Correlation between Obesity and Poverty - Research Paper Example

Correlation between obesity and poverty Blass (2008) defines obesity as an abnormal accumulation of fat in the body, usually about 20 percent of a person’s ideal weight of the body. Over years, research has shown that obesity can lead to increased illness, death, and disability. Obesity has become a growing health problem in many countries including the United States (Blass, 2008). Therefore, it is very necessary to study and understand the treatment of obesity in order to avoid the resultant effects. Most people fail to agree that there is a correlation between obesity and poverty because most people suffering from obesity and overweight come from well-off families (Smith, 2009). In real sense, there is a correlation between obesity and poverty, such that obesity can cause poverty and vice versa. It is important to do a thorough research regarding the correlation between obesity and poverty so that to avoid the ignorance among the American population regarding all problems associated with obesity. Problem The ignorance among the American citizens about the relationship between obesity and poverty can lead to ineffective strategies towards controlling and preventing obesity. Obesity can affect an individual irrespective of his or her wealth status (Smith, 2009). This is because the causes of obesity are varied, and can include inheritance within the family. It is wrong to conclude that obesity is the disease of the rich because most of the affected individuals come from well-off families. Many individuals from poor families have suffered a lot from obesity and overweight owing to the ignorance that obesity does not have a relationship with poverty (Smith, 2009). Due to ignorance, many people have acquired obesity and its associated complications, such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart attack, breast cancer, and stroke (McKnight, 2006). Most of the problems that result from obesity is chronic and individuals require accept and manage them through their lifetime. Research has shown that diseases such as heart attack, stroke, and breast cancer are among the leading causes of death in the United States (Blass, 2008). The poor experience more problems than the rich do because they do not have enough funds to acquire medical intervention for the obesity related complications. Lack of information regarding the relationship of obesity and poverty is the leading cause of ignorance against preventing and controlling obesity and overweight (Blass, 2008). According to Smith (2009), individuals choose less-nutritious, high-energy foods instead of selecting vegetables and fruits. Most of the occupations in the contemporary society are sedentary; thus, individuals do not do physical exercise, which are necessary for burning excess calories as well as reduce excess body fats. Without enough information, individuals become unaware of the appropriate diets and lifestyles that can prevent obesity and obesity-related complications, such as hypertension and heart attack (Smith, 2009). Some individuals resort to ineffective strategies while controlling and preventing obesity. The use of drugs, such as diet pills, is an ineffective suggestion of controlling obesity and overweight as well as promoting wellness. Over years, people have used drugs in the treatment of obesity and overweight because of altering metabolism, absorption of calories, or appetite (McKnight, 2006). Diet pills such as amphetamine have been associated with harmful side effects, which include death (McKnight, 2006). Weight loss and diet pill may have inadequate dosage instructions, thus lead to various side effects including diarrhea, nervousness, racing heartbeat, bulging eyes, elevated blood pressure, and heart failure in some cases (McKnight, 2006). The problem of accidental overdose is very common when taking the diet pills. This is possible because most diet pills consist of similar chemical components to other drugs such as nasal decongestants. Therefore, diet pills are not effective in controlling obesity and overweight. Another ineffective means of controlling obesity includes surgical treatment (Kopelman, Caterson, & Dietz, 2010). In the contemporary American society, bariatric surgeries are very common in treating and controlling obesity among the American population (McKnight, 2006). The goal of performing these surgeries is to ensure that the size of the stomach is small to limit the amount of food an individual can be able to consume. Bariatric surgeries such as Gastric Bypass surgery are associated with a number of side effects (McKnight, 2006). Among the side effects are tremors, diarrhea, nausea, fever, and sweating. The surgeries may cause death due to the rise of health complications that need hospitalization. Gastric Bypass surgery is very expensive, thus most people cannot be able to pay for it (McKnight, 2006). The surgeries may not treat some individuals effectively because their tendency of becoming obese or overweight does not depend on the amount of food they consume. Therefore, surgery is among the ineffective techniques of treating obesity and overweight. Treatment of chronic health problems such as cancer, hypertension, and diabetes requires the affected individuals and their families to spend large sums of money, which can result to poverty (Bolin & Cawley, 2007). In some cases, obesity victims and their families spend most of their time in alleviating problems due to obesity. Little time is available for obesity victims to do income-generating activities. Therefore, obesity can cause poverty to initially rich individuals. Therefore, depending on the lifestyle as well as the genetic make-up, obesity can affect individual in human society irrespective of whether they are poor or rich (Blass, 2008). If obesity can affect both the rich and the poor, then obesity can have a relationship with poverty. Solutions It is necessary to do enough research on the causes and prevention of obesity. The United States government should put an effort to disseminate information to all citizens, especially the poor, who have a low likelihood of accessing the Internet, reading newspapers, and watching television (Lane, 2006). Even if statistics show that most of the people with obesity and obesity-related complications come from well-off families, the poor also have a likelihood of developing obesity because the development of obesity depends on various factors such as lack of enough physical exercise, in-take of less-nutritious, high-energy foods instead of consuming plenty of vegetables and fruits (Lane, 2006). It is also very necessary to inform the public that there is a correlation between obesity and poverty so that to encourage people observe the strategies that promote wellness. According to Smith (2009), poverty can lead to obesity, and at the same time, obesity can lead to poverty. Studies have shown that obesity and poverty can influence each other. It is apparent that overweight and obesity correlate with poverty because most people do not afford healthier diets (Lane, 2006). Based on calories; diets composed of fish, whole grains, and fresh fruits and vegetables enhance normal health, but they are far more expensive than diets consisting added fats, added sugars, and refined grains (Lane, 2006). In some American communities, local convenience stores do not offer vegetables, fruits, or other fresh, whole, and real foods. In an urban setting, an individual should have a car in order to access real foods that rural markets offer. Research shows that an attempt to reduce food expenditure tends to drive individuals toward added fats, added sugars, and refined grains, which have a likelihood of causing obesity. There are many other effective strategies, such as physical exercises and monitory rewards for preventing and controlling obesity. A sedentary lifestyle is a common cause of obesity and overweight (McKnight, 2006). Most occupations in America have changed into less physically involving work, which has led to the increase in the number of people who do not get enough exercises. Computer technology has apparently contributed into the creation of less physically involving jobs (Oliver, 2006). For instance, in the previous days, there were many messengers, who could move letters and parcels from the sender to the receiver, but this has changed into sending electronic mail over the Internet. Regular physical exercises are very effective in controlling obesity, in America (Oliver, 2006). An individual can choose several friends and move to the gymnasium for exercises. The regular exercises qualify to be effective ways of controlling obesity and overweight because they are associated with side effects or complications. Exercises help to increase muscle mass and reduce body fat, thus improving the ability of the body to burn excess calories and not converting them into fat layers (McKnight, 2006). Therefore, through exercises, an individual’s body mass index can become smaller, which reduces the risk of developing various complications that result to early deaths. Some physical exercises like walking and running from home to working place do not require an individual to spend any money, thus very cheap. Another effective way of preventing and controlling obesity includes incentives that motivate individuals to alter their behaviors by changing the benefits and costs associated with the current behaviors (Oliver, 2006). Some competitions are useful in encouraging individuals to lose weight and continue practicing the behaviors for promoting wellness. Such competitions include incentives like winning a large sum of money after losing the largest amount of weight as compared to other competitors. However, weight loss is not the only factor that determines the winner, since an individual may lose a lot of weight simply because they have decided to eat little food (Oliver, 2006). An individual is supposed to watch the amount of calories he or she consumes in a daily basis as well as remain physically active during the day. Physical activities accelerate burning of excess calories to release energy, and avoid the conversion of excess glucose into fats under the body tissues (McKnight, 2006). Monetary incentives are extremely effective in encouraging the obesity and overweight individuals to observe and accurately follow appropriate lifestyles, such as doing exercises regularly and consuming fewer calories (Oliver, 2006). Such competitions take place for a reasonable period so that the competitors can be able to embrace the lifestyles even when the competition is over. On the other hand, many Americans have adopted ineffective suggestions for preventing and controlling obesity or overweight. Call to action If the appropriate information regarding the prevention and control of obesity and obesity-related complications cannot reach all citizens, then most individuals will develop obesity. Some individuals may get an access to the information and ignore to apply the obesity prevention strategies because the link obesity to a specific group of people. For instance, some people argue that obesity and overweight is common with the rich because they can be able access enough food (Smith, 2009). Such individuals should clearly understand that, in addition to excessive food consumption, there are various factors such as physical inactivity and the inheritance of genes, which can cause obesity. When every individual will be aware of the causes, prevention, treatment, and impacts of obesity, incidents of obesity and the related complications will significantly drop among the American population. Health institutions will experience less people with obesity and related problems. Incidents such as heart attack, which is the leading cause of death in America, can significantly become less common once individuals employ health lifestyle for prolonged life expectance (Blass, 2008). Research has revealed that obesity and related complications have negatively affected peoples by shortening their life expectancies. It is advisable to consume diets that include plenty of fruits and vegetables in order to reduce the number of calories an individual consumes per day (Oliver, 2006). Individuals should do physical exercises, such as brisk walking to and from the working place in a daily basis. Without exercises, fats will accumulate in the body and result in the development of obesity, hypertension, and heart attack, which are the immediate effects (Oliver, 2006). It is also very significant to understand ineffective strategies for controlling and preventing obesity. For example, the use of diet pills, which the Americans commonly use to enhance metabolism, are ineffective means of treating obesity (Blass, 2008). In most cases, diet pills may result in dangerous side effects, such as allergy reactions. Another ineffective strategy is the use of surgeries to reduce the size of the stomach. This can lead to death due to the development of various complications (Smith, 2009). Therefore, if citizens are not aware of the causes of obesity, and the effective strategies for preventing and controlling obesity, there is a likelihood of increased number of deaths due to obesity-related complications. People should be aware of the correlation that exists between obesity and poverty. This will encourage them to practice the appropriate strategies against obesity. References Blass, E. M. (2008). Obesity: causes, mechanisms, prevention, and treatment. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates. Bolin, K., & Cawley, J. H. (2007). The economics of obesity. Amsterdam: Elsevier JAI. Kopelman, P. G., Caterson, I. D., & Dietz, W. H. (2010). Clinical obesity in adults and children (3rd ed.). Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell. Lane, M. V. (2006). Trends in poverty and welfare alleviation issues. New York: Nova Science Publishers. McKnight, T. L. (2006). Obesity management in family practice. New York: Springer. Oliver, J. E. (2006). Fat politics: the real story behind America's obesity epidemic. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Smith, P. K. (2009). Obesity among poor Americans: is public assistance the problem? Nashville, Tenn.: Vanderbilt University Press. Read More