“I just ate a double cheese burger with large fries and a soda.” Why do people share such information with others? Is it due to one’s guilty conscious of consuming unhealthy food items? According to the federal government, these people are a part of the 61% obese Americans who are considered “overweight.” So, why does it matter to us what other’s choose to take into their body? As selfish as it may sound, each individual should worry about his/her own eating habits.
Anti-obesity initiatives, as listed in Radley Balko’s essay, include prohibiting junk food in school vending machines, more demanding labels on foodstuffs, and federal funding for new bike trails and sidewalks. Many would agree with Balko that, “what you eat is your business.” Balko and many others claim that this is the wrong way to fight obesity. Getting the government to become more involved in what we choose to eat will not strongly impact someone’s eating habits; it needs to come from within. Instead of manipulating the variety of food options available to American consumers, our government should be working towards enforcing that “you are what you eat” and that is your responsibility. Balko believes, “A society where everyone is responsible for everyone else’s well-being is a society more apt to accept government restrictions.” This would affect what Kroger and other companies choose to put on the shelves of grocery stores. Why should others suffer because of someone else’s decision to take a different path in food dieting? As state legislatures and school boards across the country
begin to ban snacks and soda from school campuses, they are only complicating the situation because many will go out of their way to find the snack or drink they wish to have. Many enjoy the easy accessibility of having snacks and soda in school vending machines.
Your well-being, shape, and condition should be deemed matters of “personal responsibility.” Many people do not take into consideration that obesity in some human beings is genetically predisposed. By focusing on the lies that occur in the diet industry, Paul Campos, overlooks the deeper problem of “fat” people. Campos listed, “Fat people can choose to be thinner,” as one of the “lies” he believes is made by others. Yes, there is a huge variety of healthy food options out there for people, but you cannot control your own metabolism. Some may have a faster metabolism than others. We have to face the fact that sometimes being fat is ok. According to Campos, it has been proven that any group of dieters will end up weighing more, on average, than a group that has never began dieting before. Researchers link obesity with 30 other medical conditions. Some of these conditions include: diabetes, heart disease, cancers, and hypertension. This proves that you cannot always blame the person for being fat when indeed it may have been caused over a period of time or due to past medical history. Those who fall under this category need to understand that just because they are overweight it does not mean they can’t do anything about it. By finding ways to decrease the likely hood of people gaining weight it will help to ensure that their medical condition(s) is not stopping them from becoming fit or maintaining a regular BMI.
As the number of gained pounds increases in a person, so does the number of obese people. Many would agree with Campos’s claim that fat people are much more likely to be poor than thin people. Whether from a poor or wealthy background, it is your business as to what you
choose to eat. Those who are poor usually have no option but to eat in a certain manner. Because fast food is convenient and affordable it is an easier path to take rather than purchasing organic food or other healthier options. Yes, they may not be able to afford other food options, but there are different ways in which “poor” individuals, or any other people who choose the “unhealthier” road, for them to lose weight and stay in shape. By exercising and burning off what you ate, it will help to lessen the amount of overweight Americans.
The government as well as other institutes of health should not control what people wish to eat. It is the individual’s choice and they can either take action, by exercising, or suffer the consequences by becoming “overweight.” As Balko believes, it is the wrong approach to solving obesity when trying to prohibit junk food in school vending machines and demand labels on foodstuffs. Everyone is responsible for their own actions and is in control of what they put into their body.
