Preview

Obesity

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2667 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Obesity
Obese Passenger and Economic Seating

There have been lots of debates taking pre-eminence on whether obese and overweight passengers should pay for two seats on flights since in essence they are consuming more space than they are supposed to and consequently using more fuel because of their extra body mass. The “fat tax” has spurred a lot of reactions, some citizens, economists and scholars recommend that ticket costs be calculated according to passengers’ weight. Some people view charging passengers according to their weight as discriminatory and humiliating for the overweight people. Maybe to better comprehend this law or policy we need to know what obesity is and what causes this condition. The dictionary definition of obesity refers to it as a medical condition whereby surplus body fat has accumulated to the point that it may have adverse health effects, leading to a reduced life expectancy and increased health problems (Brethauer SA 19). Obesity is calculated using the Body mass index (BMI) which compares height and weight. A person is defined as overweight if their Body Mass Index is greater than 30 kg/m2. When one consumes more calories than he or she can burn then obesity occurs once a person consumes more calories than can burn. The fundamental causes of an obesity epidemic are unhealthy dietary, such as high-fat; energy-dense diets, and sedentary lifestyle. The rising epidemic is a sign of the profound societal changes and the behavioral patterns of communities; even though some people may become obese, partially because they have a genetic or any other biological inclination to gain weight more readily when exposed to an unfavorable environment (Arterburn DE 12). Obesity has become a national health priority as public health officials are worried that it is reaching epidemic proportions. At least 72 million citizens in American are overweight. The effects are enormous, and they include personal suffering through disease, increased medical care and

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Obesity

    • 5899 Words
    • 24 Pages

    Obesity among students has become a national phenomenon. It becomes a concern among the public and school personnel - including teachers, school psychologists, and counselors, as to the effects of student obesity. With the numbers of student obesity on the rise, it is important to see how school personnel, teachers, as well as other students perceive this situation. Overweight and obese students have a higher risk of continuing to become overweight adolescents and they are more likely to experience serious long term morbidity, including coronary heart disease, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and some cancers. Current physical activity levels among Malaysian adolescents remain low, together with unhealthy dietary practices and a passive lifestyle, these lead to obesity and being overweight. Lack of or minimal physical activities at home and at work, have resulted in increased morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular disease, which it becomes one of the important causes of premature death in the Southeast Asia region. Such sedentary lifestyles and unhealthy eating habits of adolescents may well lead to an increase in the prevalence of obesity today (Low W J, 2006).…

    • 5899 Words
    • 24 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    According to, Eric, et al (2009) compare to people in their physical appearance whether overweight or normal weight. They also explain obese persons have medical spending that was $ 1,429 higher than spending for average weight people in 2006. Moreover, they show the differences between these two kinds of people because fat people need many medical examinations unlike normal weight people, therefore, they have to pay more to the hospitals or to health care companies. Furthermore, the authors estimate the medical disbursal to obesity between people’s spending. In 2006, normal weight persons spent $ 1,429 billion and overweight people spent $41.5 billion. In 1998, average weight people spent $1,145 billion and fat persons spent $36.5 billion. The authors blame for the negative outcomes to diseases as a result of the increase of medical care spending for obesity specially. It means that, people spend a lot of money in order to get medical care and medicine. People who are normal weight do not pay a lot of money as much as the overweight people cost. The medical health care charges people depending on their weight, whether additional cost or reduced price. The cost of remedy is relying on people’s weightiness and their…

    • 716 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    OBESITY

    • 363 Words
    • 1 Page

    In the article “Battling Obesity: Where do we go from here?” Joanna Pinkley claims that obesity has made diseases and complications grow widespread, as our nation, have become heavier (Pinkley 1). It has brought shorter life spans and higher medical costs. She also informed us about how the Mayor of New York, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, attempted to put a legislation limiting the size of sugary drinks sold to New York residents at local establishments. Pinkley argued that, “ In the minds of many opponents, this type of legislation seems to cross the boundary of what government should – and should not – be allowed to control (Pinkley 2). She insists that one approach towards obesity will not solve the problem for everyone nor will it start to reverse obesity on a greater scale. For example, many education programs and food labeling provide customers with health information, but not enough specific enough to tell them to do anything. Also, funding for bike lanes and other exercise facilities provide a place to workout but don’t force anyone to actually move a muscle (Pinkley 3). She says that the idea that strict reliance on personal responsibility has not done anything to change obesity’s progression in a positive way, shows that additional action is surely needed. “The greatest trend reversal is likely to occur when individuals, communities and government all dedicate resources toward well-analyzed, meaningful and varied solution,” Joanna Pinkley (Pinkley 6). The author’s purpose was to inform us on how the obesity epidemic has taken a toll on many individuals and affected the society as a whole. Joanna Pinkley’s work is important because she reported how obesity has affected us, how some organizations and government leaders have worked toward helping reverse obesity’s trend. Lastly what it might take for our generation and future to help find solutions toward obesity! People should care because s obesity has grown it has not only…

    • 363 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    obesity

    • 1051 Words
    • 8 Pages

    If the mystery food is tofu, then it will react with the reagent that indicates the presence of…

    • 1051 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Obesity

    • 382 Words
    • 2 Pages

    With the new nation of The United States nearing the end of the 18th century, many people were still participating in the slave trade. Benjamin Banneker decided to seek the help of the Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson, in order to change the country’s position on slavery. By pointing out the faults in one of the most powerful documents in history and forcing Jefferson to decide his own remedies for the situation, Banneker disputes a topic that to this day remains controversial.…

    • 382 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Obese Passenger

    • 719 Words
    • 3 Pages

    With these different deals about the fat passengers, there is surely a disagreement about accepting these policies or rejecting them. Obese passengers should buy two airline seats. This is because of several reasons that may be benefit for the obese passengers and the normal weight passengers. So this will help make everyone more comfortable.…

    • 719 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    No Fear Of Fat Analysis

    • 622 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In the article “No Fear of Fat” by Solovay and Rothblum, human body fat is studied along with how people perceive those that are much thicker or fat being associated with obesity. Even though there are many events that may lead to a person becoming obese, obesity is simply “prescriptive in nature”, that human weight is changeable, but are nothing more than something perceive by social bias against fatness and fat people (Solovay and Rothblum 19). Which can explain why local authorities are constantly pushing the sugar beverage tax for the sake of public health. Those who believe that obesity is the cause of premature death, support the sugar beverage tax.…

    • 622 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Obesity Critical Analysis

    • 4724 Words
    • 19 Pages

    Running head: OBESITY 1 Obesity: A Critical Approach Student Name GEN 499 Instructor Annemarie Hamlin Date OBESITY 2 Obesity:…

    • 4724 Words
    • 19 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Obesity in America

    • 3126 Words
    • 13 Pages

    Obesity in America is an ever-growing problem each day. As of 2011, The United States of America has the highest obesity rate of any other country of the world. What is obesity? Obesity is defined as “a condition characterized by the excessive accumulation and storage of fat in the body” (Webster). Excess obesity usually begins to have negative affects on the body and often causes health complications. The obesity rate in America has been on the rise for many years and will continue to only get worse if Americans do not take action immediately. Jeff Levi, Ph.D., executive director of TFAH said “Today, the state with the lowest obesity rate would have had the highest rate in 1995.” This is a fact that is not easy to hear and even harder to disprove (Levi). Based on polls taken in 2008, more than 50% of 4,000 people that took part in a poll said that they would give up a year of their lives if it meant they would no longer be obese. The same poll also gathered researched that shows the increasing weight of passengers on planes. Airlines have had to spend almost three hundred million on extra fuel to compensate for the massive growth in weight and size of passengers (Heather).…

    • 3126 Words
    • 13 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Obesity and Biology

    • 741 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Obesity isn’t classified as an eating problem anymore. It is more than that a person’s biology plays a big roll. Cells and hormones play a big roll on how big you are and how your body regulates energy. Food equals energy and the body stores that energy in fat cells and uses the energy as needed. The metabolism breaks down that food and uses the energy generated from that food for everyday activities such as walking, talking, thinking. The faster ones metabolism is the more efficient they are at breaking down food and using the energy. The slower the metabolism the more energy gets stored and gets turned into fat cells and not used. The hormone leptin, which is produced in fat cells, sends signals to the brain telling it that its levels are dropping which means the cells are reducing. When this occurs the brain processes that information as starvation and sends signals back to slow down the metabolism and store as much energy as possible. There are people who eat less than other but still gain weight. That’s a biological problem. There are areas in the brain research has found that if damaged can lead to obesity. One such area is the ventromedial hypothalamus and the surrounding axons. If this area in the brain is damaged at then this can lead to overeating and more storing of fat cells. Research conducted on rats at the University of Nebraska looked at this area in the brain and how it affects food intake and body weight. With damage to that area the rat nearly tripled in size in the cores of about sixty days. Food intake does not always correspond to body weight. It is possible to excessively eat and not gain weight. It just matters how active one is and how efficient the metabolism is. There are other areas in the brain located in the prefrontal cortex that also can affect body weight. Those areas are responsible for food-seeking behaviors. If one is always hooked on seeking high fat food such as burgers and high sugar drinks such as coke…

    • 741 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Obesity

    • 1279 Words
    • 6 Pages

    "Social Networks Influence Obesity | Psych Central News." Psych Central.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2013.…

    • 1279 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    obese flights

    • 1475 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Imagine this…You worked overtime shifts for the past 3 months to be able to afford this vacation. You struggled to get time off and you are now ready to relax and enjoy yourself on the trip. The time has come to take your seat on the plane and low and behold, you can’t even have a seat to yourself because the person next you is overweight and therefore over the armrest. Not only is this affecting your ability to enjoy a comfortable flight but economically this may affect your ability to afford to fly in the future. The objective of this research paper is to debate whether or not obese people should have to pay more for airline tickets.…

    • 1475 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Obesity

    • 477 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Because of the omnipotence of fast food chains in America, when we feel the urge for an easy meal, Americans, in general, immediately look to the fast food nation for a quick suppression to their hunger. Because we live in a time-is-money society the most efficient means of hunger satisfaction is the almighty drive-through. Corporations spend billions of dollars advertising to enhance sales of their products. With American catching on to the lack of healthy food options in the fast food nation, fast food chains began campaigning healthier food such as their salads and fruit cups. However salads may sound healthy but a Southwest Salad with Grilled Chicken from McDonald's has 320 calories and 90 grams of fat. Where's the "healthy" in that. Now that Obesity is the second leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. we need to re-evaluate the importance of healthy eating. By increasing awareness of the obesity epidemic in America we can begin to reverse the trend in weight gain.…

    • 477 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Obesity

    • 2878 Words
    • 12 Pages

    Obesity is an abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually 20% or more over an individual's ideal body weight. Obesity is associated with increased risk of illness, disability, and death.…

    • 2878 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Obesity

    • 1977 Words
    • 8 Pages

    According to a National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, one-third of the United States diet consists of junk or fast food (Allison). Obesity is the “abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually twenty percent or more over an individual 's ideal body weight” (Greenblatt). Obesity is becoming an overwhelming epidemic in America. It is more prevalent in African Americans, American-Indians, and children (Richards). In fact, nearly two out of three Americans are overweight or obese and the number of overweight children has tripled over the last twenty years (Greenblatt). Due to obesity, there are many deaths or life threatening effects in America. According to Greenblatt, individuals who are obese have a 50 to 100 percent increased risk of premature death from all causes, compared to those with a healthy weight. Moreover, they discovered that about one of every eight deaths in America is caused by an illness started by obesity (Allison). A stronger focus on solutions is vital in controlling the obesity epidemic. Rather than taking the easy way out by buying cheap fast food, people need to be taught how to save their money and recognize the negative effects of vast fast food intake.…

    • 1977 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays

Related Topics