

Obesity is an extremely important topic to me in that I have family members that are obese or have been at one point. Heart diseases, cancer, and diabetes also runs deep in my family so, I am by far one of the healthiest and fitness obsessed people ever. I eat a decently strict diet and workout 6 days a week. I am interested in the topic of having policies and regulations to help prevent obesity because I believe if people understood the number of risks and costs that come along with it they would have more motivation to change their lifestyle for the better. Working out has become a huge part of my life and is hardly ever a struggle for me to do daily. Of course, I have my good and bad days but everyone does. Determining ways that people will actually be a part of to help them live a longer, better life would make me feel accomplished in so many ways. I am forever telling people how much better I feel when I work out and eat a balanced diet but no one follows through with my advice. I believe I am qualified to write a paper on this subject because I have over two years of experience of living a healthy and active lifestyle. Two years is nothing compared to what some older people have in experience but at this stage in my life, I feel that I know enough about the subject to argue that obesity should be prevented in some way, shape, or form. People deserve to know the effects of what they are putting into their bodies. No lying around the truth, just the straight up facts that if they continue living the way they are, it will only kill them in the end.


In The Washington Post's Article dealing with obesity in America, Ariana Cha makes that claim that obesity has taken over the country. She states statistics put out by the CDC to make her point that almost two thirds of the U.S. is considered to be obese. Cha brings up the effort Michelle Obama has made to help with the issue.

The entire U.S. population is at risk for obesity. It is continuously growing and "There will be no difference between the rising trend of obesity among younger adults vs. older adults" (Cha).  Obesity must be stopped in order to save the lives of people that have no idea what they are getting themselves into. People deserve to be educated on how living this type of lifestyle can shorten their life span by years.

Ariana Cha is the writer and chief for The Washington Post and has also been a correspondent in Baghdad. She was once a program analyst on Wall Street before becoming a journalist. Cha is credible in that she has had multiple experiences in the writing industry and obviously does her research on her topics with there being multiple citations in the article. She states her opinion in the article that something needs to be done about the issue so she is bias towards ending obesity and/or lowering the numbers of it.


The Bloomberg article goes over specific effects on the economy by obesity. Rebecca Stilwell lists out and explains multiple pieces of evidence on how obesity has changed our country for the worse. Factors such as costs surges, less productivity, expensive treatments, lower earnings, and even the usage of more gasoline are listed out to argue that obesity has hurt America tremendously. 

People could very well take this article offensively if they are in the percent considered to be obese. Factors involved in being obese are more than just the general health issue and people deserve to know that. This article tells it how it really is and reveals every bit of life that is affected by a person being overweight.

Rebecca Stilwell is a writer for the Bloomberg Business website and obviously does her research on her pieces of writing. There are times in the article where she uses other people's statements to back up her own writing. She argues that each of these pieces of evidence have affected not just people that are obese but everyone and she uses statements from others to prove it.


Michelle Obama's "Let's Move!" campaign's goal is to spread the word about obesity in America and get kids involved in more physical activities along with educating them on the effects of unhealthy eating habits on a level they are able to understand. The website states the mission for her program and the steps she plans on taking to accomplish it.

Michelle Obama states on the website that this is not just an issue she is interested in but it is a passion of hers to make a difference in children's lives.  Major pieces of evidence she uses is the fact that everyone has a role in preventing obesity from schools and the government to parents and healthy care providers. She values the lives of children and thinks they deserve the chance to live a long and healthy live despite if their parents live differently.

Obviously Michelle is a credible source for this program with her being the first lady. She is able to make a huge difference in communities all over the country. People may not agree with her actions on preventing obesity but that does not matter to her. She has had the courage not just to take action and state the program but she has been hands on with it since it began. She travels to educate children all over and is actively involved.

Reflection:

The question of if policies and/or training should be required for people that are considered obese is arguable because over half of the United States is now considered obese and these people should know the long term effects they are putting on their bodies, the future family, and their financial situations. In the past couple years Michelle Obama has made an effort to fix obesity in America and thousands of people fired back saying it was wrong of her to do so. People will disagree that policies should not be put into place because it is an individual's decision on their lifestyle but in reality these overweight people are not just affecting themselves but the entire country. People are going to disagree with any type of policy put into place nowadays but that is just life-everyone is not going to be pleased either way. On the other side, many people will agree with policies being put in place because they are or will become educated on the subject. If people would take the time to learn how obesity effects the country as a whole and not just the individuals that are considered overweight. The mindset of people in today's society is that the obese people have made the choice to live the way they are so it is their issue to deal with. When in reality, people like myself that are not obese have the potential to help with the issue just as much as the obese do. Together we could spread the word and help those in need of education on the subject and turn people's lives around. Of course, we would need to work on ways to not offend those that need help because people are self conscious of their weight, just like always. My research question could be revised to have a specific plan or policy in mind to put to action and not be so broad of a subject.
