Solutions To The Obesity Problem In America

I will be the first to admit, I was not a lean child by any means.

Many studies have shown that obesity is not only around but it’s here to stay and it’s on the rise. In (the obesity blame game 2006) Lorraine Heller explained that “being overweight comes down to a simple balance: energy intake versus energy burned and a fundamental Change in lifestyle has resulted in the last part of the equation being increasingly ignored”. In today’s society many Americans want to have someone to blame, shoving bad food into one’s body at a fast food restaurant isn’t the peoples fault, it’s the fast food industries fault. Now that doesn’t sound right, now a days many people prefer to eat out in America people are always busy. When hungry and in a hurry there are many fast, convenient, and healthy items available. Many people who insist that fast-food chains are a main cause of obesity in America because there are a plethora of fast-food restaurants on every block with few healthy alternatives, are not looking at the whole picture. Mark Bittman stated “in 2010 the average American, regardless of weekly earnings, watched no less than an hour and a half of television per day. The time is there” (is junk food really cheaper?

Obesity has been a problem in the US for many years. It is a problem that regards to peoples personal health, but is also a threat to public policy in America. The article “Obesity Lessons for Liberals and Conservatives” addresses this idea of obesity and the ways in which the government has gotten involved. The government’s involvement with this issue makes it controversial. The article specifically examines the controversy about a decision that was made by the U.S.D.A. in 2009. The W.I.C program, short for the Supplemental Nutritional Program for Women, Infants, and Children, was revised changing the list of foods that could be bought with the coupons provided by this federal program for the better. Now people could buy healthier items

Obesity: one of the nation’s most critical health problems. “Overweight is defined as having excess body weight for a particular height from fat, muscle, bone, water, or a combination of these factors. Obesity is defined as having excess body fat” (“Centers for Disease Control and Prevention”). When energy input and output get out of balance, obesity arises. Many factors can cause someone to become obese such as genetics, metabolism, level of physical activity, and more. “Overweight and obesity are the result of “caloric imbalance”—too few calories expended for the amount of calories consumed—and are affected by various genetic, behavioral, and environmental factors” (“CDC Features - Obesity & Genetics”). “When a person eats and drinks more calories than he or she burns, the energy balance tips toward weight gain, overweight, and obesity” (“Understanding Adult Overweight and Obesity”). Obesity is increasing throughout the United States due to lack of healthy behaviors, big health risk, genetics and increasing in children and adults.

Unfortunately, Americans are consuming more fast food now than ever before. In 1952 there was exactly one McDonalds in all of America, an entire six-pack of Coca-Cola had fewer ounces of soda than one can has today, and less than 10% of the Americans were obese. In the decades that followed, obesity slowly began to rise; many did not think anything of if it until obesity hit a shocking 23% in 1994. Helen states, “From then on obesity across the United States began to rise until 2005 when it hit a record of 35% of adults and 15% of children were obese”. Today, we call this massive spike in obesity rate the Obesity Epidemic. Usually when one hears the word “epidemic” they think of sickness or illness, well

Many people criticize these actions with the ideas that, if the government provides too much help for its people, then the people cannot help themselves. If people cannot help themselves they are doomed to the cycle of pleading for more solutions and outside help than they would truly need. Radley Balko explains this in his article entitled “What You Eat Is Your Business.” In this article, Balko conveys the idea that government is getting in the way of allowing people to fix their own problems. One strong point from Balko is, “if the government is paying for my anti-cholesterol medication, what incentive is there for me to put down the cheeseburger” (397). The idea is that there needs to be a lessening of government control over the foods the American population decides to eat on a daily basis. When there is an intervention of a higher authority, such as the government, it causes people to feel as though their actions are not a result of their own, but the result of something the average person cannot control. A healthy diet is a personal responsibility that anyone can control on their own, medical conditions excluded. Balko also has the belief that there should be a penalization if a person can be physically classified as obese. This penalty should be from the person’s insurance, causing a person to take responsibility for their health will force them to take up healthier options to avoid such penalties. Michael Pollan, writer of “Escape from the Western Diet,” agrees with Balko that the health care system is a part of what is causing this problem. Pollan, however, believes it is more problematic that we keep creating medications to endure the problems associated with obesity rather than finding ways to combat the main problem at hand. Pollan’s main point is for people just to pay attention to what they eat and how it affects them. If a person stays

In America Obesity has become an epidemic. It has claimed over 400,000 lives just in the last year alone. This is because 1 in 4 Americans eat at Mcdonalds and other fast food restaurants every day where they are served “toxic food”. With the rise of fast food all over the world obesity has doubled in the past 20 years. At this rate obesity is expected to pass smoking in deaths. If this trend continues 1 in 3 children will get diabetes and 1 in 20 will develop type 2 diabetes in their lifetime. Also 17 million people have diabetes just in the U.S. Also Mcdonalds has spent over 1.4 billion on ads to promote their food.

The United States has finally reached its success of dealing with an existing worldwide known problem, as known as,global warming. With a decrease of manmade carbon dioxide emissions, the United States has finally,after so many decades, eliminated the tremendous amount of carbon dioxide in the air. Now the US has turned from a dumpster into a healthy environment for those who have never craved or eaten the meals of fast food restaurants. We must owe it to the citizens of the United States and their oily fast food restaurants who have made reaching an international goal a success so quickly. These brave and patriotic customers are helping our country to eliminate the high chances of global warming and extinction of humanity by eating the burgers and french fries of fast food restaurants. In which, they will result in excessive weight in just a week and their soul and body will be covered in the holy grounds of our gratitude. We will always remember those who have given up their life and obesity to save our country. Please pray for their generosity and patriotism when they get to their destination in heaven, especially the children who didn't get to live their life to the fullest.

In 2003, while speaking before the Subcommittee on Education Reform of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, Dr. Richard Carmona, the Surgeon General of the United States in 2002-2006, claimed a health crisis that was affecting young Americans all over the country. He defined this issue as “the crisis of obesity” (Carmona par. 5). The Surgeon General appealed to the Committee and the community of the United States for health improvement of the nation. However, 10-14 years later Carmona’s testimony, the situation continues to look epidemic. The studies argue that fast food still remains preferable for the overwhelming majority, and teens and young adults represent the main target objectives of the food producing companies. Although

America has faced many problems in its history, but today obesity is the largest. More than 2 in 3 adults are overweight or obese, and one third that of our nation’s children and adolescents ages 6-19 are overweight or obese (Overweight and Obesity Statistics, October 2012). Factors contributing to our high obesity rates are our unhealthy diets, lack of exercise, and genetics. How did it get this bad? Is it possible for us to lower these numbers or is it too late? It seems we are all so busy these days with working long hours. After parents work 10+ hours a day then stay for after school activities or volunteering multiple times a week. It’s so convenient to use the drive thru at a fast food restaurant to grab dinner and eat on the go or to

As many countries succeeded in fighting obesity, applying the same strategies used by those countries may solve obesity problem in the United States. To fight obesity, we have always tried the same methods which includes raising awareness, clarify the side effects of fast food and making cheap food easily reachable to everyone. No matter how great those ideas are and how wide they are applicable, obesity still concerns 70 % Americans. As a result, thinking outside of the box and applying several new ideas may help us improving overweight and obesity, at least childhood obesity. As obesity occurs in America generally for kids and teenagers, we should try to fix the problem from its origins. In other words, kids should be aware of the quality of fast food and should be offered an alternative daily healthy meal. Various nations have banned fast food advertisement in parks, public schools and kid’s TV channels. They are applying the “zoning” strategy which force kids indirectly to access healthy food. Based on the center of Science and Public Interest,

Obesity is a prominent issue not just because the public ignores it, but because the current consumer culture enables it. The key to solving any problem is to figure out the cause. The cause to obesity is simply the decisions made by the consumer and the producer. By examining the root cause of the problem, steps can be made to rectify the obesity epidemic in this country. One issue is, that companies are more concerned with what will make them fast, easy money than they are concerned with how their product will influence public health. Another issue is the decisions the consumer makes when buying food. Society is responsible with providing better choices, but it is up to the individual to make consistent, healthy decisions for themselves. However, the choice to eat something unhealthy has more complex roots with economics, time, and marketing. The means and resources are often not available to lower socioeconomic families when making the decision on what to buy. Like many daunting challenges that require reform, the obesity epidemic in this country is a complex problem with multiple variables. By examining the market-consumer relationship of the food industry, a few of the issues propagating the obesity epidemic can be studied and reformed.

Obesity problems, which one-third of Americans struggle with, is a “HUGE” problem in our society, no pun intended. The problems they encounter are numerous, including being bullied, low self-esteem, and often are the subject of jokes, such as the one often used by children, “fatty, fatty two by four, can’t get in the kitchen door!”. Being obese not only comes with mental and social issues, but there are also health and financial problems - whether you are not able to get a job because of the way you look or develop health issues such as heart disease or diabetes. Having to purchase two plane tickets because the seats are too small for an obese person is an unfair practice.

Obesity is spreading all across America and it is killing nearly as many citizens as cigarettes. People blame the individuals for not having self control and believe the Fast-Food industries are innocent. While some responsibility lies in within the individual, the main cause is the Fast-Food industry.

Crunch, Crunch, Crunch is what a person hears when people eat junk and other unhealthy foods. Every day, people are struggling with their weight which, as a result, can lead up to a serious disease. Diseases such as diabetes, heart attacks, heart failures, and strokes can lead to death if people in America do not watch their weight. Obesity these days has spread over the years and more and more people seemed to be affected by it. A study shows that in 2009, 61% of American adults are obese while 20% of children between 3-5 years old are obese. (“Obesity”). The government has tried various methods to decrease that percentage; nonetheless, the percentage of obesity has still increased. Sadly, obesity today is consider a disease that needs treatment. The best solution to obesity is exercising. Exercising every day will help Americans stay in shape and lose weight little by little. If everyone in this country contributed to this solution, then the percentage of obesity will gradually decrease; making our country head to a healthy direction in the future.+