According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in the United States, more than a third of adults and a sixth of children are obese. Over the next twenty years, these numbers will more than double. By 2020, obesity will be considered normal and healthy weight will be the exception. Who is responsible for the increase in the obese population? Some talk about fast food restaurants being on every block in the city. Others say that it is obese people themselves who do not know how to control themselves. Many major health problems are accompanied by obesity and it costs the government millions in health care to pay for others' lack of self-control. Fast food contains high amounts of salt, sugar, fat and preservatives. In today's society, Americans want food, and they want it now. Manufacturers understand this and are filling foods with many artificial and unhealthy chemicals. If a person saw what a food looked like in its pre-processed state, they probably would not buy or eat it. Additives and preservatives replace all nutritional aspects of the food. Some foods may taste good but lack the nutrients to maintain a healthy body and fast foods can also make poor digestion worse. The ingredients found in processed foods are unfamiliar to the body. Our body stores almost everything that the digestive organs cannot process and turns it into fatty tissue. Scientists believe this process could contribute to the development of obesity. Calories found in sugary drinks and fried foods are often called "empty calories." This type of calorie is broken down at an excessive rate and causes blood sugar to rise. The body then sends hunger signals, which causes the person to eat more...... middle of paper...... but this does not prove that fast food franchises are the culprits. I believe people are responsible for their own obesity. A single person can go out of their way to purchase food from a restaurant knowing that adequate nutrition will not be contained in the food. It all depends on common knowledge and self-control. Many Americans lack both of these, which has led to an obesity epidemic. BibliographyCollins, Tracy Brown. Fast food. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Thomson Gale, 2005. Perl, Lila. Junk food, fast food, health food. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1980. Phillips, Stone. “Who is responsible for the obesity epidemic in the United States? » Dateline NBC, 2006: 1-9. Rose, Caitlin. “Obesity in America.” Down to earth. 2011. (accessed December 22, 2011). Wexler, Barbara. Weight in America: Obesity, Eating Disorders, and Other Health Risks. Farmington Hills, Michigan: Thomson Gale, 2007.