Public Health and Obesity Discussion Paper
Public Health and Obesity Discussion Paper
The amassing of excess body fat to the point of obesity is a serious yet common medical condition that effects adults and children alike. While there are biological influences in the development of the disease, it is strongly influenced by social environments and lifestyle choices. As a result of these variables, attitudes can be formed that support unhealthy behaviors. Interventions are clearly required to alter these factors. One such approach is to develop a public health campaign that focuses on pre-empting the development of attitudes instead of the resultant actions, which is what will be described here. Public Health and Obesity Discussion Paper
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Obesity is too complex of an issue to be fully addressed in a single campaign, so we will focus on the subgroup of obese people who live sedentary lifestyles. This still presents a large population and aims to reduce a significant influence on the health of virtually any person. A possible reason for the issue is that people still hold the belief that everyday activities will provide them with a sufficient amount of exercise. This may have been true in the past, but daily life no longer requires regular movement due to technological advances and changing employment standards. Previous programs have tried to increase exercise behaviors directly, but we are more interested in changing the attitude. Accordingly, this campaign would be informational in nature. By educating the target group about the ways in which old ideas have influenced current attitudes, they will be more likely to change attitudes due to the formation of a cognitive dissonance. Media channels accessed at home will be vital to reaching the target group.
