Obesity

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Chad Strickland

Mrs. Wilson

English 11 CP, Period 3

18 April, 2004

Obesity

Walk down any street where people talk, stand, shop, and play and there is a good chance to see an overweight individual. Some, in fact, will be so heavy that they would be considered obese. What is classified as obese in today's society? A BMI between 25-29 is considered overweight. How many Americans are obese? " In America, 58 million adults are overweight; 40 million are obese and three million suffer from life-threatening obesity." (Wellby 1). More alarming, child obesity is on the upswing. Dr. William Dietz points out, that during the decade and a half, between surveys, the incidence for six-to eleven-year-old boys and girls increase by over 50 percent and for teenagers by almost 40 percent (LeBow 1). Obesity has always existed in the United States, but now it has become an epidemic, surpassing smoking as the leading cause of death; this problem needs to be addressed.

Overweight and obesity are found worldwide, and the prevalence of these conditions in the United States ranks high along with other developed nations. Approximately 300,000 adult deaths in the United States each year are attributable to unhealthy dietary habits and physical inactivity or sedentary behavior (Flegal 1). Nearly two-thirds of U.S. adults are overweight (BMI greater than or equal to 25, which includes those who are obese) and one-third of them are obese (BMI more than 25). The prevalence of this disease known as obesity has steadily increased over the

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years among both genders, all ages, all racial groups, all educational levels, and all smoking levels. From 1960 to 2000, the prevalence of obesity during this time period more than doubled from 13.3 to 30.9 percent, with most of this rise occurring in the past 20 years (Flegal 1). Statistics show increasing obesity rates in the U.S. and an important study also found that food portions, both in homes and restaurants, are growing in size. In the past two decades food portions have increased in all foods in all places. Now extreme obesity is up even more in children, almost 100 percent and in teens, over 60 percent (LeBow 1). More youths and adults are getting fat, and fat youths and adults are getting fatter.

Many reasons exist as to why the obesity rate has skyrocketed like it has. First, modern life requires less physical activity than life even a few decades ago. As a result to fundamental changes in the economy, for example, there are now fewer labor-intensive jobs, such as farming and manufacturing, that require large amounts of physical exertion (Surge 1). With all this increasing reliance on technology, including everything from automobiles to microwaves, this has allowed Americans to do more with much less body energy. Also, there is some evidence to support the popular opinion that watching too much television can lead to weight gain, at least in children. In a study published in April 1996 Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, researchers found that 33 percent of children who watched more than five hours of television a day were overweight, and only 12 percent who watched less than two hours each day were overweight (Surge 1). Some people blame parents for their child's obesity. Parents say clean your plate if you want dessert. So kids get stuffed on dinner and still eat dessert even though they have no room left to eat.

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Parents are just fattening their kids up and not realizing it. Three other big factors that play a major role in the development of obesity are genetic factors, environmental factors, and psychological factors. Obesity tends to run in families. However, family members do not only share genes but also diet and lifestyle habits that may contribute to obesity. A person's genetic makeup is a strong determining factor of obesity. If a kid's parents are both overweight, then the kid has an 80 percent chance of becoming obese (Baxter 1). One theory says overweight youngsters are destined for intractable adult obesity because, as youngsters, they form and accumulate an excess of fat cells (LeBow 1). If overfed at critical stages of development it will set them up for future unrelenting obesity (LeBow 1). A person's environment also plays a significant part in obesity. Environment includes lifestyle behaviors such as what a person eats and how active he or she is. Most Americans do not get enough exercise and have high-fat diets that have no nutritional benefit for them at all. Today, people are more likely to eat foods, such as cheeseburgers, pizza, and fries, that are high in fat. Psychological factors may influence eating habits too. Many people eat in response to negative emotions such as boredom, sadness, or anger (Baxter 1). Now many people are starting to blame the fast food industry for the cause of obesity. As fast food has begun to increase rapidly, so has the obesity rate. At one point in the 1960s the obesity rate was at an all time low at four percent, with only a few fast food restaurants open. Now there are hundreds of thousands of fast food restaurants and the obesity rate has quadrupled in our population. Everyone says you have a choice whether to eat these high fatty foods or not. Society does not have a choice anymore nowadays to eat healthy. We are surrounded by unhealthy foods

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everywhere, at school, sporting events, amusement parks, restaurants, and fast food. If a person was starving and driving down the road looking for a place to stop and eat, that person would pass at least four unhealthy restaurants