Recently, the Obama Administration has been working on a new front against childhood obesity. The White House Office of Science & Technology Policy and the U.S. Department of Agriculture have continued to push for new technology that can help create a fun incentive for children to work out while playing games in a social network online. 31 experts were at a meeting earlier this month to "offer their knowledge and experience related to game design, entertainment technology, social media, and skill contests." Basically, they are having a contest in order to bring together the best ideas out there that will create an addicting game that convinces children to work out.
Also, Michelle Obama has been working on her "Let's Move" campaign across America that hopes to promote better nutrition for all families. She says that the first step is to stop eating "food desserts" in the next 7 year. Another issue she hopes to face head on is the lack of grocery stores in certain areas. Because of this, many Americans are unable to access fruits and vegetables for their healthy nutrition. That is why Michelle Obama ”pointed to a $400 million healthy food financing initiative as a way not only to help kids eat healthy but develop "an economic engine" in poor communities."
Although many of us live in neighborhoods that have farmer's markets, grocery stores, and other forms of accessing healthy foods, many individuals are stuck eating foods high in saturated fats with nothing to balance out their diets. We need to make a change fast if we want to prevent the exponential growth of obesity.
9 comments:
This is really great to hear.
I've actually been seeing an increased amount of fitness-promotion lately, even at gas stations. They have "strech while you pump" billboards that encourage patrons to get active while pumping their gas.
It will be interesting to see what lengths Obama may go to!
I agree with Brian! We may not notice it a lot here in the Bay Area, but when I was in Kentucky and Michigan the obesity problem is way more apparent. Hopefully Michelle Obama will make a difference.
This is nice to hear. So many people are becoming obese and it is setting up for problems in the near future. I think Michelle Obama is helping to point this country in the right direction and I hope we see improvements soon. Access to fruits, vegetables, and other healthier foods is definitely one reason, but I also think the advertisements and media is another. While watching the olympics this past week, I have seen multiple commercials for McDonalds within a short time period..maybe in an hour there are about 5 commercials all promoting McDonalds. In the commercials, some feature olympians saying to go to mcdonalds and others are saying that all olympians eat mcdonalds so you should too. So many people are watching these commercials and i think they are definitely infuencing people to eat unhealthy. I highly doubt olympians go eat mcdonalds very often... this is just adding to obesity.
I also think culture is a factor for obesity. When i was in alabama, every meal i had involved some kind of fried food. The people there were used to it. I think it is going to take a lot of work to change people's diets.
I agree with Talia. Culture is definately a major factor when it comes to what people eat.I think Americans in general are more lenient towards what their children eat (or themselves). My mom is Japanese and she never lets me leave the house unless I have had a good breakfast, meaning something that was nutritious. Also, my step mom who is Brazilian would force my (white, American) dad to eat fish on Wednesdays (our fish days)because she is so accustomed to eating healthy. I strongly support Michelle Obama's determination to help Americans get more access to healthy food around their areas.
-Emily Niemann
I think Michelle Obama's idea of increasing grocery stores in certain areas is pretty brilliant. This will definately get fruits and vegetables closer to those to need it. However, an obstacle I foresee is that if the grocery stores charge too much, people might still prefer the fast food joints. That is the unfortunate problem regarding organic foods. Although those foods help save the environment (and are healthier), most people rarely would pay the high price slapped on organic brands. If the grocery stores charge too much, I think that the $400 million would be wasted, since the overweight people would still prefer the fast foods. Also, maybe, lower the accessibility of Twinkies in the groceries?
-Henry Zhang
Increased availability of fruits and vegetables doesn't necessarily mean a decrease in obesity. You can still get fat even if you eat fruits and vegetables.
This is amazing to hear. I think that health is a high issue and should be viewed greatly. I have actually seen alot more of the junk food kicked out of the school. Is the 4 year physical education still going to be run at aragon? Anyways this is a great idea I actually am quite dissapointed I am not in p.e. anymore, so i think that kinds should just continue to improve from here on out. I hope that the government and obama stresses this issue greatly.
I agree with Francis! I can see that even the state is trying to cut down fatty and sugary foods in school. There has been quite a change in Aragon's vending machines. Now, the chocolate bars and pop tarts are replaced with wheat thins and pretzels. However, people can still consume fatty foods before and after school.
I guess its the point of easier access to healthier foods and less access to fattier foods. I agree with Goldie, they could eat before and after school or even bring snacks to school, but maybe that will mean more parental monitoring for some and no snack due to laziness for others. I guess what i'm trying to say is, although the effects might not be as drastic as we hope, it will most likely have some effect...or at least i hope?
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