Obesity in the United States

Paper Summary:

This paper analyzes the ways that various populations differ in their ability to access food and if this affects their obesity rates. It then looks at how the abundance of readily available food in the United States, combined with a reduced need for physical activity, has led to an unprecedented percentage of people in its population who meet the criteria for either obesity or overweight. The paper specifically proposes to compare how children from economically and environmentally disadvantaged areas fare as adults when making food choices (having been exposed to good health practices as children), compared to peers who have not been exposed to good health practices at that same age.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Method
Participants
Measure/Instruments
Procedure

From the Paper:

"The World Health Organization (WHO) defines obesity by using the body mass index (BMI), which divides weight in kilograms/pounds by the square of the individual's height in metres/inches. Any individual with a BMI of between 25 and 30 was determined to be overweight, while individuals with a BMI over 30 were determined to be obese (Sanmartin et al., 2004, p. 8). Several causes exist for both obesity and overweight. These conditions can be caused through 1) overeating, 2) a surplus of the individual's daily intake of calories coming from poor nutritional sources, 3) a lack of exercise, or 4) any combination of these causes. This paper will not address overeating as a cause of obesity and overweight."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Cawley, J., Meyerhoefer, C., & Newhouse, D. (2006). The impact of state physical education requirements on youth phsical activity and overweight. Education Next, 4. Retrieved 11 October 2006 from http://media.hoover.org/documents/ednext20064unabridged_60.pdf.
• Morland, K., Wing, S., & Roux, A. D. (2002). The contextual effect of the local food environment on residents' diets: The atherosclerosis risk in communities study. American Journal of Public Health, 92(11), 1761-1767. Retrieved September 25, 2006, from http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1447325&blobtype=pdf
• Sanmartin, C., Ng, E., Blackwell, D., Gentleman, J., Martinez, M., & Simile, C. (2004). Joint Canada/United States durvey of health, 2002-03. Statistics Canada. Retrieved September 25, 2006, from http://canada.usembassy.gov/content/can_usa/health_comparisonreport.pdf#search=%22Obesity%20in%20the%20United%20States%20.pdf%22

More papers on Obesity in the United States:

• Term Paper # 129715 : "Obesity in the United States"
• Research Paper # 99489 : "Obesity in the United States"
• Research Paper # 61476 : "Obesity in the United States"

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