Obesity Caused by Junk Foods

Santa Monica Personal Injury Attorney

Staying healthy is not as simple as the phrase "eating right" implies. How do you determine what is "right" when companies misrepresent their nutritional facts or fail to disclose the health hazards associated with their ingredients? Some people have dismissed obesity caused by junk food cases as frivolous, or claim that obesity is purely the fault of the individual. These comments, however, are misguided and untrue. In fact, they are very similar to comments made when the health warning for cigarettes was first proposed. Since its inception in 1965, cigarette consumption in the United States has dropped drastically, cigarettes have become less toxic, and new laws regulating cigarette advertisement have been adopted. These are the long term results that we hope to attain with lawsuits against junk food companies.

With 34% of adults and 17% of children in America being clinically obese, we are facing an obesity epidemic. As individuals gain more weight, they are at higher risk for: heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, hypertension, certain cancers, respiratory problems, liver disease, and many other health problems.

In the past few years, more and more research has been done about obesity, and it is has been proven that there are striking similarities between compulsive junk food consumption and drug addiction. The brain "rewards" compulsive eating of high-fat, high-calorie foods in the same way it does certain types of drug use. Furthermore, studies on both obese individuals and drug addicts have revealed a decreased density in a certain brain receptor that is thought to be responsible for impulse control. 

These results are especially troubling when you consider the amount of junk food that our children eat, how it is advertised to them, and that it is provided at their schools. Food companies continue to refuse to accurately display warnings that their products are addictive and harmful to our health, and it is our mission to hold them responsible and enact change that will lead to a healthier America.