Obesity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Obesity - Essay Example Among Latinos, there was an increase from 12% to 24% in the same period (NHCSL 2010, p.11). This clearly shows that obesity is more prevalent in the minority Latinos as compared to the general American population. In socioeconomically challenged communities living in the United States, public health practitioners have observed an increase in frequency of obesity in latest years unlike in the past. Discussion For an individual to be obese, he or she has to accumulate a lot of fats in his or her body that are not needed hence causing a health problem in his or her life. Obesity can be detected in the early life of a child or an adult because of poor dietary habits. Hence, poor eating habits cause more obesity among children and adults than either genetic factors or physical activity. In the modern era, there is large numbers of people with obesity and even overweight, whereby, people’s eating habits have greatly changed leading to this health problem all over the world. Unlike i n the past where people used to cook at home, nowadays more people are turning to processed foods that they get from restaurants and other eateries. This has mainly been because of changes in lifestyles where parents have become busier with their jobs that they do not find time to cook or prepare meals at home. These processed foods contain more fats and calories than homemade foods thus increase the risk of obesity among children and even the adults who consume it. The eating habits of many children are uncontrolled since their parents are not with them when they are eating. On the other hand, parents are not teaching their children on healthy eating and thus children eat a lot of junk foods that tend to be sweeter or tastier, this also increases the risk of obesity. Obesity in childhood has been a major concern in most developed economies such the US. Despite the fact that children are less at risk of weight-related health problems than adults are, obese children are more likely t o suffer from chronic conditions such as diabetes and heart problems in their adulthood. Causes of Obesity Too much calorie intake; with the changing dietary habits, many families have abandoned healthy eating and foods such as fruits and vegetables and instead have turned to unhealthy foods such as red meat and other high calorie foods. Children are also eating uncontrollably, therefore, they end up eating more frequently and more food than the necessary one required by the body to function normally. Moreover, children are not trained on healthy eating habits; hence, they continue to eat indiscriminately, opting for foods that are either sweeter or tastier that also increase the risk of childhood obesity. Lack of physical activity; this has also greatly contributed to obesity among most children and even adults. Today, many children and adults are not doing exercises that burn excess calories in their bodies. Lack of physical activity is related to poor dietary habits since after t aking too much calories, individuals do not burn the excess calories through taking part in physical activity, and instead, they spend more time in doing less strenuous activities. Additionally, most children use cars to move from one place to another, even for short distances, instead of walking which would