It’s no secret that obesity in America is a major issue. In 2007, over a quarter of the adults in the United States were obese, a number that would have been unheard of in the 60’s, 70’s or 80’s. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “American society has become ‘obesogenic,’ characterized by environments that promote increased food intake, unhealthful foods, and physical inactivity.”
I completely agree. Becoming overweight or obese is a combination of what you eat, how much you eat, and how much you exercise – and in a world of fast food, television and video games, it can be hard to make the right choices. The consequences of making the wrong choices, however, can be deadly. The CDC reports that obesity increases an individual’s chance of coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, hypertension, and cancers. According to the Office of the Surgeon General, “300,000 deaths per year may be attributable to obesity.”
You would think, then, that taking steps to prevent obesity would be a major priority for people. That doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to go out and run a marathon or take up the Atkins diet, it simply means that when given the choice to take the stairs or the elevator, you take the stairs. It’s a small thing, but it can significantly contribute to a healthier lifestyle if you make it a habit.
You may already be able to tell that it bothers me when I see perfectly capable individuals taking the elevator. If you have two functioning legs, use them! Elevators were made for people who can’t use the stairs, not people who don’t want to. People who are handicapped, injured, or have heavy objects in tow will benefit from using the elevator far more than someone who chooses not to get their heart rate up for thirty seconds out of their day.
I’m not saying that taking the elevator causes obesity. What I am saying is that the recent weight gain epidemic will only continue if people become too busy or too lazy to care about their own health, and don’t do the little things, like take the stairs.
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