It is about time that people stop feeling that they are to blame for their obesity. If obesity is affecting a little less than ? of the entire adult population in the U. S. and a little less than ? of the children then it is impossible to force the blame onto each individual.
Such large numbers indicate that there must be other factors leading people into becoming obese. Living a healthy life does not mean eating healthy, it means eating in balanced portions with the right amount of exercise. The spark in obesity rates means that many people are forced into becoming obese. Malevolent factors are to blame for obesity in all ages in lieu of one’s individual choice. Right now corporations enforce their own selfish schemes in order to raise profits at the cost of the people in this nation.
Unhealthy food options become prevalent through corporate ploys and clever tactics. If the average diet of an individual in the U. S. could be examined then anyone could see, as Martin Binks states, “ calorie-dense foods are far more readily available than ever before” (Motluk 563).
Kids and adults alike devour far too much ‘ junk food’, and it is not their fault because corporations make it possible to only see high calorie foods wherever an individual goes. Corporations place the food in front of the people’s eyes and they convince them to buy it too! Whenever a child sees a McDonald’s, Burger King, Pizza Hut, etc. their mouths begin to water. As Critser dutifully explains that, “ corporations have spent billions teaching kids how to bug their parents into feeding them high-fat, high-sugar foods” (Critser 559). If there are brainwashed kids convincing their parents to buy them unhealthy food then it is safe (in this case) to say that it is neither the parents nor children’s fault. The real culprit becomes the corporations.
Suppose people must eat high calorie foods in case of an emergency, if corporations are “ gradually increasing in portion sizes” then people cannot eat with integrity (Motluk 563). They are eating more due to a corporate ploy and it is not their fault if corporations try to fatten them up. If McDonald’s can offer a “ 1550-calorie after school snack to kids” then how can anyone blame the individual for becoming obese (Motluk 563)? Nobody can blame the individual forced into giving up a healthy life style. Adding some exercise to a balanced diet would be an ideal way to live. But within this country the fear of losing one’s job or doing well in school prevents people from finding time to live healthily. Adults must work to put food on their table and if some work more than one job then when can an individual find time to exercise? The economy creates an environment where exercise loses value to hard cash.
Kids are equally forced to give up exercise in exchange for better grades. As Binks graciously puts it, “ the average child doesn’t have any physical activity in school” (Motluk 563). If many schools no longer even have breaks, let alone structured physical education then how can a parent expect a fit child? They simply cannot think that the schools will support the children. These absurd schools are putting “ physical activity on the back burner in favor of test results” (Motluk 564). The schools do not realize that a healthy student will produce better results than an obese one.
If the schools pressure students to forget exercise and focus on studying and the economy pressures parents to focus on bringing bread to the table then how can you blame an individual for becoming obese? Obesity is becoming a problem that is not individual fault and no one has the right to blame the affected individual. The parenting and culture within America are also to blame for the obesity problem. Parents cannot sustain a family anymore and as seen before their only objective is to bring food on the table. Both parents of a household now need a job to feed the family.
This means that there is no one at home to cook healthy meals for the children so “ families increasingly turn to cheap, highly processed foods” (Motluk 563). With parents bringing McDonald’s for dinner, children are forced into only eating calorie-dense foods. This creates a disruption in the healthy ecosystem of an individual and it leaves people with a higher risk of becoming obese. If the parents are offering healthy choices to children, but they refuse it for high calorie alternatives then it is wrong for the parents to not stop them. Parents cannot think that “ kids have the right to make bad nutritional decisions” because they do not (Critser 559).
Kids grow under the guidance of parents and if the parents do not reprimand them for their eating habits then all hope for healthy children is lost. Within the country of France there currently is no such thing as an obesity epidemic. French parents “ control the dinner table; with all portions moderate; leaving deserts for holidays” (Critser 559). If overeating looked like a bad thing then just like France, the U. S. ould avoid this epidemic.
And that starts with the parents regulating children’s eating habits. The culture of the U. S. is also to blame for. Within the United States, goes the argument, “ the prevailing culture actually promotes obesity, making an unhealthy lifestyle the default option” (Motluk 563).
If the culture of the country is corrupt then the people will be corrupted. Currently there are many campaigns against unsafe sex and smoking, and they “ proved highly effective in reducing risk”, but there are no campaigns for obesity (Critser 559). In this culture it is important to first identify the problem and then find a way to solve it. Within the society there is “ a great deal less access to physical activity then ever before in history” (Motluk 563). This means that more problems within the culture are aggravating the rise in obesity. If towns can be built in such a way that makes it “ increasingly difficult to get anywhere without driving” and creates “ suburbs without sidewalks” then how can an individual reduce his chances of becoming obese? In short, an individual cannot reduce his chances of becoming obese without fighting his culture and his parents.
Every person, every place, and every thing affect a person’s chance of becoming obese and the entire blame cannot simply shoulder on the affected individual. Living healthy means eating in balanced portions with the right amount of exercise and within this country everyone is living in an “ obesogenic” environment. The corporations, external stress, parents, and even the culture are all leading people into obesity. If something has to be done then fixing an individual’s surroundings is the first step. Obesity is indeed a problem, but it is not just one’s problem to fix.
