Once again, for the third time this week, Jimmy and his family are having McDonald's. However, he and his family eat a healthy diet on a regular basis throughout the week. In America today, cases like Jimmy's are not uncommon at all. There are many American families who struggle to make sufficient income and therefore, turn to cheap alternatives for food. In most cases it's fast food. However, the question proposed to America is, is fast food really to blame for obesity? Imagine that all the fast food chains in America vanished today. Would America's obesity problem suddenly be fixed? The answer, simply put is no. Fast food is not the cause of obesity in America. It's the rest of our diet. Many American households eat unhealthy diets consisting of many saturated fats, high in sugar, high in salt, and high in unburned calories. This type of diet especially becomes a problem when it is a person's sole source of nutrition, and they don't eat properly to balance their diets. If Americans continue eating this way, and continue to increase obesity nationwide, this can turn to an increase in health problems which may lead to death. This is the case with most of …show more content…
The CDC, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, determined that, “more than one-third of (34.9% or 78,6 million) American adults are obese” (Adult Obesity Facts, cdc.gov). Diseases that can be directly correlated with obesity include, “heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer” (Adult Obesity Facts, cdc.gov). As a result, “the estimated annual medical cost of obesity in the U.S. was $147 billion in 2008 U.S. dollars the medical costs for people who are obese were $1, 429 higher than those of normal weight ” (Adult Obesity Facts, cdc.gov). The causes of such an obesity epidemic should not be blamed on the availability of fast food. It is clear that obesity has more deeply rooted impacts on Americans than it seems on the
Obesity is defined as a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduce life expectancy and/or increased health problems. “The problem of obesity is increasing in the United States. Understanding the impact of social inequalities on health has become a public health priority in the new millennium. Social, political, and economic factors now are acknowledged to be "fundamental" causes of disease that affect behavior, beliefs, and biology.” (Goodman, 2003) In the United States today, obesity has become an enormous problem. In the last 3 decades, the number of people overweight has increased dramatically. Obesity has not always been seen as a medical
Obesity has become an epidemic in the United States. With such a significant percentage of the population (68.8% of Americans are overweight or obese) dealing with weight issues and with food marketing pushing cheap, fast food options, Americans are suffering from serious health consequences.
Obesity is the most preventable health issue in America. It is considered the main problem in the United States and also has been around for centuries. Despite the fact that countless individuals are unaware about the increasing statistics associated with obesity, more than seventy percent of men and women within the United States adult population are overweight or obese. When discussing the obesity epidemic in America, many people name fast food companies as the number one cause, but there are several factors besides fast food that further deepen the obesity epidemic. Medication, stress, psychological issues all contribute to the obesity epidemic in America.
According to the Center for Disease Control Obesity affects approximately one third of the United States’ adult population. Every state has an obesity rate of at least 15% and nine states in the United Stated have rates over 30% (CDC, 2010). Obesity affects some demographics more than others with Native Americans, Hispanics and African Americans experiencing higher rates of obesity than their white counterparts. The rate of obesity in the US has been rising “from 13.4% in 1980 to 34.3% in 2008 among adults and from 5% to 17% among children during the same period.” (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2010). Being obese carries severe health and financial burdens. People classified as overweight (having a BMI between 25 and 29.9) or obese (having a BMI of 30 or higher) have increased risk of developing heart disease, type 2 Diabetes, liver disease, stroke, certain types of cancers, sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, hypertension, abnormal menstrual cycles, Dyslipidemia and infertility (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2012). Medical spending for those who are obese is on average $1,429 per year higher than individuals of a healthy height. As Finkelstein explained in his 2009 study, “the connection between rising rates of obesity and rising medical spending is undeniable.” (Finkelstein, 2009, p. 831?)
The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention defines obesity as having a BMI over 30 (CDC). In the year 2000, roughly 30 percent of 20 year olds in America were obese. By 2003 that number had risen to 32 percent. That is a small window of increase. From the 1970s to the early 2000s, the percent of obese Americans doubled. This means that in 1970, only 15 percent of Americans were obese, and in the thirty years following, obesity took a sharp rise. In 1960, 13 percent of Americans were obese. The mean percent rise per year in the 1960s was 0.2 percent. The mean percent rise per year in the three decades following the 60s was 0.5, and then in 2000, the percent rise per year again increased, this time to 0.6 percent. This does not seem like
The most obvious economic impact of obesity in America is that of direct medical costs. In 2008 the United States spent $147 billion in direct medical costs of obesity (CDC, 2014). Additionally, obesity can largely increase the risk of health conditions such as coronary heart disease, stroke, blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, multiple forms of cancer, high cholesterol, high triglycerides, liver and gallbladder disease, sleep apnea, respiratory problems, osteoarthritis, infertility, and even mental health illnesses (CDC, 2011). Though some are higher contributors to medical spending they
Besides, escalating advances in technology has facilitated everyday life by creating more time-saving and labor-saving products, which results in a reduction in people’s energy utilization. Hence, in order to ameliorate the Americans’ lifestyle, it is necessary that stakeholders including the government, food industry, health care ministries as well as personal individual work together and find out solutions. Defined by World Health Organization (WHO), “obesity results from an imbalance of calorie intake and expenditure, and as a disease whereby the excess body fat has accumulated to the point where the health of the individual may be adversely affected” (qtd. in Stevens). When a person is overweight, their body mass index is usually over 25, and when a person is obese, their body mass index is usually over 30. “From 1960 to 2006 the number of obese Americans has increased from 13.4% to 35.1%”
America is suffering from a national eating disorder. Men, women, and children are eating more unhealthy than ever and paying the price for it. Obesity has become one of the top causes of death, after cigarettes. This begs the question, who’s to blame for all of this? Whether you believe it is the responsibility of consumers, companies, or the U.S government the truth is that it is no one and everyone’s fault. The obesity epidemic in America is a complex problem with complex causes, but its solutions are rather simple.
Part of all the confusion is that most of the sugars Americans eat on a daily basis is not REAL sugar and mostly just corn syrup. There is no doubt that America has an obesity problem and the main cause is not eating healthy or just not dieting correctly. That does not mean that we have to cut sugar completely from our diets it just means that we have to watch how much we put in our bodies.
Obesity is a big problem in the United States today. According to Harvard Women's Health Watch, “33% of American adults are obese, compared with 15% in the late 1970s. More than 60% of women are overweight or obese”. When it comes to losing weight, many people devotedly believe in the 80/20 rule, which is what and how a person eats is 80% of the effort in losing weight. This is somewhat disconcerting if these people live in America because of the obesity epidemic currently going on, which is caused by the many problems concerning America’s diet. One of the more important problems causing the obesity epidemic is portion control. Portion control, or the lack thereof, is a very important matter when it comes to eating healthy. Oversized
Everyone knows obesity is a big problem in America. Other countries see America as a ‘fat’ country and it is a growing problem that needs to be handled. The youth in America have even been influenced and have a problem themselves with teenage and child obesity. Although obesity is a big problem in America as a whole, teenage and child obesity is also a enormous problem that is growing every day.
Understanding obesity in America can be challenging and difficult. Here are some steps to be accomplished to reach the goals. Here are some steps: Exercise more, eat healthy food choices, and have portion control. There are about more than 60% Americans are obese and about 1 of 3 kids will develop obesity in life. Having this disease will cause some very hard damage to the body like; Having high blood pressure, heart disease, and will cause cancer. What is Obesity? Obesity is a “accumulation” of fat in the organism and grossly fat. . Here are some facts that can help you try and keep obesity under control. Obesity is a Chronic disease that will eventually take a whole lot time to take off the body mass and lots of medical treatment.
What are the reasons of obesity in America? There are so many reason that people get fatter and sicker every day. Study show that millions of people get effects of obesity in America. Some people get fat because they eat too many fast food, or lack of exercising, and sometime it is depend on genes of that person.
Obesity Rate in America has increased in since past few years .It has been noticed and discussed that the life style today has also contributed a lot in obesity and making people over weight. Life style has changed a lot since past few years, in this Article I will be discussing the causes of obesity. More than 2 in 3 Adults are considered to be overweight and obsessed. Almost 67% of the population are obese in U.S.Not only in U.S this matter is getting serious in the whole world now.
One third of all deaths related to cancer are linked to obesity. Not only does obesity effect the health of a person but also their workplace. 450 million days of work are lost because of health problems caused by obesity. Obesity also takes a terrible toll on the economy. Health costs attributed to obesity in the U.S. annually is $200 billion. Another sad fact is that communities in need are more likely to have a high obesity rate than their richer counterparts. The reason for this is, foods high in sugar are usually cheaper than healthier options and recreational resources are