Obesity can be seen across the faces of every American if they themselves are not obese; they are related to or know someone who is. It is a taxing epidemic, with society spending their hard earned wages on food that are just fillers with no nutritional value what so ever. There is nothing healthy about fast food. It has been said that, if it goes bad, it is good for you. Some health effects of obesity are cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and premature death. (Wexler, 2007) The new generation’s life expectancy may be lower than their parents. “Children are exposed to tens of thousands of ads each year on television alone, the majority of which are for fast food, junk food and sugared cereals.” (Miller, 2010)
Obesity is becoming a big problem in America especially among young kids. In last decade, childhood obesity has tripled which causing this country millions of dollars. Who should we blame for this issue? One says we should blame on schools or parents and others say food industry should be blamed. Many parents worried about this problem including Michelle Obama. She says, “Over the past three decades, childhood obesity rates in America have tripled, and today, nearly one in three children in America are overweight or obese. The numbers are even higher in African American and Hispanic communities, where nearly 40% of the children are overweight or obese” (Michelle Obama). As we see, obesity is causing so many kids with health problems such as heart diseases, diabetics, cancers and some other health issues especially among low income families. In the article, “Obesity In Young Is Seen as Falling in Several Cities,” by Sabrina Tavernise the author talks about the rate of child obesity has fallen in some states but the drops are still very small. The rate of childhood obesity is still high because children are eating junk foods and doing less physical activities in school and home which causing them to become overweight.
Obesity rates have increased in the United States over the last few years. Currently more than 65% of Americans are overweight or obese. (Agarwal, Verduin, Waltman, 2008) Junk food is one of the major contributors in the obesity epidemic and unless proper nutritional education, taxes on junk food, an increase in physical activity, and reduced prices on healthier foods are implemented the obesity rates will continue to rise. Junk food and obesity go hand in hand serious measures must be taken in order to help reduce obesity rates in America. “Can the rising rates of obesity in the United States be changed?” In order to reduce obesity rates action must be taken! If action is not taken our country will continue to see increased rates in obesity, and diseases associated with obesity such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease will continue to sky rocket.
Obesity
"Obesity is defined as having an excessive amount of body fat" (Zeratsky). Obesity is not just about being overweight or eating unhealthy food. Obesity itself is much more complicated than that and has become a worldwide problem. People are considered obese if our body fat percentage is high enough and also if you are thirty-five pounds overweight (Hellmich). Body Mass Index is something a lot of doctors talk about in the health world and it is abbreviated BMI.
Obesity has been a growing problem in the United States since the mid- 1970s.; there has been excessive amounts of controversy about how to combat this epidemic, and who is responsible for it (Balko, 2005). The government has proposed plans to step in, but many believe that the individual is to blame for their own obesity and that the obesity epidemic should not be a government issue. The biggest issue that needs to be addressed regarding obesity is how it is affecting children and the lasting impact it will have on their entire lives. The way a child’s environment leads them to become obese and the lack of nutritional education presented to them when they are young, can create greater chances for obesity later in life. To combat obesity, the
In today's modern era, the prevalence of childhood obesity is ubiquitous. It is an epidemic plaguing the lives of many young children and adolescent worldwide. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014), in the United States, close to 17% (or 12.5 million) of all children and adolescents aged 2-19 years are obese (CDC, 2014). Furthermore, the American Heart Association (2013) stated that "childhood obesity is now the No.1 health concern among parents in the United States topping drug abuse and smoking" (AHA, 2013, para. 1). This societal problem needs prioritization immediately. Nevertheless, as obesity continues to threaten America's youth, Leaders worldwide must educate children in regards to the deteriorating nature of obesity, its long-term health effects, and offer alternative solutions to reduce the risk of morbid obesity.
Obesity is a medical condition that affects children, teenagers and adults, and in recent years has caused many disorders that are potentially life-threating. All individuals consist of fat in their body, but sometimes body can store more fat than needed in the body due to a disorder or excessive eating, therefore they would be classified as obese. According to Professor Jane Wardle, obesity rates started to rise soon after 1984 and she explained that it steadily raised under one percentage a year. Furthermore, obesity is believed to be a started from America, as throughout WW2, the world witnessed America dominate with new powers and develop new technology. This technology started to replace physical effort in both work and leisure. This reduced the amount of energy that was spent and a prime contributor was the creation of fast foods, which increased the amount of energy intake creating an energy imbalance. Subsequently, the list of contributing factors grew larger, whether that was the mass production and use of cars, the introduction of microwaves or the birth of strategic advertisements. Not to mention, children born during the technological boom grew attached and adapted to technology. Today teens’ food choices are an outcome of social influences, which are leading to an escalation of obesity rates, thereby creating an unhealthy lifestyle. This paper will discuss the three main factors contributing to the epidemic obesity. The factors being the changed food eating ways over the years, advancements in technology and lastly strategic advertisements.
Childhood obesity is a serious problem among American children. Some doctors are even calling childhood obesity an epidemic because of the large percentage of children being diagnosed each year as either overweight or obese. “According to DASH sixteen to thirty-three percent of American children each year is being told they are obese.” (Childhood Obesity) There is only a small percentage, approximately one percent, of those children who are obese due to physical or health related issues; although, a condition that is this serious, like obesity, could have been prevented. With close monitoring and choosing a healthier lifestyle there would be no reason to have such a high obesity rate in the United States (Caryn). Unfortunately, for these children that are now considered to be obese, they could possibly be facing some serious health conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes, and some types of cancers. All of these diseases have been linked to obesity through research. These children never asked for this to happen to them; however, it has happened, and now they will either live their entire life being obese, or they will be forced to reverse what has already been done (Childhood Obesity).
Today, 78.1 million American adults and 12.5 million children are obese. Obesity in America is a unstoppable epidemic. Since the 1960s, the number of obese adults have doubled and the number of obese children have tripled. Because of America’s obesity problems, Surgeon General David Satcher issued a report saying; "The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight," said that obesity "have reached epidemic proportions" in America. Obesity in America has no doubt reached epidemic proportions. Since 2001, America has been the most obese country in the world. This essay discusses what obesity is and how it is affecting today’s America by answers the following questions:
According to Elbel, et al, “The percentage of children aged six to eleven years old in the United States who were obese increased from seven percent in 1980 to nearly eighteen percent in 2012” (2). Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children in the past thirty years. Not only is childhood obesity a widespread epidemic plaguing the United States, but in all areas around the world. Childhood obesity is the detrimental effect of the family lifestyle and the cultural environment children are embossed in today and the only to stop it is to attack it at the source.