Peralta Obesity In America Summary

Who or what is to blame for the increase of obesity? Thinking Sociologically about Sources of Obesity in the United States by Robert L. Peralta examines obesity as a "disease" (Peralta 200). Peralta provides multiple possibilities to why United States citizens are becoming heavier. He argues that the government aid programs, availability, and cost of nutritious foods makes it difficult to eat healthy (200). Next, the article infers that obesity could be largely a social issue. People 's decisions, perhaps related to their race, gender, economic status, and stressful life events, could be linked to create unnecessary eating (202-203). The author 's last reason for increasing weight is people do not have the proper education regarding

Are healthy foods too expensive? Peralta insists that, "For low-income families, obtaining sufficient dietary energy at the lowest possible cost is the overwhelming concern. Food Stamp Program participants reported food price was the most important consideration in making food choices." (204). Food Stamp Use Linked to Weight Gain, Study Finds by Jeff Grabmeier agrees with Peralta by informing that people on food stamps had a Body Mass Index that was 1.15 points higher than non-food stamp users. Women who are using food stamps are, on average, 5.8 pounds heavier than regular women. The author also educates that in 2008, almost 28 million people received food benefits from the government (Grabmeier). Food Prices and Obesity: Evidence and Policy Implications for Taxes and Subsidies written by Lisa M. Powell and Frank J. Chaloupka also agrees with these articles by notifying that the price of a calorie is cheaper in unhealthy foods. One possible solution that these authors propose is simply to lower the price of healthy foods or raise the price of unhealthy foods. Unlike Peralta and Grabmeier, Powell and Chaloupka also link obesity to tobacco use. Tobacco users are known to not make smart, healthy decisions including food choices (5). All three articles agree that Food Stamps and other government aid programs have a negative impact on people 's