I don't know where you were in the 80s but 30 years ago nutrition was as bad or worse than now from my perspective (except in countries that were previously too poor to eat badly) - white bread, lots of sugar, etc - all stuff people nowadays avoid a lot more than my parents' generation did at the time.

Yep. People born in the 60's seem to have rather atrocious habits compared to the ones we have today. I remember getting Kellog's Frosties with strawberry jam for breakfast as a kid. I doubt many parents would serve that to their kids today.

Well in the US at least there was much less obesity, which I think says something about nutrition, no? I don't think people were particularly more physically active 30 years ago...

I think it's both. People were notably more physically active in decades past.

"Lower levels of physical activity, both in organized sports and at play, account for a lot of the rest, they say. U.S. health authorities say children should be getting 60 minutes of active play a day, but only one-third are getting that.

Children are much less likely to walk, bike or skate to school than they were in the 1970s, at least in the U.S., Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom. Neighborhoods are increasingly suburban, especially in Asia, and people are driving more.

And from the 1970s till now, the number of global households with TVs, VCRs, computers, Internet access and video games has soared."

- https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2013/11/20/2463167...

That's if you can afford to do so; otherwise, there are way more options for cheap processed foods than there were 30 years ago.