Imagine constantly feeling tired and
unhealthy, always craving some type of junk food, stress eating, gaining more
and more weight every day, which causes you to have a higher risk of getting
cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, or heart problems. These are only a few
side effects that come with obesity, a very serious health epidemic in America.
About 70.7% of all Americans are either overweight or obese and this percentage
continues to increase today (“America's obesity epidemic reaches record high, new
report says”).
What is the cause of this huge epidemic? What
are we doing that is beginning to cause huge health concerns for people? For
many years, nutritionists, doctors, and health researchers have debated on the
source of obesity. Most have concluded that stress, lack of sleep, not enough
physical activity, and an unhealthy diet can lead to obesity (“America's
obesity epidemic reaches record high, new report says”). It is possible that
this epidemic can worsen very soon if we cannot find a viable solution for this
problem.
History
The awareness of
obesity began to emerge in Great Britain around 1961, where they formed a
steering committee in 1966 to address this health problem (“World Obesity
(Formerly IASO) History” 1). Although obesity was not a major problem yet, it
was quickly growing around the U.K. in the 1970’s. Not long after, the U.S.
began to conduct health conferences over obesity and major diseases (“World
Obesity (Formerly IASO) History” 1). Many researchers around the world track
back the past to discover the source of this weight increase and have formed
various possible causes. These causes include: the introduction of technology,
fast food, and even changes in the USA public health advice.
Obesity began to increase drastically in the 1980’s,
around the same time computers and television screens became present in most
households (Highfield 1). The increase of technology use encourages people to
stay inside more to use the internet, play games, and watch movies. This causes
a decrease in the amount of physical activity people get every day, which can
cause an increase in body weight. Fast food became very popular in 1975,
especially in the United States (Highfield 1). This easier, faster, and cheaper
way to get food, helped those with a busy work schedule but also encouraged
many families to get out of the kitchen and eat out instead. Fast food not only
takes away another type of physical activity for people, it also includes the
use of fattening ingredients that continues to harm our health. Lastly, a
source that may have begun obesity could have been the fact that the USA public
health advice changes from “Farinaceous and vegetable foods are fattening, and
saccharine matters are especially so” to “base your meals on starchy foods” (Harcombe
1). Obesity has increased by “ten fold” since then (1).
Social
Effects
Aside
from the health effects of obesity, this epidemic can also cause many social
effects like bullying and discrimination. Beginning at an early age of six,
many people who suffer from obesity are often bullied or discriminated due to
their looks (“The Emotional Toll of Obesity”). Many overweight children are
looked at differently, teased, or made fun of in school because they differ
from their skinnier friends. Other than teasing and bullying in schools, adults
are also treated poorly in the work force by their own coworkers and are
sometimes given lower income and wages that are related to obesity-related
illnesses (“Obesity Consequences”). In a recent study, about 95% of the participants
admitted that they had experienced harassment, humiliation, or discrimination
related to their weight (“Social, Economic, and Health Impact of Obesity”).
When
you are treated differently because of your obesity, you are more likely to
have a lower self-esteem than the others around you (“The Emotional Toll of
Obesity”). This feeling that you are of less worth compared to everyone else
often causes anxiety, depression, and a lack of confidence. This can create
many mental health problems that can affect your daily life. A lack of
self-confidence can lead to a low academic performance in school or a poor work
performance in a job (“The Emotional Toll of Obesity”). About half of the
participants in the research study reported having a poor mental health and
sometimes depression because of their weight (“Social, Economic, and Health
Impact of Obesity”).
Lastly,
medical care for obese people can be very costly as well. The health care cost
of obesity in the U.S. was “estimated to be as high as $190 billion in 2005, a
number that is double earlier estimates, and expected to rise, along with
obesity rates, over the coming decades” (“Obesity Consequences”). These costs
are affected by a higher number of doctor visits, in-patient and out-patient
care, as well as a larger need for prescription drugs (“Social, Economic, and
Health Impact of Obesity”). This health care cost of obesity in America is
higher than many other countries in the world and can be dangerous to the
future economy if it continues to rise.
Examples
Sandra
B. is a woman who suffered from obesity and was slowly decreasing her life
expectancy because of it (“Patient Stories”). She passed out one day and was
taken to the hospital for battery testing (1). Her EKG results showed that she
had a high blood pressure and heart problems as a factor of being overweight
(1). Her heart specialist told her that “if she didn’t change her lifestyle and
lose weight, it would take years off her life” (1). Obesity is very dangerous
because it can cause many health problems in your body that can lead to a
shorter life.
Tom Almond, a man who suffered from obesity
for most of his life, describes the problems he faced as a teenager such as his
depression (Almond 1). Almond says that he never let himself get bullied but
the words still got to him causing him to want to be alone (1). He illustrates,
“I isolated myself from the world as much as possible, because I didn’t want to
see people, and I didn’t want them to see me”
(1). This depicts that he was very self-conscious and had a low self-esteem,
which is an effect of obesity. Tom is only one of many people in the world who
suffer from obesity or being overweight.
A
poet who feels strongly about the topic of obesity wrote:
“At
home or at school I cannot escape. All the painful comments and the constant
hate. Just because I'm a little overweight. People tell me to die and accept
fate. Cowering in shame behind this locked door. Trapped by the walls of shame
and disgrace. Finger down my throat on this bathroom floor. Almost convinced
I'm a just waste of space. Coming to sense as I put down the knife. Doesn’t
matter what others think and say. Their pointless comments won’t ruin my life.
Be reborn in the light of a new day. I will struggle for my own power, And
until the end I will not cower” (“Sonnet to obesity”).
This poem conveys the hardships that come
along with being overweight. The feeling that everyone is ashamed of you and
hates you because you are obese can cause you to see no meaning in life.
Solutions
A solution to this epidemic includes a series of weight
loss pills and medicines, but do these supplements really work? Many Americans
have busy lives and often have no time to take care of their health so they resort
to looking for quick fixes. Although taking a pill to reduce your weight may
seem simple, there is a lot more to it than that. Since weight loss pills are
considered dietary supplements and not drugs, the FDA regulations say that
nobody has to prove that these pills actually work (Palkhivala, 1). Steven
Heymsfield, a professor of medicine at Columbia University, explains that there
is no scientific proof showing that these dietary pills cause you to lose
weight (1). Many people describe that these pills will only encourage you to
make healthier choices but cannot do the work for you. The
idea that you can lose weight by taking weight loss pills and not working out
or eating healthy at the same time is a myth (“Dietary Supplements for Weight
Loss- Do Weight Loss Pills Really Work?”). Aside from the fact that these pills
do not make you lose weight, they also cause many dangerous side effects such
as anxiety, increased heart rate, irritability, heart burn and trembling
(O'Callaghan, 1). In spite the fact that these dietary supplements may speed up
your metabolism, cut down your food cravings or make you feel full faster, they
do not make you lose weight and can be very threatening to your health.
Another way of dealing with obesity that has become very popular
in the recent year is by switching to a plant-based, or vegan diet. When on a
vegan diet, you completely cut out all animal products in your diet including
meat, dairy, and eggs. This way of eating is proven to benefit your overall
health by reducing your blood cholesterol levels and increasing
disease-preventing antioxidants in your body (“Can the Vegan Diet Prevent
Obesity?”). Studies show that compared to other dietary groups, vegans are
leaner, have lower body mass indexes (BMIs) and have lower percentages of body
fat (1). This is because vegans are said to have a higher intake of fruits,
vegetables, and legumes, which are essential foods that should be eaten daily.
Even though a plant-based diet is confirmed to decrease obesity, vegans can still
risk eating unhealthy processed foods that do not essentially encourage weight
loss.
The most beneficial way to ending obesity is by
incorporating a balance of healthy eating and daily exercise or physical
activity into your life. Healthy eating doesn’t have to be any specific diet,
as long as you are consuming a large amount of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and
whole grains (Yoffee, 1). Moderate exercise for at least thirty minutes a day
will keep you active and increase your chance of losing weight as well (1).
Almost all doctors will encourage you to follow this solution to reduce your
weight because it is very effective and numerous amounts of people’s
experiences can prove its effectiveness. Making healthier eating decisions and
staying physically active can significantly improve your health and prevent you
from becoming obese (“Obesity Prevention”). With the scientific evidence, we
can conclude that the best solution to obesity is a combination of healthy
eating and exercise.
Camus
and Absurdity
Albert Camus was
a French-Algerian philosopher and journalist who wrote his works based on
absurdism. Camus believed that life had no meaning and would have very
different opinions on the topic of obesity. Firstly, Camus once said that “to
be happy, we must not be too concerned with others” therefore, even the study
of this obesity epidemic would be pointless in his opinion (“Albert Camus
Quotes”). Albert Camus would also be unbothered by the fact that people are
getting ill from obesity because he believes, “suffering is part of life and we
have to deal with it” (1). This obesity epidemic would not surprise Camus as he
would most likely have given no attention to it.
Camus would have probably believed that the cause obesity
is the fault of those suffering it because he assumed that we create our own
prisons (1). He would be partially correct in this case because as he said,
“Life is the sum of all your choices”, the unhealthy choices that obese people
make are technically their own faults (1).
Camus explained that “we get into the habit of living
before acquiring the habit of thinking. In that race which daily hastens us
towards death, the body maintains its irreparable lead” (1). This portrays
Camus’ belief that our everyday cycle in life of going to work, school, eating,
and sleeping is an ongoing ‘race’ that is leading us to get obese and closer to
death. Although many of his opinions were deep and depressing, Albert Camus did
have some interesting points that could give us a different perspective on
things like the obesity epidemic.
Conclusion
After looking more in depth on obesity, the fact that 70.7%
of all Americans are obese or overweight today is very mind boggling (Gussone,
1). The factors of stress, lack of sleep, not enough physical activity, and an unhealthy
diet can lead to this dangerous problem but can be solved by eating right and
increasing physical activity (1). We must now question ourselves if it is
possible that this epidemic can really be solved with healthier lifestyle
habits in the future before it gets any worse.
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