30 April 2012 By
Saeed Qureshi
One shudders to learn
that 61 % American adults are obese or overweight.
Overweight is a malady that is less injurious than the
obesity which when exceeds the BMI of 30, can cause
premature death. Obese people run 50-100 % increased
risk of premature death than the normal humans. Every
year around 300,000 people die of obesity or excessive
fatness. Obesity is the second killer after smoking,
which kills 400,000 Americans every year. The
cumulative yearly financial loss to United States is
staggering $ 117 billion.
The deaths caused by
obesity and overweight have doubled since 1980. In
children, it has increased three times. It is shocking
that children should be suffering from diabetes, blood
pressure and heart problems which usually appear in
adults or in old age. All these horrifying statistics
are mentioned in the Surgeon General's report, which
further says that overweight and obesity threaten the
health gains of the American nation.
It is indeed a poignant
warning which clearly connotes that the money being
spent on health or measures taken in that regard would
become futile as the nation would be overtaken by a
deadly syndrome of obesity.
Human beings die of
starvation, famine, and hunger but seldom because of
overeating. These are the bizarre absurdities and
paradoxes of humanity that in one part of the world
the people die because of famine or mal- nutrition
while in other parts they leave this mundane world
because they eat more than what they should.
The urge for eating for
many people in America has become an obsession or a
craze and there are several compelling reasons for
that. Not only that the reason for obesity is over
eating but also the propensity for heavy intake of
junk and fat making food. Such foods are delicious
mostly but gradually adversely affect the natural
metabolism and body chemistry.
The crudely obese and
excessively heavy women and men as well as children
are the common sights in
It should be understood
that the obesity that afflicts most of the Americans
is not of hereditary nature in which obesity travels
from parents to children and this process goes on. In
America there might be such cases of obesity but
mostly the obesity prevalent in the American society
is from excessive eating, lack of exercise and
precedence of leisure over physical activity.
The Surgeon General and
other agencies monitoring the national health, outline
a host of factors that lead to obesity. These are
eating of junk and nutrient-lacking food, excessive
watching of Television, lack of physical exercise
minimum for at least half of an hour, lack or
inadequacy of physical exercise facilities at schools,
work, provision of improper food at educational
institutions and the shortage of parks for jogging or
walking.
The report also
underlines the need of educating both adults and
children about prevention from obesity and how to take
physical exercise and maintain their normal physiques.
Besides daily physical activity and taking of nutrient
food, breast-feeding by expectant mothers has been
pointed out as one single factor that it serves as a
natural check against obesity.
No one bothers about the
Federal Food Guidelines aimed at preventing the
growing obesity. The schools are still giving the same
old prescribed and standardized food without realizing
the baneful ramification of such a myopic and
straitjacket course. The shortage of parks still
persists. Moreover, people pressed by the time
constraints because of work for earning more money,
prefer not going out for walking or jogging.
The security problem in
parks and gardens or open places is yet another
compelling factor preventing citizens for a stroll in
the fresh air and straightening or stretching legs and
limbs. The expectant women or those having infants
would not like to waste time on breast-feeding for
keeping themselves symmetrical and in good physical
shape. Breast-feeding by the modern women is
considered as an uncultured or obsolete practice. In
the first instance the choice of many women trying to
look smart is to have foster children than having
their own. The question of breath feeding in such
cases does not arise.
Besides Pizzas, burgers,
sandwiches, salads, soups, tacos, huge varieties of
other cooked foods are also served. It is very
convenient to stay in front of a fast food window
while sitting in your car, order and get the stuff in
a few minutes. This is the usual practice that the
people adopt and go by it as a daily routine. The
drinks taken with the food, carry lot of sugar in due
course, lead to diabetes both in adults and children.
Here in the United States
there are innumerable Chinese, Korean, Thai,
Taiwanese, Indian, Mexican, Mediterranean, African and
other countries' restaurants. As such whatever food is
separately available in those countries; in America
all these are simultaneously available presenting a
mosaic of culinary delicacies.
Fast food is primarily
the American food culture. It is exclusively unique to
America alone although now it is also spreading to
other countries especially McDonalds, Subway etc,
which are now becoming universal favorites. The other
fast food franchises are also taking a cue from the
McDonalds.
The fast food is relished
by the Americans, generations after generations. It
contains lot of cheese, meat and a good portion of
sauces that produce fat in the body. The food served
at signature restaurants like Chili's and Olive
Garden, is relatively expensive and therefore can be
enjoyed only by a particular section of the society
with sizeable income. In such restaurants one may
spend many times more than on the fast food.
In these high profile
restaurants, the cost depends upon the number of
people sharing the food. So the low and modest income
sections mostly eat fast food, which is relatively
cheaper, does not involve hassle of waiting and at the
same time is delicious and can be shared by more
people.
This intake of fast food,
which becomes a matter of habit over the years, adds
fat and other undigested and surplus stuff in the body
and ultimately assumes the form of obesity. The
overeating of ubiquitously available junk food like
chips etc with no physical exercise to burn this heavy
load harms the digestive system.
The fast food serves such
people who are in a hurry or short of time or money.
While going to the office or coming back and at a
limited lunchtime the fast food takes a few minutes to
pay and five minutes to eat. Thus one is used to this
kind of life for days, weeks, months and years. So an
adult or a kid who keeps on eating the same cheese,
meat, sauce, salad for years naturally start storing
this stuff which besides filling the empty belly
produces lot of fat. Thus a dangerous process of
accumulating fats in the body starts.
Those voracious or
compulsive eaters, who eat passionately and with
gusto, conserve more fats and protein in their bodies.
The body starts ballooning and moving towards
overweight and the deleterious obesity.
A good portion of TV and
commercial ads is about food and eating-places. These
ads highlight in a mouth-watering manner the tasty,
juicy and crispy aspects of the food they are
advertising. Besides, the size, the quantity, the
price and such features like second and the third
layer or toppings are hammered in the minds of the
viewers to prompt them to prefer their recipes.
Naturally one is moved by all these enticing jingles.
The food franchisees can
be divided according to their categories, timings and
menus. Some are open round the clock while some open
in the morning and close in the evening. Some serve
only breakfast, and some only soups and salad. Some of
them merely sell sandwiches, some of these burgers and
pizzas, while other dish out snacks, wings and fried
items such as chicken and fish. As such there is a
vast array and variety of food for every one, catering
for every pocket, and satisfying every taste and
temperament.
America, thanks to
franchised food looks like a vast display and service
center for a limitless variety of food recipes. This
fast food culture has become an indispensable feature
in the American society. The vying food serving
enterprises have their own competition between
themselves and therefore the prices of food keeps
fluctuating: some time dwindling and some time hiking.
The industry of pre -cooked food is always in big
profit.
Working for long hours
takes it own toll .One tends to either rest at bed or
else watch TV for hours. Those who are alone or even
couples become habitual of remaining before TV from
the time of arrival in the house till the time of
going to bed. A majority seldom goes out for a walk or
jogs or exercises for either security reasons or
simply due to sloth and laziness or fatigue .The junk
and rich food in the stomach needs additional physical
labor to burn or to digest. The result is fatness.
Children either stay at
the school or at homes. For them there is nothing
interesting at home except to watch television. The
parents are away at work. Even if they are at home
they may also take rest along with their kids. It is
reported that 40 per cent population does not do any
physical activity for one reason or the other.
On top of that, there is
plentiful intake of sweet beverages and other
sugar-rich stuff like candies and chocolates. An
American adult or adolescent takes sugar many times
more than is medically recommended. Sugar needs to be
burnt through walking or other kinds of physical
labor, games, support or work out, which for obvious
reasons no one takes seriously.
Then what results can one
expect from such a freakish situation? Not only that
the body starts swelling but serious diseases like
asthma, diabetes, blood pressure and even cancer start
assailing the bodies. It is dismaying and agonizing
that 13 % children in
There is a section of
society for whom physical labor or job is an anathema.
These people spend their lives on social security.
From the social security amount they buy drugs and
some food and remain confined in doped state to their
residences till the next social security paycheck is
due. Now how can such breed of people remain
physically fit who even are averse to taking up a job,
take the trouble of going out in a park or open place
for jogging or short stroll? Thus they develop
lethargy. With the lethargy comes overweight and
finally obesity. It is a segment of society, which
seems lost and isolated from the fellow citizens. The
drug addicts either die of loss of weight or
overweight. Many among them land in jails.
The most alarming part of
this whole sordid saga is that there is very little
realization at the official level. Even on the
citizenry level, there is scant awareness about an
impending disaster of stupendous proportions. That the
precious lives are being driven to the valley of death
and the living getting obese and developing serious
diseases and rendering themselves unable to cope with
the stress of life and hard work. It forebodes a very
dismal and murky situation for the future of this
nation.
No doubt one third of the
population is concerned about the growing menace of
obesity and overweight but that concern does not help
in containing obesity. The nation is getting obese at
an alarming rate; while already over 60 % among adults
and 13 % of the youth, the flower of the nation, are
already physically disfigured or have disproportionate
bodies.
Those who have time and
money can afford to go to GYMs, SPAs and slimming
centers to keep them in good shape. These slimming and
physical fitness centers are minting money. Their
number is mushrooming. But here the problem is that if
one can afford to visit such centers for the whole
life and with regularity then obesity can be kept at
bay.
But regularity is not
possible. After a certain period of time a person has
to discontinue for the reasons that his work or office
schedule has changed or his domestic or financial
circumstances do not allow him to attend the gyms and
slimming centers regularly.
The moment they dispense
with the exercise, the process of putting up weight
starts once again. With the negligence towards this
new situation, one reaches the same level of weight on
which he had been before the physical exercise. So
literally one is back to the square one.
The owners or managers of
these slimming or fitness centers are experts of human
psyche and aware of the predicament of the overweight
people. They have their own services or products to
sell. Mindful of the laziness of the people in coming
out of their houses or offices and also aware of the
fact that apportioning of time for a physical activity
was a problem for so many, these slimming centers, of
late, instead of physical exercise, have started
selling the recipes in shape of drugs which one can
use in the comforts and privacy of their houses to get
slim pr physically fit. As such, besides physical
fitness centers, the slimming clinics have also
proliferated.
These clinics make
incredible offers bordering on miracles and short
terms drugs for reducing the weight. These drugs,
medicines or prescriptions whatever, one may call
them, are not only expensive but on the whole
injurious in the long run. They may contain toxic
elements, which burn the extra fat but leave also
other harmful side-effects. This is yet an unnatural
and artificial way of quick fixing of bulkiness which
may work for the time being but turn out to be
immensely disadvantageous in the longer run.
That is why instead of
lessening the obesity such clinics are making the
matters worse and contributing deterioration of the
national health. There are better ways of doing things
and saving the nation from a total disaster that has
started undermining the health of a great nation. What
is then the best way out and safe way of doing things?
We know that with most of
the people, the obesity is not hereditary. It results
from over eating; the eating of junk and fatty foods,
spending time in leisure and resting and by ignoring
the indispensable physical activity. Most of us may
want to reduce their excessive weight by walking or
jogging but cannot do so because of time constraints
or security reasons. On top of it is the monetary
aspect, which may hinder the regular attendance of
slim or body fitness centers. Therefore, the time has
come that the government will have to intervene with
all the seriousness. Laws have to be made to check the
growing obesity in the nation.
How can these laws be
framed and mandatorily implemented? Let the
government; first of all, declare the obesity as a
national calamity. Thereafter, it should act fast and
with firmness on the enforcement of anti-obesity
measures. The first step towards this direction would
be to change and then check the food culture as being
served for ages in the franchisees and private
eateries. The change should be in accordance with the
five food guidelines of the federal government with
regard to use of various ingredients of food such as
grains, meat, dairy products, fruits and vegetables.
These guidelines ordain
half of an hour physical activity for every one about
five days a week. How this can be implemented? If
compliance of these rules were left on the sweet will
of the people, the result would remain the same as is
evident now. Let these rules be implemented by the
authorities with full force in educational
institutions, offices and work places also.
The obese people should,
in the first place, not be given jobs until they
reduce themselves weight-wise. That would impel them
to resort to fitness of their bodies. During the
office timings, employer must allocate half an hour
for an organized physical activity at the premises to
be administered and executed by the experts hired for
this purpose.
It should be officially
incumbent upon the factory owners or the employers to
ensure daily physical activity at their facilities.
The health authorities should monitor and check such
activities actually taking place. The defaulters or
non-compliant employers should be heavily fined. In
this way several purposes would be served at the same
time one of which is that the working citizens would
receive the required labor to maintain the normal
weight and ward-off overweight. The slim centers too
would get the business and thus they would be happy.
While the employees would receive the physical fitness
exercise the cost would be borne by the employers.
In educational
institutions, the physical training must be made
mandatory to be done in the morning before the start
of the classes. In colleges the students who come at
different times or once or twice in a week to the
colleges, should also be mandated to take the physical
exercise. For this purpose a physical instructor
should be part of the staff to impart such training.
Thus the students, also per force, would be able to
prevent overweight. It could otherwise be made
obligatory for students to not exceed their weight
beyond a certain level. Regular weight checks should
be administered at schools and colleges.
For jobless and other
kind of citizens surviving on social security, it can
be made obligatory, that only those would receive the
full amount who would look physically normal. For
affluent and higher circles of society, the problem
should not be acute or a matter of major concern. For
obese people among the rich or elite some kind of
additional taxation can be introduced which is the
best and the most effective way of dealing with their
fatness. More parks and jogging tracks are imperative
to cater for most of the people to take long walks and
if necessary jogging or running fast. Security and
protection at such places must be ensured.
The basic problem is that
while we are aware of the gravity of the obesity, we
have failed to stem it. Perhaps the fundamental reason
is that overweight or obesity is treated as a private
or personal matter of citizens. The state governments
do not want to interfere in such matters considering
them as sacrosanct and as an encroachment upon the
individual or personal freedom of citizens.
But it needs to be
realized that this personal matter has assumed an
epidemic proportion pregnant with disastrous
ramifications. It is no more a private or personal
problem. It is a grave matter of health for the entire
nation. It has therefore, got to be tackled on
national and on war-footing level. Any half hearted,
half-baked measures would fail to produce the desired
results. As such a national anti -obesity campaign
needs to be mounted
Obesity should be treated
an affliction, an abuse or abhorrence to be rid off at
once like cancer or infectious diseases. If obesity
were not dealt with the urgent attention it needs,
sooner or later a big part of the population would
enter the domains of disability and inactivity. That
would spell doom for the creative faculties of the
nation. Who then would work and deliver on such
matters in which alacrity and smartness in needed?
There is no gainsaying
that the terrorists may not subdue the undaunted
spirit of the American nation or cause as high
security alerts for us as the obesity would do in the
future which is the silent enemy and surreptitious
killer. We must not take pride in the self-assurance
that we are the most well-fed nation and that this is
the only nation where surplus food is a problem and
not the shortage of food. Some surplus food goes into
trash and the other in the bellies. Let us be austere
in our eating habit, which means eating less and
eating nutritious food.
By curtailing obesity the
cost on national health care would drastically come
down. The health care centers and hospitals would be
less populated, there would less needs of medicines,
less costly equipment for the hospitals to buy and
less number of medical staff.
But the most redeeming
features would be less fleecing and exploitation by
the health insurance companies that have become more
like money minting mafias. There could be more
oversight and accountability for the overcharging
companies, pharmacies and manufacturing of drugs and
medicines and equipment.
So the health care budget
that now supersedes the defense budget of the United
States could be enormously reduced. The money thus
saved could be diverted to medical research projects
besides enhancing the social security income,
expanding the benefits like food stamps and providing
housing to the poor sections of society. Comments 💬 التعليقات |