Preview

American Diet

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
845 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
American Diet
The Average American Diet America today is in the middle of a nutritional crisis. Throughout the country, the obesity epidemic has struck every population demographic. According to recent projections made by the United States Government, 63.9 percent of Americans are either overweight or obese. That is over half of the population! What exactly is the culprit behind this crisis? How can someone fix this issue? The answers lie in the average American Diet. The diet consumed by Americans is one of, if not the worst diet in terms of saturated fat, trans fats, lack of carbohydrates, over consumption of protein, and overall malnutrition. Recommended Dietary Allowances adopted by nutritionists around the globe and countries such as the United States, Canada, and Australia tell us that the American diet fails to come even close to proper nutritional consumption. However, the problem with the American diet is actually easily fixable if people start making smart, informed choices about their food. By properly educating the general public about nutrition and health, the obesity epidemic can be controlled and cured, leaving America with happier, healthier citizens.
In order to understand why obesity is so prevalent in America today, the average diet of American citizens must be taken into account. According to data provided by The United States Department of Agriculture, Americans today consume too much red meat and sugar and too little vegetables and carbohydrates (grains). Because we consume so much red meat, which is high in saturated fat, calories and cholesterol, our diets are inherently riddled with fat and calories. Our sugar consumption also is a glaring issue. By consuming far more simple carbohydrates than we need from sugar, Americans are providing themselves with empty calories that spike blood glucose. This is compounded with the fact that the average American diet lacks proper consumption of complex carbohydrates, which come from whole grains and wheat

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    ee3031 report draft

    • 316 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Methods of food consumption and dietary habits of humans have changed drastically over the course of time. In the United States (US), a study by the USA Department of Health and Human Services records a significant increase in daily calorie intake by men to be approximately 7% between the periods of 1971-2000. Women, on the other hand, increases by an astounding 22%. This results in an increase in obesity levels by 16.4% (United States Department of Health and Human Services, 2004). The rise in the number of people being obese is not limited to the US alone.…

    • 316 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The author of this essay proved many useful points in regards to the Western Diet. In order for people to change their nutrition many things have to change as well, but is it too late? Almost every food we buy and put in our mouths is full extra additives and hormones. How whole is our food really? Comparing Americans diet to other countries proves that a healthy lifestyle with better nutrition is possible. Are the people that benefit from the consequences like doctors who treat patients with heart disease, high blood pressure or diabetes or pharmaceutical companies willing to give up everything that bring in revenue? I think we know what the…

    • 287 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Thesis statement- Although healthy eating is a lifestyle choice, the lack of convenient healthy food alternatives, the geographical location of those alternatives in proportion to overweight Americans, and the cultural norms of insalubrious eating are responsible for the rising rates of adult obesity in the Unites States.…

    • 338 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    “More than one-third (36.5%) of U.S adults have obesity” (“Center” Internet). “At least thirty million people of all ages suffer from an eating disorder. Every sixty-two minutes at least one person dies as a direct result from an eating disorder”. As Americans, our nation suffer from many health issues related to food. America is high in obesity and eating disorders. Due to media and peer pressure, many people wants to have the “perfect” image. Fast food restaurants and media influence adults and young children to eat unhealthy food.…

    • 770 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    hcs490 week 3

    • 1156 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Jacobson, M. F. (2000). Obesity in America: Inevitable? Nutrition Action Health Letter, 27(2), 2. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/204132835?accountid=458…

    • 1156 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Supersize Me Debate Essay

    • 1176 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Alison Motluk believes that people who are obese shouldn 't be to blame for their obesity. (562). Motluk claims that “In 1992 about 13 percent of Americans were clinically obese...ten years later that figure skyrocketed to 22 percent...” (562). Many other countries such as the UK, Australia, and many other Western countries are following the United States lead in the obese epidemic, which is seen as one of the developed world 's biggest public-health problems. (563). Motluk claims that people who are obese can 't actually be blamed for it because the culture in the United States promotes obesity which makes unhealthy eating the default option. (563). Motluk quotes Martin Brinks, a psychologist at Duke University 's Diet and Fitness Center, when she states that calorie rich foods are much more easier to obtain than ever before. (563). This is proven by the fact that most of the average American 's food budget is spent on food that is eaten outside of the home, most of which is high in fat and calories. (563). Portion sizes are larger than they used to be, making the consumer want to eat more. (563). In the 1960s a McDonald 's meal of a hamburger, fries, and a twelve-ounce coke contained about 590 calories but now a quarter-pounder with cheese, super sized fries, and a coke contains around 1,550 calories. (563). This really goes to show how much of a change that America has done when considering diet. Motluk provides a valid argument that children are not receiving enough physical activity to balance the amount of calories that they are consuming. (563). In schools, many children do not even participate in a gym class. (563). There is also little to no walking access anymore in towns that are very developed because there are little to no sidewalks available, thus forcing people to drive…

    • 1176 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Omnivore's Dilemmas

    • 1011 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Everybody loves food, especially America. Americans are obsessed with food, and that is correlated to the fact that in America, food is almost always readily available to us. We have fast food restaurants, grocery stores, restaurants, and farmers markets with most of the food being relatively affordable. Our nation without a doubt has many dilemmas that need to be solved, however if you were to group all of these dilemmas into different sets and focus on the “food” set of the dilemmas, which would be our nation’s current food dilemma? Taking everything into account, finding healthy, tasteful foods seems to be the main concern of many Americans today. With obesity on the…

    • 1011 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    American Diet

    • 656 Words
    • 3 Pages

    a. A legal strategy that people have taken in order to change the way corporations market food is class action lawsuits such as Pelman vs. McDonalds. Pelman plaintiffs sued McDonalds for causing obesity, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol intake, or other health related harms. Pelman’s hope is to change the way McDonald’s markets food to children in hopes that people realize that the food can be potentially hazardous to health.…

    • 656 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Obesity Satire

    • 774 Words
    • 4 Pages

    There is no wonder that we have an obesity epidemic in America. Food is everywhere we turn. Whether it’s sitting along the roadside, calling at you in bright colors from grocery store shelves, glowing in vending machines or even in the elaborate television commercials we watch. There is no way to escape from the never ending advertisements. This is where the epidemic of obesity begins. We as Americans consume more food portions than our body can handle and not enough physical activity, causing higher medical costs and a lower quality of life.…

    • 774 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    It is no secret the United States is currently facing an ever growing obstacle when it comes to obesity and nutrition amongst the population. “During the past 20 years there has been a dramatic increase in obesity in the United States and rates remain high...no state had a prevalence of obesity less than 20%...thirty six states had a prevalence of 25% or more.” (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011). This is a substantial increase from the results recorded 20 years ago. Since American culture is comprised of numerous nationalities, it is important to identify both the characteristics of individual nationality nutrition trends and those of which that have been picked up through current trends in the American culture. We…

    • 719 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    When it comes to keeping the human body, nutrition is the most essential part of everyone’s life. If people do not have full control, it will affect the way they will be in the future. Any change to someone's diet will change their body in the long run, whether it be positive or negative. It is quite apparent, especially in America, that the common person’s nutrition has gone down hill. Since the 1980s, the rate of obesity has inflated double the amount for adults and triple for children (“Obesity” p. 1). Shockingly, America spends more on fast food than on college education, computers, software and cars combined. In fact, in 2005, Americans spent one hundred thirty four billion dollars on fast food alone. In the ‘70s, America only spent six billion (Schlosser p. 10). I am not one to blame McDonalds for the drastic rise of poor nutrition. There are obviously other reasons why. I mainly blame the misinformation and myths that the general public has been told. The reason why that people are more unhealthy now than in the past is…

    • 1532 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Obesity in America

    • 990 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Throughout everyone’s existence regardless of the number of times, society has always faced some type of issue. Whether it’s big or small, personal or global, everyone constantly comes across obstacles throughout time. In today’s world we are continuously facing many issues, some with easy solutions others hard to solve. Global warming, governmental spending, health problems, etc are just some of the few types of issues we are facing in today’s society. In my opinion I believe that one of the many difficult problems that we are now encountering is the rapid increase rate of obesity. Now a day the intake of fatty foods and high calories by American citizens is spinning out of control. People are not being cautious of what they eat therefore the rate of their health is on a rise for the worst. Obesity is not a stranger in the USA; however by the rate the consumption is being done, it’s not only becoming a major problem but more like a problem without a steady solution.…

    • 990 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    Outline for Speech

    • 1246 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Today I am going to talk about 4 main points that are essential in understanding why obesity is increasing in the U.S., particularly among our youth. First, we need to understand our environmental factors. Second, we need to have knowledge of our own lack of choosing nutritious meals. Third, we need to understand the “portion distortion” in the U.S. food industry, and lastly, we need to have knowledge of the role advertising media plays in all of this.…

    • 1246 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Obesity in America

    • 2583 Words
    • 11 Pages

    In the United States today, obesity has become an enormous problem. In the last 3decades, the number of people overweight has increased dramatically. A study done by theCenters of Disease Control showed that since 1980, one third of our adult population has becomeoverweight. America is the richest but also the fattest nation in the world, and our obese backsides are the butt of jokes in every other country (Klein 28). The 1980s were a time whenAmericans suddenly started going crazy over dieting, jumping onto the treadmills, and buying prepackaged non-fat foods. However, while all of that was going on, the number of obeseAmericans began to increase. According to a report in the Journal of the American MedicalAssociation, 58 million people in our country weigh over 20 percent of their body’s ideal weight.The article “Fat Times” states, “If this were about tuberculosis, it would be called an epidemic”(Elmer-Dewit 58). The eating habits of society have steadily become more harmful and havestarted to produce gluttonous children, over-indulgent adults, and a food industry set too muchon satisfying our appetites.Obesity can begin at a very young age. Many children in our society are overweight,setting themselves up for serious health problems later in life. Type 2 diabetes, high bloodcholesterol, high blood pressure, and heart problems are just some of the risks. Children who areoverweight also tend to feel less secure, less happy, and be stressed more than normal weight…

    • 2583 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Child Obesity

    • 2561 Words
    • 11 Pages

    Today I am going to talk about 4 main points that are essential in understanding why obesity is increasing in the U.S., particularly among our youth. First, we need to understand our environmental factors. Second, we need to have knowledge of our own lack of choosing nutritious meals. Third, we need to understand the “portion distortion” in the U.S. food industry, and lastly, we need to have knowledge of the role advertising media plays in all of this.…

    • 2561 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays

Related Topics