Investigating The Social And Cultural Influences On Obesity

Introduction: Investigating the Health Issue of Obesity

The chosen health group is obesity. Obesity is becoming a worldwide health issue where there many obese people around the world and the number keep rising. There are actually numerous participants to this epidemic of obesity (Atkins and Bowler, 2016 p.21). Certainly one of the achievable influences to obesity rates in a particular country are the cultural aspects. Obesity could be considered the condition to have a higher level of stored body fat. The relative body weight is popularly used to describe obesity, and people that are obese are thought to be overweight (Brownell and Walsh, 2017 p.34).

Obesity is a complex biopsychosocial phenomenon which is shaped by perspectives based on social and cultural influences (Atkins and Bowler, 2016). Latest figures emphasizes that obesity happens to be a substantial public health problem. Obesity has improved in every age, sex, race and smoking status stratum of population (Brownell and Walsh, 2017). The prevalence to illness relate to modern diet and more sedentary lifestyle that has increased in many nations in the past couple of years (Brownell and Walsh, 2017).

 In this research investigation it examines social perspectives, evaluate and discuss social along with cultural influences on obesity. In this research it would identify and justify obesity and the health issue. Moreover, it would explore obesity from social and cultural perspectives which will incorporating theory and definition of culture. Additionally, it will include strategies on local and national policy concerning obesity and discuss what has been happening locally regarding obesity and local initiatives relating to it.

Justification of obesity and health issue

Obesity has become a global health problem. There exists many definition of obesity (Ogden, Carroll, Kit and Flegal, 2014 p.806). According to the WHO defines it as an abnormal or perhaps an excessive accumulation of fat which impacts health. According to WHO they utilizes body mass index to define obesity (Ogden, Carroll, Kit and Flegal, 2014). The purpose of undertaking investigation in this research topic is to provide a clear understanding of the properties of obesity (Ogden, Carroll, Kit and Flegal, 2014).

There have been possible health consequences for the obese individuals. There have been various health issues which have resulted from obesity (Ogden, Carroll, Kit and Flegal, 2014). Obesity has resulted to a high risk of developing chronicle diseases on individuals who are obese. The first is the cardiovascular diseases and this has been number one cause of death for more than seventeen million people yearly this is according to WHO data. Another disease is diabetes, and there are projections that it would increase by fifty percent in the next ten years due to the increase in obese individuals. Other health issues are the rise of the musculoskeletal disorders, along with the rise in osteoarthritis disease. These are the major health issues which are associated to the obesity.

Justification of Obesity as a Health Issue

Social perspective

There are various social contexts that have overarching perspectives for framing obesity for example culture as well as history. The culture to which within an individual lives is likely to be the strongest influences on their eating pattern levels activity, and body weight. Within culture, problems do change and historical period has also been impacted by levels of fatness and thinness of a person and populations.

Culture definition

Culture has been defined as the learned system of categories, rules and plans which people utilize to guide their behaviors (Brownell and Walsh, 2017). A person culture generally permeates each element of their life which includes how they consider the fatness and thinness, activity patterns, eating behaviors along with other aspects of residing in world (Brownell and Walsh, 2017). Cultural values and norms about body weight that could vary considerably. Modernization continues to be a complex set to the social modify which occurs on the societies shift from the conventional to modern (Ogden, Carroll, Kit and Flegal, 2014 p.74). There have been a change to the modes of the economic production to the whole societies which has substantial impact on the energy expenditure to the human populations (Langford, Bonell, Jones and Campbell, 2015 p.15).

Culture variations between various countries in relation to the values about food and the body weight experienced a strong shape with regards to the prevalence of obesity in cultures. Cultural predispositions to the obesity do exist, with more likely to lead the people to those cultures to turn out to be obese (Ogden, Carroll, Kit and Flegal, 2014). Migration between the cultures does place people into new food systems and new social and built environment which have had significant health consequences.

Social perspective characteristics to obesity

There are numerous characteristics associated to social perspective on obesity these are as follows;

Sex/Gender

Sex relates to ascribed biological status of the human being possibly as male or female, whilst gender describes the achieved social status of becoming possibly a woman or perhaps a man (Daubenmier et . al 2016 794). Most of the sex differences are related to the physiological that is associated with the reproductive functioning. Beyond these types of biological differences with regards to the body fat, substantial social and psychological gender differences do exists in relation to the weight to numerous societies with fatness along with thinness being a lot more to the likely to be female and feminist concerns (Ogden, Carroll, Kit and Flegal, 2014). Weight concerns usually are dependent more on appearance compared to the health motivations particularly on the women (Robertson, 2018 67). Sex and gender are the overriding features with regards to considering obesity.

Social Perspective on Obesity

Race/ethnicity

Many investigations have showed that there is ethnic patterns in the body weight as well as obesity particularly to the minority group which are more obese than the majority (Brownell and Walsh, 2017). There are usually ethnic differences when it comes to the weight variations between cultural groups. The mechanisms for the ethnic variations in relation to the body weight usually are problematic especially without consensus whenever it come relative contribution of the genetics, activity levels or perhaps caloric intake differences (Ogden, Carroll, Kit and Flegal, 2014).  Ethnicity has been a characteristic which has been significant to consider in the relationship to the obesity.

Employment

Employment usually entails work which is paid for the wages or salary in the labor force. Many facets of the employment usually are relevant to the body weight and obesity (Lin, 2017). Employment does offer some financial resources through income and access and opportunities for using health care services.

Cultural perspective

Obesity is culturally distributed such that the prevalence of obesity known to vary based on the cultural factors that could include socio cultural position, social roles as well as circumstance (Corin, 2017p.93). There are number of factors which has contributed to the weight gain which could include marriage and pregnancy, changes in the diet as well as the physically activity along with depression, social isolation and stress (Corin, 2017 p.120). There are many women who are described to gain weight during and after the pregnancy. Moreover aspect such as depression, isolation as well as stress usually arises as a perceived contributor when it comes to the weight gain (Robertson, 2018 p.66).

When depression gets someone they feel they are trapped and ones does not go out they tend to feel terrible (Robertson, 2018 p.65). The challenge of balancing work, family as well as running a household usually leaves little time for individuals. Culture has a greater impact influence on eating habits as well as attitudes towards the food and the eating habits towards the food and the body weight (Locke et.al 2015 p.197).  The culture usually include on where one live, family size composition, age, gender, ethnicity as well as the level of the education.  A person job and the work culture could have a strong impact when it comes to eating activity habits especially when one works around the food or the job which involves taking client out to eat on a regular basis. 

Cultural Influences on Obesity

Income could also impacts on ones eating ability as well as exercise habits (Robertson, 2018 p. 61). According to statistics it has shown that the higher income women tend to be thinner as compared to the lower income women (Robertson, 2018 p.63). Money usually provides one more control over their lives and affords resources such as gym memberships, nutrition counseling as well as specially prepared meals that could help them with the control of their weight (Robertson, 2018).

Personal culture impacts ones attitude in regards to the food and eating, cultural values as well as norms impacts on how one thinks in regards to fatness and thinness. Some groups of individuals are more accepting when it comes to higher body weights as compared to the others (Robertson, 2018). Traditionally, most of the cultures they have been able to value numerous amount of heaviness over their extreme thinness (Robertson, 2018). Nonetheless, the social ideals could change with time and thinness has always remained in style.

Social and cultural perspective theory

The social perspective theory to explain on the obesity is the functionalist approach (Phull, Wills and Dickinson, 2015). This approach has emphasized that the good health as well as effective medical care are crucial to the ability of the society in functioning. Ill health usually impairs one’s ability to perform our roles in the society and incase many individuals are obese, the society functioning and stability might suffer (Phull, Wills and Dickinson, 2015).

  This can prevent people from carrying out fully out on their social roles and hence represent poor return to the society to the numerous cost. The theory emphasizes on the significance of personal good health to the society health (Phull, Wills and Dickinson, 2015). It is important for the individual to maintain good health to ensure they are more active in their social aspects. Therefore, it is crucial for people to eat healthy food to ensure that they are not obese. This ensures they are healthy and they are in a position to perform on their work (Skinner, Perrin and Skelton, 2016 p.1123).

Strategies on local and national policy concerning obesity

There are numerous local and national policy strategies which are employed to address the issue of obesity. The state and the local public health agencies are utilizing various measures such as menu labeling to address on this issue (Betancourt et al 2016). There has been jurisdiction in the nation of King county to pass on the menu labeling regulation. They chose this regulation since obesity has been an issue to a high visibility (Robertson, 2018). It entails providing the customers with the information in relation to different products so that they make their own choice (Langford, Bonell, Jones and Campbell, 2015).

Characteristics of Social Perspective on Obesity

There has been some evidence that menu labeling could prevent obesity, and numerous experiments in cafeterias as well as workplaces have shown it could change on the choices as well as caloric intake. Another strategy used is the land use planning (Langford, Bonell, Jones and Campbell, 2015). This means of improving on the public health has had a long history.  There have also been state public health actions. The CDCs state public Health Actions they have granted multifaceleted initiatives which aim at improving on the health of all individuals through coordinated chronic diseases prevention programs (Langford, Bonell, Jones and Campbell, 2015).

The state public Health Actions has granted funds across the country on various initiatives in order to prevent manage as well as reduce on the risk elements which are associated to the chronic diseases which could include obesity (Puhl and Suh, 2015). To maximize on this efficiency the state has engaged to the various activities which could capitalize on the similarities to these diseases as well as other methods which are aimed to prevent or control them.

Issues happening locally on obesity and local initiatives

There are numerous issues which are taking place locally in regards to obesity and the local initiatives some of these are; there have been high obesity programs which are aimed to reduce on the obesity in the high obesity areas in order to boost prevention (Lumeng, Taveras, Birch and Yanovski, 2015 p.484). There have been project fund land grant colleges as well as universities in the states with the counties where there is prevalence of the adult obesity. There have been wide campaigns as well as interventions (Puhl and Suh, 2015). There has been most relevant evidence to the large scale community wide efforts which has come from the studies which are aimed to reduce on the cardiovascular risk elements.

Conclusion

In this report it has investigated on obesity which has affected the health issue from the social and cultural perspective. In this research it has identified and justified obesity and the health issue. Additionally, it has explored obesity from social and cultural perspectives which have included theory and definition of culture. Moreover, there it will include strategies on local and national policy concerning obesity and discuss on what has been happening locally regarding obesity and local initiatives.

References

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