Issues on Obesity in Society - Essay Example

Fat Introduction Being fat has been a sensitive issue in our society for a very long time now. Obesity is often usedinterchangeably with being fat. In fact, overeating and obesity are sensitive matters to many women today. 50% of the women in the United States alone are said to be overweight. This is why all the women’s magazines have sections on diet. The number of diet clinics and doctors has evidently gone up. Different social circles all have different opinions on this matter. Radley Balko, author of what you eat is your business, says that one’s own weight and health matters should be his/her own responsibility (Balko, p 159). He tries to convince his readers that society should not take responsibility for the unhealthy behavior of others, and that everyone should strive to be healthy. He is of the opinion that it is wrong for the American government to try and fight obesity by manipulating consumer in the variety of food options that they should use (Balko, p 159). In another text, Paul Campos says that society should not pressure individuals to be thin. He claims that being fat is fine and that there has been no scientific proof that being thin means being healthier. He says that it is all propaganda by the diet industry to get money from people. Campos notes that many people tend to think that being thin means being healthy. He asserts that thinner people are not healthier than fat people, and they should not believe that they are because that is mere propaganda (Campos, p 209). Susie Orbach points out that beauty and physical fitness have become the goals of almost every woman today. She further argues that most women have made the names of diet foods their vocabulary. Issues of food and being fat have preoccupied most people to the extent that they are usually taken for granted. However, these problems present very painful and serious experiences to most women (Orbach, p 200). Susie Orbach further notes that society creates an image that should be followed by women, for them to be appealing. These images keep changing and hence add pressure on women to keep up with the trends (Orbach, p 203). She writes that, in all the changing images, the one thing that remains constant is that women are portrayed as thin. In the last article used in this analysis, David Zinczenko, in his essay, don’t blame the eater, writes that the weight problem faced by society is not only the consumers’ problem; it is largely fuelled by the food industry itself. He says that fast food restaurants play a significant role in weight gain especially in teenagers (Zinczenko, p 154). However, he does not support the idea of blaming these fast food restaurants for weight gain in teenagers. He advocates for personal responsibility so as to avoid the weight gain. According to him, blaming the fast food restaurants for weight gain in teens is like Porsche being sued by middle-aged men because they claim that it has made them get many speeding tickets (Zinczenko, p 153). Synthesis This synthesis will be an analysis of how the different authors view being fat in society, and whether being thin means being healthier. In one of the articles, being fat is ok; Paul Campos writes that there is no scientific claim that being thin means being healthier (Campos, p 208). In the same article, he also writes that it has not been proven that losing weight will guarantee being as healthy as a thin person. He is of the opinion that being fat is ok and that the assertion that being thin is healthy is propaganda by the diet industry to make money from unsuspecting consumers. Campos terms all these propaganda as ‘three lies’. He does not offer any evidence that thin people may indeed be healthier. He also does not try to change the readers’ opinion of whether thin people are actually healthier that fat people. However, he supports his claims that thin people are not actually healthier than fat people by saying that no scientific evidence has ever proved that thin people are actually healthier or fat people are unhealthier (Campos, p 208). In a contradicting opinion, Radley Balko says that people should take responsibility of their own health and not be obese. In his article, he suggests that being fat makes one susceptible to health problems and these problems end up being the society’s burden (Balko, p 159). He urges the American government to work on fostering and encouraging ownership and responsibility of our own well-being and health. He is strongly against the publicizing of personal health issues such as making one’s personal condition, shape and well-being to be matters of public health. He proposes that these should be personal responsibility matters (Balko, p 158). Balko is of the idea that obesity issues should be totally removed from the public health realm. Obesity can only be alleviated if it is dealt with from a personal level. People should begin to take responsibility over their own health and weight. The government should not restrict the choices of consumers on grounds of alleviating obesity because this will be going against their civil liberties (Balko, p 159). Susie Orbach writes from a more feminism point of view and says that most women become fat in society as a result of defiance to the image that is created by society (Orbach p 201). She is of the opinion that, the notion if thin is better has been created by society and the fashion industry, and that people should be themselves and not follow this notion. She approaches the issue of being fat as feminist issue when she compares fatness issues of women to those of men. She proceeds to argue that society, particularly men, contribute to the fat problems that women go through. In her opinion, women are invalidated and isolated for being fat. However, she further claims that fatness in women has been attributed to their failure to control and take care of their own weight. Most fat women have been accused of being unable to control their impulses or appetites. The problem becomes worse when dealing with women who suffer from compulsive eating disorders since they believe that it is their fault for being like that (Orbach, p 201). Orbach asserts that women are not entirely to blame for being fat. The biological differences between men and women, such as the fact that it is women alone who can give birth to children and breastfeed them, contribute to being fat. Women have also been relegated duties and social roles that require them to be wives and mothers. These roles contribute to the weight gain experienced by most women. Therefore, women become extremely self conscious because they feel the need to get a man, so as to become wives and mothers (Orbach, p 202). In another opinion by David Zinczenko, he says that being fat, is mostly the responsibility of fast food restaurants and that consumers are not entirely responsible. He writes that most of these restaurants do not provide sufficient food information leading to misinformed consumption (Zinczenko, p 154). However, he encourages people to take personal responsibility so as not to be misled by these fast food restaurants. Zinczenko is of the opinion that the problem being faced by obese children is not just their own; it is all of ours. This is because of the many problems and complications that arise as a result of being obese. For example, obese children are highly faced with the risk of diabetes. This is a problem for the entire society because the costs of treating diabetes have hit an all time high (Zinczenko, p 154) He advocates that fast food companies can protect themselves as well as their consumers, by giving them a chance to make informed choices through the provision of proper and adequate nutrition information. By not doing this, the number of obese, sick children, and litigious, angry parents will continues to rise (Zinczenko, p 155). According to Giguere, the tribulations of growing up as a fat child, especially when one is a girl, are more than what boys face. The author is of the opinion that society dictates to women how they should look like from the time they are girls. The author reveals that young fat girls often struggle with feelings of inadequacy and low self esteem. She brings in a new way of overcoming the problems associated with being fat; trusting in God (Giguere, p 19). Conclusion The argument of whether thin means healthier is still a subject of debate. Many authors have different opinions on the matter but the most convincing arguments and evidence brought with the same would be that watching one’s diet helps one stay healthy. The sense of self responsibility is essential in fighting off conditions such as obesity. People should not rely on other to take care of their health and physical well being. Society should not dictate to anyone how he/she should look like because some of these societal expectations make obesity issue difficult to handle. Businesses such as fast food companies, the mass media, and diet clinics should not give false information about health and physical well-being issues so as to make money from unsuspecting clients. They should strive to promote good health and physical well-being of their clients so as to help themselves, as well as their clients. However, personal responsibility still remains pertinent in fighting obesity. Work Cited Giguere, Katie. Being the Fat Girl. Nashville: ECM Group, 2005. Print. Read More