America’s Obesity Epidemic

Well, since I already did all the writing for my comp class and received an excellent grade, and since I have been neglecting my blog because of school work I figured I'd share my essay on America's Obesity Epidemic. It is quite long for some, but some powerful statistics and information. Very eye opening even to those of us who may focus on this issue more. I do have the source cited and annotations if anyone would like them, just message me.


America’s Obesity Epidemic

Nearly two out of every three Americans are overweight or obese. The number of overweight adolescents has tripled over the last 20 years. The human body was genetically designed to store fat so it could weather famine and other once-common deprivations. Given that biological propensity, many question whether our current contemporary American lifestyles and culture have made it too easy for people to gain weight. Is the dangerous rise in obesity because of our generations changing biomedical problems? Or is the contributing factor more from how our communities are designed? Although obesity is a matter we may hear about frequently, it remains of top priority. The grave significance of the consequences of this rising epidemic is distressing our economy, affecting our health care, and crippling our future generations.

Cancer, heart disease, stroke, all leading causes of death in the United States. However Obesity related diseases may be taking precedence in our country. In an article in the CQ Researcher Online: Obesity Epidemic, the U.S. Surgeon General at the time Richard Carmona spoke about the severity of obesity related diseases: Obesity is the “fastest-growing cause of illness and death in the United States,” he stated. Unhealthy eating and inactivity contribute to 310,000 to 580,000 deaths each year according to the US Department of Health and Human Services. Diet and Physical Inactivity contributed to premature death far more than Tobacco causing 260,000 – 470,000, and alcohol causing 70,000 – 110,000. Unhealthy eating and inactivity contributed to 13 times more than are killed by guns and 20 times more than by drug use. Surgeon General Richard Carmona also expressed concern with the rising costs stating: “Treating obesity-related health problems costs Americans $117 billion annually — an average of $420 per person,” Carmona said. Ironically, consumers also shell out $34 billion on diet products each year. Where is that money going? Where is the solution they are paying for? It is clearly not solving the problem as our death rate from obesity is steadily rising.

The American people live in a culture where although they may pay a high price to attempt to lose weight , are as a whole only ending up more confused than when they began. And furthermore are no closer to achieving that goal. There have been a number of popular high-fat, low-carbohydrate diets, most notably the diet promoted by cardiologist Robert Atkins. More than 10 million copies of his books have sold over the last 30 years. His argument that carbohydrates — not fats — make people fat remains a hot topic of debate in both the media and the scientific world. The Atkins diet allows people to eat foods high in fat and protein, such as cheese, eggs and meats, limits the intake of certain fruits and vegetables and severely restricts the consumption of certain types of carbohydrates like breads, rice and pasta. Denied carbohydrates, the body is forced to burn fat. Robert H. Eckel, professor of medicine at the University of Colorado and chairman of the American Heart Association's nutrition committee, while validating the effectiveness of the weight loss program, expresses concern: “We know it works,” says Eckel. “But we don't know whether it works long term, or whether there are any adverse effects. One of the problems isn't just being overweight, but being healthy.” From the same article in the CQ Researcher Online, Neal Barnard, president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine talks about carbohydrates not being the cause of obesity: “The truth is that the skinniest people on the planet — Asians and vegetarians — eat plenty of rice and other carbs,” he continues, “What makes Americans fat is not their occasional servings of rice or potatoes, but rather their penchant for cheese, meat and fried foods.” To further bewilder the American people the National Academy of Sciences went on to recommend a minimum daily intake of carbohydrates that was about six times higher than the number of grams of carbohydrates allowed during the weight-loss phase of the Atkins plan. Amid the controversy and debates, Abby Bloch of New York University, a consultant to the Atkins Center for Complementary Medicine mentioned the important point that everyone agreed on: “The worst possible combination is high carbohydrates and high fat.” When it comes to weight loss, there is no lack of fad diets promising fast results. There is a loathsome abundance of pills, potions, creams, and quick fixes promising rapid results for little effort. As mentioned previously, 34 billion dollars is wasted on diet products each year. It seems fair to assume wasted, as obesity continues to remain a dangerous epidemic. Furthermore, what is the long-term cost and affect? Fad diets limit your nutritional intake, can be unhealthy, and tend to fail in the long run. According to the Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion under Dietary Guidelines - Energy Balance: there was no optimal macro nutrient proportion identified for enhancing weight loss or weight maintenance. Diets that are less than 45 percent carbohydrate or more than 35 percent protein are difficult to adhere to, are not more effective than other calorie-controlled diets for weight loss and weight maintenance, and may pose health risk, and are therefore not recommended for weight loss or maintenance. When overweight/obese persons attempt to lose weight with reduced calorie intake, there are no differences in weight loss with differing macro nutrient proportions, if diets are followed for longer than 6 months. In shorter-term studies, low calorie, high protein diets may result in greater weight loss, but these differences are not sustained over time. The key to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is not about short-term dietary changes. It is instead about a lifestyle that includes healthy eating, regular physical activity, and balancing the number of calories you consume with the number of calories your body uses. Our generation could save their $34 billion dollars and instead focus on taking the time to educate themselves on discovering their energy caloric balance. Simply learning how to balance calories in verses calories out.

As our culture has changed over the years, many of these changes have resulted in contributing to America’s rise in obesity. Americans eat out twice as often as they did in 1970. Americans now snack everywhere — sporting events, movies, social events, school, work, in their cars, even during church services. Sales of sugary sodas rose from 40 gallons per person in 1985 to 53 gallons per person in 2000. Margo Wootan, director of nutrition policy at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group speaks about how our culture is destined to be obese: “Basically, we live in a culture that's engineered to promote obesity.” Restaurants spend more than 10 billion dollars on direct advertising each year, while the National Cancer Institute is lucky to scrape together 2 million dollars to promote the government's “five-a-day” fruits and grains diet recommendations. One American out of four eats at a fast-food restaurant every day. When the cost to society of treating smoking-related illnesses got too high, the public began demanding that tobacco companies pay for the damages they cause to users' health. Has fast food become the new tobacco? Similarly there has been a rise in suits against fast food chains; McDonald's was sued in a New York court by two obese teens from the Bronx who blamed the chain's products for their weight and health problems. Marion Nestle, head of nutrition and food studies at New York University discusses the correlation between fast food supersizing and the rise in obesity: “It's very interesting that the larger-portion business started at exactly the same time that obesity rates started to go up.” But one must argue common sense, educating ourselves to know what is good for us and what is not can go a long way. Simply because a company offers a product does not mean we have to partake, and if we choose to, learning how to do so within our limits to protect ourselves can be beneficial in combating obesity. Perhaps laws making this knowledge more readily available and propelled to the forefront can aid in opening the eyes of the American people to see the severe damage these cultural changes are doing to our future generation.

Another dramatic change in our culture is the changes made to our processed food packaging. This is a change that could deeply affect your health and nutrition, yet is not something that is broadcast, discussed, or informed to the consumers. Many may not even be aware that their favorite foods have undergone changes, or how those changes impact their bodies. Not only has the food industry inundated American children with ads for unhealthy snacks, it has packed its processed foods with cheaper — but more potent — sugars. In the early 1970s to integrate commercial advantages of producing products that are sweeter and cheaper to make, many food products switched from cane sugars as a main ingredient to high fructose corn sugars, since it is six times as sweet and a lot cheaper. By the 1980s, both Coke and Pepsi jumped on board saving themselves 20 percent on sweeteners and switched their formulas from a sugar/corn-syrup mix to pure high-fructose corn syrup. With no knowledge of this delivered to the public as it is deemed a private business decision, the switch did carry health effects to the consumer. Fructose, also used in processed snacks and many other products, is digested differently from traditional sugars. It does not trigger the same signals in the brain as regular sugar indicating that calories have entered the body. Some studies indicate that fructose causes the liver to produce more of an enzyme that, in turn, causes the body to store rather than to burn fat. Fructose now accounts for 9 percent of the calories in the average adults diet and 20 percent of the calories in the average child's diet.

What happened to the days where you had eggs and bacon for breakfast, went to work a ten hour day outside, had a ham and cheese on rye for lunch, and pot roast and potatoes for dinner? Not many were overweight in those days. How has that changed dramatically? Well we have already discussed how restaurant habits and fast food habits have changed. We have also discussed how food packaging has been altered to have a negative affect on our health. Nevertheless a major role on this matter are lifestyle choices and activity levels. Energy intakes are exceeding energy expenditures for many Americans. Although the US does not have a national surveillance system that captures total energy expended throughout the day, several national public health surveillance systems monitor physical activity in the US population. These resources indicate that physical activity levels in the US are insufficient. As indicated in the 2008 National Health Interview Survey, 36 percent of adults were considered inactive, 31 percent participated in some leisure-time physical activity, and only 33 percent engaged in leisure-time physical activity on a regular basis. Over the past quarter-century, foot and bicycle travel have dropped by 40 percent. Although schools now offer vending machines and soda machines, they simultaneously have dropped regular physical-education courses or recess, giving kids less time to burn off calories. Today, the military complains that volunteer troops are not in good enough shape or coordinated enough to complete basic training. Adults also engage in less physical activity at work. At the beginning of the 20th century more than half of Americans lived on farms, today less than 2% do. In addition, fewer Americans work in manufacturing and laborious jobs, desk jobs just don't provide the same calorie burn as manual labor. Nearly every family owns at least one car, and walking places is considered ancient. Writer Bill Bryson once joked in The New Yorker : “the purpose of the modern American suburb is to make sure that no citizen is ever more than 500 yards from a food product featuring melted cheese.” To reemphasize: this is why America's focus needs to be on finding their energy balance. Putting in more calories than we are expanding out will undoubtedly result in weight gain. Furthermore if the calories we are consuming are lacking nutrients and are “empty calories”, without sufficient activity this will only speed the process of weight gain and result in lower nutrient levels in the body, the result produces the epidemic we are amidst.

Obesity and obesity related diseases are taking lives far too prematurely, this is a main concern. But as a nation there is an underlying financial burden as well. One important priority and topic for debate in this country is health care and health care reform. The reality - obesity is going to be the NUMBER ONE driver in rising health-care costs. According to Weight Control Information Network Statistics, on average, people who are considered obese pay $1,429 (42 percent) more in health care costs than normal-weight individuals. Medicare pays $1,723 more than it pays for normal-weight beneficiaries. Medicaid pays $1,021 more than it pays for normal-weight beneficiaries. Private insurers pay $1,140 more than they pay for normal-weight beneficiaries. It is of utmost importance to individuals but also to this country that these preventable costs and diseases are controlled.

Ultimately how do we fix this problem? How do we stop America from eating itself into a premature death and costing itself astronomical preventable medical expenses in the process? In order to reduce the obesity epidemic, actions must be taken to improve the food environment. Through policies (local, state, and national) and private-sector efforts. These policies must be made to increase the availability of nutrient-dense foods for all Americans, especially for low-income Americans, through greater access to grocery stores, produce trucks, and farmers’ markets, and greater financial incentives to purchase and prepare healthy foods. The restaurant and food industries are encouraged to offer foods in appropriate portion sizes that are low in calories, added sugars, and solid fat. Local zoning policies should be considered to reduce fast food restaurant placement near schools. Remember if fast food is like the new tobacco - killing our children - it should be treated as such. As individuals awareness is raised and they are educated, further accountability is needed. Making conscious efforts to prepare, serve, and consume smaller portions at home and choose smaller portions of food while eating foods away from home. Learning about and opting for nutrient-dense foods, and minimally processed foods whenever they snack. Making an effort to move. INCREASE ACTIVITY LEVELS. Increase your daily energy output. It is a lifestyle change adapting to make good practices habits. Efforts should be made to reduce surplus energy intake, especially energy from foods and beverages that provide empty calories from added sugars and solid fats. Increasing consumption of vegetables and fruits, greater amounts and varieties of high-fiber foods, and low fat dairy will in turn increase nutrient density, promote healthy lipid profiles, glucose tolerance, normal gastrointestinal function, and aid in preventing obesity.

Knowledge is power. The more health and nutrition information that is readily available and easily accessible for the public, the more we are empowering the American people with knowledge on how to save their own lives. They can make lifestyle changes and efforts to control their eating and exercising, however knowledge alone is not sufficient to change behavior. School-based interventions have shown that it is possible to improve knowledge and attitudes about nutrition and physical activity; however, only a few interventions have been able to change behavior sufficiently to prevent the development of obesity. For instance, although providing more fruits and vegetables in school represents a significant step forward in changing the nutritional landscape of schools, an additional step is needed to make sure that these changes are being integrated into the homes and everyday lives. There is a direct need to understand how children and their parents behave around eating and activity and the factors that influence how they eat. Behavioral, social, and economic research is essential for developing effective ways to improve diet and activity patterns of children and thereby prevent childhood obesity and thus prevent cardiovascular disease in adulthood. Adapting their behavior to choose and enjoy healthy foods over less healthy options does not happen overnight. Having healthier options can help to make choices simpler but learning how to sustain these healthier food choice patterns over time is what will be the key to lifetime success and improvements. We are in desperate need of a cultural transformation as a nation.