Obesity
is a serious epidemic that’s sweeping all across the U.S. mostly in poverty
stricken areas. Low income areas don’t have the same opportunity to eat as
healthy as the more well to do areas. This is mainly do to the fact that eating
healthy is more expensive. In low income areas there is no demand for healthy
food, simply because they can’t afford it. The people there choose the quick
cheap fast food places for a meal instead of the more costly healthy foods. If the costs of the healthy food were lowered
in the low income areas then the obesity rate would be lowered as well. There are
many things to increase healthy eating in these areas such as, lowering the rent
of a health food store that way they could lower their prices. Also, giving tax
breaks to the health food stores would result in lower food prices. Lastly,
getting rid of the unhealthy food stores would force people to choose a more healthy
choice.
The demand for healthy food shops in
poverty stricken areas is very low due to the fact that it is so expensive. If
the rent was lowered only for those stores that offer a healthier selection of
food, then the stores could lower their prices making it more affordable for
those who could not normally afford it. The break on the rent would be saving
the store which then could allow them to charge less for the foods. This would
also reduce the obesity problem as well, due to the fact that more people would
be choosing the healthier options now that they can afford it.
Also, another way to reduce obesity, by
increasing health food stores, is to give tax breaks to only the health food
stores in these areas. The stores would have to agree to lower the price of their
foods in order to receive said tax break though. If they do not lower their
prices then they do not get a tax break. The lower prices would attract new
customers to the stores, thus creating most business and more profit for the
store. Also, the new customers would be getting healthier food for low costs. It’s
a win-win situation for both the store and the consumer. Plus, it will help
reduce the obesity rate by attracting those who would normally go buy cheap
junk food, would now shop at the health food store.
Lowering the rate of obesity can also
be reached by simply just shutting down all the junk food stores in the area. By
getting rid of the fast food places in the area it would force people to choose
the healthier places by default. This wouldn’t really help from an economical
stand point, but it would end obesity for sure. The people would be force to
buy the more expensive healthy food which would be good for their bodies, but
not good for their wallets. This is not the most practical way to reduce
obesity but it sure would work.
The last way to effectively reduce the
obesity problem is to combine all three ideas into one action. By combining reduced
rent, tax breaks and eliminating junk food places the obesity problem would
stop dead in its tracks. The reduced rent payments and the tax breaks would be
given to only those health food stores that agree to lower their prices substantially.
Also the elimination of the junk food stores would leave only the healthy food
stores left and with the new lowered more affordable prices the people can shop
there with no worries. The people in these low income areas could now afford to
eat health, which will in turn reduce the obesity rate.
The obesity rate in the low income
areas is very high and needs to be lowered. Those are just a few of the many
ways that could help reduce it. The most effective way to reduce it would be to
combine all three plans into one elaborate plan. This elaborate plan would ultimately
end the obesity problem for ever.
