The United States of America keeps getting bigger everyday, and I don’t mean the country, I mean us, it’s inhabitants. Obesity is turning into a runaway epidemic, and is it any wonder; there is food everywhere. Go to the mall and you have any number of deep fried, pickled, breaded foods to choose from, not to mention the sweets, ice cream, cinnamon buns, cookies, the list is very nearly endless. According to the Obesity Action Coalition the number of fast food restaurants has doubled in the past 45 years to 300,000. Some argue there is a link between the growing number of fast food restaurants and fast food chains and Americans ever expanding waist lines. So, how can we address this issue? And whose fault is it that Americans are fat and getting fatter all the time? Is this a question of individual responsibility or of social responsibility?
Here are a few statistics on obesity from the Obesity Action Coalition. It is estimated that around 93,000,000 Americans are obese, those living in poverty are more affected than those who don’t, and obesity increases the risk of many diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. Obesity is probably a combination of attitude, genes, and our surrounding environment. I remember growing up as a child and being inducted into the “clean plate club”; you better eat all that, children are starving all over the world, was the mantra of the day. And the cost of obesity in the United States in reference to insurance and medical care reaches into billions of dollars spent.
It’s pretty easy to point the blame at others, and in this litigious society in which we live, it makes it even easier to place the blame on the fast food industry, and media in general, than to just put the fork down and step away from the table. I know this may be over simplifying things, but in reality it could be that easy and it is likely going to take a combination of personal and social responsibility to elicit behavioral changes. What this means is this is an issue that needs to be addressed at every level, macro to micro and from individual to fast food chains and the food industry itself.
So far we have discussed the obesity epidemic, we have pondered, or contemplated if you will, a few questions about the wherefores of the issue, and we have presented a few facts about obesity. Now it is time to explore a solution. Here are a few things to think about. Overeating and lack of activity are probably the biggest contributors to obesity and to change attitudes surrounding these two issues individuals need to make lifestyle changes that are easily attainable, realistic, and fun. The old tried and true solution that does work, is eating healthy and exercising, seems simple, and yet we still have this growing epidemic. It is encouraging to see some of the changes that are being made such as schools offering healthier lunch options and fast food chains making the nutritional value of their menus available, however, it seems like this is still not enough. In reality, something as important as being healthy does take work in this day and age. Times have changed so much with invention of the microwave, which birthed all those highly processed foods you can just pop in the microwave and presto, instant gratification. Let’s think about baking an apple pie in 1950. There was no other way to make that pie other than by scratch and by the time that pie was on the table for dessert, everyone around the table had put in a full day of activity and a piece of pie was probably not going to make them fat. Now we can just buy a frozen pie and put it in the oven, or go to the local bakery and buy one. The point here is this is a different world we lived in 30 or 40 or 50 years ago, we were more active then, we ate smaller portions, and none or very little of the food we ate was processed.
The conundrum remains then, how do we stop this epidemic? I think it will take a many pronged approach, including parenting, schools, social messages, a complete over haul of how we think about food and activity needs to happen. However, a good start is working changing how we think about food and exercise, or as the Obesity Action Coalition says it, behavior modification and physical activity. It should be noted that it is understood now that losing weight isn’t as easy as just eating less and moving more, it is still the most effective way to control weight. Some helpful ways to do this include, tracking what you eat, eating mindfully, and cutting out processed and junk foods. As for moving more, we need to keep in mind to choose activities we enjoy and will be more likely to maintain.
Social cognitive theory would hold that obesity isn’t just a behavioral problem, but cognitive as well. It is how we perceive ourselves in comparison to those around us and media bombarding us with images of impossibly thin and perfect women, is it any wonder we become discouraged and reach for another cookie or pint of ice cream. It is our individual responsibility to care for ourselves and attain the knowledge we need to be healthy, as well as make those lifestyle changes to eat healthier and move more. On the other hand it is also the responsibility of social media to show more realistic images of what women really look like.
To conclude then, the problem is obesity, the question is how can we reduce obesity rates in the United States. We theorize that if we eat mindfully and move more we will have better control over our weight. To date we have concluded that losing weight is more complex than we originally thought, but to date, this method is the best we have. And as to where the fault lies, the answer begs that this is social and individual responsibility; we are all responsible.
http://www.obesityaction.org/educational-resources/resource-articles-2/nutrition/fast-food-is-it-the-enemy
I thought your post was accurate and very well written, and I only have a few questions/comments for you. I would like to know what your thoughts are on the costs of eating healthy. Throughout the past few months, I have spent a significant amount at the grocery store…both in time and money. I spent a great deal of time looking at the characteristics of the food I was choosing and picking the food that had higher nutritional value. I was more cognizant of the ingredients in each item and only chose items which I found would have a higher nutritional value.
When I went to the register, I found that something else went higher with the nutritional value…the price. Unfortunately, it costs more to eat healthier! This is not strictly an observation that I have made, but was also noted by researchers at Harvard who reported in their study that “in 2012, 1000 kcal of “healthy” food cost approximately $12, while 1000 kcal of unhealthy food cost only $4” (Bekiempis, 2014). For many poor families throughout our country, the reality is they must find places to save financially, and food becomes one of those areas.
I completely agree with everything that you wrote in your blog post, as I believe the thought process surrounding being healthy and active is just as important as the actual action of it. I agree that there are many things that can be done to make small changes in our lives which will lead to increased health (such as drinking more water). I do feel as though this is a societal problem as well and we must look at the growing cost of food in comparison with the lack of growth of people’s incomes.
Bekiempis, V. (2014). Healthy Food Is Growing More Expensive than Unhealthy Food: Study. Newsweek. Retrieved from http://www.newsweek.com/healthy-food-more-expensive-unhealthy-food-study-276161.