An increasingly inactive lifestyle is often blamed for the soaring
obesity rates in the developed world, but few studies have measured
whether lifestyle changes have decreased the amount of energy we burn.
To address this, John Speakman of the University of Aberdeen, UK, and
Klaas Westerterp of Maastricht University in the Netherlands looked at
the amount of energy used through physical activity over the past 25
years in 393 people from across the US and 366 from Maastricht.
you fat gluttons can read more here
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14558-gluttony--not-laziness--to-blame-for-obesity.html