Obesity In America

With obesity rates increasing at an exponential rate, a tax on fat foods and specifically high sugar beverages of 20% or about 1 cent per ounce could reduce obesity rates by 3.5%, bringing the rate down to 30% among adults (Kalaidis). While 3.5% may not sound like a lot, if you take an approximate U.S. population of 350 million people, suddenly that mere 3.5% turns into over 12 million Americans who would no longer be considered obese. Marion Nestle, a well-respected expert in food policy, recently conducted a study investigating the impact of a junk food tax through predictive modeling. Her study revealed that 2,600 deaths, 9,500 heart attacks, and 240,000 new cases of diabetes could be prevented with a simple 1 cent per ounce tax on sugary beverages (Satran). A junk food tax of this kind could greatly increase the health of the American public as a whole by reducing death rates and healthcare

Eating healthy has become a thing of the past. In the essay by Mark Bittman “Bad Food? Tax it, and Subsidize Vegetables Instead” offers an idea on how to change the Standard American Diet: making healthy food cheaper and fast, processed food more expensive. Calculating the tax to increase one penny would make a difference in the price and the decision for the people as to whether or not the people are will purchase processed foods. He explains that taxes on carbonated drinks and processed foods should increase due to the amount of money it would bring into the government, and the benefits of a healthier American. Bittman’s results remove chronic health diseases that reinvent the way we eat. In “Nickle and Dimed on Not Getting by in America,”

“ We have become a fast food Nation of bulging waistlines and high blood pressures.”,said Ronnie Cummins in his article, “ Tax on Junk Food Can Help Pay the Costs of Diet-Related Diseases.” Diet related obesity,diabetes and heart diseases are now USA’s number 1 public health problems because of non-healthy foods,this is why there should be a tax on junk food,why we should serve healthier lunches in school cafeterias ,and why we should restrict advertisements of junk foods in the mass media.Would taxing junk food ,eating healthier ,and restricting junk food advertisements be so bad if you thought about how many people it could save?

Who has not eaten junk food at least once? I did it, and to me, as to many Americans, the junk food is the most delicious type of food. However, I know it is the unhealthiest food and the main cause of obesity in the United States. On the other hand, the U.S. government feels that is important to intervene in junk food lover’s lives to help them to improve their health and their food choices. In order to combat the obesity and other health problems that junk food causes, the U.S. government has been looking for many ways to prevent and decrease the number of obese people in the country. They believe that adding taxes to the junk food is a great idea that might help people to

The United States of America, a nation that is known for it’s power, independence, and obesity. In the past few decades, this country has been suffering from an epidemic of obesity and diabetes. The government should increase the sales tax on fatty and high-sugar junk food to encourage healthy eating and help the American people. The revenue raised could be used to support greater causes and pay for health care reform. This might be the solution this country needs.

“Obesity happens one pound at a time, so does preventing it”(“Why Obesity…”). Though is does not seem like a big deal, gaining just a few pounds a year can have a huge toll on life. Preventing obesity can lead to a happy, long, and healthy life.

There is an epidemic striking the United States. This epidemic, one of obesity, can contribute much of its growth over the last half century to one common link: junk food. Michael Thomas, correspondent for U.S. News and World Report, doubts the effectiveness of imposing a “junk food” tax in an attempt to curb obesity. With support from respected scientists in the nutrition field, like Dr. Oliver Mytton, Mr. Thomas could not be more wrong. While people like Thomas believe there is little hope to solve this problem, in reality a junk food tax is the best approach we can take. If the government intervenes with taxation on unhealthy foods, there will be a less consumer demand for this food group and would mark a significant step in controlling the obesity epidemic.

Obesity is a large problem in our country that primarily comes from the consumption of junk foods. In the places where the tax has went into effect obesity has been down. It is also said that sugary drinks alone contribute to greatly to cases of type two diabetes. Mexico is one of the places that has implemented the junk food tax the sales of sugary drinks dropped by approximately five and a half percent in twenty fourteen, and nine and seven tenths percent in twenty fifteen (Sanger-Katz, Margot). It is estimated that one hundred eighty nine thousand three hundred cases of diabetes will be prevented with the junk food tax (Sanger-Katz, Margot) . It is also estimated that it could save up to eighteen thousand nine hundred lives. This junk food tax could decrease the problem of obesity and improve life

The rate of junk and fatty food consumption has grown in the United States compared to the past few decades. Lifestyle reports indicate that one of the primary issues that were altered is the type of diet that people consume. Currently, it seems like many people eat junk foods almost daily. Junk food refers to any diet that has insufficient nutritional value and unhealthy ingredients. The U.S. government should add extra taxes to junk foods to promote a healthier society. Authors Leicester and Windmeijer note that “whilst there is no ‘fat tax’ operating in the world at the moment, the idea is under active consideration in Ireland, where around 60% of people are overweight or obese” (8).

Marketing is a key factor in the increase of unhealthy snack options being bought. They should help encourage students and people by creating PSAs or commercials encouraging healthier habits. If we tax things like soda or french fries, things that are extremely fattening and bad for us then maybe we could use that money for making healthy food more affordable. (Bad Food? Tax it, and Subsidize Vegetables, Paragraph 3) If we use that money to subsidize vegetables they can be sold for $0.50 a pound. We can make them as available as chips and candy bars. (Bad Food? Tax it, and Subsidize Vegetables, Paragraph

Have you ever thinking of the solution scale down the expenditure of unhealthy food? In article “Taxing Junk Food to Counter Obesity” by Frank, et,al. they suggest a strategy to start taxing junk food in order to reduce the expenditure of unhealthy food. The principal points in this strategy are taxing nutrient, snack foods, and sugar-sweetened beverages. Researchers believe that if they increase the price of junk food, the consumers will think twice before buying them.

In today 's world, obesity has reached epidemic proportions – so much it has become a global epidemic. Coined 'globesity ' by the World Health Organization, obesity has more than doubled since the 1980s, and today more than 1.5 billion adults are considered overweight (1). Junk food comprises nearly one-third of the Standard American Diet while fresh fruits and vegetables make up only a mere 10 percent (2). In his news article 'Bad Food? Tax It, and Subsidize Vegetables ', New York Times columnist Mark Bittman proposes taxing junk foods to combat the obesity epidemic. He says that by doing so will address and decrease the number of obesity-related diseases that Americans are faced with today and also tremendously reduce public health costs as well (3). Although a solution is in dire need, a junk food tax to address the obesity issue does not seem suitable or even practical because it infringes on people 's freedom of choice in terms of what to eat and not eat, raises controversy about what is considered healthy and not healthy and as a result of which food items get taxed, is hypocritical to an extent because the government will be adding to the false belief that eating junk food is the more affordable option.

Another reason why people are proposing to impose a tax on unhealthy foods is because they believe that obese Americans are clogging our health care system. It is true that overweight people do increase health care spending, although only in the short term. A study was done where they investigated the short and long term health care costs of standard-weight and overweight people. In this study they found that a lot of obese people would increase the amount of money spent on health care by society now. Nevertheless, overweight people would use less money on health care, altogether, than a healthy person because the overweight people have a decreased life expectancy (“Does

Some states are deciding to impose or have imposed taxes on junk food to regulate the amount of junk food individuals buy. Many individuals believe that junk food should be taxed at a high price and that healthy foods should be cheaper. The selections, “Evolution’s Sweet Tooth” by Daniel E. Lieberman and “Bad Food? Tax It, and Subsidize Vegetables” by Mark Bittman, discuss the fact that many adults consume large amounts of unhealthy food products and that adults should eat more of healthy foods. The article, “Addiction to Unhealthy Foods Shouldn’t Require Government Regulation” by Jayson Lusk, discusses that many individuals have the right to eat anything they want and that it is more the individuals’ choice to eat right. Diseases such as Type II diabetes and heart disease can be associated to obesity and many individuals’ bad-eating habits. Many adults may continue to eat unhealthy but they shouldn 't allow their children to eat unhealthy as well. The government should put a tax on junk food in order to help persuade individuals to make healthier food choices; as a result, the percentage of individuals with obesity could lower.

When it comes to the topic of putting a tax on junk food, most of us will readily agree that it would help the obesity problem in America. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of taxing those foods and drinks that contain a lot of fat and sugar. Whereas some are convinced that it would help America tackle the obesity problem. Others maintain that it would just end up hurting America in many different other ways besides obesity. The current population of America would agree that having a tax on these products wouldn’t necessarily mean that I would cease the consumption of these food thus lowing the obesity epidemic in the country.