Excellent point. It's kind of the same thing I notice at health food stores --most of the people there look pasty & sickly, so why would I want to be like them?
But with Gere, it only proves how far out of his depth he is in having anything to do with the Balkans. He has the personal constitution of a hot-house orchid.
My sis-in-law was a vegan for a while. Always pale, wan, weak and sick, she finally decided to throw a little meat in her diet. She is a much healthier gal now, in good shape with color and a little meat on her former raggedy bones. Plus she isn't a preachy a-hole anymore when I grab a mutton chop off the table!