Child Obesity: Slimming Down Dr. Yoni Freedhoff, University of Ottawa, an American author of the website, Weighty Matters, states, “Childhood obesity is a disease of the environment. It’s a natural consequence of normal kids with normal genes being raised in unhealthy, abnormal environments.” These unhealthy, abnormal environments appear in the United States. In America, “Supersize it!” is spoken now more often than, “Small proportion, please!” because of increasing child-targeted advertisements to “Go big or go home!” Child obesity is when a child is above the normal weight for children of their age. This is determined by BMI, or body mass index, which takes the weight and height into calculation to find a healthy weight for the body calculated.
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Compared to Canada, the United States’ child obesity rates recently skyrocketed. A CNN science and health expert claims, “Whereas the obesity rate among children between 3 and 19 was about 5% in both the U.S. and Canada in the late 1970s, it rose to 17.5% in the U.S. by 2012 and only 13% in Canada by 2013” (Storrs). Researchers questioned the difference between Canada’s child obesity rates compared to America’s because we share a common culture and language. The researchers discovered one main cause: soda. As Canada decreased the amount certain sodas could advertise, like Coke, America’s youth fell in love with the convenient, tasty, but sugar-filled drinks at …show more content…
A dietary book writer calls America a nation who depends on “grab-n-go” food because of the busy schedule we are presented with following the invention of cars, which industrialized and improved our nation (Wilson 16-19). However, this improvement affected the American diet. Convenient food evolved for those traveling to work on a tight schedule. Americans could now stop at gas station, like Casey’s and Quick Star, and pick up a fast, but unhealthy breakfast, like greasy pizza and fatty doughnuts. However, this affected the way parents fed their children. Soon, parents found filling their children’s stomachs in between activities, such as school, work, and sporting events, hard. So, parents turn to fast food, which they find as an easy option for those busy
Compared to Canada, the United States’ child obesity rates recently skyrocketed. A CNN science and health expert claims, “Whereas the obesity rate among children between 3 and 19 was about 5% in both the U.S. and Canada in the late 1970s, it rose to 17.5% in the U.S. by 2012 and only 13% in Canada by 2013” (Storrs). Researchers questioned the difference between Canada’s child obesity rates compared to America’s because we share a common culture and language. The researchers discovered one main cause: soda. As Canada decreased the amount certain sodas could advertise, like Coke, America’s youth fell in love with the convenient, tasty, but sugar-filled drinks at …show more content…
A dietary book writer calls America a nation who depends on “grab-n-go” food because of the busy schedule we are presented with following the invention of cars, which industrialized and improved our nation (Wilson 16-19). However, this improvement affected the American diet. Convenient food evolved for those traveling to work on a tight schedule. Americans could now stop at gas station, like Casey’s and Quick Star, and pick up a fast, but unhealthy breakfast, like greasy pizza and fatty doughnuts. However, this affected the way parents fed their children. Soon, parents found filling their children’s stomachs in between activities, such as school, work, and sporting events, hard. So, parents turn to fast food, which they find as an easy option for those busy