Food For Thought Analysis

Obesity is becoming a major problem due to many causes and because of that people are struggling with obesity these days. Obesity in America is one of the major public health concern right now. Especially when Fast food now is increasing in bad way and it’s easily these days to find fast food near you or away from you. Things is different right with all these changes been made to our society. The good side of that change comes with the bad side. The problem is people are inventing technology that makes the life easier and make the person lazier, such as the computers, tablets and etc. Lacks of healthy lifestyle, people are changing healthy diet with unhealthy ones, and Obesity affects our health by having disease,

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

The definition of obesity is someone who is grossly overweight. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines obesity as: "...labels for ranges of weight that are greater than what is generally considered healthy for a given height" (Causes and Consequences 1). Almost one-third (35%) of America's population falls under the category of 'obese'. Colorado has the lowest statistics of obesity with less than 25% of its population registering as obese. This percentage in the U.S. has been rising steadily since 1986 when the obesity rate registered less than 10% nation wide. This data states that in less than thirty years, the obesity rate has exploded in North America and is still climbing. Many fear the rate might continue climbing to dangerous levels in the near future. A study conducted by the American College of Preventive Medicine (Obesity Forecasts Through 2030) reveals data predicting obesity rates to skyrocket past 50% nationwide by 2030 (Finkelstein 1). This quickly growing rate has many looking to the cause of this epidemic in an attempt to

“Obesity is a disease that affects more than one-third of the U.S adult population (approximately 78.6 million Americans). The number of Americans with obesity had steadily increase since 1960, a trend that has slowed down in recent years but show no sign of reversing”.

Obesity is becoming a serious medical issue and if we as a nation don’t gain control over it, we are going to be dealing with major problems in the future. (Obesity In Children And Teens)

In the Introduction, to “Food as Thought: Resisting the Moralization of Eating”, Mary Maxfield argues that food and the way we consume it isn’t something that should define the obesity epidemic in America. A controversial issue discussed has been whether we should have theories or ideas on which diet works best to increase weight loss or whether we should have any diets to begin with. On one hand, Maxfield argues against the Health Professor Michael Pollan, who proposes an idea to reduce the problem of unhealthy eating in America, when he himself chastises scientists and other health doctors who suggests different diets. On the other hand, she introduces that food is just food and doesn’t need to be differentiated since one may seem

America, like any other country, has its assortment of problems: immigration, debt, or foreign affairs but one issue that is rather hard to overlook, literally, its obesity epidemic. The extra pounds have become a sight all too common in America’s society, “men are now on average seventeen pounds heavier than they were in the late seventies, and for women that figure is even higher: nineteen pounds.” (Kolbert). Obesity does not just affect adults in this way either, the kid population has been getting bigger, according to the numbers on a scale “the proportion of overweight children, age six to eleven, has more than doubled, while the proportion of overweight adolescents, age twelve to nineteen, has more than tripled.” (Kolbert). This issue has been a major concern to doctors and scientists for decades and in recent years, has even has the American Medical Association recognizing obesity to be a disease (Pollack). That is a highly debatable statement because obesity itself is a preventable lifestyle. Obesity is avoidable and curable to all (or at least most) of its sufferers. For some citizens, obesity is not a choice, rather genetics, but for the majority of the population, obesity is caused by an unhealthy diet and lazy lifestyle, and for these certain individuals, through a lot of work and discipline, the return to a healthy lifestyle is not as impossible as it may appear.

Obesity is becoming one of the biggest problems in the country, but there has to be reasons for it. It can be the economy, society now, or people and companies. It’s time that our country starts to realize that we can’t live like this anymore. We need to see what is causing the sudden rise in obesity, and what we can do to fix it. Education of risks and solutions can be very helpful. Obesity is killing so many people, yet is still 100 percent avoidable. Our country is beginning to care less and really let themselves go. The fast food industry, supermarkets, and schools are the ones at fault for the spreading problem of obesity.

Unfortunately obesity is a battle that the citizens of the United States are fighting. Over 68.8 percent of our adults have been diagnosed as being over-weight or obese and this usually initiates in their teenage years. America is second in the world for the heaviest people. Every year obesity is becoming an increasing problem in our nation and particularly in our schools. A huge factor is what we feed our students junk for breakfast and lunch.

Obesity is a very serious subject that a lot of people take lightly, especially us as Americans. America is the most obese country in the world. Statistics show that 300,000 people die a day in the United States of America due to obesity. This clearly shows that we have a serious problem that is massively underestimated. Obesity is also something that countries all across the world suffer from. For example, Australia is also one of the most obese countries in the world, and 50,000 people die a year from obesity in Australia. That’s 140 people who die per day in Australia. To solve the problem of obesity the prices of junk food should be raised and the prices of healthy food should be lowered and more convenient.

Obesity in the United States has really become an economic problem as well. People are spending the little money that they have and spending it on food that they shouldn’t be eating in the first place, which they should be spending their money on healthier and nutritious food, for themselves and their family. New England Medical Center, Michael Dansinger of the Tufts says:

Jennifer, I think that is a wonderful idea! The childhood obesity problem in this country should be an indicator that our children are not getting the information about nutrition that they need. I know that my own children receive very little education about health and nutrition is school. The school my children go to try and introduce the topic, but not much time is used to go over such an important subject. I also think, that like many subjects, parents are not informed about nutrition, food labels, or food groups. Perhaps is we educate the children in the United States, they in turn could use that knowledge to educate their parents, and create a positive change for everyone.

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

Obesity is defined as excess body weight that has a negative impact on self-esteem and also contributes to a spectrum of comorbidities, which include type II diabetes, hypertension, multiple cancers and cardiovascular diseases. The result of obesity is a diminished life expectancy and quality of life. Unfortunately, obesity costs have hurt our economy because the U.S. government spends billions of dollars in health care expenses annually, and the trouble does not stop there. In 2012, the CDC reported that more than one third of children in the United States were overweight or obese. With the costs of health care tanking the economy, this country cannot afford to have a population of children overweight or obese. Child who are obese grow to be obese adults and the health complications begin to increase at a much younger age. Therefore, the CDC has proposed a great change in obesity among children to be accomplished by the year 2020.

The main question now is what is obesity, a quick sum up would be the excessive body fat that increases the risk of health problems. Obesity is the gateway to all of the worst health problems ranging from diabetes to stroke and even cancer. Being obese means that the person is taking in more calories than they could burn off. This mostly affects “26 percent of schoolchildren”(7) states Daniel Weintraub from The Battle Against Fast Foods Begins in Home. That means that 26 percent of kids are overweight and no one is helping them. This generation that is and is coming is going to be born to die. “One in five adolescents, ages 12–19; one in five kids, ages 6–11, and and one in ten preschoolers, ages 2–5