Obesity bas become a growing and urgent health problem around the globe. Obesity is a disorder that occurs when a person intakes more calories than needed. The problem of obesity is a serious one and causes many health issues and disease-related consequences. The number of people who are overweight and obese is constantly increasing around the globe. Nowadays, obesity is becoming a dangerous epidemic. It is both a social and emotional issue that needs urgent solution. Almost all countries in the world face this issue. Obestiy is a disastrous disorder that depends on several factors and has many heath consequiences.
It is believed that one of the common factors that influence people’s weight is the fast food consumption. There exist many other factors that play a vital role in the weight gain; however, the food industry has been mostly blamed for the disorder. The key factor that contributes to obesity is an imbalance between consumed and expended calories. Other global causes of the disorder include physical inactivity related to the increased pace of urbanization and constantly changing transportation modes, over-eating, poor food choices, increased consumption of energy-dense foods, inactive lifestyle, environmental and societal changes, etc. Another factor that influences the disorder occurrence is genetic one. Unfortunately, some people have genes that make them more prone to becoming overweight (Bambs & Reis, 2011). Obesity negatively influences health, psychological condition, decreases self-esteem, and low participation in social activities and sports. However, with healthy eating habits, even those who are prone to excessive weight can easily avoid obesity.
The problem of obesity is dangerous among children. One reason why so many children become obese is that they can get fattening food from stores and fast food restaurants due to the low price of these products. More and more children experience stress at a younger age. Some teenagers find that eating may be an alternative way to avoid loneliness, anxiety, and anger. In addition, the family also displays good eating habits for the child. The type of food served in the cafeteria also shapes the overall eating habits of children. Childhood obesity is associated with a high obesity chance of premature death and adulthood disability. Moreover, children who suffer from obesity experience breathing difficulties, hypertension, resistance of insulin, early cardiovascular disease, and psychological disturbances. According to Suton et al. (2013), the years at the elementary school are the best ones to alter children’s health behavior. It is considered to be a critical period when children form their lifestyle habits. Gaining excessive fat and becoming overweight at an early age is more deadly than having overweight-related problems later on in life. Obesity makes elementary school children experience health problems such as high cholesterol levels and high blood pressure. They also suffer from Type 2 diabetes, have gall bladder disease, and increased number of asthma attacks.
Regular engagement in physical activities and eating healthy foods lower the risk of obesity and associated health problems. However, the choices made by people are strongly dependent on the family and community environments. Living conditions play a vital role in forming the eating habits, especially of the young people, as they overcome many barriers to become engaged in healthy behaviors. As a rule, poor families tend to have unhealthy eating behavior because of limited food budgets. Lack of money makes such families choose affordable high-fat foods (cereals, sugars, potatoes, etc.) that provide energy. Many poor families live in disadvantaged neighborhoods, and it is difficult to find healthy foods there. In addition, economic insecurity usually leads to stress that is coped by eating sugary and fatty foods. Besides, regular physical activity options may be restricted. Limited budgets prevent schoolchildren from visiting organized activities outside of school (Suton et al., 2013). Unfortunately, in many poor neighborhoods, playgrounds, parks, and free public gyms are unavailable and unsafe. Desire to keep children safe makes parents keep the indoors encouraging sedentary behaviors.
Nowadays, obesity is treated as a medical condition since excessive body fat has a number of negative influences on human health. Obesity results in diabetes, a number of cardiovascular diseases, asthma, high blood pressure, metabolic syndrome, liver disease, reproductive problems, hypertension, obstructive sleep apnea, and others. In addition, the disorder usually results in certain types of cancer and reduced life expectancy. In many cases, obesity leads to the increased risk of stroke heart disease, dyslipidemia, gallstones, osteoarthritis, etc. Moreover, obesity, overweight, and associated health problems have a strong economic influence on the health care system. The treatment costs of obesity-related diseases rise rapidly and become more and more extensive.
Obesity and overweight are largely preventable. The easiest and the most common way of preventing the disorder is to make healthy food choices and be physically active. Supportive communities and favorable environment are also essential. To lose weight or prevent obesity people can limit their energy intake, increase consumption of fruit and vegetables, and become engaged in regular physical activities that last not less than one hour a day for children and two and half hours a week for adults. Because individual responsibility has an essential impact on healthy lifestyles, societal level is of vital importance. Therefore, it is necessary to support individuals and help them solve the problems. In addition, the food industry should become engaged in promoting healthy diets ensuring healthy choices, reducing sugar and fat, practicing responsible marketing, and supporting physical activity and ensuring access to healthy food.
The awareness of obesity, overweight, and related problems should be more actively spread through publishing tips. Parents should teach their children to get involved with cooking to become aware of the components that go into the healthy and unhealthy food. Obesity should be prevented as soon as possible, especially among school children. Schools may also influence the children’s way of eating serving only healthy foods in the cafeterias. There, students should be offered healthy meal plans including fruits, salads, fruits, and healthy sandwiches. Soda machines should be replaced with pure juices. Therefore, eating healthy at an early age helps to prevent obesity later on in life.
It is critical to prevent obesity during childhood because the eating habits that are formed during this period tend to carry into adulthood. It is vital for all countries to reverse the epidemic as many nations are in danger of rising the generation who will be sicker and die younger than the previous ones.
It is evident that insurance is the best way to deal with health problems. However, many procedures are not included in the insurance coverage. Increasingly stressed state of health care in many countries, in the USA in particular, makes people realize the high cost of the health insurance. Even if a person is insured, it does not mean that the insurance will provide sufficient coverage. This problem is particularly exacerbated for people who struggle with overweight and obesity. Despite the fact that obesity can result in numerous health conditions that are typically covered by most health insurance policies, obesity itself is often not considered an illness. Most people get a refusal in the case of critical illness insurance if the result of a medical test has shown any weight-related complications. Overweight women are also likely to have problems related to their health insurance, and they have to pay an additional 33% of the insurance cost. In case a person greatly overweights or is highly obese, it is likely that he or she will be unable to get the insurance. These facts pose a threat and major problems for many people. That is why life insurance has become an important issue in many countries. This issue is the reason why people should do their best to prevent obesity, realizing that the disorder will require high cost in the future.
Effective management for obese people and those at risk involves a range of long-term strategies, including weight loss, weight maintenance, morbidity maintenance, and others. However, there also should be a social an environmental support for healthy diets. Governments should be more focused on the public policies that promote the accessibility and availability of healthy foods, low-fat foods, and encourage people to be physically active. The food manufacturers should be punished for using an excessive amount of sugar and fat in their products. In addition, increased awareness of obesity and related disorders leads to the solution of the global crisis.
Thus, obesity is a problem of modern society that needs urgent addressing. Currently, obesity and related disorders have reached an epidemic pace in many countries around the globe. There are many factors that contribute to the disorder. However, the disorder affects people irrespective their age, gender, race, and ethnicity. Health consequences of obesity are long-term and serious. The greatest promise for changing the condition with people’s health lies in the encouragement of physical activity and healthy eating behaviors. Timely management of the disorder may prevent numerous health problems, increase self-esteem, and have a positive influence on the overall well-being. It is essential to teach children to have healthy eating habits as they are the future generation that may avoid obesity-related problems.