Obesity

Obesity: Who is to be blamed?

Kaplan University

Salama Wahab

CM 220 – English Composition

Obesity has become an epidemic in the Unites States. How many times have we heard that statement? According to Adams (2005), over one half of the adult population in the United States is either overweight or obese…[and]… 13 percent of children aged 6 to 11 years and 14 percent of adolescents aged 12 to 19 years were overweight based on BMI-for-age distributions”(p. 4, para . 1). Many have stated that personal choice and personal responsibility as the cause of individuals becoming overweight or obese. But what many are not taking into consideration is genetics, the food industry, technological advancement, socioeconomic status and the environment as the cause of this serious trend. Indeed, personal choice and personal responsibility are a factor but let’s be realistic and look at the bigger picture. Truthfully, “environmental influences have a major role in the eventual development of obesity and associated comorbidities” (Naukkarinen, Rissanenn, Kaprio & Pietilainen, 2012, p. 7) and the factors mentioned above are no exception.

Without a doubt, genetics plays a part in this so called obesity epidemic. Though more research needs to be conducted and genetics is said to play a minor role in the occurrence of diseases, Naukkarinen et. al (2012), reported that “…10 years of Finnish twin research [on] obesity [concluded that] BMI is a highly heritable trait”(p. 7, para. 3). Therefore, if Body Mass Index (BMI) “is highly correlated with body fat…” (Adams, 2005, p. 3) and research has discovered that BMI is heritable, is it still wise to state that personal choice and responsibility causes obesity without giving genetics a thought? What about those individuals who try they’re best and are still caught in the vicious cycle of obesity?

Moreover, socioeconomic status (SES) contributes to the soaring levels of obesity that the United States is experiencing. According to...