Obesity In America

The love for fast food in America is causing serious health problems. The United States has the largest fast food industry in the world. Fast food restaurants were introduced shortly after World War I. Fast food popularity in America is growing. Around every corner is some type of fast food restaurant. The fast food industry is made up of restaurants that provide food in a quick manner. It can be eaten in the restaurant or taken out. The price of food, quick service, and the easy access of finding a restaurant nearby are some of the reasons why the fast food industry is popular and successful. One of the biggest problems relating to eating too much fast food is obesity. Obesity in the United Sates is a growing concern. In this paper I will

About half of all American adults and about one-quarter of all American children are obese or overweight.(Schlosser 240) Those stats have risen steeply during the last few decades, along with the growing number of people eating fast food. The obesity rate among American adults is twice as high today as it was in the early 1960’s. (Schlosser 83-86)
The medical term for someone that is obese is if he or she has a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or higher. BMI is a measurement that includes both weight and height. There are about 44 million Americans that are obese. (Schlosser 240) “Super-obese” is someone who weighs more than one hundred pounds than the recommended. There are about six million Americans that are “super-obese.”

The research found that in 1991 four states had obesity rates of 15 percent or higher. Today, there are thirty-seven states that have those significant obesity rates. “Rarely do chronic conditions such as obesity,” the CDC scientists claimed, “spread with the speed and dispersion characteristic of a communicable disease epidemic.”(CDC) Researchers also found that the rise in obesity has quite a few causes, but genetics is not one of them. “There has not been a big change in the American gene pool for a while according to the researchers.”(CDC) There has been however, a big change in the way Americans eat and live. Over the past few decades, more fast food chains have been created and so has their popularity. Researchers have found a correlation between how often consumers eat fast food and their weight. According to a 15-year study of 3,000 adults, people who ate at fast food restaurants more than twice per week gained about nine to eleven pounds more than people who ate at fast food restaurants less than once per week. (Pereira 36-42) One would assume that a person who eats fast food gains weight because it is not as healthy as other food. That is partially true. Some of the top reasons fast food causes obesity are the low quality ingredients, the