Heath Disease and Obesity

I grew up playing the game “Candyland”, and I dreamed of finding the golden ticket and living in Willie Wonka’s factory. I was also given a Gatorade after every sporting event I ever played in so what could be so bad about sugar? Sugar, real and artificial, can be found in almost every product we consume and although sugar is a simple carbohydrate that the body uses for energy, its impact on our body is far from simple. The consumption of sugar has been linked to a host of chronic health problems, including obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The addictive nature of sugar is also a significant problem that leads to the other detrimental effects listed above. Sugar has also been useful to help preserve goods, fuel fermentation, balance acidity, and add flavor to other foods. Whether it’s cereal, spaghetti sauce, or yogurt, sugar is everywhere and has become unavoidable in our daily diets. As Americans, we have become accustomed to the sweet addictive taste of sugar, and our dependence on excessive amounts of sugar in its different forms has become alarming to many health experts. In analyzing preference and dependency with sugar, I will trace the addictive nature and major risks sugar has placed on society.

Obesity is when you have an excessive amount of adipose tissue , or body fat. There are several different ways you can develop this “extra” fat. The more commonly known way is simply eating too much (consuming too many calories), but there are many other ways. These ways include health conditions, medicine side effects, emotional factors, smoking, age, genes & family history, lack of sleep, environment, inactive lifestyle, and lack of energy balance.

It’s in the food, the beverages, almost everything sweet. It has not only influenced Americans’ lifestyle, but is responsible for acute and chronic health problems that plague America as a whole. The consumption of added sugars has skyrocketed in the last few decades and has literally become a part of our lives, responsible for our deadly addiction, before you know it, you may become another suspect of this killer. In Nanci Hellmich, of USA Today, “Eating too much added sugar may be killing you”, Hellmich attributes sugar is not only causing us to become fat, but also is slowing killing us from within. Sugar is killing people because it is responsible for increasing the risk of health complications, growing prominence, and America’s obesity epidemic.

In the article from USA Today, “Eating Too Much Added Sugars May Be Killing You,” Nanci Hellmich claims added sugars in soda, candy, and many more sweets may be killing you. Hellmich says that added sugar can lead to an increased risk of death caused by heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and stroke. She supports her claim by referring to a survey recorded by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey done on 31,000 people, then reflecting on the dietary habits of citizens based on interviews, and finally providing the evidence that most adults consume 10% of their daily calories from added sugar which is very unhealthy and hazardous for people’s health. Hellmich writes it in an informative tone for the public

In an article written by Julie Corliss, medical writer at Harvard Health Publications, she addresses Americans unhealthy sugar intake, “Added sugars make up at least 10% of the calories the average American eats in a day. But about one in 10 people get a whopping one-quarter or more of their calories from added sugar” (Corliss). Sugar not only leads to weight gain, but also increases the chance of suffering from heart disease. Moving away from artificial and processed foods will help Americans lose weight and start towards a healthy lifestyle. If the body is consistently treated poorly, this will reflect in the mirror and on the scale.

Now let's talk about sugar. It’s in just about everything we eat. On average the american citizen consumes 19.5 teaspoons per day, that adds up 66 pounds per year, for one person! That is a clear display of our addiction to sugar as human beings. Studies have shown that through brain scans it has been found that sugar affects the brain similarly to the way certain drugs do. In an article I read called “Sugar is a ‘Drug’ and Here’s How We’re Hooked” the author explained how studies supported that sugar consumption can lead to neurochemical and behavioral transformations that resembles substance abuse. The dangers of sugar have gotten so serious that research released by the American Heart Association shows that there are about 180,000 deaths

“More people will die from obesity than starvation.” Many people are gaining excess weight that ultimately results into Obesity.This is a big controversy because obesity has become one of the most known reasons for cancer and many other illnesses. It’s even affecting children. According to the American Heart Association, the percentage for child obesity raised to about 18.4% ranging from children as young as 2 and older. After watching the documentary, Fed Up, by Katie Couric, it is revealed that the reason percentages for Obesity is rising is due to the fact that many become addicted to sugar, the amount of calorie intake, and etc. Sugar addiction sources from industries that finds interest in high profit and less interest on the health of

Sugar is, and has always been, unavoidable; conversely, sugar has not always been toxic. Naturally abundant and technically enhanced, this substance has followed in the footsteps of tobacco and alcohol, becoming just as unhealthy and ultimately lethal. And, without the implementation of government

Children’s health and wellness expert Dr. Alan Greene discusses this likeness of sugar to a drug in-depth in his Healthline.com article Is Sugar an Addictive Drug. “Evidence is mounting that too much added sugar could lead to true addiction. Added sugar is not the sugar naturally found in foods, but the amped up levels added to many processed foods. Medical addiction changes brain chemistry to cause binging, craving, withdrawal symptoms, and sensitization. Excess added sugar can do just that, through changes in the same pathways as addiction to amphetamines or alcohol. Sugar addiction could be an even harder habit to break, according to recent evidence about how added sugar affects our stress hormones.” Though the quantity and variety of food avaliable to us today is for the most part a good thing, it is having and will continue to have dire consequences for the

Today in our society sugar is accepted and consumed in large quantities. According to the United Stated Department of Agriculture the average American consumes between 150 to 170 pounds a sugar a year (that’s 30 five pound bags). I myself have undergone an experiment to go without sugar for a week to identify the effects it had on my body first hand. I will present you with findings I have found and hope you learn a little more about this substance we put into our bodies so readily and willingly. Today I will talk to you about the physical effects, mental and emotional effects of sugar on the body, and the proper intake of sugar.

Obesity basically means having too much body fat. Not being overweight for your height, having too much muscle, or water in your body. What exactly is obesity? “Obesity is a condition that is associated with having an excess of body fat, defined by genetic and environmental factors that are difficult to control when dieting. Obesity is classified as having a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or greater. BMI is a tool used to measure obesity. Obesity increases your risk of developing related conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and sleep apnea, to name a few. Many individuals are affected by obesity and are not aware of it” (O.A.C, 2016). Causes of obesity vary from person to person, but most are from the same reasons. Taking in more calories than your body can burn leads to obesity because your body stores the unused calories as fat. Typical causes are eating too much food than your body can use, drinking too much alcohol, and not getting enough exercise. Many obese people who lose large amounts of weight and gain it back think it is their fault. They blame themselves for not having the willpower to keep the weight off. Many people regain more weight than they lost. Today, we know that biology is a big reason why some people cannot keep the weight off. Some people who live in the same place and eat the same foods become obese, while others do not. Our bodies have a complex system to help keep our

Summary: This documentary showed how sugar is as addicting as cocaine. By 2050, one in three people will be diagnosed with type two diabetes, where in 1980, there was zero reported cases. Companies know this information and reduced the fat, but doubled the sugar in their product.

The time has come that we address the problem of over consumption of sugar efficiently. Not just one person or one state has to address this the whole of Australia has to along with the entire world. No one realises what this poison is slowly doing to us. The over consumption of sugar is on the rise and no one will notice until it’s too late. According to Robert Lustig and Gary Taubes, Mark Bittman these three argue that sugar poses far greater dangers than rotted teeth and cavities, Sugar is a toxin that harms our organs and disrupts the human normal bodily functions. Over consumption of sugar is one of the primary causes of obesity and diabetes. More than one-third of American adults and approximately 12.5 million children and adolescents

Sugar is in so many things that you can barely count. It is even in healthy things such as fruit like apples and bananas, but it is a different kind of sugar. The sugar that is highly addictive, unhealthy, and overall delicious, is the type that is in sweet things like candy, ice cream, so it is in different types of desserts in general. (zelf geschreven)

Obesity refers to the condition of having an extra amount of body fat. Obesity is caused by eating too much and moving too little. When an individual’s amount of body fat becomes too high, they are at a greater risk of being affected with life changing diseases such as heart failure, hypertension, type II diabetes, cancer, gallbladder disease, osteoarthritis, and others. This shows that people should become more physically active and attempt to make healthier choices because their life depends on the decisions, they make.