The Epidemic of Obesity - Term Paper Example

Introduction The present American society has countersigned high-tech developments that have unequivocally transformed the social order. Regardless of this, over 78.6 million Americans continue languishing under the epidemic of obesity. The state government has committed millions of dollars into counteracting this socio and economic problem that is intimidating to engrave the contemporary society, undoubtedly due to ineffectual policies and strategies. According to Hughes (2011), there is a positive correspondence between obesity and diabetes 2; many of the people diagnosed with obesity and diabetes 2 are Native Americans, blacks and Hispanics, where rate of obesity reaches upto 70%, and this has been accredited to their deprived economic conditions. Obesity and diabetes are among the vigorously growing health problems faced by Americans. The prevalence in obesity rates has caused massive cases of diabetes 2 which in turn causes amputations, hypertension and blindness, and also increases chances of developing depression, cancer, heart disease, asthma, immobility and arthritis. Allowing the current rates of obesity to continue increasing implies that America will be trailing on a perilous track. Moreover, the obesity endemic, if left unimpeded, will contravene the substantial progress made in life expectancy and health in the recent decades (Klein et al., 2004). Certainly, if current and future generations are to live longer, healthy and exhilarating lives, this cosmic problem must be contained through effective policy formulation and implementation. Obesity costs the nation over $160 billion in direct therapeutic costs every year. Estimates indicate that yearly medical expenditures can be plummeted by between 7-12% if the government succeeds to eradicate obesity and diabetes 2 (Levine, 2011). Additionally, through Medicare and Medicaid, a substantial fraction of this cost is financed by assiduous taxpayers and this affects both federal and state budgets and significantly hinders meaningful economic development. It is too costly to overlook the skyrocketing premature deaths resulting from obesity and obesity-associated chronic diseases. Consequently, this pilot study seeks to explore the state government’s role in regulating obesity. It will seek to explore whether the policies of developing EMR system that back diabetes prevention, guaranteeing parity of mental and physical health services, promoting active lifestyles, increasing Medicaid funding for obesity and diabetes, and regulating the diet of Americans are effective and efficient in handling the obesity menace (Levine, 2011). Additionally, it will focus on examining how effective the various policies the government has formulated and implemented have been effective in tackling the challenge of obesity. Only an extensive mobilization of concerned activists, health professionals and citizens can persuade elected officials and policy makers to act now to thwart obesity and sufferings that it is adamantly causing. Methods In the pilot study, observations and interviews were used to determine the composition of foods purchased and consumed by Americans as well as address questions concerning the policies aimed at encumbering the increase in obesity and diabetes 2. We asked 10 people, blacks and Hispanics, to give their opinions on what they perceived to be the major source of the increase in obesity rates. With the permission of the participants, we recorded their baseline demographic information by asking simple structured questions that had been designed 2 weeks to the study. The participants were asked questions such as; What policies on obesity do you perceive as having failed? Why do you think these policies failed? What should be the best strategy of handling the obesity problem? What policies can you consider to be a disgrace in the fight against poverty, obesity and diabetes 2? What can you cite as the major cause of failure of these policies? Do the nutrition policies, zoning policies, labeling act help in reducing obesity? What health policies would you recommend the government to implement in order to guarantee a diabetes free environment? What should be done to encourage healthy eating habits? Do you think that if the government offered meal vouchers to Americans living in deprived neighborhoods will reduce the rates at which consumers purchase and consume foods with high calories? There has been recent creation and establishment of recreation parks despite the looming land and space crisis. Do you think this will encourage more people to participate in recreation activities such as swimming, sports and games? Findings were further substantiated qualitatively to identify policies that have comparatively failed to meet the expectations of policymakers, health practitioners and the overall American society. Most of the interviewees strongly believed that most Americans consumed foods high in calories and rarely participated in exercise. They believed that the zoning laws aimed at preventing mushrooming of fast-food cafeterias in poor neighborhoods particularly those occupied by Hispanics and the blacks were not sufficiently being implemented. Most admitted consuming nutritionally unbalanced foods due to lack of money to purchase such foods as they were comparatively high priced. Moreover, unscrupulous businesspersons and organizations were advertising foods as ‘safe’ while in reality it was far from safe considering the high calorie content. It was quite appropriate as it enabled the gathering of sentiments regarding the cachet and desirability of the current policies. It further led to an easy testing of the causal relationship between policies executed and poverty, obesity, and diabetes 2. Observation was conducted on various food outlets, fast-food cafeterias, shopping behaviors in supermarkets and cooking areas. Upon a thorough observation, it was apparent that most people purchased and consumed foods high in carbohydrates, calories, high level of fats while containing very minute fiber. Moreover, it was apparent that most foods were labeled as ‘low fat’ or ‘safe’ hence duping many consumers into purchasing and consuming the foods oblivious of the adverse effects that it had on their health. Experience The enriching data that was collected can be attributed to the good design of the pilot and predominantly the clear questions and goals that were verbalized in the pilot protocol. Data collected was fairly scattered, just as expected. Most people indicated that the current policies are quite outdated and cannot effectively handle the challenge of obesity. Consequently, the government should formulate and implement policies that bridge the economic inequality gap and stern policies guiding the manufacturing and selling of foods. Moreover, school food programs should be restructured, to be more skewed towards obesity and diabetes reduction, and current incentives offered to infirmaries and organizations that fight diabetes and obesity should be doubled. A major challenge in the pilot was acquisition of the required data. Most of the civilians proved to be oblivious and unaware of the policies regarding poverty, obesity and diabetes 2. Moreover, most felt insecure to participate in the study citing issues of privacy and fear to denounce policies formulated and enforced by authorized bodies. It was quite problematic to convince them that the information would be handled with utmost confidentiality. Moreover, it proved difficult to have the professionals shift their attention from their busy schedules and participate in the pilot. The hitches encountered in the data collection were unprecedented and unexpected. The entire experience was, however, informative as it provided an inordinate opportunity to interact with the challenges that researchers face while on the ground. Financial constraint that was expected to be a limiting factor proved to be a trivial matter which could not devastate the study. Lessons learnt Observation and literature reviews worked well for the pilot. The approach enabled easy gathering and grouping of response and consequently the analysis of data. Moreover, the literature evaluation presented an opportunity to appraise academically sound and authoritative sources regarding policies on obesity and poverty. My experience was greatly influenced by customs and language barrier. While involvement of participants from social, political and economic backgrounds was quite appropriate in providing a more representative sample, language differences almost hampered the triumph of the pilot. At some point, I could feel estranged and powerless to acquire the information that I direly needed. After the comprehensive pilot, I realized that the sample was quite inapt. It increased chances of making hasty generalizations that might not be a representative of the population (Denzin & Lincoln, 2004). In the pilot protocol, the sample size should be increased to increase the degree of accuracy of the information collected and make it more representative. Favoritism or discrimination was also a major threat. Noteworthy, the effective organization and structure of the pilot, amassing tools required in the pilot and consultations with erstwhile researchers in the study of government policies on poverty, obesity and diabetes 2 led to the realization of the results. The investment of expertise, time and energy into the study of poverty, obesity and diabetes 2 was a major step towards addressing the unrelenting issue of diabetes and obesity. In the pilot, some of the policies that were established to have failed include; Policies on exercise The zoning laws Policies on food and nutrition Laws requiring manufacturers to decorously indicate the contents of their products To avert the problem of obesity and diabetes 2, the following policies are recommended; Impose fines on supermarkets or businesses not stocking healthy foods Create public awareness on healthy nourishment. Try to bridge the income inequality gap by offering equal employment opportunities to blacks, whites and Hispanics regardless of other trivial social factors such as gender. Government should give food-stamps and meal vouchers to economically disadvantaged Americans to enable them access healthy foods. Alternatively, it should subside food prices particularly for basic foods to enable all Americans access healthy foods. Formulate and implement policies that encourage people to walk or cycle instead of driving. References Denzin, N. K., & Lincoln, Y. S. (2004). Handbook of qualitative research. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. Hughes, G. (2011). Ability to manage diabetes – community health workers’ knowledge, attitudes and beliefs. SEMDSA (Society for Endocrinology, Metabolism and Diabetes of SA. Klein, S., Sheard, N. F., Pi-Sunyer, X., Daly, A., Wylie-Rosett, J., Kulkarni, K., & Clark, N. G. (2004). Weight Management Through Lifestyle Modification for the Prevention and Management of Type 2 Diabetes: Rationale and Strategies: A statement of the American Diabetes Association, the North American Association for the Study of Obesity, and the American Society for Clinical Nutrition. Diabetes Care, 2(3), 134-253. Levine, J. (2011). Poverty and Obesity in the U.S. American Diabetes Association. Retrieved from http://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/content/60/11/2667.extract# Sami, M. (2013). Healthy planning in California: Towards a theory of multi-level frame interaction. Read More