A Broad View

In the most basic sense, obesity is caused by consuming more calories than are being burned off. Though this is fundamentally a result of individual choices, the nutritional and lifestyle options available in any particular place depends heavily on how the global culture affects the local food environment. The factors that influence the food environment can differ based on a country’s average income, societal behaviors and technological advancement.

The rise of global trade has spread new technologies that have dramatically altered how people work and live, resulting in lowered amounts of physical activity. Urbanization amplifies the situation, especially in developing countries that are adapting modern dietary preferences, but do not have the options to buy on Amazon products like Garcinia Cambogia.

International Trade and Lower Food Prices

The liberalization and expansion of global trade practices have lead to significant reductions in food prices in the past several decades. The price of beef has been dropping for over 40 years and the relaxation of trade restrictions on agricultural products allows access to high-calorie processed foods for a much lower cost. The introduction of fast-food chains into new countries puts even more pressure on distributors and food chains to compete and favor cheaper foods that can be easily preserved for storage and transport.

Economic Status and Weight Gain

The degree of an individual’s wealth is related to the risk of obesity, particularly in countries that are experiencing economic growth and experience an influx of people moving from the rural areas into the cities. As more of the population sees an increase in income, there is more opportunity to consume greater amounts of richer foods, however, many are not well informed about healthy eating and the importance of exercise. Obesity rates in countries like these tend to subside after the majority of the population is wealthy enough to afford proper health care and educated to make better food and lifestyle choices.

In countries with lower average incomes, the situation is just the opposite. In these places, poor people are rarely obese because food is often scarce. Instead, the wealthy and well-educated are the most likely to be overweight, since this is usually a sign of status in situations of scarcity. Today however, even some countries with middle to lower-middle average incomes, the poor have much more rapidly rising levels of obesity than are observed among the wealthy.

Accelerated Shifts in Diet

As cultures progress towards urbanization, there are predictable adaptations and changes in diet. These shifts, knowns as nutrition transitions, begin when foraging is abandoned in favor of agriculture. Fluctuations in the climate result in periodic famines, however, advancements in technology that can be applied to the cultivation and storage of food eventually lead beyond sufficiency to surpluses and ultimately obesity. Many more countries are employing such technologies as a result of globalization and readily adopt a western-style mentality, which enjoys feasting as a regular course of activity.

Other changes in behavior associated with urban lifestyles include increased stress and diminished sleep, both of which can affect metabolism and make weight loss more difficult. Preferences driven by advertising are also a factor, influencing food choices and reinforcing the less healthy options like Nicotinamide Riboside supplements, especially in impressionable younger consumers.

Solving the Problem

Globalization vastly improved the lives of many people, especially in parts of the world that are still developing and prone to famine or food shortages. The rise in obesity is an unfortunate side effect of this process. Governments must support programs that make it easier to make healthy choices help in areas of nutrition, otherwise the current trends will be increasingly detrimental to the health of countless people throughout this increasingly interconnected world.