Argument paper The obesity epidemic and our nation’s health as a whole have many factors that include socioeconomic status in particular. Socioeconomic Status and Childhood Obesity will always shape our nations vision and mission with what we do with healthcare. Healthcare in America is in a major reconstruction faze, and is in much need of it, obesity and socioeconomic status are going to be the major contributors to this reconstruction. The ability to have access to better resources for sure allows one to explore better options, but for children in a low socioeconomic life style options are limited. For example, children from this type of living lack the finances to shop for healthier more expensive foods. Socioeconomic status is defined by ones education, income, occupation, and is also known to include the social standing of a group or individual (Education and Socioeconomic Status 1). This could lead many people in this status to take up unhealthy eating habits. Children that live in a low socioeconomic lifestyle become the victims of this unhealthy eating and the obesity epidemic that has hit the United States is a result of that. In addition, children that eat too many calories pick up excess weight because of the lack of energy being burned through physical activity (Bales, Coleman, Wallinga 1). The problems with our health care has brought to the table many debates on what we do with it and how do we move forward for the future, and socioeconomic status and childhood obesity has been a part of that debate. In society today our participation in socioeconomic, everyday food consumption and physical activities can define our state of mind as a nation. One reason for childhood obesity through studies is the concept of the... ... middle of paper ... ...Erik, Sadana, Ritu, What Can public Health Programs Do To Improve Health Equity. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Web. 18 November 2013 Huntoon KM, McCluney CJ, Scannell CA, Wiley EA, Bruno R, Andrews A, Gorman P. Healthcare reform and the next generation: United States medical student attitudes toward the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Plos ONE. 2011;6(9):e23557. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0023557. Epub 2011 Sep 13. Web. 20 November 2013 Becker, Gay, Newson, Edwina, Socioeconomic Status and Dissatisfaction With Health care Among Chronically Ill American Americans. NCBI. 2002 December 26. American Journal of Public Health 2003. Web. 20 November 2013. Popkin, M, Simons S, Kim, Contrasting socioeconomic profiles related to healthier lifestyles in China and the United States. NCBI. Am J Epidemiol. 2004 Jan 15;159(2):184-9 1. Web. 20 November 2013
The public needs to address racial disparities in health which is achievable by changing policy addressing the major components of socioeconomic status (income, education, and occupation) as well as the pathways by which these affect health. To modify these risk factors, one needs to look even further to consider the factors. Socioeconomic status is a key underlying factor. Several components need to be identified to offer more options for those working on policy making. Because the issue is so big, I believe that not a single policy can eliminate health disparities in the United States. One possible pathway can be education, like the campaign to decrease tobacco usage, which is still a big problem, but the health issue has decreased in severity. The other pathway can be by addressing the income, by giving low-income individuals the same quality of care as an individual who has a high
Obesity is a huge problem that needs to be resolved because it affects all people, unlike most issues. People of every gender, every age, and every race are at risk of being obese. Obesity rates in America have nearly doubled within the last twenty years. Something must be done not only to prevent obesity rates continuous rising, but also to dramatically increase the percentage of obese people in America altogether.
...an, P., Egerter, S., & Williams, D. R. (2011). The social determinants of health: coming
Obesity in children across America has become an increasing public health concern. Obesity has been identified as an epidemic that is plaguing our children in the United States. In some countries around the world children are dying of starvation everyday. How can this happen when here in America the opposite is a major problem? This is not to say that in America there are no hungry or starving children. It has been proven that our children suffer from obesity, and “children who are overweight or obese as preschoolers are five times as likely as normal-weight children to be overweight or obese as adults” (“Hope”). Obesity not only can cause a child to become more prone to having health problems down the road, but it can also make them feel insecure about themselves. There needs to be action taken in schools as well as in homes to help prevent this growing epidemic.
In conclusion, it is clear that social factors are strongly influential on health and the increasing amount of studies addressing this issue is an indicator of their roles in understanding health. Socioeconomic status has been widely used to investigate the health inequalities and the possible, explanations, justifications and mechanisms by which they impact on health.
An individual’s age, gender, race, income, and environment directly affects a person’s health. These determinants contribute to health disparities and equity issues in society. Addressing these differences helps create a health plan that fits an individual, and not just those who fit under a certain demographic. The problem of using determinants to define one’s health status causes individuals to be at a disadvantage compared to others; instead these individuals should be supported in order to improve their quality of life. Health status refers to the physical, mental, and emotional condition that individuals have within their community. It is important to understand that not every person has the same level of health. Illnesses and disabilities
However, the U.S. lacks a systematic national strategy to identify and address the set of social and environmental determinants of health that are most responsible for health outcomes (IOM report, 2010). We as a nation are behind our counterparts from Canada and Britain that have collected socioeconomic data for decades. In the past there has been a limited effort to address this issue. In 2009, the CDC in their Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System introduced a “social context” module that was then used by 12 states to assess civic engagement. Questions were asked as part of the assessment about food, housing, and job security (IOM report, 2010). In the 1960s there were several efforts to prepare a national docume...
In the 21st century childhood obesity is regarded as one of the most serious public health challenges faced by the World Health Organisation (WHO, 2013). Figures recorded by the National Child Measurement programme for the 2011/12 period showed children aged 10-11, of which 14.7% were overweight and a further 19.2% figure were classed as obese. Statistics from the same report also indicate boys in the same age group are more likely to be obese with a figure of 20.7% compared to a 17.7% figure for girls. These figures are a large cause for concern for both these children and on a wider scale, society. Obesity is caused by a number of factors that can range from the not so obvious of social class, to the clear lack of exercise and poor diet. Obese or overweight children are more likely to carry this status into adulthood and put themselves at an increased risk of developing associated health problems such as raised cholesterol, high blood pressure and even premature mortality (Public Health England, 2013). Obesity is defined as the over consumption of calories in relation to little physical activity, this means calories consumed are not being burnt but turned into fat cells (NHS, 2012).
Healthy People 2020 is a program for the promotion of health and the prevention of diseases, launched by the Department of Health and Human Services in December 2010. According to healthypeople.gov, this program has four overarching goals which are first to achieve healthy, longer lives free of preventable diseases, injuries, and premature deaths; to achieve health fairness, eliminate differences, and improve all groups’ health; also to produce social and physical environments that encourage good health; and last but not least to promote life’s quality, healthy development, and healthy behaviors through all life stages. This program has a vision of a community where people live long, healthy lives. Healthy People 2020 offers a comprehensive set of 10 years of nationwide goals and objectives that is meant to improve the health of the American population. Healthy People 2020 covers 42 topic areas with approximately 600 objectives, which include 1,200 measures. A smaller set of Healthy People 2020 objectives, has been designated to communicate high-priority health issues and actions that can be taken to address them, this objectives are called Leading Health Indicators. The program goes above and beyond these health indicators in order to provide the best care for the people of this country. These indictors cover from the access of health service, nutrition, physical activity, and obesity to substance abuse, environmental quality, injury and violence.
This Executive summary’s principal concern is how social economic disparities exist for certain groups today. Social equalities and quality of healthcare is needed to improve the life span of several ethnic and social economic groups. Therefore, many people remain disadvantaged and unable to receive the care they need to improve their life span. There are compelling inconsistencies in the equalities of healthcare based on social status and race. (House, 2012) Currently, there are 46 million people that are uninsured and cannot afford out of pocket expenses we must immediately concentrate on the shortfalls in the quality and effectiveness of care that result to greater costs and meager health outcomes. (Improving Quality and Value in the U.S. Health Care System , 2009) Many people are working fulltime jobs and still only able to have enough money for the necessities in life such as food, utilities, and a home to live in. Many patients are going without receiving vital medical care. For this reason, we should care because this country is based on the fundamental that everyone is created equal and should be treated equally. Hence, they should have the same access to healthcare as others.
The coherence between socio-economic factors and good health has been observed over a view decades and, that the socio –economic factors have a massive impact on the health of the individual is not new. Today, the Government UK provides a range of health campaigns, to alert the public to live healthier. Health promotions in schools, children centre, and community centre or in the hospital taking place. Such for example,” the fit for life campaign, “where the main focus is to eat health food. However, there are still barriers which have an influence on the behaviour of the individual, to take part by health promotions. Therefore, it is important to have a look where does the individual come from, to understand their behaviour.
Schwartz, M. B., & Puhl, R. M. (2003). Childhood obesity: A societal problem to solve. The International Associaition for the Study of Obesity: Obesity Reviews, 4, 57-58-71.
Consumerism is a major part of our national identity, and saving as much of the hard earned money is always an important goal for any American. The fast food industry advertises deals on the radio, television, newspaper, and nowadays it is a major part of social media. “Two for the price of one,” “buy one get one half off,” “make it a large meal for only 50 cents more!” These are common phrases society have become accustomed to hearing, and while people think they are making the right choice by taking these deals and saving some money, they have never really stop to think about what these deals are doing to their health. The food industry is selling unhealthy food and drinks very cheaply, and people are
Vanderbilt, A., Isringhausen, K., VanderWielen, L., Wright, M., Slashcheva, L., & Madden, M. (2013). Health disparities among highly vulnerable populations in the United States: a call to action for medical and oral health care. Medical Education Online, 18. doi:10.3402/meo.v18i0.20644
Childhood obesity is a health problem that is becoming increasingly prevalent in society’s youth. For a number of years, children across the nation have become accustomed to occasionally participating in physical activities and regularly snacking on sugary treats. In result of these tendencies, approximately one third of American children are currently overweight or obese (Goodwin). These grim statistics effectively represent all the lack of adult interference, in regards to health, has done to the youth of America. The habits of over consuming foods and under participating in physical activities are all too common in the children of today. Children cannot solve this issue alone, though. These young people need to essentially be given the opportunities to make positive health decisions and learn about good, nutritional values.