Persuasive Essay On Obesity

Obesity is on the rise. About a third of all adults in America are obese and 17% of all children are obese (Ogden, 1). The rise of fast-food restaurants and the ease of access to them create an unhealthy lifestyle. Parents don’t cook as they are very busy working to support the family. Fast-food is becoming cheaper, resulting in families choosing that over home cooked food, which takes up a lot of time and requires skill. This results in obese children, and obesity leads to a lot of serious health conditions like diabetes and heart-attacks. Obesity should be countered with parental involvement and school programs because parents have control over the child’s lifestyle including their diet; children imitate their parents; and, finally, some

Firstly, it may be unrealistic to have the child on diet, while all the other people in the family are following a lifestyle contrary to the child who is on a diet. For example, it doesn’t make sense if the parents are eating steak, and the child eats a salad. Of course, the child would feel left out as they would crave the steak. Secondly, parents serve as mentors and support the change and maintain the exercise and the eating behaviors. Finally, it may be necessary to teach parents use of specific behavior change strategies such as positive reinforcement. This creates the intended behavior change in the child. (Epstein). Dr. Ana C. Lindsay from Princeton University reports in her study, The Role of Parents in Preventing Childhood Obesity, that, “it is important for parents to model healthful eating habits and to offer a variety of healthful foods to their children” (Lindsay, 171).This means that parents should have a strict control over their child’s diet. They have to expose them to healthy foods like fruits and vegetables. However, Lindsay provides a counter effect that might happen if the diet was not implemented correctly. She says, “Recent research challenges this assumption. Imposing stringent controls can increase preferences for high-fat, energy-dense foods, perhaps causing children’s normal internal cues to self-regulate hunger and satiety to become unbalanced” (171).This means

Children have a higher chance of premature death and disabilities when they are obese. Obese children are more likely to stay obese when they become adults (WHO). They are also likely to develop NCD’s (non-communicable diseases) while they are young. These might include diabetes and cardiovascular diseases (WHO). Obese children suffer from both short-term and long-term health consequences (WHO). The World Health Organization lists some significant health consequences that do not become apparent until adulthood. These are: cardiovascular diseases (mainly heart disease and stroke); diabetes; musculoskeletal disorders, especially osteoarthritis; and certain types of cancer (endometrial, breast and colon) (WHO). It also says that, “At least 2.6 million people each year die as a result of being overweight or obese.” (WHO) This shows us the vast gravity of the problem and the danger it poses to on the