Considering Obesity a Disease
The message towards obesity is beginning to change the way many view the issue. In the article “Should Obesity Be a ‘Disease’?,” by Crystal L. Hoyt and Jeni L. Burnette, information is gathered through various studies to gain results towards obesity being a disease and the different outcomes. The main question throughout the article was regarding obesity being a disease. By showing the different opinions people make towards this question helps to gather more relevant information needed to solve the issue. Obesity should be considered a disease, since it’s the best way of increasing research, medical help and ultimately treatments.
Studies help find different opinions that people have toward the issue and ways
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The studies provided some goals towards helping with the health problems of obesity. Furthermore, if not taken care of obesity increases various health issues. Patrice Harris, a member of the American Medical Association, points out, “Recognizing obesity as a disease will help change the way the medical community tackles this complex issue.” Harris’s opinion gives a better understanding of how the message of obesity could benefit the health issues. By adding his opinion on Burnette and Hoyt 's article it gives more information towards the positive side of the obesity question. “Calling obesity a disease provides a clear warning of the significant health risks associated with excessive weight” (Hoyt, Burnette). By stating this Hoyt and Burnette know how to catch attention and involvement. Moreover, those obese should be able to take care of any health problems they may have with the help of a professional. Without taking care of the serious issues that obesity could come with there could be even more serious complications. That 's why obese should be able to seek medical …show more content…
According to Hoyt and Burnette, they point out from their research, “Calling obesity a disease may make people feel better about their bodies, but it also may contribute to the maintenance, rather than reduction, of obesity.” Recognizing the obese condition as a disease may change the way a person looks at themselves because embarrassment can start to be ignored. Obesity as a disease helps people be more comfortable in themselves and not having to be worried. Many who do seek medical help would treat any health issues early without having to go through stressful complications if not treated sooner. If there is medical aid there could be an obesity treatment and prevention also. Since the articles studies did not really find answer to the message that was being sent, Hoyt and Burnette still added towards the end very effectively that they would have a public message, “Leading to a decrease in self-blame and stigma while at the same time promoting adaptive self-regulation and weight loss.” The message of calling obesity a disease should not be focused on only losing weight but also the way a person wants to be treated. By stating their message, they do a really nice job of ending the article with something that could really advise obese
It is natural for a society to be concerned for the future generations. With the rate of obesity growing in adults and children, many begin to see it as an issue that needs to be addressed. New reports show “ childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years” (cdc.gov). Overweight and obese are not actually the same. Overweight is defined as “having excess body weight for a particular height from fat,” and obesity is defined as “having excess body fat” (cdc.gov). With obesity comes the chance for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Both can be
In “ how obesity became an epidemic disease” J. Eric Oliver discusses the negative impact the perception of obesity as a disease can have on the American people. Oliver begins by explaining the advent of the description of obesity as a disease and explains the fallacies in the argument that supports this description. The author argues that the data was misleadingly presented in a biased way to suggest that obesity is a spreading epidemic rather than a consequence from personal lifestyle choices. Oliver then delves into the ever-changing role of the CDC, explaining that many aspects of the human condition have slowly been medicalized and deemed diseases in need of a cure. According to the author, it appears that the inflation of the severity of obesity is often due to the commodification of the health care system promoted by the weight-loss industry and the need for passing the CDC budget through congress. The author argues that there is no clinical evidence linking some of the most abundant diseases in America to obesity.The author then makes the
The things I read from Regina’s article really opened my eyes to a different point of view, I was able to understand why some individuals feel as though obesity runs in their family, or is to be treated as a disease accompanied by a pill. But my stance on the matter is unwavering, obesity is a choice and a sentence. Obesity is in the hands of the one who is putting the burger in their mouth over and over and looking in the mirror and seeing themselves become bigger and bigger and not doing anything about
Is obesity a disease? This is question many people have asked. Yes, obesity is a disease; but one essential question many people tend to forget to ask is, “Can obesity be prevented or how could obesity be prevented?” Prevention does not put an end to obesity, but in fact it can decrease a person’s risk of becoming obese. There are many challengers towards the decision to why obesity rates are increasing; many say it just refers back to the person’s lifestyle, eating habits, and environment. Obesity should be prevented in a childhood versus being corrected later in life, but in order for obesity to be prevented people must first be aware of the causes then conclude by learning the fundamental factors that play into prevention.
"Treating Obesity Vital For Public Health, Physicians Say." Science Daily. 2006. Web. 10 May 2014. .
Being obese seems to be a growing epidemic in the United States. It is not, just a problem with appearance and social life. Each person is accountable for its own health, control its own eating habits and the time devoted to exercising. Can we all be responsible to the decisions of a group of people? The answer, that shared by several is probably not. Nevertheless, in the last few years, this medical condition that increases the likelihood of a range of diseases in which excess body fat has accumulated to the point that it may have an unfavorable effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and increase health problems (Wikipedia, par.2). Obesity-related diseases are common these days, for each person there are significant risks of exceeding their own limits. It is difficult knowing that there is a person that can endanger their health, but continue with the same bad habits that can cause permanent damage. Obesity is becoming a problem that slowly gets out of hand, but little is being done to counter its growth. Obesity is reaching epidemic proportions. Also, their symptoms are complex and specific to each person. Finally, society should not accept obesity as a disability. Therefore, obesity it is a growing food dependency problem that must be prevents and fights rather than consider a life style.
Obesity has been accepted in the American society as a norm. According to the U.S. office of the Surgeon General, in 1999, 6 in 10 American adults were classified as obese or overweight (McMurray, par. 5). In order for one to be classified as obese they’re body mass index (BMI) must be 30 or greater. The number of obese in America has continued to increase. It has been estimated by The World Health Organization that 300 million people will be obese by 2025 (Bailey 3). Since obesity comes with many health risks, many feel it should be treated as a disease.
Recent data shows that close to 80 million American are obese. Now, considered a chronic disease, obesity is associated with various health conditions and increases one's risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, asthma, osteoarthritis, gall bladder disease, sleep apnea, and some cancers. Aside from these medical issues, obesity also raises psychosocial as well as economic problems.
About 2.8 billion adults every year die of obesity (Diet). Rachel Epstein wrote the book “Eating Habits and Disorders” which talks about obesity being a disease. Obesity is a condition with extra body fat which often starts to form in childhood (Epstein 25). While obesity for some adults can be life-threatening (Epstein 25). It can also form psychosocial problems (Epstein 25). Being obese causes a risk in diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, kidney trouble and more (Epstein 25). Being obese during pregnancy can cause many problems for the mom, and for the baby (Epstein 25). Any of these things could cause many problems either in the future, or in the present (Epstein 25). The worse the eating habits, the harder it is to cure (Epstein 25). The government needs to do more about obesity because obesity rates are rising, many kids are being victims of obesity and they don’t even know it, also Medical Care is taking a big part with the growing obesity rates.
The American Medical Association (AMA) has declared obesity a disease. Obesity means that an individual has too much body weight that could possibly cause a health risk. Having a body-mass index (BMI) of 35 or higher makes an individual morbidly obese. A healthy BMI would be from 20 to 24.9. The United States has one of the highest obesity rates in the world with an estimated of 36% of American adults suffering from it. It is important to not label obesity as a disease because it leads 78 million adults and 12 million children in America into feeling helpless, and takes them away from believing it’s importance as a condition that is the result of eating too much and living sedentary lifestyles.
One hundred and forty-seven billion dollars. This is the estimated cost of obesity in the United States (CDC, 2013). Today, obesity is on trend to being one of the biggest public health challenges since tobacco (Perry & Creamer, 2013). In 2010 33.7% of US adults and 17% of children aged 2-19 were considered obese (CDC, 2013). While obesity is rising at an exponential rate, there is disconnect between how society views and defines obesity and the actual medical costs and future health risks the disease holds (ACSM, 2010). This is where medical professionals need to bridge the gap of medical and social construction.
Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduce life expectancy and/or increased health problems. Obesity has been a health problem ever since infectious disease had began in the first half of the 20th Century. The person with obesity is not the only person who is affected by their disease. In the case of childhood obesity, It can affect the parents because they might be the cause of the child’s issues. It can also lead to many different health problems such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and respiratory problems, and it can also even lead to death. Obesity has affected the world in many ways: task forces have been formed to address the issue, people are suffering from health problems due to obesity, and others suffer psychological and social issues.
Obesity is not a new notion or phenomenon in history. Centuries ago some cultures and societies saw obesity as the most noteworthy platform for wealth, social status, and sexual appeal. The influential Greek physician Hippocrates was among the first to record the negative effects of excessive weight and poor diet on the human body. While advancements in medicine and public health have helped improve life expectancy, obesity is becoming a silent yet visible threat to these milestones especially with the influence of technological innovation on the day-to-day of humans.
Obesity is a physiological condition characterised by an excessive accumulation of body fat, specifically the build-up of adipose tissue beneath the skin. In recent years, the number of people diagnosed with clinical obesity has increased dramatically, with governments desperately trying to tackle the obesity epidemic and its associated consequences (McLannahan and Clifton, 2008). Studies have found that the prevalence of obesity once stood at an estimated 9.8% (Kelly, Yang, Chen, Reynolds & He, 2008), a considerable figure representing almost 400 million individuals worldwide. Even though obesity has now been recognised as a major problem the number of people affected is increasing rapidly, with almost 300,000 deaths attributable to obesity in the USA each year (Allison, Fontaine, Manson, Stevens, & VanItallie, 1999). Excessive amounts of fat can prove dangerous as the condition has a very high comorbidity rate with other long term health issues such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension and cancer (Pi-Sunyer, 1993). Numerous examples of media, medical journals and educational literature concerning obesity refer to the condition as a disease, with an increasing use of the word ‘Epidemic’ to describe the somewhat recent surge of obesity cases in western societies (Boero, 2007), however there is little material available that offers evidence for obesity meeting specification for disease. Instead it has been proposed that obesity is alternatively a risk factor for developing other potentially harmful diseases, influenced by a variety of other factors i.e. genetics, cultural ideals and biological impairments.
Obesity is a serious condition that has generated a discussion on whether or not to be classified as a disease. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), obesity is the body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher, which is calculated based on the person’s height and weight. For years, our society has been facing the obesity challenge, which can be extremely costly once it leads to several diseases. Thus, because of the constant increase of percentage of people with obesity, the American Medical Association (AMA) proposed in June 18, 2013 to classify obesity as a disease. Their argument was that obesity increases the risks of countless health conditions such as type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension etc. Moreover, it increases morbidity and mortality. By considering obesity as a disease, their aim was to maximize researches and funding, which will focus on obesity from different medical and health approach levels. Their idea of classifying obesity as a disease was in accordance with the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute’s declaration of 1995. The institute declared, “ Obesity is a complex multifactorial chronic disease developing from multiple interactive influences of numerous factors.” In 2012, the CDC data showed 34.9% of adults obese and 17% of obese children. These numbers are very alarming especially since the struggle to deter certain factors contributing into this condition is still a challenge. Among the struggles, there are the people’s rights versus health regulations to keep them as healthy as possible like the former mayor Bloomberg regulation on soft drinks size cut. During CNN’s show GPS of Sunday 2, 2014, the host Zacharia...