THE CAUSES OF OBESITY

Obesity is on the rise in developing and developed countries and has become a reason for concern. The concern is due to the fatal illnesses linked to the problem which have caused death rates to soar. The biggest killers linked to obesity today are heart attacks and cardiovascular diseases; the treatment of such diseases is a huge burden to the state. This growing expense, as well as humanitarian concerns, is leading more and more professionals to try and curb this new trend. The solutions lie in coming to grips with the reasons the most important of which is changing life styles.

One aspect of our changing lifestyle is down to technological development. Every modern convenience saves time and energy thus leading to inactivity. Everything from modern washing machines and vacuum cleaners to cars and motorcycles save time and make life easier but also prevent people from expending all the calories they ingest. Washing day could be best compared to a military operation in the past leaving the housewife dead on her feet; no household chore in the modern world compares to the way it was done in the past. As for life outdoors, shopping is now an activity that takes place at weekends and involves the family car; there is no walking and no heavy lifting. The same goes for work: people are glued to their seats in the workplace or on transport. The drop in the amount of energy expended is phenomenal so obesity should come as no surprise. Things don’t stop here however; the modern mantra of wanting everything to be done yesterday affects eating habits too.

Our obsession with speed has altered one of the most pleasurable examples of socialization and bonding: meal times. Since nobody has time for anything and convenience is paramount, microwaves have replaced cooking and TV dinners and fast food have replaced all that lovely stuff your grandmother used to cook. Couple that with the addictive chemicals in a lot of fast food, and the modern consumer is hooked. The modern fast food industry knows how to keep people hooked: plenty of fat, carbs and sugar. The inevitable result is obesity. The solution is obvious: we need to travel back in time.

To address this problem, we have to make sure that home cooking replaces fast food over all. This means workplaces, school canteens as well. When beans, salad and broccoli replace hamburgers and pizzas, we will have won the battle. The next obvious solution is to actually give people time to eat. The drastic drop in calories thus achieved, coupled with thirty minutes of walking a day, will help most people shed those pounds easily.