What's Behind The Epidemic Of Obesity

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,”

Obesity is a continuing problem in the American society. Obesity, occurs when, the amount of energy taken is more than the energy released (Abraham 237). The growing obesity rates could be slightly declined by the availability of more affordable, healthier foods and the decline of these temporary quick fit diets, many Americans put themselves on as a means to get fit. The opposing viewpoint may suggest that obesity can be fixed simply by shopping for better, healthier food choices in grocery stores and learning how to count calories to maintain a healthy weight; but that simple solution may not be an achievable solution for every American. Furthermore, the difference of cost between healthy compared to unhealthy foods is completely outrageous. Numberless people strive to go into a grocery store and select all of the healthy food options of their liking; however, healthy food options cost more and are seemingly unaffordable compared to junk food. The government should regulate the prices of junk and healthy food as a means to combat obesity in America, so that all persons can achieve good health.

Obesity in America is an epidemic people die from this deadly disease. As people of America, we first need to understand what does it really mean to be overweight and uncomfortable? Nutritionists classify people in today’s society as either underweight, healthy weight, overweight, or obese. Being obese is not just a cosmetic problem. It’s a health issue that needs to be solved. Excess body fat accumulated over a period of time is harmful and it hurts.imagine walking around holding a ten-pound weight every day, then a few weeks later that ten-pound weight turns into a 2o pound weight. That’s not a good feeling it’s very comfortable. Who wants to have shortness of breath heart problems, diabetes, wheelchair bound or bed bound? Let’s make a change for humanity and the next generations.

As Americans we have made food not only a way to live but all help us with life events, whether emotional times or celebratory events we turn to food. However our society has been consumed with unhealthy food options readily available. This has in turn caused a huge medical epidemic in America. Obesity has and will put people at risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and some types of cancer. More than one-third of American adults are obese (Ogden et al., 2012). By looking in depth at the obesity epidemic in America through the three major sociological perspectives (structural functionalist, social conflict, and symbolic interactionist) we are able to better discern this medical issue impacting the health of American people.

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

Fed up is a documentary that investigates the recent obesity epidemic; the obesity epidemic is considered “recent” because there has been a steady rise in obese and overweight Americans since the 1980s. This film formulates its analysis of United States’ obesity epidemic by denouncing US politics and the food industry for their immensely adverse influence on America’s overall health. Moreover, there was also an emphasis on the science of obesity and childhood obesity.

The startling epidemic of rising obesity rates has caught everyone off guard considering that in the book “Obesity Dietary and Developmental Influences” it states that almost two-thirds of the current population is overweight or obese (Lopez 2). Considering that many adults and children are struggling with their weight, many experts try to pinpoint the exact culprit for the obesity rates and ways it can be diminished. The focus of this paper is to discuss who exactly is to blame for the rising obesity rates and different ways it could decrease based on certain author’s point of views. This is important because if the rates do not stop increasing, people will suffer whether its financially or medically. Many people often argue over which

Obesity in America is alarmingly increasing and the numbers are even bigger than they were a generation ago. Today, the attitudes towards dieting and exercise are some of the reasons why obesity is dangerously increasing in the United States. Obesity is not only caused by not exercising and eating healthy foods, but it is also caused by genetic factors. It has been so long since most Americans have had jobs that involved constantly moving because there is not a need for all Americans to be on the fields or on the factory floor doing all the work, so this causes more jobs that involve sitting throughout most of the work day.

America's obesity epidemic is a modern issue, where 45 years ago there was no such thing as 'statistics' for such a topic. This epidemic is affecting young adults from the ages 18-25 due to their new independent lives, and eating foods high in fats, sugars, and calories. Fast food restaurants and quick prep foods have also made it easy for one to fall into the 'trap' of eating unhealthy processed foods. It is very difficult, but not impossible to find something quick and easy to make, that is not processed. Another factor contributing to this would be of this age group living sedentary lives, with technology being a big part of causing these lifestyles. In order to combat this epidemic, we must educate people how to live healthy lifestyles

The Obesity Epidemic is a topic widely studied and mentioned in several contexts’ both medical and social. Obesity is described by Boero (2012) to have exploded in meaning Post- World War II to be more than a “physical flaw.” Weight concern became an idea that debuted in magazines mainly targeting women and emphasizing “natural thinness.” The disappearance of the normally worn “corset” and popularization of the typical 1920’s “boy catching” flapper, increased the production of diet products and the ideology of “desirable thinness” which gave birth to a social and moral model of obesity as a disease (Boero 2012). Throughout her book, Boero (2012) examines the ways in which the view of obesity has transformed into a medicalized epidemic, rather than a simple “flaw in human biology” in addition to the implications that come along with the “epidemic” title it has been given. Although there is a relationship between poor health and fatness, the Obesity epidemic would fail to exist in the absence of societies constant fat shaming, medicalization of fatness and an emphasis on individual blame. The Mayo Clinic’s “My Weight Solution” pamphlet and “The HAES Manifesto” each approach health and weight from a different angle. The Mayo Clinic’s pamphlet takes the Anti-Obesity Approach giving reasons as to why people should have a negative outlook on Obesity while also blaming a handful of obesity-related issues on the bad habits of an individual person. The HAES Manifesto adopts a more

The obesity epidemic is rapidly advancing in the U.S., leading to physical and mental health problems as well as having financial impacts. Although there are existing federal programs and policies that address the obesity problem, these policies do not seem to account for the urgency of the current situation. It is essential to examine new policy strategies to combat the growing threat of obesity. Policy strategies explored in this paper include implementation of federal subsidization of healthy meals and taxation on fast food.

With a growing epidemic of obesity in America, some states and lawmakers have resorted to taking unconventional measures in order to counter the growing issue. Many legislators are debating the effectiveness of a “fat tax” would be on limiting the consumption of soda, high fat foods, and high sugar foods, and ultimately reducing the rate of morbidity and mortality due to obesity. The idea is that long term consumption of high fat, high sugar foods and drinks lead to many health problems, so making them more expensive and less accessible should decrease the health issues related to their consumption.

Both sides agree obesity is becoming a critical problem that is in desperate need of attention, but the way it should be addressed has divided the nation. People who disagree with the taxing believe the restriction of sugary drinks will not help pave the way to long term healthy behavior. The taxation on sugary drinks is likely to be a burden on the poor since they’re susceptible to unhealthy behavior (Engber 643). In order to afford enough food for the family, they have to buy cheap food which means buying

Within the past 50 years, obesity rates have reached an epidemic level with the United States of America having one of the highest obesity rates in the world. America has become the poster child for obesity worldwide and that has become its most noticeable feature. Several presidents have tried implementing multiple short term solutions in recent years, but none have shown overall effectiveness in reducing the main cause of obesity: the over consumption of unhealthy and overly processed foods. The introduction of a sin tax on junk foods, often called the fat tax, has been suggested to both houses of Congress various times, increasingly so in the past few years. But with constant food industry lobbying, the tax has been rejected every time for superficial reasons and a drive for monetary gains instead of the health of their consumers. The consumers need results and efficient ones at that and that is where the fat tax becomes a viable option. The implementation of a fat tax, or a tax on unhealthy or processed foods, will minimize the obesity crisis, encourage consumers to purchase healthier food options, and reduce the overall sugar and fat intake.

The current issue of junk food consumption and the overall obesity battle in America continues to plague our nation. The suggestion to counteract this problem is the implementation of a “junk tax”. ProQuest states that, “’junk food tax’ refers to a tax placed upon fattening foods or beverages” (Par. 1). The intention of the tax is to minimize the consumption of unhealthy foods, which would expectantly lead to a healthier population. A junk food tax would also generate revenue for causes such as: improving diet, preventing obesity, and educating Americans about nutrition. The main purpose is to maximize health benefits. However, the tax has sparked controversy about interfering with freedom of choice and personal liberties.