The Correlation Between Poverty and Obesity
According to James A. Levine, a writer for the American Diabetes Association, in an article titled, “Poverty and Obesity in the U.S.,” states, “High-income countries have greater rates of obesity than middle- and low-income countries. Countries that develop wealth also develop obesity; for instance, with economic growth in China and India, obesity rates have increased by several-fold” (Levine). America shows a great “The United States exhibits wider disparities of wealth between rich and poor than any other major developed nation” (“Wealth Inequality | Inequality.org”).
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In an article titled, “Poor and Fat: The Real Class War,” by LZ Granderson, he states, “But if you want to see a blatant form of poor vs. rich, walk into a grocery store. Here we are forced to decide between what's good for our kids and what we can afford to feed them” (Granderson). There are many correlations between health and one’s economic status. Granderson later states, “In fact, the five poorest states are also among the 10 fattest, and eight of the 10 poorest states are also among the 10 with the lowest life expectancy” (Granderson). With this correlation, it is impossible to ignore the effects social class has on one’s overall health. There is a difference in class when one looks into the consumption of healthier foods and the consumption of unhealthy foods. According to an article titled “Gap in Diet Quality Between Wealthiest and Poorest Americans Double, Study Finds” by Tracie McMillan, for National Geographic states, “The diets of low-income Americans have worsened in the past decade, even as the diets of the wealthiest Americans have improved” (McMillan). There is a blatant difference when it comes to the quality of food and social class because the higher the social class of the consumer, the better the quality of the food they consume.
Women and SESThere seems to be a strong correlation between socioeconomic status (SES) and obesity. SES is a combination of education, occupation and income. Many studies have shown that the correlation between a lower SES and obesity is much more prevalent in women than it is in men. According to a study by Cynthia L. Ogden and Molly M. Lamb for the CDC, titled, “Obesity and Socioeconomic Status in Adults: United States, 2005–2008,” showed, “There is no significant trend between obesity and education among men. Among women, however, there is a trend, those with college degrees are
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less likely to be obese compared with less educated women” (Ogden and Lamb). The research also showed that among women, obesity becomes more prevalent as income decreases (Ogden and Lamb). A lower SES and obesity relates more to women than men because in an article titled, “For Women in the U.S., Obesity Links to Socioeconomic Status and Poor Diet” by Eric Zuehlke, states, “lower-income men have physically demanding jobs and low-income women tend to be single mothers and have less time to focus on good nutrition/health than higher-income women” (Zuehlke). This lower SES status among women relate to the level of education them and their parents have, and this ultimately relates to the risk of obesity that they face. According to a study conducted by Boston University titled, "Study Finds Socioeconomic Status Linked to Weight Gain and Risk of Obesity," states, “The researchers found that women whose parents had not completed high school gained more weight and more often became obese in adulthood than women who had a parent with a college degree” (“Study Finds [SES] Linked to Weight Gain and Risk of Obesity”). Often times, a higher education is linked to a higher SES, which relates to a higher income and better occupation.
Childhood Obesity
Another result of poverty is childhood obesity. According to an article titled, “Federal Food Policy and Childhood Obesity” by Rachel T. Kimbro and Elizabeth Rigby states, “Approximately one-third of U.S. children are overweight, and 16 percent are obese... Notably, children are struggling with weight problems at earlier ages, particularly low-income children” (Kimbro and Rigby). Many factors that affect the impoverished people tend to effect their children as well. Kimbro and Rigby also suggest that school lunches and the food they are exposed to contribute to childhood obesity. Childhood obesity is related to the SES of their parents, as the more educated theirs living in households where the head of household has a college degree are less likely to be obese compared with those living in households where the household head has less education” (Carroll and Flegal). On all scales of obesity, SES plays a big role in determining the well being of the children in one’s household.