A Campaign for a Healthier America

You're probably asking yourself, why would I support a campaign that makes my food even more expensive? The simple but rich answer to this question is that the health of our nation and the obesity of our nation is costing us even more then a simple federal tax on junk food would cost. We are paying immense amounts of money on hospital bills, medications, and welfare, due in part to the obesity of our country. According to the article The Facts on Junk Food Marketing and Kids, 

"By 2030, healthcare costs attributable to poor diet and inactivity could range from $860 billion to $956 billion, which would account for 15.8 to 17.6 percent of total healthcare costs, or one in every six dollars spent on healthcare."

The more obese our country is, the more cases of diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, ect. that we must pay for out of pocket because obesity causes death. Plain and simple, tested and true. We have tried many outlets to improve health in our country, and they have made minuscule differences. Promoting healthier foods and exercising can only go so far, and if these tactics were successful, we would have seen obesity rates fall. These tactics should still be implemented, but the issue is that we need to do more. Adding a federal tax on junk food and fast food is a huge step in consumerism. Yes, people will complain about junk food being more expensive and children will cry when their mom doesn't buy the Mac and Cheese they want for lunch, but the benefits of this tax are far more vital to our nation then a couple of upset individuals.

To tie in all the ideas mentioned on this blog, America is obese. Our country is overwhelmed with junk food and fast food that is easier to purchase and more readily available then healthy foods. These companies that manufacture such life-threatening foods are targeting their advertisements towards our youth because they are the most gullible and most susceptible. When a child sees a fun commercial on TV for a cereal loaded with sugar, they go grocery shopping with their mom, they see that cereal, and beg her to buy it for them. The child then has the cereal that is contributing to childhood obesity. This simple series of events is the core reason why not only our children are more obese, but why our entire country is relying on junk food and fast food to be a budget-friendly way to eat a large meal. Solution? Junk food tax. Make the most unhealthy foods more expensive then the healthy foods. Americans will naturally buy the product that costs less money, and in turn, will be healthier, live longer, and live free of diseases caused by obesity. That is the goal for our country, and although it is a few years away, we must start making changes now. We must make these dramatic changes because our country is in need of a great deal of help and the longer we wait, the fatter we get.

Resources:
The facts on junk food marketing and kids.Prevention Institute , Retrieved from http://www.preventioninstitute.org/focus-areas/supporting-healthy-food-a-activity/supporting-healthy-food-and-activity-environments-advocacy/get-involved-were-not-buying-it/735-were-not-buying-it-the-facts-on-junk-food-marketing-and-kids.html

We get it, we're fat. But why more taxes?

By now, I'm sure you realize why America is becoming more obese. But why is a federal tax the answer? It's quite simple. Americans buy junk food and fast food for two reasons: because it's cheap, and because it's tasty. If we remove one of these factors from the equation, you are giving consumers less of a motive to purchase junk food and fast food. Raising a federal tax would make the once cheap and easy foods to purchase, just a little more difficult to get our hands on. According to the article Junk Food Tax as a Cure for Obesity, 

"Health related food taxes could improve health. Existing evidence suggests that taxes are likely to shift consumption in the desired direction, although policy makers need to be wary of changes in other important nutrients."

We want to try and change the consumers perception on junk food. To shy consumers away from purchasing these foods high in saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, sodium, and calories, we need to make consumers believe that it is no longer beneficial to save money and purchase these foods because they will no longer be saving anybody money. Also according to the article Junk Food Tax as a Cure for Obesity, a junk food tax would be a "clever way to alter our behavior around food". Even though junk food advertisements are targeted toward the youth, and the youth is the largest consumer of junk food, the junk food tax targets a much more important target audience, the consumer and the purchaser. It doesn't matter how badly a child wants his Reese's Puffs, because if a mother thinks it's too expensive (due to the tax), she will not buy it. This idea of a junk food tax targets the consumer, the purchaser, and ultimately, the decision maker in just about every American family.

Resources:

Quinn, A. (2012). Junk food tax as a cure for obesity.Smart Planet, Retrieved from http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/rethinking-healthcare/junk-food-tax-as-a-cure-for-obesity/8829

"Junk Food Tax" in the News

According to this news story by CBS, junk food and fast food loaded with saturated fat and calories, are a huge contribution to American obesity. When consumers have less money to spend on food, they tend to resort to junk food and fast food because its cheaper. Mark Bittman, interviewed on the news story, raises the idea of adding a federal tax on all junk food and fast food. He brings up the idea that if we tax smoking because it is proven to be bad for us and bad for our health, it is only fair that the food we have proven time and time again is bad for us should be taxed as well. This idea of a junk food tax would hopefully shy away consumers because the foods they once bought simply because they were so cheap, will no longer buy them due to an increase in price. The easiest way to help Americans buy less junk food and fast food is to make it more expensive. It's plain, simple, and smart.

Resources:
(2011). Is it time to tax junk food?. (2011). [Web Video]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0dPU05pcwg

Fat Youth

Brutal, but true. One of our countries biggest problems is childhood obesity. Why is our youth getting so fat, so quickly? A large contributor to childhood obesity is youth-targeted advertising. Junk food companies specifically advertise their food to target the vulnerable and very gullible youth. Why? Because when they are at the grocery store with mom, they will ask for the food they saw on that cool commercial with the fun characters and bright colors. Why is this a problem? The more kids want to buy the junk food they see advertised, the more junk food they eat. The more junk food they eat, the closer they get to obesity. According to the article The Facts on Junk Food Marketing and Kids and The Journal of the American Dietetic Association,

This means that most of a child's diet is due to fast food and junk food. This shocking statistic shows us just how much junk food contributes to our obesity problem, especially in our youth. Also according to the article, "The food and beverage industry spends approximately $2 billion per year marketing to children." Food companies spend this much money on children because they are the easiest targets for purchasing their products. Although our country as a whole is becoming morbidly obese, one of our main concerns is childhood obesity because if this epidemic hits our children, then they will grow up to be obese and shape future generations for obesity as well. According to Get America Fit Foundation, "Diabetes, hypertension and other obesity-related chronic diseases that are prevalent among adults have now become more common in youngsters. The percentage of children and adolescents who are overweight and obese is now higher than ever before." The younger we become obese, the larger our chances are at getting diabetes, heart disease, and other nutrition-related health issues. Therefore, we need to control the amount of junk food advertising that targets our children, or by putting a large tax on junk food, we are making it more difficult for the mother to say "no, you can't have that".


Resources:
(2009). Obesity related statistics in america. The Get America Fit Foundation, Retrieved from     http://www.getamericafit.org/statistics-obesity-in-america.html

The facts on junk food marketing and kids.Prevention Institute , Retrieved from http://www.preventioninstitute.org/focus-areas/supporting-healthy-food-a-activity/supporting-healthy-food-and-activity-environments-advocacy/get-involved-were-not-buying-it/735-were-not-buying-it-the-facts-on-junk-food-marketing-and-kids.html

Putting it into Perspective

Resources:
The united states of obesity. HCG Platinum, Retrieved from http://www.smart-diner.com/tag/obesity-in-america-infographic/

United States of Fat

Each day, Americans are told how unhealthy our country is, and how the obesity rates are "sky high". What we don't understand, however, is why we are being so criticized for our weight issues and eating habits. According to the Get America Fit Foundation, 58 million Americans are overweight and 40 million Americans are obese. These numbers are massive! In just the past 2 decades, our country has almost doubled our obesity rates. The big question, however, is why? Why are we suddenly one of the most unhealthy countries in the world? Most of the other "unhealthy" countries in the world are unhealthy due to malnutrition, food deserts and a lack of food available to feed it's population. Sadly, our country is unhealthy because there is too much food, our unhealthy food is too cheap, and we have more then enough food to feed our ever-growing population. We are one of the only countries that have a problem with overeating, and there are countless factors that contribute to this. We will not only discuss these factors in more detail, but also discuss why a tax on junk food would benefit our country. For us, junk food is in every isle of every grocery store. Junk food is the cheapest food we can get, and people buy it because it's cheap. But what would happen if it wasn't so cheap after all?

Resources:
(2009). Obesity related statistics in america. The Get America Fit Foundation, Retrieved from     http://www.getamericafit.org/statistics-obesity-in-america.html