Over the course of this semester we have stated time and again that the current Obesity epidemic represents a worldwide healthcare crisis. We have explored all the possible triggers of the increasing rise of obesity cases amongst children and adults of both developed and undeveloped countries. Ultimately, the prominent bearers of responsibility are governments, the food industry and the obese patients themselves. The question now is not who to blame, but who to look to for solutions. In this final assignment I will explore what are the relative roles of government, industry, and individuals responsibility in meeting the obesity epidemic? and, To what extent is this problem and its putative solution(s) similar to that of other global problems. Problems which affect people at global scales are usually driven by default conditions.[1] Defaults are settings to which individuals are exposed in their everyday lives, and that have effect on particular aspects of their health and their behavior. Obesity, like other global problems such as climate instability and pollution, is influenced or driven by default conditions. In order to better understand to what extent defaults affect people let 's explore the comparison of unhealthy foods with toxic agents in an environment. In order to properly treat and prevent any disease that comes as a result of the exposure to toxic agents, the common approach would be to remove the toxic agents from the environment. In the obesity epidemic
A critical issue has arisen recently in the United States that obesity has become more prevalent than ever before. During the past 20 years, more than one-third of U.S. adults and approximately one-fifth of the children and adolescents has been considered to be overweight. It is undeniable that everyone will promptly concurs something must be done in order to solve this crisis. However, this accord often ends on a debate of whether or not being obese is our own fault and government should intervene in helping the situation. In my opinion, although we are somewhat responsible for our own health, we cannot totally blame on those obese people for being corpulent and the government should definitely get involved in alleviating this problem.
Obesity is a national epidemic with wide consequences and cost to America’s health and productivity. In recent years, policymakers, medical health experts and parents have expressed alarming concerns about the growing problem of childhood obesity in the United States, especially among Hispanic children. While most agree that this critical issue deserves attention, consensus dissolves around how to respond to the problem. This research paper examines one approach to treating childhood obesity: Taxing companies that manufacture foods with low nutritional value “junk food” companies. The paper reviews the effectiveness in children and adolescents of taxing food companies that provide foods with low nutritional value versus parent/child
The startling epidemic of rising obesity rates has caught everyone off guard considering that in the book “Obesity Dietary and Developmental Influences” it states that almost two-thirds of the current population is overweight or obese (Lopez 2). Considering that many adults and children are struggling with their weight, many experts try to pinpoint the exact culprit for the obesity rates and ways it can be diminished. The focus of this paper is to discuss who exactly is to blame for the rising obesity rates and different ways it could decrease based on certain author’s point of views. This is important because if the rates do not stop increasing, people will suffer whether its financially or medically. Many people often argue over which
The Walt Disney production “Wall-E” is a portrayed image of what our world could soon become. If you aren’t familiar with what the film is about, it is about obese humans relying on technology to do everything and anything for them. They weren’t concerned with their health at all, ordering jumbo soda and super-sized meals of fast food, for every meal. As Wall-E broads the ship and knocks some humans out of their delusional life style, they begin to realize something is seriously wrong with their health. Maybe it was because they couldn’t walk or maybe it was the realization that they couldn’t do anything for themselves. To make sure this doesn’t happen to the people of our world today, there is
We live in a world where we acquire the necessities we need through simple means. One of the main things that we need, food, can be acquired through groceries and food markets. They present us with options that comply with almost every preference that customers are willing to buy. With the variety that they present, may it be organic, naturally grown, or processed the problem of obesity comes along. Abundancy of food has taken a toll on the weight of humans, especially Americans. It affects one – third of the adult population in the United States, the numbers are about 78.6 million Americans who are affected by obesity (Obesity Society). Obesity can be caused by a number of reasons not only because of the food that we intake (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) and it has also affected and continues to affect the health of numbers of people (Center of Disease Control and Prevention). There are times that we fail to take notice that it is a problem that needs solving. When is the right time to make a change? Are the changes that we have already implemented enough for Americans to take it seriously? What are the ways in which we can prevent this from happening to children? There are always going to be a bunch of questions that we
The obesity epidemic and our nation’s health as a whole have many factors that include socioeconomic status in particular. Socioeconomic Status and Childhood Obesity will always shape our nations vision and mission with what we do with healthcare. Healthcare in America is in a major reconstruction faze, and is in much need of it, obesity and socioeconomic status are going to be the major contributors to this reconstruction.
The occurrence of obesity has increased tremendously in the United States and is now considered an epidemic. It is a dangerous epidemic, because it increases risks for heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, breathing problems, and more. It also increases the chance of developing diabetes, which comes with its own list of scary health problems. Obesity is caused by two simple factors, simply consuming too much food, and not getting enough physical activity. Although the causes for obesity may seem simple, it is not quite as easy as it would seem to avoid becoming a part of this epidemic. Eating too much is easy to do. This is especially true in a society where a single serving meal should serve more people based on its nutritional contents, healthy options are often more time consuming and expensive than the unhealthy, yet quick and easy food items, and the option to super-size your meal for a surprisingly cheap price is available at any fast food restaurant, of which, there are an abundance to choose and on every corner.
Obesity in the United States has been increasingly cited as a major health issue in recent decades. In 2010, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported 35.7% of American adults as obese and 17% of American children. Obesity is obviously a big problem in America. One of the major causes of Obesity in America is the high consumption of junk food. In order to combat America 's obesity problem, junk food must be made less appealing to the public. Lack of exercise and genetics also result in the build of fat on an individual. The high consumption of junk food is one of the major causes of the high obesity rates America faces. The increased availability and relatively low costs of this junk food make it appealing to the masses. One may ask, is Obesity really a disease? If so, what can be done to solve the problem? I will explain the arguments for, against, and under certain circumstance(s) and conclude with my preferred position on rather Obesity is a disease.
Obesity is the storage of excessed body fat that is higher than what is considered to be a healthy weight for a given height and may have a negative effect on health. In the last 2 decades, obesity has doubled. In 2011 there was an approximated 1.4 billion overweight people and of those 500 million were obese (Han et al., 1998 and Barofsky et al., 1998). Almost one in three adults are measured obese and one in six children from ages 6-19 also meet the standards for obesity. No matter where you go, you are more than likely to see an overweight population. Since there are 300 million clinically obese people worldwide, it’s no surprise that obesity is categorized as a growing epidemic in America. Obesity comes from many causes and these reasons
It’s no secret that obesity is a huge issue worldwide; over three hundred million people are clinically obese on the earth. No matter where you go there is bound to be an overweight population; over 30% of New Zealand’s population is obese. In fact, there is an average of above 14% of people that are obese in each country. Fatty and unhealthy foods that are harmful to the human body are served everywhere you go; you just can’t get away from them. Even though obesity can lead to many fatal diseases, it is not a disease by itself. It can harm the body and reduce normal body function, but it can be cured and someone can return to a healthy lifestyle if they have enough determination.
Obesity has always been a problem since the beginning of civilization. Indulgence and scarcity are the primitive examples of how such a problem had formed. Now, obesity’s causation had evolved to more than just the simplicities. The U.S. is today’s modern examples of the modern epidemic. It’s become such an issue, to the point where the government is taking certain measures and employing programs to combat obesity. However, their methods are proven ineffective due to socioeconomic division among the poor who are unable to afford to change their lifestyle.
Obesity is perhaps the most concerning health problem our nation faces today. With national obesity rates nearing 38% for adults, we are eating ourselves into an early grave, and we are doing it in massive numbers. (State of Obesity). The National Institute of Health categorizes anyone with a body mass index between 25 and 29 as overweight, and one of 30 or higher as obese. (textbook). Being in this weight category brings along a multiplicity of health issues, both physical and mental. An increased risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, and cancer are just a few of the diseases that are directly linked with obesity. (NIH risks). Additionally, there have been detrimental large scale effects to the US economy. For instance, an increase in healthcare cost can be traced to increased obesity rates throughout the nation. (econ). Although appearing bleak at first glance, there is an increased awareness in America that seeks to eliminate this problem before it spreads further.
Obesity has always been a topic that many have had due to the increase attention it has received. Across America, there has been a lot of attention on the obesity epidemic. In America and the inner cities, more people are eating meals away from home in addition to consuming larger portions from fast food restaurants. At this rate, gaining weight is the likely outcome. High energy dense food has become convenient and affordable. Fast food is almost everywhere in America and, contributes to the growing obesity epidemic. Access to healthy foods are either expensive or have a limited access to it. For example, soda is everywhere for low costs, but coconut water is expensive or not found easily depending on the demand for it. Our environment
Obesity has started to rise not only in America, but also worldwide. America has begun consuming more fuel, more electronics, and most importantly, more food. Not just any food though. Americans are eating unhealthy foods and eating them more consistently. This means our energy intake has increased while our output has decreased or stayed constant, leading to an increase in weight for both adults and children. Obesity can lead to an increase in all kinds of health-related illness. Obesity is one of the highest causes of preventable deaths, only second to smoking. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, known as NHANES, is carried out by the Center for Disease Control to estimate obesity using BMI, or body mass index. In 1960, the data from NHANES showed that only 13.4 percent of Americans were obese and 0.9 percent were extremely obese. In 2010, NHANES showed that 36.1 percent were obese and 6.6 percent were extremely obese. This is equivalent to a 170 percent increase in obesity and a 600 percent increase in extreme obesity (Fryar). This increase in obesity can be attributed to increased portion sizes, advertisements, and technologies that have created an inactive lifestyle.
The findings above has shown that America are witnessing a drastically increase in the number of people who are obese in this 21st century. The effect of hereditary genes, the augmented consumption of calories- densse fast food, together with an prevailing sedentary lifestyle come out to be major elements contributing to this pandemic. It is undeniable that obesity harm human health and bring inconveniences in daily life, not to mention lack of cosmetic aspect. The morbid obesity are threatening American’s life in particularity and shortening global longevity in genaral. Although this epidemic is preventable by changing habits, US citizens seem to disregard their own health problem and keep gaining weight uncontrollably. This situaton boosts