Weight Throughout History

Karanvir SinghPeriod 3

Thesis: There has been a huge gain in weight

in the average American when comparing to the 20th Century and 18th Century; therefore causing loss in productivity and loss of money within the United States.

Definition: Being excessively overweight

What does it mean to be obese? I. Tested through a test called BMIII. If the test is higher than 30, one is

considered obese, compared to the normal 18.5-24.9.

Today’s Society:

• 8 out of 10 people, over the age of 25, are overweight.

• 70% of cardiovascular diseases relate to being overweight

• 80% of type II diabetes related to being overweight.

• #2 cause of preventable death in the United States

Comparing the 20th and 21st Centuries

One notes how the obesity trends have increased throughout the states in the ten year period.

18th Century• People wanted to look plump during this

period, especially wealthy people.• They considered it to be a sign of wealth, and

luxury, because they had more food. It also portrayed that they did not have to do labor, like the common man.

• However, wealthy people consisted of only less than 10% of the population. The majority of the people maintained proper weight because of all the labor involved in farming.

So then why does the twenty-first century have a huge jump in an average American’s weight?

(191 lbs for the American man159 lbs for the American woman)

Let’s analyze the following from 18th and 20th Centuries:

Sleep

Technology

[1] Sleep Research shows that lack of sleep

causes increase in weight. It causes a person to eat 300 more

calories a day.

18th Century • 70-80 % of Americans were employed in agriculture in 1890

(19th Century.) This is after the Industrial Revolutions and after the decrease in rural Americans. One can only imagine the huge number in the 18th Century. This number would be huge compared to today’s 2-3%.

• Because of all the farming happening, a worker could only work when the sun was out.

• This is because there was no electricity during this period, and candles would be very inefficient to be used on a huge farm.

• CONCLUSION: Workers in the 18th Century got enough sleep.

• (Not like when the light bulb was invented, and workers would have to work much more.)

20th Century

In the 1990’s, the average American

spent about 7.8 hours sleeping per day

21st Century

• By the beginning of the 21st Century, the average sleep time went down to 7.4 hours, and today, the average American sleeps only 6.9 hours.

Estimated $ Losses due to decreased productivity:

• Workdays lost: $39.3 Million

• Physician office visits: $62.7 Million

• Restricted Activity days: $29.9 Million

• Bed-Related days: $89.5 Million

[2] Technology

Comparing 20th Century with 21st

• Increase in use of Video Games – “In 2008, the average American gamer

has been playing for 12 years, and is now, on average, 35 years of age.”

Comparing 20th Century with 21st

Additional Note: • There was no Wii– A number of families own the Wii as it

was the 2nd best-selling game console in 2007

– However, to all of those families, according to Livestrong, the Wii burns a lot less calories than going to the gym and health benefits are not proven

18th Century • No Cars– No longer growing your own food– No longer walking to pick up kids from school

• No Computers– No need to walk to the store, or sew own clothes,

when they can be ordered online– The average American spends 6 hours a day on a

computer• No Phones– No longer need to meet people to communicate

• No Television– “Why go do an outside activity when there is full

entertainment inside, on the couch.”

Comparing Late 18th Century &

21st Century’s

USE OF TECHNOLOGY AT WORK

18th Century Work: More Active, Even with

technology

21st Century: Inactive

What is the result of less activity?

Medical Expenditures Related to Obesity

Money spent because of diseases:

QUESTIONS:

Has the increase in weight caused a loss of productivity in the US?

ANSWER: The increase in weight has caused a decrease in productivity, which in turn has caused a huge loss of money within the United States. When saying loss of productivity, one must realize that it means physically

Compare the video of the work in the 18th

Century to that of the 21st Century. What is the difference in the

work?

ANSWER: The late 1700’s was the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, a period where there was a huge influx in technology including inventions (like the Cotton Gin.) However, when looking at the video of workers in the late 18th Century, the new technology still required a lot of movement. Comparing that to today, businesses involve a lot of computer use which does not have any movement besides that of the fingers. Therefore, one can conclude that one of the reasons for the increase of weight in the 21st Century is because the technology requires a lot less movement, than that of the common work in the late 18th Century.

How does the lack of sleep affect a

person’s weight? ANSWER: Sleep within the United States has been decreasing since the 18th Century. It has a huge affect on the way that a person functions, including their eating habits. It causes the average human to consume 300 more calories per day if the recommended 9 hours of sleep does not happen.

How would future Americans look if the 21st Century trends in sleep and technology

stopped? Continued?

ANSWER: If the trends were to stop within the United States, it is probable that the increase in weight will continue to increase. This is because technology and sleep are not the only things that change weight, food is also a big issue, as well as numerous other factors (family life, influence from friends, etc.) However, the conditions would definitely approve. If the conditions were to continue, then I believe that the mortality rate within the U.S. would increase, because as seen in the above, obesity is the second highest in preventable cause of death.

Bibliography • Benson, Jonathan. "Why Not Getting Enough Sleep Can Cause You to Gain Weight." Natural News . N.p.,

26 Mar. 2011. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.naturalnews.com/031845_sleep_weight_gain.html>.

• Bettelheim, Adriel. "Are Americans Eating Themselves to Death." Obesity and Health : n. pag. Web. 17 May 2011. <http:// library.cqpress.com/ cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre1999011500&type=hitlist&num=1>.

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– Frank W. Baker. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2011. <http://www.frankwbaker.com/ mediause.htm>.

• "Obesity Related Statistics in America ." Get America Fit . N.p., 2008. Web. 13 May 2011. <http://www.getamericafit.org/ statistics-obesity-in-america.html>.

• "Pros and Cons of Wii Fit." Livestrong . Livestrong , n.d. Web. 17 May 2011. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/71043- the-pros-cons-wii-fit/>.

• Rowen, Beth. "How Americans Spent Their Time in the 90's ." infoplease . N.p., 16 May 2011. Web. 17 May 2011. <http:// www.infoplease.com/spot/ timeusespot.html>.