obesity

First Name Last Name

Professor

Course

26 April 2008

Obesity : Society 's Responsibility

What do you see when you look at an obese person ? Someone with poor dietary choices ? Someone with less than satisfactory will power to continue the battle with the bulge ? Someone who needs to be more disciplined ? Chances are , one or more of those three things have gone through your mind while someone obese walks past . What 's more , you 're probably not alone . In truth , most people think that obesity is the consequence of poor

choices alone , and that a lack of discipline is the greatest factor that determines whether or not someone will end up a victim of obesity . It 's as if the problem of obesity is entirely a choice made by people who lack the will power (BBC News , 2004 ) to shape up

But obesity is not just one person 's fault and problem . It 's not just the personal choices or lifestyle of a particular person that leads to obesity . I 'd like to tell you today that no , obesity is not one person 's burden . Rather , we must realize that there Society plays a significant role in the epidemic of obesity , and it must act in to curb this problem . Certainly , it would unfair to depict the obese person as no more than a victim who has no control over obesity . There are always other factors , such as poor dietary choices and a sedentary lifestyle , for example , that could lead to obesity . However , it is also important to look into the role of the environment that surrounds these people and understand how it contributes to their obesity

First of all , society itself promotes unhealthy dietary choices . The combination of high-fat , high-sugar foods with low physical activity inevitably affects the body of the people who live within such a society (BBC News , 2004 . In this society that values speed and instantaneous results , fast food and fast life are two of the norms . Walk into any supermarket and you are sure to find rows upon rows of foods that are harmful , unhealthy and , unfortunately , potentially addictive . The availability of these foods , coupled with the ease with which drive-through booths give us our daily dose of tasty yet oil grub increases the probability of someone engaging in poor dietary choices and gaining weight

Second , the present generation has lost the drive and perhaps the opportunity to live their lives outdoors . Children are often found in front of the television , playing video games or simply watching program after program . Adults are also guilty of such behavior , with few willing to engage in daily and healthy regimens of exercise . It is not merely the lack of will power that could be hindering physical activeness . It is the lack of motivation within society to promote the significance of exercise and physical activity to health . As mentioned earlier , children are already trained at a young age to be couch potatoes , so how could we expect them to...