"we have no mainstream leaders with mainstream policies advocating for health and fitness to fix the root issue"
I mean, J Lo has a six pack and has for decades. Nobody cares though.
The obese celebrities are the odd ones out, and they're typically ridiculed and hated beyond belief. This idea that the obesity epidemic can be fixed with bootstraps is just not one based in reality.
We've done it before, with the Tabacco industry, but food is different. Food is a unique kind of addiction because you can't stop it completely. Also lots of people are fundamentally anti-regulation, so.