Childhood Obesity Epidemic Everybody is always talking about childhood obesity in the Houston. They say we feed our children junk food, and that they get very little playing time outside, but do you know that childhood obesity happens not only in the Houston but all over the United States? Even in some other countries. The childhood obesity rate has climbed in other cities such as St. Louis, Great Britain, Washington D.C, and Philadelphia. But the main question this paper will answer is, “What causes the childhood obesity rate to rise in these different cities and how can we prevent them?” As we know the main causes to obesity is lack of exercise or poor eating habits, but in these different cities those aren’t the only reasons that childhood
According to the American Academy of pediatrics states that children are getting less playtime, because of the no child left behind act. Research has shown that children engage in less physical activity in the summer and gain weight two to three times faster. Watching television can cause a big issue with childhood obesity. When children are viewing TV different commercials advertise unhealthy foods. When they see that it makes them want high and fatty foods.
Cody Dilsaver Ms.Martin English 110 11/3/14 Childhood Obesity in America Childhood obesity has developed into one of the biggest problems America faces today. Around the world, America has developed a reputation of obesity, something we should be humiliated of. It wasn’t like that 30 years ago; our society has developed a lifestyle accustomed to binge eating and immobility. Portion sizes have increased, fast food has become a cheap and convenient alternative for dinner, and children’s social lives have deformed into web-based. The responsibility to prevent and repair childhood obesity is primarily on the shoulders of parents, government, and children themselves.
Today, we live in a consumerist society where cheap high-sugar and caloric foods are easily accessible everywhere you go. Many people who eat these ‘foods’ on a regular basis don’t realize the repercussion it has on their life and most importantly, on their children and their diet. Child obesity is a growing concern that has been getting much more serious throughout the decades. There have been several studies conducted in Australia to see why these children are making such poor food choices that cause their obesity. Several factors, of course are quite obvious such as the foods that are accessible to them at home and fast-food chains that swallow their attention with toys and other things they market in commercials.
David starts by teasing these overweight individuals that are bring a lawsuit against McDonalds, but then later admits that he used to be overweight as a child and was able to change his life around. He made a point to show health concerns with being obese and eating fast food regularly, such as type two diabetes which has risen about twenty-five percent since 1994. This raise in diabetes also requires much funding for the United States to spend to try to find a cure. David explains how there is very few alternatives for the youth of America because those health alternatives are more expensive and harder to find. False advertising is also another unpleasant practice that fast food companies use to lure in costumers.
“Over the past few decades, the food and home environments have changed tremendously. Environmental influences that affect eating behaviors include the changing nature of the food supply; increased reliance on foods consumed away from home; food advertising, marketing, and promotion; and food prices” (St-Onge, Keller, & Heymefield, 2013). Obese children are affecting the world of microeconomics. Microeconomics is solely dependent on how much and what is consumed by individuals. With many children experiencing obesity, the economy markets are affected because the way children are forced to change the way they eat.
Rhetorical Analysis of Super Size Me Fast foods are one of the leading causes of major problems like obesity for many Americans today. An average man, Morgan Spurlock, decides to conduct an experiment dealing with the effects of consuming too much fast food. The film Super Size Me, a persuasive documentary following Spurlock’s experiments, aims to show the danger of fast food, particularly focusing on McDonald’s food, on consumers’ health. Its purpose is to bring awareness to the public about corporate responsibility concerning the food consumers eat, such as McDonald’s, which makes them overweight. In his documentary, Spurlock eats only food from McDonald’s for a month (thirty days) to see how his health can be affected and he is examined by three doctors before, during, after the experiment.
Who Is To Blame? Daniel Weintraub’s article, “The Battle Against Fast Food Begins in the Home,” argues “26 percent of school children (in California) are overweight.” (42) So who’s to blame for this epidemic? According to Weintraub, “It’s the fault of parents who let their kids eat unhealthy food and sit in front of the television or computer for hours at a time,” (42) Many of our country’s people blame the fast food industry for over-advertising, selling unhealthy food, and selling oversized portions. However, others such as Weintraub argue that obesity is a matter of parent responsibility. I do agree with him at a certain degree that parents are the ones to blame instead of fast food companies.
Personal Responsibility This article is titled “Don’t Blame the Eater” and is written by David Zinczenko. He writes about how the fast food industry takes advantage of the younger generations because of their ignorance and their lack of parental supervision. He talks about how he can sympathize with the fat people who are suing the fast food industries because he himself was obese as a child. He writes “By the age of 15, I had packed 212 pounds of torpid teenaged tallow on my once lanky 5-foot-10 frame.” He blames the fast food industry for the weight he obtained while he was young complaining about the lack of choices he had. He argues that kids, especially teenagers, have no other alternative claiming
In the article, “Don’t the Blame Eater”, David Zinczenko believes that the fast food industry is the main cause of obesity. Some years before 1994, children with diabetes were most commonly associated with genetic disorders. Since then, the cost of healthcare has peeked. Fast food may be the only option for children to get an affordable meal. Fast food restaurants often give false perceptions of their foods.