Across the last decade, Occidental society has experienced a growth of just under 20% in the number of children affected by overweight. This increase, due to the lack of alimentary education and the popularity of fast foods chains, has numerous negative effects on children’s health and can be economically unsustainable in the future.
Despite the young age at which children start frequenting school, it is very rare that subjects like health and alimentation are taught. Indeed, these topics are not considered important enough to be included in a full time educational program, and, in my experience, I have been able to observe that the amount of hours related to them is very scarce, around three or four hours per year. Moreover, apart from this lack of knowledge, another cause is represented by the great popularity of fast food chains between children. They are not interested in their culinary traditions anymore, and would rather have a meal in a fast food than trying healthier options.
Overweight is one of the most popular cause of death, since it enhances the probability of cancer and heart attacks, between other fatal illnesses. Despite this is one of the worst effects for overweight people, there are also others which can affect the community on a much larger scale. A population with a high rate of ill people is inevitably going to need a large amount of money to finance public health, which can result in cuts of funds for other areas like public facilities or scientific research. For example, countries with a more developed culture for physical activities and healthy diet, also have a lower rate of illnesses and premature death.
In conclusion, the causes for the growth in the number of overweight children can be found in the appeal that fast food companies have on pupils and in the lack of education around healthy habits, while the main effects of this dangerous trend are the risk of cardiovascular diseases, along with negative repercussions on the economy.