Ever heard the phrase “fat and happy?” If this statement is true, Americans must be very happy. Overweight is now the new “normal” for our country.
Currently, 35.7 percent of Americans are obese and 34.4 percent more are overweight. Projections suggest 86 percent of Americans will be overweight or obese by the year 2030.
But why the dramatic increase during the last 30 years? Is the rise of technology and the digital age to blame? What about the changing food landscape of fast food and convenience products? Or is weight gain the byproduct of our consumer-driven society with an insatiable appetite for more?
Some proponents of this gaining trend view obesity in a more positive light. Shouldn’t we view the growth of Americans as a success? We live in a land of plenty and can spend our time focused on other tasks besides worrying about what’s for dinner.
It’s hard to argue that technology has not dramatically improved the quality of our lives. We have transitioned from the industrial age to the information and digital age. We have never been more informed, interconnected and entertained. Life is great … isn’t it?
As America’s waistline has ballooned, so has the weight loss industry. In our nation of plenty, an estimated 72 million Americans are on a diet.
This is big business for the diet industry, which made an estimated $61 billion in 2011. In fact, Americans spent an estimated $40 billion on diet products in 2008 alone.
Although obesity has dramatically increased over the past 30 years, the messages promoting unattainable thinness have increased. Weight-based discrimination, or weightism, is a socially pervasive form of discrimination in our society.
Need more proof? In an article published by the Journal of Applied Psychology in 2010, researchers revealed that women 25 pounds below the national average weight earn an additional $15,572 each year.
To make this disparity even more contentious, men who weigh in 25 pounds below the national average take home $8,437 less per year. The message is clear; our society has incentivized body weight. Could weightism be the last legal and most enduring form of discrimination in our nation?
The government has tried to regulate our food choices by proposing bans and taxes on certain foods. Critics argue that the government should not be responsible for regulating our food choices. This inevitably raises the question: who is responsible for our weight? Are you solely in control of your health and lifestyle?
As the Campus Dietitian, Marissa Lucas, RD, LD, provides nutritional counseling for students. To schedule an appointment call 208-885-6717 or email [email protected]u