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CAUSES of obesity
Obesity in america research paper
Obesity, health issues and fast food
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Obesity is a largely spread issue throughout America. Did you know that 35.7% of Americans are considered to be obese? Not only that, but 1 in 20 are considered to be extremely obese (The State of Obesity). These seem to be some pretty high numbers, and in many peoples lives the label of “overweight” or “obese” can cause many other issues throughout their life. Just as Anna Mae is addicted to McDonalds in the play “French Fries”, many Americans have addictions to things such as fast food chains. Are restaurants, such as McDonalds to blame for issues such as obesity in Americans? Many would argue yes.
I mentioned the amount of Americans that are considered to be obese in the United States, but lets break those numbers down a bit more. It is
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With the average meal consisting off 800 calories, Anna Mae would be consuming almost 3,000 calories a day.
The question on many peoples minds is if fast food chains are the cause of obesity in Americans. Many would argue yes, the amount of calories in these meals are insane and the only choices offered by fast food restaurants seem to be unhealthy ones. There are many different options provided at fast food restaurants, but the only healthy option that is normally offered is something like a salad. Many people do not enjoy salad, but do prefer to eat healthy. Could the answer to this problem be to simply add more healthy options to fast food restaurants
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Although they can be extremely tempting, not to mention easy on the wallet. That in no way makes them a good food option. Americans are obese by personal choice, thats why anyone is obese in all honesty. If we choose to eat unhealthily, not exercise, and let stress rule our lives then weight gain is sure to follow. If we as Americans want to lower the rates of obesity, we need to focus on healthier lifestyles. Weight loss and an improved way of life will
“For someone not to know that a big mac is unhealthy is ignorance, and ignorance is not the responsibility of the fast food industry,” (Daniel Speiser). The amount of fast food joints has largely increased which has become a problem for many people throughout the United States. Several people place the blame for the rising obesity among children on the rising fast food industries due to its convenience, price, advertising, and somewhat un-nutritional content. Some people even take it as far as court to place blame on the fast food industries and for those industries to make changes to their restaurants. The high percentage of obese children in the United States is not caused by the fast food industry. The obesity epidemic has other outside influences, the fast food industries have changed dramatically, and people should take responsibility for their own consumptions. It is time for people to stop placing the blame on others and take responsibility for themselves and their actions.
Studies have linked obesity to many things from ear infections, to pollution, to air-conditioning, to socializing with obese people. The reason Americans are obese is because of the increasing luxury available to them. Obesity is a rising problem in the United States, and with all the privileges given to its citizens, the country has become increasingly lazy. With portion sizes rising and physical activity decreasing, it is easy to see how obesity rates have skyrocketed.
Fast food has infiltrated every nook and cranny of American society. Everywhere you turn you can see a fast food restaurant. An industry that modestly began with very few hot dog and hamburger vendors now has become a multi-international industry selling its products to paying customers. Fast food can be found anywhere imaginable. Fast food is now served at restaurants and drive-through, at stadiums, airports, schools all over the nation. Surprisingly fast food can even be found at hospital cafeterias. In the past, people in the United States used to eat healthier and prepared food with their families. Today, many young people prefer to eat fast food such as high fat hamburgers, French-fries, fried chicken, or pizza in fast
Obesity is an epidemic in America. Fast food can be compared to the same type of mindless addiction as cigarettes, and can be equally as dangerous. Not only is there a problem with fast food restaurants, but the food industry as a whole. Slaughterhouses that control 80% of the market produce meat in such a way that is not healthy for consumption, in turn the products are doused in harmful chemicals and still served to the public. No wonder the obesity rate in America is 69% and rising. Obesity is a true problem in our country- people are neglecting their health and quite literally eating themselves to death.
Since the 1960?s obesity in America has more than tripled regardless of sex or race. Today 30.5 percent, or 69 million, American Adults are considered obese (?AOA Fact Sheets? np). In addition, 13 percent of children aged 6-11 years old are considered overweight, and well on their way to becoming obese. Obesity causes over 300,000 deaths a year and costs the country $117 billion dollars, prompting health care providers and the government to label it an epidemic (?Overweight and Obesity?? np).
One out of every three Americans is obese, and the majority of these obese people in the United States have eaten regularly at fast food restaurants. As the obesity rate increases, the number of fast food restaurants goes up as well. Although it is not certain, many believe that obesity in the United States is correlated to eating fast food. Since the United States has the highest obesity rate out of any country, it is important for Americans to monitor the fast food industry that may be causing obesity. With the pressure to get things done in a timely manner, fast food has become a big necessity.
Ask a teenager what their favorite fast food restaurant is and most of them will probably say McDonalds. "McDonalds operates approx. 30,000 restaurants on 6 continents, and feeds about 46 million people in a single day! In the U.S. alone, McDonalds accounts for 43% of the fast food market." Manhattan alone contains 82 restaurants packed into the island (Super Size Me). McDonalds has been criticized by the media and other people for offering too many unhealthy choices on their menu, therefore leading to obesity in America. Eating too much McDonalds, or any other fatty food, will give you many long term health problems.
Take a second to understand why fast food firms choose to sell products that are unhealthy. Their unhealthy products are in a high demand in the food market; in fact, they are simply giving us what we demand for. Most firms have started putting food labels on their menus so there is no room for excuse when making the right food choices. Nobody is forcing us to eat a whole box of Krispy crème donuts or a super-size meal at McDonalds. I believe that we are always looking for shortcuts in life and now we can anticipate there is a shortcut in what we put into our bodies. So we are consistently after things that are cheap, fast and affordable. Who better to attend to our needs than the fast food industry?
The connection it has with the obesity is that the epidemic is caused by high consumption of fat, sugar, and salt (Hogan). Fast food is literally contributing to obesity by providing unhealthy food restricted to people at risk for obesity and even with those with obesity. In the article Fast Food, David Hogan found out the most fast food restaurants’ menus offer burgers, fries, soda, and desserts. Those types of food are unhealthy where burgers contain the high amounts of fat, fries contain a lot of salt, while sodas and desserts contain excess amounts of sugar. These types of food are considered as junk food that the body does not necessarily need to consume, but they are often eaten for the delicious taste from the high amounts of fat and sugar they contain (Wolin and Petrelli). Fast food is also providing quick service by frying a lot of the foods to provide a quick service and hot food (Hogan). Fried food is considered unhealthy from the high amount of fat needed to cook the fried foods which is restricted to those with obesity (Wolin and Perelli). Hogan also noted that McDonalds and Burger King are fast food restaurants that regularly compete in the fast food industry. Since unhealthy delicious food has been on demand in the food industry for many years, these fast food restaurants compete by serving those foods to stay in business (Hogan). Obesity is therefore
America is one of the most obese countries in the world, and the reasons are quite obvious. Take a look around. Fast food chains on every block, more and more technology to make our lives easier, and high amount of stress are just a few factors to weight gain in our country. There are many different views on obesity and how the people think it should be resolved, whether it's government making the change or the people taking care of themselves. Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 30 years. Are we doing enough to bring these statistics down? No. In the last 40 years, there has been a growth to more than 160,000 fast food restaurants in America (“Adolescent and School Health”). Restaurants (such as Wendy's, McDonald's etc.) serve more than 50 million people per day, generating about 65 million in sales annually. Only since obesity has become a national epidemic have fast food restaurants changed their ways. But we need to do more than just change the kind of oil the french fries are fried in. Better yet, why don't we remove, or intensely decrease the number of the unhealthy fast food chains, and spread more healthy fast food chains, such as Subway? Is it something government could take act in? Should the United States government take measures to fight the rise of obesity in the country, or are choices concerning diet and nutrition better left to the individuals, free of government interference?
Even though fast food restaurants are fast and quick in an emergency, getting rid of fast food should lower the over population of overweight people. Provided fast food restaurants usually don’t use real meat, and without real meat there are more fats and preservatives than our body needs. At HELPGUIDE.org they say that just one meal at a fast food restaurant can hold enough calories, sodium, and fat for that entire day! (Paul and Robinson 1) Not only are they unhealthy, but they are unclean. An illustration is that when you go to get your drink, look up the ice dispenser. Many times there will be mold. There is a way to eat healthier at a fast food restaurant, but it will not be as enticing.
Is fast food to blame for the growing obesity in America? Obesity affects more than half of the population. With so many Americans gaining weight and so many health problems the matter has to be addressed. There is no one would argue that obesity, especially the children is considered a problem. In any case the cause of childhood obesity is fought about daily. Many people will say that fast food restaurants are to blame. In my research, I will explain the argument that who is to blame for the obesity in America: fast food restaurants or common laziness from the obese society.
“Why are Americans so fat?” Almost 36 percent of men and women are obese. Not just overweight or fat, but OBESE. That percentage is about to increase within a couple of years, because fast-food establishments are popping up on every corner. The amount if calories in a simple burger is crazy. Americans should blame fast food restaurants because they have cheaper food prices, larger proportion sizes, and it is more convenient.
The percent of Americans being overweight or obese is increasing. There is a study that suggests that by 2030, 86 percent of Americans could be overweight or obese. Being overweight involves a lot of health problems, but being underweight is worse than being overweight. People also do not feel confident when their overweight.
Today, many people eat fast food instead of home made food. The reason is that fast food is fast, cheap and convenient. However, at the same time, fast food is contributing to a big social problem in the U.S., which is obesity, and recently some people are beginning to sue the fast food companies for causing their obesity. Should the fast food companies have responsibility for American's obesity? My answer for this argument is "No". I think that whether people eat fast food or not is an individual choice. There are many people who eat fast food, but aren't obese. They may do some exercises for burning calories, or try not to eat fast food as much as they can, caring for their health. Moreover, some fast food companies serve relatively healthy foods, such as Baja Fresh, Subway and so on. Even though people don't have enough money or time to eat except for fast food, they can choose those fast food shops. Therefore, the responsibility of obesity should be taken by obese people, though fast food companies should also take actions to decrease the number of these people by showing their food's calories, serving healthy food, and giving more choices.