When will the United States realize that more people die from bad nutrition than are murdered? A difficult problem that is facing American society in these days is obesity. The awful reality shows that America is the unhealthiest place in the world. Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services, admits that it is a huge "health crisis"("M. Obama aims to end the..."). Adults and children have health problems caused by obesity. If, for example, we look at one American family we will be surprised to see that one child who is 12 years old weighs almost 352 lbs and her younger sibling (4 years old) is already obese before starting school. These extra pounds put kids like this at a big risk for diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. We may agree that nobody forces adults to choose unhealthy foods. But I noticed that American people don't know too much about food. Even though many think that obesity is a matter of personal responsibility, the government can prevent and lead the national fight against obesity.
Government is a powerful institution; it has the resources and ability to influence laws and rules. In this case, the government has the power to regulate the fast food industry and the restaurants. Today fast foods, big brands, supermarkets produce and sell highly processed food. Government should provide supermarkets with food ambassadors who teach the American people how to shop and also show them how to cook. People don't know what they are eating. The labels are false; they show low fat on a product, but that product is full of sugar. But if the stores have a knowledgeable person in nutrition who is there to help us, consumers will eventually learn what the labels are saying and how to cook healthy meals in a short time. Another way that government is fighting obesity is the new health care bill that the president signed in March. This bill will make all the restaurants and fast foods to count their calories and show them on the menus or on boards. This will make it impossible for thousands of restaurants to hide the reality and more difficult for consumers to ignore it. "New York was the first in the country to put the calorie posting law in place," Mary Clare Jalonick, the author of the article "US law to make calorie counts hard to ignore" said and continued "since then, California, Seattle and other places have done so" ("US law to make..."). The government can work with all the restaurant industry and make them more transparent with their products.
Let's not forget about the government's role in educating children about nutrition. The purpose of schools is to teach. Unfortunately, these days, the school system is totally wrong. Children don't get knives and forks when they eat because it is too dangerous, even though they use scissors in the class. That automatically endorses having fast food "on the go." Government has to launch different programs for kids, like classes on nutrition and physical education. One of these programs supported by the government is "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" lead by a British celebrity chef who went to Huntington, West Virginia. His goal is to help people eat better. I was surprised to see Jamie Oliver surrounded by kindergarten children who didn't know the name of the vegetables. He said, "If the kids don't know what stuff is, than will never eat it" ("Teach every child about food").
First Lady Michelle Obama started a new revolution which aims to end childhood obesity. The purpose of her campaign "Let's Move," she said, is "to help parents deal with a national health crisis" ("M. Obama aims to end the..."). This program has four main key points: to improve parents' information, quality of food in schools, access and affordability of good food and physical education.
The First Lady came out and told the people that she understands, as her pediatrician once told her that her daughters had a weight fluctuation which is not good for them. She was surprised because she thought, like many other parents, that her children were eating reasonably. This approach is very helpful for American parents to not feel guilty because they are not aware of nutrition. She didn't stop there. She took action and started building a vegetable garden right behind White House. Children from different schools came there to help take care of the garden. It also made them work in the garden which involves exercise, one of her goal to take them out from isolation. I consider it a smart way to teach kids about growing and eating fresh vegetables.
Some people may believe that everybody is personally responsible for what they choose to eat. I know that American people are very strong in asking for the right to choose what they want. I learned that since I moved here in the
To summarize, the government has a lot of work to do in changing American's views about processed food. "Many companies are on board with improving school food," Obama said ("M. Obama aims to end the..."). It is a good beginning. There are some plans that need approval in Congress because they require new funding. Like Jamie Oliver said, "If America does it, other countries will follow" ("Teach every child about food").
