This article is about obesity in the United States and how it attributes to high health care and demands for people who get diabetes and need a lot of medical attention because of obesity. It also talks about how we should tax snack foods and make them less desirable for people to buy. It states, “According to oft-cited research published in the journal Obesity, the annual cost to the state of medical care attributable to obesity is estimated to be almost $7.7 billion. If every man, woman and child in California put $200 into a fund on a yearly basis, that wouldn't be enough to cover that tab. And that's just what the state spends.” It also furthermore goes to explain, “I have a motto: Alliteration makes for good legislation. So we can sell the snack tax like this: Tack 10 cents onto anything beige, battered or bite-sized.The obesity epidemic is a serious health crisis. Even cockroaches are coming down with Type 2 diabetes. And it's all from -- surprise -- the food we eat. Fast food. Fried food. Sugary food. High-fructose corn syrup. It's in abundance, and its super cheap. We've overindulged, and it's driving up healthcare costs each year.”
Over all, I think this is a bad idea. If people want junk food, that means they are addicted to it and will eat it no matter the cost. They will do what it takes to buy the extra bag of cheetos and the box of donuts. Furthermore, obesity is most common amoung the poorer people who do not have enough money as it is. If we want to help, we should promote better eating habits and lower the cost of healthier foods.
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5 comments:
Well, i think this would stop me from eating junk food. Theres no way i would pay a tax just to have a candy bar. But overall, like you said, this is not the answer. Making people pay more is not the way to solve every single problem, as the government seems to think.
rachel your article just once again reminds me how the US is spending all its money in all the wrong places. that tax on junk food would in fact be a bad idea. we're the fattest country in America for a reason: crappy, unhealthy food is everywhere! ya smoking is'nt good for you, but i'd much rather be a smoker than extremly obese. People criticize smokers, but they don't criticize the obese, but rather show sensitivity for them. This is a complete double standard and maybe we should stop treating smokers so bad. ya i said it!
*i meant good idea in my post above
I recently watched the movie Super Size Me which heavily relates to what you just talked about. There was one part were a person was telling a story about being at a dinner table. One guest said to another guest that smoking is severly harmful and that he should just stop doing it. The person telling the story then went on to think what if this person was talking about obesity which is just as bad for you. The conversation would have instead been being fat is bad for you, why dont you just stop eating. So one is socially acceptable but the other is not.
Well, while I am sure some people would stop eating junk food, I really do not know if it is worth the time an money to restrict what people eat. I would rather not pay the money, than get some crappy food. I agree with King Reeves that there is a double standard though.
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