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Topic: Teenage Obesity in California
Teenage Obesity in California 政策论文作业代写
Over the years life has becoming difficult as work becomes more demanding and challenging, with competition increasing every year. Due to this, people have started looking for convenient options, especially when it comes to food. As many people are on the go, they give money to their kids to buy food, either from their cafeteria, or from any other fast food joint. Consumption of fast food day and night has resulted in one of the biggest health problems of the United States of America, i.e. obesity.
Over the past couple of years, the concerns related to obesity have increased, with many people focusing on changing the lifestyle of the person instead of simply reducing food consumption and adding exercise in their daily routine. While this definitely helps, in my opinion, the biggest problem is the extent of junk food consumption, in the form of processed foods. Obesity has been one of the health problems that country has been facing since 1950s. Policy makers have recently started giving this issue immense attention, and rightly so, as the rate of obesity has reached an all time high.
While in 1991, only 12 percent of the population was diagnosed with obesity, by 2001, the percentage has almost doubled. 政策论文作业代写
Today, on the other hand, more than 1 in 2 adults and 1 in 6 children is obese. New projections show a continued increase in obesity in America (Obesity Update, OECD 2017). Last year, 30% of the population in America was obese (Obesity Update, OECD 2017).
California is no exception when it comes to obesity. In 2012, around 7 million adults and teenagers were overweight, and it is specifically increasing in adults. Research suggests that obesity starts in the early teenage years, sometimes even in early childhood. Obesity is a significant risk factor for type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some cancers (Joelle W., Susan H., Allison L. 2015).
Lack of physical activity, dietary behaviors, lifestyle, especially the way people consume food and beverages are some of the major causes of obesity. However, there are external causes as well, such as environmental situations and factors, like availability of food, access to fresh produce, parks available and the extent of safety of the place.
In California, obesity is widely spread, however, each county has different reasons and different rates of obesity. 政策论文作业代写
For examples, adults are more obese than children, however as mentioned previously, the signs of obesity start appearing in early teenage years. The percentage of people being overweight in California was 19% in 2001, which has increased to 25% by 2012. While in San Francisco 11% of the population is obese, Imperial County has 42%, thus, showing that the rate of obesity differs based on counties as well. From 2001 to 2012, the prevalence of obesity among adults increased by 10 percentage points in the following counties —Tulare, Tehama/Glenn/Colusa, Solano, Imperial, Santa Cruz, and Napa (Joelle W., Susan H., Allison L. 2015).
What is surprising to note is that obesity in people is also affected by the level of income they receive at work. For example, a study published the results that 31% of the people in California, who had income levels lower than 200% of the FPL (Federal Poverty Level) were obese. It was also different based on minorities, such as the level of obesity among African Americans, Latinos, and American Indians was higher than in whites. The level of obesity in the aforementioned races has significantly increased from 2001 to 2012.
However, it all comes down to the eating patterns of the person.
With the advent of technology and as the world entered the digital era, the level of exercise in terms of walking to the store nearby or going to the park has significantly declined. These days, people prefer buying things online, or are glued to their laptop or phone screens, this restricting the level of exercise they have per day. Most of the times, they are simply lying down or sitting, with little to no walk in their schedules, which severely affects their health, as at the same time while they are doing this, they also consume junk food, and fast food.
These food choice means that the person is consuming higher levels of fat which is harmful for the body instead of fruits and vegetables and home cooked meals which are healthier alternatives. Additionally, people are usually on the go in this highly competitive world, and they do not like to cook or make meals for themselves, which is time consuming and time is something that people do not have these days. Based on these reasons, they do not have a work life balance, and most people prefer to eat out or parcel the food they’re having instead of actually making an effort to live healthy.
While the level of obesity and the rising concern has given rise to people who have become more health conscious. 政策论文作业代写
There is still a large population that needs to be educated regarding the harmful effects of being overweight and what they should do to overcome it. Policy changes can significantly help in curtailing the rising issue, and the government needs to play an important role in addressing the need for people to have healthy foods.
There are a lot of things that can be done by the government and the legislative bodies, as only through this can actual actionable results be achieved. The biggest problem right now is health behaviors, which need to be changed. Teenagers in particular hang out with their friends at cafés or burger joints. There, they consume food that is not good for health. One of the biggest problems with these larger food chains is that they have more fat in their burger patties, than actual meat, which increases the chances of being overweight. Additionally, there are also different places which serve plenty of other foods, such as pizza, or even fried meat, which further increases the fat content in the body.
All of this eventually leads to teenagers getting overweight. 政策论文作业代写
While during this age, exercise can be really helpful in maintaining the weight and actually breaking down the fat down into energy, such as participating in sports, there are many students, which due to technology and the use of smartphones, prefer to opt out of such activities, which eventually increases the rate of teenagers who are diagnosed with obesity. This is an actual issue which needs to be addressed.
Policy makers need to understand all these factors while designing policies, so that social health concerns of parents as well as the policy makers can be addressed. Teenagers who consume soda more than one time in a day, and consumer fast food more than two times per week, are likely to be obese. And the level of consumption for more of the obese people is really high. For example, many people consume fast food for breakfast, lunch and dinner, whereas, others consume it at least three or four times in a week. Additionally, the level of soda consumption is more than twice in a day, which again is very harmful for the body, while at the same time increases the likelihood of a person getting obese.
A policy needs to be made that tracks the type of food being served in fast food joints, and the government should encourage healthier food options to be introduced instead of these alternatives. Additionally, just like people protested against McDonald’s and cases were filed against the brand for making kids obese, similar actions need to be taken in order to fight against this rising issue.
In many states, communication policies that actually address the issue of obesity and tackle it are advancing.
Over the last couple of years, many counties have actually implemented policies, which include the fiscal measures, and pricing, along with work based and school based initiatives to educate the younger generation as well as the adults on how to change their eating habits and select healthier options instead of fat based options.
Another thing that they can do is increase the surcharge on sugar based and processed foods so that people consume less of this due to higher prices. However, this policy change alone is not going to be effective, side by side the government will also have to encourage organic produce and make it widely available in the market at high affordable rates. There are many places in California which do not offer organic produce, and those that do price it at high rates, making it unaffordable for a larger proportion of the masses.
Accessibility is another concern when it comes to organic and fresh produce. 政策论文作业代写
The government needs to introduce incentive programs that actually allow for greater organic produce to be made widely available. This is one of the most effective methods, when combined with communication about proper eating, and will help in curtailing the issue known as obesity.
Another policy change that the government needs to introduce is to ban Sodas and other unhealthy beverages in schools. Cafeterias should only offer healthy food choices to students and that too at very cheap rates, or even free of cost, so that healthy eating habits are developed in teenagers. Not only will it limit the consumption of unhealthy beverages, it will also allow students to learn what is good for them while inculcating healthy eating habits in them.
Another activity that can be introduced in schools, is cooking classes, 政策论文作业代写
Which should be made mandatory for all students, so that they learn how to cook, while at the same time they can learn the nutritional benefits of each product. This is something that is quite common is Japanese institutions. They have cooking classes, where each student is part of a group who is responsible for making one thing. This helps them learn how to cook, while at the same time it also teaches them how to count calories, how to make quick meals so that they can at least take care of their health. These kind of fun activities also help build a sense of teamwork while at the same time ensuring that they have the necessary skills to ensure they eat healthy. This will be an effective way to address the issue of rising obesity, while at the same time, allowing students to learn a new skill as well.
While there are many things that can be done. 政策论文作业代写
I think the process should be slow and steady so that there is no resistance to change, while at the same time people become more prone to acceptance. Many people have started adopting a healthier lifestyle, including exercises and healthy meals in their routine, however, there are still many people who are overweight, which in turn causes further pulmonary and heart related issues.
Therefore, these policy changes will be in effective in at least laying the foundation for change. Other steps need to be taken where large multinational corporations are concerned. Their products are not only harmful at times, but the marketing tactics they use to incite purchase also create the desire to buy that product, which can at times be harmful for the person. This issue needs to be nipped in the bud, and the government and other policy makers need to become advocates for the change, so that the masses can accept it.
References 政策论文作业代写
Joelle Wolstein, Susan H. Babey, Allison L. Diamant, Obesity in California, 2015, retrieved 22-2-18 from;
http://healthpolicy.ucla.edu/publications/Documents/PDF/2015/obesityreport-jun2015.pdf
Susan H. Babey, Joelle Wolstein, Allison L. Diamant, Harold Goldstein, Overweight and Obesity among Children by California Cities – 2010, retrieved 22-2-18 from;
http://healthpolicy.ucla.edu/publications/Documents/PDF/children2010fs-jun2012.PDF
Eileen Salinsky, Wakina Scott, Obesity in America: A Growing Threat, retrieved 22-2-18 from;
http://www.nhpf.org/library/background-papers/BP_Obesity_7-03.pdf
Amy Winterfeld, State Actions to Reduce and Prevent Childhood Obesity In Schools and Communities, retrieved 22-2-18 from;
http://www.ncsl.org/documents/health/ChildhoodObesity52014.pdf
Obesity Update 2017, OECD, retrieved 22-2-18 from;
https://www.oecd.org/els/health-systems/Obesity-Update-2017.pdf
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