Research Proposal Obesity in the U.S

Daniel Benitez

ENC1102 - Writing and Rhetoric II

June 30, 15

United States struggles with obesity

Research question

As known from a long time, obesity is one of the most worrying problems of many societies, and particularly in the United States, which has an alarming character, according to The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), more than one-third of adults and 17 percent of youth. By the numbers, 78 million adults and 12 million children are obese. This epidemic affects the health of individuals in a direct way. Lifestyle and food are at the root of many of the problems of obesity in this country.

It is particularly worrying that obesity disorder starts in childhood and adolescence, and it condemns millions of children to become overweight adults, with fatal consequences for their health. When we talk about education and values, obesity is often left aside, despite the many problems it causes, including huge medical costs of care for health problems related to obesity. This nutritional disorder threatens the health and life quality of an increasing number of Americans. It is definitely an ongoing plague, which acts as a catalyst for the destruction of the younger generation. For this reason, I will conduct a research to evaluate and clarify questions such as (1) what causes obesity in the United States? (2) To what extend obesity is affecting the United States. (3) What measures if taken would be capable of fighting obesity in the country? This study will try to descriptively identify the strategies in America to combat obesity, specifically those that are suggested by professional dieticians and health experts.

Review of Stakeholders

Obesity is a disorder that cost many people lives, and probably affects the economy within a country. Nobody can possibly deny that it is painful, and tough to see a person you love going through a hospital surgery, which involves possibilities of dying on the process, in order to solve the issue. For example: My brother lived this terrible experience, and I felt powerless and impotent, not being able to help him with my advices. Therefore, Strategies must be established to prevent this devastating condition from happening. My research will try to solve the concern from many perspectives as possible. It will focus on analyzing obesity in a specific country; the United States, since it is one of the countries with highest obesity rate, worldwide.

In my perspective, this disease must be eradicated, and the United States, with its immense capacity, must take the lead on this issue. Confronting this problem would not be easy at all, but if it stays as a matter of interest to both its citizens and the government, there will be a positive change. As a result, any campaign against obesity, either from the government or from private initiatives, must be received with enthusiasm and support in order to get effective results.

Literate review

Obesity is a severe worry because it is related with poorer psychological health outcomes, reduced quality of life, and the principal causes of death in the United States, and globally, including some types of cancer, heart disease, psychosocial effects, respiratory problems, and diabetes. The Stanford Health Care center published information in their website under the tittle “Effects Of Obesity”. According to this information, the United States surgeon general has announced that obesity has reached epidemic proportions approximately, 35% of women and 31% of men are considered seriously overweight, and 15% of children between the ages of 6 and 19 are overweight. So there is a high rate of obesity among Americans, and some measures should be taken in order to end or prevent this epidemic disease. According to Stanford Health Care, it is extremely important to prevent obesity in children because “the likelihood of obese becoming obese adults is thought to increase from about 20 percent at four years of age to 80 percent by adolescence”.

Trevir Nath published an article in the investopedia website, titled “The Economic Cost Of An Obese Society”, on April 17, 2015 which informs about how connected is the obesity epidemic to U.S. economy. Trevir says, that in America, the obesity treatments have boosted the cost of