People all around the world make numerous amounts of food decisions daily that can relate to the persons weight in a positive or negative way. Unfortunately, the outcome of the choices often are negative. With a lack of exercise and poor choice of nutrition, Obesity has become a nation wide epidemic. Obesity is a chronic disorder, which is often associated with many other major diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and certain cancers. Obesity increases the likelihood of these different type of diseases and affects that can have an impact on an individual. This paper talks about the effectiveness Obesity has on people in the city of El Paso, TX and what actions the representatives of the city are taking.
In our civilization, it is very common for a person to be overweight. Obesity has become an epidemic that affects millions of people in the United States every day. Not only is it found in adults, but also in children. Obesity has the potential to put an individuals health at serious risk and countless of other consequences. In arrangement to help with this obesity epidemic that America is in, doctors, governments institutions and health committees have to had consider three significant questions: 1. What exactly is considered obesity? 2. What are the contributing components that lead to obesity in adults and children in El Paso,TX? 3. How does the city of El Paso help prevent obesity?
The following review on literature will: explain what definition of obese, describe the factors that lead to obesity in not only adults, but children as well and list how the city of El Paso helps prevent people from putting their lives at risk by becoming overweight.
What is considered obesity and what are the causes? Not only has obesity become a major epidemic throughout the United States, but it has also become a growing problem in the El Paso, Texas community. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), 39.3 percent of adults here are heavy enough to increase their risk for weight-related health problem (CDC, 2009). In order for a person to be informed with obesity in the El Paso community, it is very important to learn what exactly is considered obesity and the causes that contribute to it. Being obese does not mean that a person carries a couple of extra pounds, being obese is weighing more than what is suggested for the certain individual’s body.
The definition of obesity varies depending on what an individual may read on, but in general, it is a chronic condition defined by an excess amount body fat. Balentine (2011) states “the percentage of body fat in a women body should be between 25%-30% and 18%-23% in men. Women with over 30% body fat and men with over 25% body fat are considered obese (para.1). A tool that is essential to determine the percentage of body fat is called body mass index (BMI), which calculates the weight and height of the person. As for children and teens, McLennan (2004) indicates, “Children above 85% percent are classified overweight and those above the 95%, obese” (p. 33-34). “BMI ranges are defined so that children and teens take into account normal differences in body fat between the various of ages of boys and girls” (CDC, 2009).
What are the contributing components that lead to obesity in adults and children in El Paso, TX? Obesity usually results from a combination of causes and factors that contribute to the community’s collective weight gain. The border city has long been considered one of the unhealthiest cities in America for quite sometime now. According to Men’s Health Magazine (2010) , El Paso was ranked the 3rd fattest city in the country. (para.2). Diet and its discrepancies are the first and most important factors contributing to obesity. The people of this conurbation have become reliant on processed food, frozen dinners and fast food meals that are often served in large portions. Rather than
