AN OBESE NATION
7th period Senior Research Paper
Berkmar high school
Idris Abduljabbar
3/17/15

Fitness is not what it used to be. When children come home from school and just watch TV., eat junk food and sleep, something is seriously wrong with our generation. According to a health organization article by David Hirsch, 1/5 of the children in the U.S. are over-weighed. America is one of the most Obese countries and with youth following these heavy footsteps, The Obesity percent will triple in the near future. The cause is that portion sizes are getting larger, fast-food advertising makes unhealthy food appealing, and young people are not exercising enough (karasick). This is a problem and is not going to get better if the Social media or ourselves doing anything about it.

First, children biggest influence is their parents. When children are home, they usually want plenty of snacks. however, It is not what it used to be; instead of an Apple or Peanuts, it’s a couple honey buns and Hot fries. This is simple mistakes for children because parents are not warning them about what their eating.They eat whatever seems pleasurable, not thinking about the side effects it has on their body. In a 1994 op-ed essay for The New York Times, Kelly D. Brownell proposed taxing junk food so it wouldn’t be so easy to get. Also kids nowadays tend to get no type of exercise (Hirsch). These children are ruining their bodies at too young of an age. They should physically be at the prime of their life. Instead they are having trouble seeing their toes when looking down. Parents should never even want their children’s weights to get to that point. However, this doesnt mean cut off all junk food but manage a healthy diet. Burn off calories by a physical activity instead of staying in the house.

modern households, Television is the families best friend. Most, even watch t.v. to put them to sleep, so it definitely affects the way they think and act. Therefore, when a fast food or a junk

food commercial comes on, this strongly imprints opinions on your brain and encourages them to eat and do what they see on the television. For example, when children see McDonald’s commercials, with kids like them looking extremely happy and the burgers looking extremely delicious, they’re obviously want to go there for breakfast, lunch and dinner. the way they go about their advertising needs to change if America wants to have any chance of not having the highest percentage of obese children.
Obesity has progressed for far too long. In the United States, more than 60 million adults are obese, meaning they are 20 per cent or more above the ideal weight for a person's height (world of Gentics). It’s time for America to take their health into their own hands. Children need to have more self-discipline, and their parents need to set a healthier example and help them make good eating choices. it is not ok for dinner every night to go to the local fast food place but rather eat a home cooked meal. Parents also need to step up and stop eating junk food around their kids. A natural thought inside a kids mind is to follow in their parent’s footsteps and that is setting a horrible example.
Another thing that needs to change is the way America goes about their advertising to children. This is a huge factor if America wants to have any chance of not having the highest percentage of obesity in the near future. This could be made possible by advertising more of their “healthy” choices, such as McDonald’s apple dippers, milk, and salads. When kids see people similar to

themselves as happy