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Advertising and Obesity

In: Social Issues

Submitted By riv9217
Words 1237
Pages 5
The amount of people classified as obese and overweight has increased over a short period of time, and the rates of obese children involved are shockingly and disturbingly high. Obesity has been described as an epidemic and the government is finally starting to take a role in preventing it. A recent research conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that thirty-three states had a prevalence of obesity less than or equal to 20% and nine a prevalence equal to or greater than 30%. Concerns have raised due to the fact that obesity is one the major factors of many diseases, including cardiovascular disease, certain types of cancer and type II diabetes (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2010). People don’t usually consider this issue although they should, the fact that this isn’t important for most Americans should be a concern because anybody could be at risk. One of the major reasons argued to contribute to obesity is advertising. Advertising is extremely influential in American culture and goes beyond television. Fast food industries usually use television, banners, radio advertisements and different media to sell their products. However, how advertising of food contributes to the epidemic of obesity is still a dispute. A recent systematic research that compared television food advertising to children in different countries showed that marketing generates positive beliefs about advertised foods and influences children’s food preferences, purchase request and consumption (Television Food Advertising to Children: A Global Perspective, 2010). This means that even though the reasons of how advertising affects obesity are still being argued, there is a great influence caused by it. While advertising plays a major role in Americans’ lives, most of people don’t realize certain forms of advertising like that of fast food are clearly

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