feel like simply gawking at the marvels on display in the boulangerie and patisserie windows adds pounds, but perhaps that is just a national plot against foreigners. 

Yes, I indulge once in a while.  And I will admit to consuming my share of daily bread, too.   Life's short, after all!  But that still doesn't answer the question of the fat versus not-fat populations on either side of the Atlantic.

Upon giving it great thought at an outdoor café table as the early spring sunlight dissipates into evening, I'm going to stick with my belief that the answer is red wine.