The Undercover Growth of Obesity in America

By: Young Xu

 

 

            One third of all American adults are obese. This was concluded in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) of 2012 and has since been rapidly increasing each year. Yes, it may seem like it isn’t a big deal, but we haven’t seen the big picture of this issue yet.

Obesity is a disease in which you have excessive body fat. It usually occurs when you take in more calories than you burn through exercising.  In modern society, this is almost a regular lifestyle for many Americans. Although this may not be the most talked about problem in our modern society, it is still a rapidly growing concern that seems to be taking over our citizens behind our backs.

Multiple health experts advise us to eat with a full colorful plate of nutrients and exercise for 30 minutes each day, but this task is easier said than done. We have underestimated the long term issues sitting on a couch for the whole day can bring. According to a 2011 combined study, one hour of TV per day can cause a 10% increased chance of Diabetes, a 7.5% increased chance of Heart Disease, and a 6.5% increased chance of death itself. Taking in the fact that the average American adult will watch multiple hours of TV per day, these numbers are undoubtedly astonishing.

Another reason why Americans today are becoming obese is because they are consuming more calories than they are burning. Today, the average American adult is consuming approximately 3,600 calories per day, which is a 24% increase from a 1961 study, when the average was only 2,880 calories. With this adding on to the amount of time they sit on a couch watching TV, we can clearly see a huge gap between calorie intake and calories burned.

Due to these significant increases in numbers, we have seen drastic changes in waist circumferences and society overall. According to a study in 2017, all US states have an obesity rate over 20%. In other words, more than 20% of their residents are obese while just two years ago there was no state with an obesity rate above 15%. To put this into perspective, in less than 40 years, the condition of obesity has grown by about 50%. This goes to show how viciously fast this epidemic can grow. With these obese adults comes obese kids. One in six kids in America is affected by obesity, which is about 12.7 million children aged 2 to 19. This number can majorly grow if our adult numbers grow, which is why helping stop this epidemic now is so important, as trying to stop it later on could become much more challenging.

In addition to becoming aware of this growing issue, we must also help to prevent it. Simple daily routines such as eating low-fat and low-carb meals can benefit a lot over time. Studies have also shown that regular aerobic activity is very helpful. Without realising it, a good night’s sleep may also be helpful as well. Sleeping with a comfortable pillow and mattress for a reasonable amount of time can also slowly pick away at your bad habits. Nevertheless, we still have to understand what obesity truly is before we make any moves in order to make preventing it easier.

In conclusion, we have seen the major causes and effects of obesity, and its massive effects on society. Our everyday routines will shape our waist circumferences, and we may not even know it. That is the undercover act that obesity has done for the past years and will continue to do until we become aware and do something about it.