Pathare 1

RiyaPathare
Mr.Rogers
Government4
16October2016
MockCongressResearchPaper:Obesity
Overthelastfewyearstheprevalenceofobesityhasexponentiallyincreased,
causingapproximately300,000deathsperyearintheUnitedStates.Therearemany
factorsthatcauseobesityincludingsmoking,havingcertainhealthconditions,andeven
lackingsleep.Whilemanyagreethatwemustfightthisepidemic,noteveryoneagreeson
whatmethodshouldbeused.Somebelieveobeseindividualsshouldparticipateindieting
whileothersagreeexerciseordrugplansisthebestsolution.Andwhileothersbelieve
thisisonlyaminorissueintheUnitedStates,wecanseethatobesitycanactuallyleadto
manyphysicalandmentalproblems.Becauseofthis,theHealthierAmericaActof2016
shouldbecomelawtopreventdiseasescausedbyobesity,bettertheeconomyfrom
obesityrelatedexpenses,andpreventmentalillnessesresultingfromobesity.
Sincetheobesityepidemichasincreasedwehavefoundthatmanydiseasessuch
ascoronaryheartdisease(CHD),diabetes,strokes,fibrosis,andvariousliverdiseases
havealsoincreased.Beingobesecorrelatestohigherchancesofgettinganyofthese
diseasesandbyimplementinggovernmentrunweightlossandexerciseprogramswecan
helpcombatthisissue.AccordingtotheOfficeofDiseasePreventionandHealth
Promotion,riskfactorsincludeanunhealthydietandphysicalinactivityand"Together,
heartdiseaseandstroke,alongwithothercardiovasculardisease,areamongthemost

Pathare 1
widespreadandcostlyhealthproblemsfacingtheNationtoday,"(HeartDiseaseand
Stroke).Thecorrelationshowsusthatobesityhasbeenacauseofmanyoftheseheart
diseaserelateddeaths.Bothheartdiseaseandobesityaresomeofthemostwidespread
healthproblemsintheUnitedStatesanddrasticmeasuresmustbetakentocombatthese
epidemics.However,despiteheartdiseasestherearealsoothermedicalissuesthatcan
affectobeseindividuals.FattyLiverDiseaseorNonalcoholicSteatohepatitisisa
conditionwhenfatisaccumulatedinthelivercausingittoinflame.TheNational
InstituteofDiabetesandDigestiveandKidneyDiseasessaythat,"Itmostoftenoccursin
personswhoaremiddleagedandoverweightorobese,"(FattyLiverDisease).Like
manyotherdiseasesobesitydirectlycorrelatestothistypeofliverdisease,andtreatments
forthediseaseinvolvehavingahealthierdietandexercise,justlikecombattingobesity.
Furthermore,ProfessorGiulioMarchesinifromtheUniversityofBolognahasfoundthat
"Inpatientswithnonalcoholicfattyliverdiseaseobservedinliverunits,obesityand
weightgainaresystematicallyassociatedwithadvancedfibrosisandfibrosis
progression,"(Marchesini).Thisshowsthatevenfurtherdamagecanbemadeevenafter
gettingliverdisease,includinggettingfibrosis.Whiletherearemanyphysicalharmsand
illnessesassociatedwithobesitythereisalsoalargemoneycosttobeingobese,resulting
inadetrimentaleffectonoureconomy.
Ontopofthediseasesitcauses,obesitycanresultinlargemedicalexpensesfor
patienttreatment.Ifwedecreaseobesitythiswouldhelppreventmedicalissues,thus
savingismedicalcosts.Currently,theUSgovernmentishelpingpayformanyobese
individual'smedicalcosts."Byoneestimate,theU.S.spent$190billiononobesity

Pathare 1
relatedhealthcareexpensesin2005doublepreviousestimates,"(Obesity
Consequences).Thisnumberkeepsincreasingandthemoneyspentonthisissuecouldbe
usedonotherpressingproblemsifweworkedonfightingobesity.Themagnitudeofthis
figureshowshowmuchofaneconomicimpactobesityhasontheUnitedStates.
AdditionallytheCentersforDiseaseControlandPreventionalsomention,"Medical
costsassociatedwithoverweightandobesitymayinvolvedirectandindirectcosts,"
(AdultObesityCausesandConsequences).Directcostsincludetreatmentandmedical
servicesforobeseindividuals.But,indirectcostssuchasmorbidityandmortalitycosts
alsoaccountfortheeconomicimpact,includingproductivitydownfallsintheworkplace.
Ithasbeenobservedthatobeseindividualsareabsentmoreoftenandalsohavealower
productivityratethannormalindividuals.Withgettinglessworkdoneandhavinglarge
medicalcostsassociated,manycompaniesandindividualsarelosingmoneyanditiseasy
toseehowthiscanhaveadetrimentaleconomicimpact.Infact,asstatedbyTopline
Report,"Theannualcostsofphysicalinactivitywereestimatedat$13.3billion,obesity
at$6.4billion,andoverweightat$2.0billion,"(Chenoweth).Thisbillwouldpush
individualstoexerciseandmaintainahealthylifestyledecreasingdirectmedicalcosts
andindirectcostsintheworkplace,overallhelpingtheeconomy.Whiletheeconomic
tollsarehigh,thenegativeeffectsofobesitycontinuetoaffectindividualsmentallyas
well.
Beingoverweightincomparisontootherindividualscanhaveaprofoundimpact
onmanypeoples'mentalstate,especiallychildren.Obesityhasledtomanymentalhealth
issuesovertheyearssuchasdepression,lackofselfesteemandlackofselfconfidence.

Pathare 1
Forchildren,beingteasedandstandingoutfrompeershasbecomeanationwideissue
andbyhelpingpreventobesitywecansimultaneouslyhelppreventotherrisingproblems
suchascyberbullying.AsstatedbyKrushnapriyaSahoooftheUniversityofAgriculture
andTechnology,"Overweightandobesechildrenareoftenteasedand/orbulliedfortheir
weight.Theyalsofacenumerousotherhardshipsincludingnegativestereotypes,
discrimination,andsocialmarginalization,"(ChildhoodObesity:Causesand
Consequences).Childrennationwidefacetheseissuesandmuchofthisleadstoa
decreaseinacademicperformanceontopoftheloweredmentalstate.Infactanobese
childhasalargerriskofbecominganobeseadultaswell.Byencouragingahealthydiet
earlyonwecansavechildrenfromthesestrugglesandcreateasmarterAmerica.
Howeverthementaleffectsarenotonlyonthechildren."Ananalysisof17cross
sectionalstudiesfoundthatpeoplewhowereobeseweremorelikelytohavedepression
thanpeoplewithhealthyweights,"(HealthRisks).Thisshowsthatevenobeseadultscan
suffermentalillnessesduetoobesity.Depressioncanleadtoalowerqualityoflifeand
canfurthernegativelyaffecttheindividualthroughphysical,socialorpsychological
means.Butdepressionisnottheonlyillness.DoctorGregoryE.Simonalsomentionsin
hisstudythat"Obesity is associated with an approximately 25% increase in odds of
mood and anxiety disorders and an approximately 25% decrease in odds of substance use
disorders," (Simon). Obese individuals are at risk for a variety of mental illnesses and this
shows that obesity also has a prominent correlation with mood disorders.Thisonlyadds
ontotherisksalmostonethirdofthepopulationhas.TheHealthierAmericaActwill
helpdecreasethisriskofdepressionandanyfurtherillnessesbydecreasingtheobesity

Pathare 1
rate.InfactDoctorLenKravitzoftheUniversityofNewMexicoaerobicandanaerobic
exercisesactuallycreateanantidepressiveeffect(Kravitz).Whiletherearemanyreasons
topassthisbilltherearestillmanywhowouldopposethispropositionandbelieveother
methodswouldworkbetter.
Many individuals do not see the concerns obesity is posing to the nation. Some
think the price to pay for setting up facilities would be too much for only one-third of the
population and others believe that these incentives would be unfair because they are only
given to obese individuals. With the recent tax increases it would be easy to see how
some of the US population would not support more increases to fund this program. The
bill requires there be a tax increase in order to fund the exercise and weight loss facilities
and with recent tax increases another increase would not appeal to many. According to
Nicole Kaeding of the Tax Foundation, Nine states have tax changes going into effect on
July 1, 2016, and many of these include gasoline and cigarette taxes (Kaeding). Normal
weight individuals would not have as much of a concern to pay for the one-third of
people that are obese and because of this they would easily fall to the opposing side of
the bill. However, these facilities would not just be for those who are obese but also for
those on the borderline of obesity and for children, so they can avoid this epidemic.
Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in
the past 30 years, (Childhood Obesity Facts). This statistic will keep increasing unless
we make a change and while it might be a bit more money to pay, this measure will help
protect the future of the United States from the number one epidemic nationwide. This is
a relatively small price to pay for the outcome. Others believe that the initiatives to
achieve a better lifestyle for obese people are unfair because they would not be offered to
5

Pathare 1
normal weight people. According to the United States office of Personnel Management,
wellness programs "produceorganizationalandemployeebenefits,suchaslower
healthcarecosts,increasedproductivity,improvedrecruitmentandretention,reduced
absenteeismandpresenteeism,andenhancedemployeeengagement,"(WorkLife).These
areissuesthatareprimarilyrelevanttoobeseindividuals.Whileregularpeopleshould
receivesomebenefitstostayinginshape,thisprogramisfirstfortheobese.
Additionally,iftherewereincentivesforregularindividualsthetaxhikewouldonly
increaseforthecommonpeople.Whiletheseargumentshaveapointtheyarealittle
pricetopayforchangingthefutureandthepresentofthiscountrydrastically.
TheHealthierAmericaActof2016shouldbecomelawtopreventobesity
causingdiseases,bettertheeconomyfromobesityrelatedexpenses,andtoprevent
mentalillnessesresultingfromobesity.Obesityhasskyrocketedoverthelastfewyears
anditwillcontinuetodoso.Bycombattingthisissueheadonwearesavingchildrenand
adultsfromsomeoftheleadingcausesofdeathsandcreatingandmodelingahealthier
lifestyleforeveryone.Wemuststepupandpassthisbillinordertotakethatstep
towardsabetterfutureandwecanonlydothatwiththesupportofthewholenation
behindtheHealthierAmericaActof2016.

Pathare 1

WorksCited
"AdultObesityCauses&Consequences."CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention.
CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention,15Aug.2016.Web.18Oct.2016.
Chenoweth,David."TheEconomicCostsofPhysicalInactivity."ToplineReport.N.p.,
Apr.2005.Web.17Oct.2016.
"ChildhoodObesityFacts."CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention.Centersfor
DiseaseControlandPrevention,27Aug.2015.Web.18Oct.2016.
"EconomicCosts."ObesityPreventionSource.HarvardUniversity,08Apr.2016.Web.
18Oct.2016.
"FattyLiverDisease(NonalcoholicSteatohepatitis)."U.SNationalLibraryofMedicine.
U.S.NationalLibraryofMedicine,May2014.Web.18Oct.2016.
"FederalWorksiteWellnessPrograms."Health&Wellness.OPM,n.d.Web.18Oct.
2016.
Flegal,Katherine.M.,DavidF.Williamson,ElsieR.Pamuk,andHarryM.Rosenberg.
"EstimatingDeathsAttributabletoObesityintheUnitedStates."American
JournalofPublicHealth.AmericanJournalofPublicHealth2004,Sept.2004.

Pathare 1
Web.17Oct.2016.
"HealthRisks."ObesityPreventionSource.HarvardUniversity,13Apr.2016.Web.18
Oct.2016.
"HeartDiseaseandStroke."HealthyPeople2020.OfficeofDiseasePreventionand
HealthPromotion,18Oct.2016.Web.17Oct.2016.
Kaeding,Nicole."StateTaxChangesTakingEffectJuly1,2016."StateTaxChanges.
TaxFoundation,30June2016.Web.18Oct.2016.
Koch,ThomasG.,andNathanE.Wilson.DecomposingtheAmericanObesityEpidemic.
Washington,DC:BureauofEconomics,2013.Print.
Kravitz,Len."ExerciseandPsychologicalHealth."ExerciseandPsychologicalHealth.
UniversityofNewMexico,n.d.Web.23Oct.2016.
Marchesini,Giulio."ResultFilters."NationalCenterforBiotechnologyInformation.U.S.
NationalLibraryofMedicine,Nov.2008.Web.18Oct.2016.
Nakaya,AndreaC.Obesity:OpposingViewpoints.Detroit:Greenhaven,2006.Print.
Sahoo,Krushnapriya,BishnupriyaSahoo,AshokKumarChoudhury,Nighat
YasinSofi,RamanKumar,andAjeetSinghBhadoria."ChildhoodObesity:
CausesandConsequences."JournalofFamilyMedicineandPrimaryCare.
MedknowPublications&MediaPvtLtd,Apr.2015.Web.18Oct.2016.
Simon,GregoryE.,MichaelVonKorff,KathleenSaunders,DianaL.Miglioretti,PaulK.
Crane,GeraldVanBelle,andRonaldC.Kessler."ASSOCIATIONBETWEEN
OBESITYANDPSYCHIATRICDISORDERSINTHEUSADULT

Pathare 1
POPULATION."ArchivesofGeneralPsychiatry.U.S.NationalLibraryof
Medicine,July2006.Web.18Oct.2016.