Cultural Preferences as Causes for Obesity

Table of contents

A. Introduction

B. Main part: Cultural preferences of obesity I. The United States (U.S.)

1. What is obesity?

a, BMI b, Waist circumference c, Body fat measurements

2. Facts and figures

3. Causes for obesity

4. Effects on health and body

5. Therapies

II. Germany III. Cultural aspects C. End: Summary Notes Bibliography

A. Introduction

Almost anybody today knows the troubles people have with their weight or figure. Articles in magazines and newspapers about diets and weight can be found everywhere, and one country where the problem of being overweight or obese is always on the top is the U.S.A. North America was the first nation to make people realize that it was not only the precursor of technologies and new industries, but also the ‘motherland’ of weight problems. Though, what are the reasons for this development? How is the situation like today? And what can be done against this disease?

In my following essay I will try to work out these points more explicitly.

B. Main part: Cultural preferences of obesity

I. The United States (U.S.)

1. What is obesity?

“Obese: very fat, in a way that is not healthy 1 .” The definition of the ‘Oxford Dictionary’ points out that this amount of body fat is not normal but dangerous, and that this person’s weight exceeds a normal level. But where does overweight begin?

a, BMI

The first – and probably best – method to classify weight is the Body Mass Index (BMI). “BMI is a number based on both your height and weight. It can help you determine the degree to which you may be overweight and gives a reasonable assessment of total body fat for the general population 2 .” To calculate the BMI, this check can be useful: [weight (in kg)] / [height (in meters)] ² = BMI.

The following table will help to rank the results:

BMI < 18.5

-> underweight

BMI 18.5 – 24.9

BMI 25.0 – 29.9

BMI 30.0 – 39.9

BMI 40.0 or higher

1 Oxford Dictionary

2 AOA: “What is Obesity“

3 Wikipedia

b, Waist circumference Another way of measuring one’s figure is the waist circumference. It “is used to determine health risks related specifically to abdominal fat 4 .” “The absolute waist circumference (>102 cm [for] men and >88 cm [for] women) 5 ” is as a measure of central obesity

c, Body fat measurements

The third method, especially used by doctors, is the body fat measurement. In general, “men with more than 25% body fat and women with more than 30% body fat are [consid-

ered] obese 6 .” It is important to say, however, that these kinds of estimation can just be applied for people with a ‘normal’ height and a normal amount of muscles; that means it is rather useless for very tall persons or bodybuilders.

2. Facts and figures

Today, “approximately 127 million adults in the U.S. are overweight, 60 million obese and

9 million severely obese 7 .” These figures show that about 65% of the population is too fat

and that is also the reason why obesity is considered to be “the second leading cause of preventable death after smoking 8 .” But this number is still increasing today (see map: p. 6).

3. Causes for obesity

In very few cases, the problem of too much weight is the result of genetic predisposition or metabolic disorders. But primarily, the reason why most of these people are overweight is simple: too much food, containing too much calories and fat, and too little exercise. But the causes go deeper: Fast food chains like McDonald’s, Burger King or Kentucky Fried Chicken offer large menus with unhealthy food almost 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There is no need to do your own cooking or to prepare low-fat and healthy meals because these convenience products and ready-to-go food are often cheaper and faster to get. Com- bined with lack of sports and exercise, obesity “is the result of a fast-food lifestyle, in- creased use of computers and less physical activity 9 .” 10

4 AOA: “What is Obesity”

5 Wikipedia 6 Wikipedia 7 AOA: “Obesity in the U.S.” 8 AOA: “What is Obesity” 9 BBC NEWS 10 compare: NETZEITUNG.DE AOA: “Causes of Obesity”