Abstract
If humans represent the most intelligent form of life on this planet, why is it that they find it so difficult to make the apparently small adjustments in daily behavior that we calculate would halt the continuing rise in obesity? Is a highly developed intellect useless in the presence of a permissive biological system and a provocative environment structured on consumerism? Moreover, why is it so difficult for humans to accurately record the food items they consume daily? Why have scientists found it impossible to develop a method that allows people unambiguously and accurately to reveal their habitual energy and nutrient intakes? Is there something that we do not understand or have failed to grasp about the causes of human behavior or the power of rational thought?