Obesity In The Latino Community

Obesity is a recurring problem in America, as this illness has affected many Americans, especially those in the Chicano community. Obesity is when a person is carrying too much body fat for their height and sex. A person is considered obese if they have a body mass index of thirty or greater. Obesity is a key risk factor in the development of many chronic diseases such as heart and respiratory diseases, type two diabetes, hypertension, various types of cancer, and death. With the increase in technological advances, people are now able to travel on buses, cars, and on two wheel hover boards. Due to these advances, the general public no longer have to travel on foot as often as they once did. This means that the calories they eat are not getting …show more content…
Compared to other races and ethnic groups, Latinos of all ages have among the highest rates of obesity, overweight, and one of the most severe consequences of obesity, type two diabetes ("The Politics of Race in Latino Communities"). Essential inequities in socioeconomic status have led to an overrepresentation of Latinos in low income neighborhoods that tend to promote unhealthy diets and inactive lifestyles. Due to economic constraints, many Latinos settle in low-income neighborhoods which contain limited access to affordable healthy food options available in produce markets. Instead, these low-income neighborhoods have an excess amount of convenient liquor stores and minimarkets that primarily offer calorie rich food. Residents who do not own an automobile, use public transportation as there method of traveling, however; public transportation can often be time consuming, a burden so some citizens, and be a costly means of accessing a supermarket that is not within walking distance. Fast food restaurants, taco wagons, and street vendors tend to provide their business in areas where people have fewer options to obtain healthy food ("Maximizing the Impact of …show more content…
In order for Obesity to stop being a problem, we must approach the situation immediately. Stopping the obesity epidemic in the United States, will require many individuals to slow their rate of weight gain, or that a substantial number of obese individuals lose weight. This strategy contains two advantages, which are improving the health of a greater segment of the population, and providing sustainable change ("The Politics of Race in Latino Communities"). A small decline in the number of obesity has the potential to dramatically shift the Body Mass Index distribution. If adults are able to maintain their current weights and if children are able to maintain an appropriate rate of weight gain, society could reverse the obesity epidemic in just a few generations ("Maximizing the Impact of