Take a look around. What do you see? In a world full of people that suffer from constant depression and always look to food as a way out; we are now known to be one of the world’s most obese people on earth. There are endless disadvantages to having so many restaurants as well as fast food places on every corner that you turn. If you were to set yourself on any corner in most rural areas you will see a Mcdonalds, Taco Bell, Carl 's Jr, Jack in the box all around you. But what doesn 't get across most people 's heads is that this food is what causes most issues in bad health which leads to other defects in one 's life. Everyone has a different perspective on the basis of child obesity depending on whether their weight has a huge factor on their …show more content…
Awareness and prevention contribute to a huge foundation of child obesity. Many parents of households all over the country have little to no education, not to mention resources, on what healthy eating consists of. These families show up to doctor appointments unknowingly figuring out that their children are overweight or obese. Why is this? Most parents especially the single home households tend to give their children what they want because they feel sorrow or sympathy for their kids without knowing that in the long run this will affect their child 's health drastically. Although some other issues that may take effect are the parents not knowing how to cook healthy food or aren’t fully educated about the terms of unhealthy labels. Most of the time, the solution to many of these parents not being educated may be free cooking lessons within the community centers. Lessons in which these parents learn healthy recipes for food along with food terminology and the process of purchasing healthy food. They will become more aware of the terms such as saturated fats, sugar intake, and what other necessities they need to be fully educated on the topics of healthy eating. Several studies have shown that “parenting styles, parent-child attachment relationships, and feeding practices all have been found to be reliable indicators of children’s food consumption, eating behaviors, and risks for obesity.” (Fiese and …show more content…
For example, the food that the child consumes now will most likely be what they will give their kids later in the future. Thus, the result of evolution and continuously increasing the amount of obese or overweight people in the United States. Not only does this endanger the lives of these people due to depression and stress but it brings up the topic on another possible solution. Child obesity leads to more defects as well as unhealthy and emotional people. This causes more diseases and health issues which then leads to more funding in the health department as well as research for these cures. One essential part of the solution for child obesity is environmental change. According to “Environment, policy, and multilevel strategies for improving diet, physical activity, and obesity control are recommended based on a rapidly growing body of research and the collective wisdom of leading expert organizations.”(Sallis and Glanz) A public health imperative to identify and implement solutions to the obesity epidemic can be seen in the environmental changes such as recreational facilities in communities. Residents of walkable neighborhoods that have access to recreational areas have a higher chance of being physically active thus reducing the chances of obesity. This goes hand in hand with residents living in communities with access to less expensive healthy foods. Disparities in environments and policies that
Did you know that more than two thirds of Americans are either overweight or obese (Center for Disease Conrtol)? This is the growing problem in the U.S that we, as Americans, can’t seem to find a solution to. The government spends billions of dollars annually to help those with overweight/obese health issues. But the government does not directly help people by changing their diets and making them healthy enough to live without those medical expenses. This trend is also upwards and the number of obese/overweight Americans has tripled since 1963 (Smith). Americans today should be forced by the government to have a healthy diet and avoid or limit the consumption of fast food.
A national epidemic is occurring, the war between food and people. In the United States, about “32% of children (from 2 to 19 years old) are obese” (Bernadac 1). As the years continue to go on the rate of obese children are increasing as well. In the past the problem did not have much consideration due to a low rate of affected children. Now families are suffering the long-term consequences of having an obese child. Some of those health effects are “Heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, several types of cancer and osteoarthritis” (CDC 1). A problem with this type of drastic effects may have a solution; method prevention for the future generations and correct treatment for those who are already obese can lower the rate.
Tom Harkin, US congressman from Iowa, says that obesity now contributes to the death of more than 360,000 Americans a year. The incidence of childhood obesity is now at epidemic levels. Alarm bells are going off all over the place, but our government has basically done nothing. The obesity rate has risen to epidemic proportions in the United States. Communities across the country, recognizing obesity as an issue of serious public health concern, are looking for innovative ways to halt the increasing rate of obesity (Davis 260). The rising prevalence of childhood and adult obesity can be explained in part by changes in our environment over the last 30 years; in particular, the unlimited supply of convenient, highly palatable and energy-dense foods, coupled with a lifestyle typified by low physical activity (Farooqui 5-7). Childhood obesity in America is a growing epidemic--because of advertisement of fast food, lack of physical activities, and parental control--that has lasting psychological effects.
When we think about this problem, we point fingers at unhealthy fast food restaurants and school lunch programs, saying their foods and serving sizes are to blame. People argue that ad campaigns aim at young children, making them victims of the fast food industry. Schools are selling unhealthy food to children during school hours whether it is during lunch time or having a vending machine placed in every corner of the school full of unhealthy snacks. “However, all human beings have power to exercise free will, even young children” (Vigarello, 15). Children follow the people who are around them the most which are their parents. Parents influence children the minute they are born. Children will always follow what their parents do and if the parents are living an unhealthy lifestyle, soon enough their child will be living the same one. Until we stop children from eating at fast food restaurants and change their eating habits and exercise routine, obesity in the United States will not go away.
Childhood obesity is a chronic health problem in the United States. Today, "nearly a third of youths are overweight or obese" (National Collaborative on Childhood Obesity Research). Obesity affects children psychologically and physically. Obesity is a chronic imbalance of more calories consumed than expended each day. Childhood obesity is closely linked with housing and food securities, children without stable homes are more likely to suffer from hunger, chronic disease, and malnutrition. Demographic, socio-structural, and environmental variables also play a significant role in the childhood obesity prevalence and incidents. For instance, environments with lower than the average neighborhood, availability of healthy foods and higher than
All parents believe, or would like to believe, that their children are in a state of perfect health. In some cases, this is incorrect due to the parents and children 's lack of knowledge on what the actual state of optimal health is for children. For example, a hot topic around the world today is the issue of childhood obesity. This topic caught my eye because it is truly beginning to have a negative impact on today’s society and is something that needs to be addressed. Currently, my job at the Littleton YMCA provides me the with opportunity to work with children and teach a variety of fitness classes for kids. This has helped me to become passionate about promoting a healthy lifestyle, and showing younger generations ways in which to go about this. Gaining more information on this topic can help me to better
1. Introduction.- What does it mean to be obese? When people eat more calories than they burn off, their bodies store the extra calories as fat.
“One out of every deaths in America is caused by an illness directly related to overweight and obesity” (Carmona). Over the years, the number of Americans has risen.This increase is a result of excess; it hasn’t been rising until Americans started making bigger meals and eating fast food.If one doesn’t make food for himself/herself, the individual doesn’t know exactly what is being put into his/her body. Food where they didn’t make their self, therefore they don’t know what they are eating. In today’s society faces an obesity epidemic; to remedy this issue America should consider creating a national weigh in. A national weigh in would be a requirement for all Americans to go to their medical clinic and be updated on their weight. Many would think it would cost more money towards the health care, but due to the availability of the Affordable Care Act this should not be an issue. No one should live an unhealthy life.
Obesity in America is a crucial problem. 75% of adults ages 20 and older are considered to be overweight, obese, or extremely obese (Overweight and obesity statistics). This epidemic has not only affected me, but it has affected my family. I have always been obese every since I can remember. This was an unhealthy lifestyle and something needs to change. Something needs to change not only for me, but for our country. Obesity in America poses many health threats to people of all ages. I have come up with a simple solution this is guaranteed to work.
America is one of the most obese countries in the world, and the reasons are quite obvious. Take a look around. Fast food chains on every block, more and more technology to make our lives easier, and high amount of stress are just a few factors to weight gain in our country. There are many different views on obesity and how the people think it should be resolved, whether it's government making the change or the people taking care of themselves. Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 30 years. Are we doing enough to bring these statistics down? No. In the last 40 years, there has been a growth to more than 160,000 fast food restaurants in America (“Adolescent and School Health”). Restaurants (such as Wendy's, McDonald's etc.) serve more than 50 million people per day, generating about 65 million in sales annually. Only since obesity has become a national epidemic have fast food restaurants changed their ways. But we need to do more than just change the kind of oil the french fries are fried in. Better yet, why don't we remove, or intensely decrease the number of the unhealthy fast food chains, and spread more healthy fast food chains, such as Subway? Is it something government could take act in? Should the United States government take measures to fight the rise of obesity in the country, or are choices concerning diet and nutrition better left to the individuals, free of government interference?
Obesity is a modern epidemic in America and is starting to become our society’s “norm.” According to an article in Progress in Health Sciences, childhood obesity is the most frequent eating disorder (Koukourikos). There are several factors that contribute to the childhood obesity epidemic. Should we solely shun the parents of obese children for this? No, we should not. There is not one single person to blame, but several people, along with our society. Family, friends, and schools all play a very important role in teaching children about healthy food choices and exercise. Children may have a greater risk for obesity due to genetic factors. We need to constantly remind our children how important it is to maintain a healthy lifestyle so that
We want to solve the problem by helping kids and adults each healthier by making healthier lifestyle choices when it comes to eating. We also want to also increase physical activity of children and adolescents. I believe with the proper diet and exercise we can help decrease the obesity issue in this country that has grown so much in the past two decades. These steps are vital to helping prevent childhood obesity and even kids who currently suffer from childhood obesity. Since the 1970’s approximately 15 percent of children and adolescents are now overweight. "Prevent Childhood Obesity-Get Your Kids Moving!" Prevent Childhood Obesity-Get Your Kids Moving!
When promoting plus sizes and television shows, are self-esteem or heart disease also being promoted? People throughout the world struggle with being anorexic, bulimic, overweight, or obese. TLC’s now popular reality TV show, My 600 Pound Life, displays the daily struggles of morbidly obese people. While encouraging women to love their body is appealing, there are many dangers in the fondness of obesity. Glorifying obesity can lead to being morbidly unhealthy, as demonstrated by Dominique Lanoise, a woman who died from morbid obesity.
Child obesity is at its highest in the United States. With fast food restaurants spreading, new food products being produced, and health rates hiking in children between ages of 3-13, children are at a higher risk of reaching obesity. Nutrients are very important for children to contain in their body due to the fact they are growing regularly. Without the specific vitamins and minerals needed in the body, lack of physical activity, and false parental guidance, children are in jeopardy of becoming overweight. Should parents be responsible for this issue? Parents are accountable for their children’s health, because as their child grows, it is a parent’s job to supply correct and healthy resources to their children.
Parents are not teaching children how to eat healthy. They feed them cheeseburgers, chicken fingers, and fries. Kids are not being exposed to a regular diet of health fruits and vegetables. Now some people are just naturally overweight, but being “overweight” is not the same as being “obese.” Someone who is overweight has reached a maximum weight limit for their height. When someone goes beyond this maximum limit, then they are considered “obese” (Kiess 1). Research shows that “obesity is generally defined as the abnormal or excessive accumulation of fat in adipose tissue” (Kiess 1). The increase in childhood obesity today is mainly the fault of the parent because they are unable to tell their children “no” when it comes to junk food (Kiess 104). Parents are the one buying all the food that comes into the house. They are the ones buying the sugary drinks and chips. They are the ones allowing the children to “have what they want.” Because parents are not teaching their children how to eat healthy, we will continue to see childhood obesity increase. Unfortunately, overweight children will be the ones who suffer because statistics show children who are overweight are more likely to become obes...