The more we use cars in our day to day activities, the more the likelihood of becoming obese. Even though junk food, lack of exercises, and video games are largely to blame for the ever increasing obesity cases. The modern lifestyle where the automobile has become a staple of the modern life is the main cause of obesity.
Obesity is caused by energy imbalance –where people consume food that gives them a lot of energy which need to be expended. Unfortunately, the use of the automobile denies one the chance to expend the energy hence its conversion to fats. When this imbalance is allowed to continue, it leads to obesity.
As one spends most of the time behind the wheel, he gains weight. As this happens, the car is forced to burn more gasoline because of the increased load. According to a research conducted by Jacobson, he discovered that the more weight the driver has the more the fuel the car consumes. He further demonstrated that seating behind the wheel leads to an increase in the total weight of the driver. Thus, he concluded that vehicle use and obesity are correlated by 99 percent.
If we drive more, we lack activities that can help us burn calories. This is what leads to an aggregate level of obesity. In his research, Jacobson was able to demonstrate that when you sit in the car, the body burns very little amount of calories and it becomes even worse when you eat food in the car.
A lifestyle where moving from point A to B is done by driving is to blame for the ever increasing cases of obesity in the U.S and Denmark.
Before the change in lifestyle, human beings used to buy and prepare food in their homes, the heating and the cooling system that were traditionally used made one expend some energy and burn calories. Unfortunately, everything today is done by the car. This makes it difficult for our bodies to get enough exercises and get involved in physical activities.
The latest statistics show that the obesity rate in the developing countries is on the rise owing to the fact that people in these nations have begun to incorporate passenger vehicles in their lifestyle. In countries such as India and china, the automobile are competing with cycling and walking as a mode of transport meaning that they have reduced the amount of time spend on physical activities such as walking. This is thought to be the main cause of obesity in such countries.
To combat the problem, Jacobson encourages people faced with this problem to get actively involved in daily routine activities such as cycling, walking to the stores, using stair cases instead of lifts and many others. Unfortunately, it is not possible to eliminate automobiles in our daily routines. However, it is possible to reduce its usage and only use it if the distance to be covered is long enough.
Conclusion
Thus, if we want to completely eliminate obesity, every driver should reduce their driving by 12 miles in a day meaning that we cover a third of the distance using bicycles or walking.
