Education Is the Key to Making Healthful Choices
Colleen Madigan
DeVry University
Education Is the Key to Making Healthful Choices
Education regarding healthy, low cost food options will help low income families reduce obesity rates. They need to know that programs exist that can help them purchase healthy foods at a reasonable price. One such program was created by clinicians at Indiana University Health for the citizens in lower income areas in the city of Indianapolis. This program, Garden On The Go, brings healthy, fresh, organic produce to people in areas that have difficulty accessing these kinds of products. Interested families can use cash, debit or credit cards or food ...view middle of the document...
According to a study by Stoll, the higher the income level of an individual or a country, the higher the breast cancer risk (Stoll, 2000). A two to five times greater risk is found in individuals from Northern American and Northern European heritage than in South American or Asian countries. It is not considered to be a genetic link, but rather that of individuals leading a more affluent lifestyle. Affluent women, as a whole, have children later in life. They consume more high saturated animal fat which has been proposed as a likely culprit increasing the risk of breast cancer. Often because of an affluent lifestyle with less physical activity than their counterparts from other less industrialized countries, they have an earlier onset of obesity (Stoll, 2000). This knowledge needs to be made available to affluent North American families. They can make decisions now that will impact their health long term as well as their waistlines now. Busy lifestyles often go hand in hand with dinners on the go and mindless eating in front of the television. Families need to slow down and try to eat together at the family dinner table more often. Research shows that families that gather together on a regular basis to share a meal are less likely to be overweight or obese (Veugelers & Fitzgerald, 2005).
The key to controlling the obesity epidemic in this country is appropriate consumer education. North American consumers, whether affluent or impoverished, need to know that the choices they make today will affect their health for years to come. Many families, caught up in the here and now, are making choices that they will likely one day regret. Often people choose the immediate satisfaction and pleasure of indulging in their favorite junk food or sitting playing a video game rather than actively participating in a sport. But they are jeopardizing their long term good health. Behaviors such as this are contributing to the obesity epidemic this country is facing. Children and adults alike should be encouraged to participate in active sports. Several video game manufacturers have created systems that require active, physical movement to play. Rather than sitting still with a controller in hand, participants must move their entire bodies thus getting valuable physical activity that would otherwise not happen.
More money should be spent on consumer education regarding making healthy food choices than on advertising the latest new fast food burger. Unfortunately many consumers feel that the...
