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Maintaining a healthy weight is without a question the result of individual behavior. However, the

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Maintaining a healthy weight is without a question the result of individual behavior. However, the “eat right, stay fit” mantra has used for decades with little concrete results to show for it. This message has been ignored in contrast to unhealthy societal tendencies we have come to accept. We need to encourage the government to address the larger context of how we live, not just what we eat. Aside from school lunch options, there is much more that our government should be doing. Every branch of government, from Washington D.C. to local mayors hold the power to, and should use it to, aid in eliminating obesity in the American populous. State policies and programs, where existent, remain weak. Federal policy lacks leadership and majority …show more content…

Fast food is shoved into our conscious every day. McDonald’s, Domino’s, Wendy’s, Burger King; no matter where we turn, we are smothered. These foods are presented to us as quick solutions to our daily-accelerated life styles that demand speed and functionality. Fast food is considered acceptable in moderation, but it becomes a problem when it is the only form of nutrition a person intakes. With the U.S. Population doubling its obesity rate, this means that people are not only becoming significantly oversized but also increasingly close to disease. Obesity risks with it a number of diseases: hypertension, osteoarthritis, diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, gallbladder disease, sleep apnea and respiratory problems as well as cancer. Additional factors also come into effect, such as genes and family history. The probability of obesity increases if one parent is obese. Genes also affect the amount and location of fat you store in your body. If families eat unhealthy and lead sedentary lifestyles, the children of these families will be conditioned to do the same. Hormone deficiencies can also be inherited, causing individuals with slower metabolisms or underactive thyroid to have increased difficulties maintaining healthy weights. Certain medicines may can influence the body’s biology, further complicating attempts at weight loss. Without adequate countermeasures (exercise, monitoring of diet) this can lead to obesity. Emotional factors can also factor into

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