Obesity Two thirds of American adults are obese or overweight. Obesity is a silent killer that is taking over the United States slowly but surely. People do not typically realize how serious obesity is and it gets joked about, humiliating those who are affected. Obesity is not a joke, it is a disease that is killing everyone’s family, friends and neighbors. Obesity alone is detrimental to the health of an individual, it causes many adverse effects to the body that are often difficult to repair or cure. “Overweight doesn’t mean obese, overweight is an excess amount of body weight including muscle, bone, water and tissues. Where as obesity is having excess fat only.” (Understanding Adult Obesity 1) Obesity rates are continually climbing in America every day, making it increasingly important to understand how to control it. The combination of overeating and not exercising is becoming a normality in this day and age. “We have inherited our genetic makeup from our ancestors, hunters and gatherers who ate diets rich in low-fat meats and grains, who had to stalk and capture the entree for dinner. During times of feast, their bodies were designed to store nutrients as adipose tissue to be used for fuel to survive periods of famine. We are descended from these survivors, and we share this ability to store fat when food is in overabundance. However, famine in the United States are fewer and farther between nowadays, so this added fat is not used up and continues to accumulate
According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, there are a high amount of adults in America over 20 years old with some form of weight problem. 33.1% of these adults are overweight, 35.7% are obese, and 6.3% suffer with extreme obesity, only 31.2% are at a healthy weight. Such a widespread presence of weight issues not only constitutes a negative stereotype, but another series of questions. Since the issue is so rampant, does that make obesity a disease? In November 2013, the American Heart Association changed its guidelines so that obesity was now considered a disease, which caused a significant amount of controversy to rise (heart.org). However, following definitional standards, obesity should not be considered
Obesity is defined as 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. “The problem of obesity is increasing in the United States. Understanding the impact of social inequalities on health has become a public health priority in the new millennium. Social, political, and economic factors now are acknowledged to be "fundamental" causes of disease that affect behavior, beliefs, and biology.” (Goodman, 2003) In the United States today, obesity has become an enormous problem. In the last 3 decades, the number of people overweight has increased dramatically. Obesity has not always been seen as a medical
Obesity has increased in numbers rapidly over the years. It is now considered a dangerous epidemic. Variety different arguments have been considered as to why obesity has increased. Many blame it on the consumers, but can it be the fault of someone else.
if you want to stick to the obesity argument you might want to think of arguments such as 'should the government be doing more to tackle the problem or is it up to the individual?' or 'How is it people can allow themselves to get that far into bad health(obesity)?' (might be more of a Psychology question though..) A good one for looking at arguments relating to the fast food industry is 'Super-Size me' that documentary, that might give you some more ideas about arguments, to look into some of the issues that Morgan Spurlock touches on, (size of food portions, advertising, health related problems of obesity, etc..)
Obesity is a medical condition in which excess fats have grown and accumulated to the point of harm, and a shortened life expectancy. Obesity is a problem that has been more prominent in the 20th and 21st century and is now a main concern for both society and the government. It is the citizen’s duty to resolve this epidemic known as obesity in the United States.
For the sake of concise and clear discussion about America’s problem with obesity, it is first important to understand what this health condition entails. According to the definition provided by the World Health Organization (WHO), obesity is defined as a condition where a person incurs excessive body fat (World Health Organization 4). Obesity has been among the epidemics that have affected the health conditions of Americans of all ages even those under the adolescent stage (Hardy, Harrell and Bell 376). Obesity causes other major health complications, such as diabetes, heart ailments, etc. making a major reason for concern. The US government spends millions of dollars each year to mitigate the effects of obesity as well in the efforts to prevent I, but not much success has been accomplished so far.
Childhood obesity has now reached an epidemic in several parts of the United States. As a result, children now have a higher risk to have numerous chronic and acute medical problems. Several of the long-lasting medical problems a child might face as a result of obesity could eventually result in death. In addition to chronic medical problems, childhood obesity has severe psychosocial effects on an individual such as low self-esteem and depression. Childhood obesity is a serious problem that is caused by a numerous amount of factors that can eventually lead to severe health complications.
Medical professionals define obesity by an individual 's body mass index (BMI), which is calculated by taking an individual’s weight and dividing it by their height squared. For adults, a healthy BMI is considered 18.5-24.9 percent. A BMI of 25 to 29 percent is considered “overweight” which is different than obesity. An individual whose BMI is 30 percent or over is considered to be obese. The rates of obesity in America are among the highest in the world. In 2012 it was reported by the Center for Disease Control that 35.1 percent of adults living in the U.S. are obese (BMI of 30 or over). However, overweight and obese americans account for an astonishing 69 percent of the U.S. population. It is projected that by 2030 over half of all adults (115 million adults) in the U.S. will be obese. With obesity rates higher than ever, it begs the question as to what caused it?
Overweight is often misinterpreted as obesity, but it has been proven that individuals such as bodybuilders and professional athletes can be overweight yet they do not suffer from obesity. Obesity refers to just excessive body fat whereas overweight refers to excessive body weight including water, bone, fat, and muscle. A certain amount of fat is needed to store energy, heat insulation, shock absorption, and other functions, but when men reach more than twenty-five percent body fat, and women reach more than thirty percent they are considered obese. A person’s body mass index (BMI) is measured by dividing body weight in kilograms by the square of body height in meters (Wilmore, et al., 2008).
Obesity is an extensive problem in the United States. “25% of children in poorer areas are obese, compared to about 11% in more affluent areas”(Ellen). People believe that other causes of obesity are significant, but others believe it is from financial standing. These are controversial among researchers, health professionals, or nutritionists. SNAP helps impoverished people to eat healthier with the help of financial security. Obesity rates will decrease when encouraging SNAP users to eat healthier.
Obesity has caused great dilemma in America. It was known as an adult disease. “Over two thirds of adults are over weight or obese.”(Obesity, Jerry R Ballenttne) these numbers are increasing rapidly. Obesity is not just a appearance
After recent studies it has now been acknowledged that obesity is taking far more lives
Ever crave a healthy meal instead of fries and a milkshake? Unfortunately because of this America is now facing an obesity epidemic and health disease crisis. People have turned from healthy eating habits to resorting to unhealthy processed food. From the early 70’s people's lives have changed which affects the way they eat. Over the years many families have developed bad eating habits and less physical activity. Since the 80’s everything has changed with larger portion sizes and even supersized meals. Changes need to be made in the near future or else the millennials from ages 18-26 will be burying their kids. Due to massive obesity rates in America, it's up to monomials to make changes starting with mainly personal responsibility and educating future families plus food industry marketing.
In modern day America, there are few issues that are more important than childhood obesity. The growing number of cases involving childhood obesity is on the rise. According to research conducted by the National Collaborative on Childhood Research, one out of three children are obese or overweight before their fifth birthday. Childhood obesity leads to elevated health risk, such as but not limited to, diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, and even a higher risk for cardiovascular related illness. There are effective ways to combat the health crisis like walking more, standing more, and setting aside time for daily physical activity. Nevertheless, arguably the most important aspect of solving childhood obesity is a healthy diet. Fortunately, there is hope when utilizing top quality nutritional choices such as lowering consumption of processed foods, lowering the amount of refined carbohydrates a child eats, and adding more vegetables to children’s diet.
With the many different health related issues globally, obesity tops all with approximately 97 million people who are overweight or obese. Early on, obesity is developed within the childhood years of millions seen in both developed and developing countries. America is the number one candidate in developed countries. Nowadays it is very common to see young children with enlarged stomachs in front of them. Common causes such as genetics, hormones, the environment, overeating, and lack of exercise are the main reasons for obesity. The effects of obesity are stated to be depression, eating disorders, and oftentimes death. Obesity is amongst talk as the number one health issue in America, but through study, can be conquered through strict dieting, medicine, exercise, and proper surgical procedures.