Video Games and Obesity Rough Draft

Neil Kindt

Professor Moore

English 104

May 2, 2010

Children Gaining Weight Through Video Gaming

“It is true that the rise in the prevalence of obesity among American children over the past three decades is both disturbing and alarming” (Journal of Adolescence).  In these past three decades children are continuously being introduced to new eras of video games, computers, and television.  However, do children who spend excessive amounts of time in front of the television playing video games develop obesity?  If so who’s fault is it? The parents? The kids? Or is there just nobody to blame and playing video games all day and being obese just a socially accepted norm in the United States?  After researching the question I found out that children who play excessive amounts of video games tend to be more obese then those who refrain from sedentary activities.  Sedentary activities are activities that consist of zero physical activities, such as; watching television and playing video game. (Transition into 1st body paragraph)

Parents need to start watching their children’s weight and limit their children’s hours of sedentary activities a day.  Researchers from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and University Hospital Zurich found out that children who do not play video games had only a six percent chance of being obese.  However, those who played an hour of video games a day saw their chances of becoming obese rise to nine percent.  Two hours of game play is almost doubled from one hour at 17 percent and three hours a day is a staggering 23 percent.  Parents this is nobody’s fault but yours.  By letting your kid play three hours of video games a day you are just asking for a fat obese child.  Send your kid outside and let him get some exercise running around in the neighborhood with the other kids and if your children don’t like that sign them up for the local baseball team, or whatever sport your child likes to play.  A reporter from CNN said, “Basically, it comes down to this: Notice junior is getting a bit pudgy? Take away his copy of “Madden,” give him a real pigskin and head out to the backyard.”  Parents preventing your child from becoming obese is much easier than you think, you just have to be willing to tell your child to stop playing the game.  Parents your children are not going to change unless you put fourth the effort in changing them, “It’s about what all of us can do to help our kids lead active, healthy lives: parents making healthier choices for their families… from food manufacturers offering healthier options to retailers understanding understanding that what’s good for kids and families can be good for business too.”(Michelle Obama). (Transition into 2nd body paragraph)

Although video games mainly have a negative effect on us there are some upsides to video games.  With advancements in technology Nintendo has been able to produce a gaming console called the Wii, which allows a more active game play which forces you to stand up and move around opposed to all other gaming consuls where the game can be played sitting on the couch.  The Wii is also great on rainy days when children are locked up in the house and forced to stay inside.  However, regardless to the gaming consul your child is playing; video games are considered a sedentary activity.  According to the Journal of Adolescence, in order for video games to be negatively related to activity level or physical exertion, the amount of time children spend playing video games has to displace some other, more active or physically strenuous, leisure activity.  That is, children need to choose to watch television or play video games over some more active leisure like playing soccer.  Although this may seem like a small problem, its not, and every day more and more children are choosing to be lazy and play video games instead of going outside with their friends and being active. (Transition into Conclusion paragraph)

Parents please pay attention to your child’s weight and game play because regardless of what you think, “Our results indicated that spending more time in sedentary activities was related to higher weight status for all children, regardless of age or gender.” (Journal of Adolescence).  Parents the kids are not going to change themselves you need to take action and do not wait because one day could change everything.

Obesity and Videogames

Obesity and Videogames

My original topic was why do we not hear enough about the ongoing genocides in the world? However, I realized that topic may be a little difficult to research, because whenever I tried searching “genocides” I would just find books on preventing it. I also encountered troubles when I tried finding stuff on the media coverage, so instead, I decided to write about obesity to see if it actually follows us through our lifetimes.

My first idea was obesity in America, but we all know there has been so much written on that including several movie documentaries.  The issue with obesity is that it is a growing problem in the US, and I want to look into the issue and see where it starts. I then tried the question “Will children who play an excessive amount of video games experience obesity problems, opposed to children who do not play video games?”  I believe it does because children who play an excessive amount of video games will be less involved with extracurricular activities such at going outside, playing sports, and possibly having friends.  My hypothesis is children who play an excessive amount of video games will experience obesity opposed to those who only play less.

My essay will mainly be written to families that have children because parents are the ones who can limit their children to the amount of game play per day.  However, this essay could also be written to anybody who plays numerous hours of video games a day.

Articles in precis form

Health Central. 6 Apr. 2004. Web. 25 Apr. 2010. <http://www.healthcentral.com/drdean/408/60891.html>.

In this article, the author talks about the research that doctors from the Hospital of Philadelphia and the University Hospital Zurich have done in 2004 and they argue that video games lead to obesity.  The author supports his argument by giving stats from the research such as, children should be limited to video game play in order to prevent childhood obesity.  The author writes how obesity is a current problem in the word and in order to treat it we need to start during childhood and teach our kids good from bad.  The intended audience of Health Central is researchers and people who are interested in things that are being researched.

The Pittsburgh Channel. 18 Mar. 2004. Web. 25 Apr. 2010. <http://www.thepittsburghchannel.com/health/2933099/detail.html>.

In this article, from the Pittsburgh Channel, the author talks about sedentary activities and he argues that people who play these sedentary activities will experience obesity where as those who don’t partake in these activities wont become obese.  The author compares children who have friends and those that don’t, and the ones that do not have as many friends tend to be more obese because they fill their free time with playing video games.  In order to lower sedentary activities parents need to limit their children to game play and make them get outside and enjoy the fresh air.  This article is intended for those who are too lazy to tell their kids to get off the couch and go outside, play, and make friends.

“Dem Mayor Cory Booker, GOP Former Sen. Bill Frist Join Michelle Obama Anti …” Chicago Sun-Times (blog). 1 Apr. 2010. Web. 26 Apr. 2010. <http://www.lexisnexis.com.ezproxy2.lib.depaul.edu/us/lnacademic/auth/checkbrowser.do?rand=0.553723201562566&cookieState=0&ipcounter=1&bhjs=1&bhqs=1>.

In this article, Michelle Obama talks about childhood obesity and she argues that it is not the children’s fault for the obesity but it is the parents fault.  Obama says back then when she was growing up they had to walk to school everyday and today that is replaced with the parents driving their children to school and how the school don’t provide healthy food for the kids.  Obama says in order for this to change we need to teach out children what is healthy and encourage the schools to provide healthier foods to the students.  This article is intended for the communities in which we live in, because it is telling us that we need to purchase healthier foods and make better and more healthy foods for out children.

Research Question

Why does the media not cover more news on ongoing genocides?

Interrupted Reading Analysis

Interrupted Reading Analysis

The painting “Interrupted Reading” by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot was a rather hard thing to research.  Not only did many other painters come up but a majority of the time I could only find pictures or a brief background about Corot. Corot is said to be one of the most influential painters of the 19th century and mainly his pictures consist of the surrounding landscape. Corots’ collection of paintings also consists of many paintings of romantic women.  Besides Corots’ background, I did manage to find some things about the painting “Interrupted Reading.”  According to the Art Institute of Chicago, the painting represents a depressed women.  Because during this time people believed that a depressed women was considered good looking.  It is also said that men may have painted pictures of women like this to show that they do not possess as much power as the males do.

However, from my perspective I do not like this painting.  I mean sure it has many details and is a very popular painting, I just do not think the painting “Interrupted Reading” deserves the glory that it receives for being in the Chicago Art Institute.

Author(s): Jean Baptiste Camille Corot
Source: Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies, Vol. 26, No. 1, Maineri to Miró: The Regenstein Collection since 1975 (2000), pp. 72-73+96
Published by: The Art Institute of Chicago
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4104438

Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot.” The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia. © 1994, 2000-2006, on Infoplease.
© 2000–2007 Pearson Education, publishing as Infoplease.
04 Apr. 2010 <http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/people/A0813632.html>.

Interrupted Reading

Interrupted Reading

Precise 1

“Corot, Jean Baptiste Camille (1796-1875) – 1865-70 Interrupted Reading.” Flickr. 6 Feb. 2009. Web. 31 Mar. 2010. <http://www.flickr.com/photos/32357038@N08/3258699139/>.

In this essay, the author argues about Jean Baptiste’s works of art and how he tends not to work on one piece at a time, but tends to work on one then come back to another.  The author talks about the kinds of brushes Jean Baptiste used and how over the years his styles of paintings changed.  The author talks about the style changes and the kinds of exactness Jean Baptiste uses in order for us to understand how Baptiste changed throughout his life.  This essay was intended for folks who enjoy art and like reading about artists and how they have changed.

Precis 2

“Corot, Jean-Baptiste Camille.” The Columbia Encyclopedia. New York: Columbia University Press, 2008. Credo Reference. Web. 02 April 2010.

In this essay the author talks about Corot’s teachers and where he as a painter had became famous.  The author says Corot first paintings focused on Roman paintings and architecture.  Because Corot is such an magnificent artist many of his paintings must be placed in popular and secure museums in order to be safe.  This article is strictly for people who follow Corot and nothing else.

Precis 3

“Corot, Jean-Baptiste Camille (1796-1875).The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather guide. Abington: Helicon, 2009. Credo Reference. Web. 03 April 2010.

In this essay the author argues that Corot did not only enjoy working outside and painting but he also enjoyed painting romantic pictures of females.  The author explains that after college Corot found helped from another painter who enjoyed working outside and this is where he picked up his enjoyment of working outside.  This article showed that Corot was a successful artist in order to show how he helped artists after him to become successful.  Just like my previous articles, this one as well is mainly for people who are interested in learning about Corot.

Tupac’s “Thug Life” Tat

http://www.rap-wallpapers.com/data/media/33/thuglife.jpg

(Picture of Tupac and his “Thug Life” tattoo)

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-77848912.html

(Article on “Thug Life”)

Thug Life to me appears to be a gang and a name on one of Tupac’s CD’s.  It seems to be around a time when Tupac left the Outlaw Gang and went to the Thug Life Gang.

Last fall, when Tupac Shakur was incarcerated at the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, N.Y., he told black entertainment magazine Sister 2 Sister that “I wanna be smaller than life when I get out.” At that moment, Shakur seemed tired of living large: He was in prison after having been convicted of sexual abuse; in the midst of his trial, he was shot five times by an assailant in an apparent robbery; he was facing a half-dozen other charges, from assault to breach of contract, in as many locations. The “Thug Life” tattooed onto Shakur’s chest was all too accurate.

“I quit Thug Life, not out of fear,” Shakur said at the time. “I lived Thug Life. It was stupid.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=thug%20life

(Urban Dictionary of “Thug Life”)

Urban Dictionary is a dictionary where people put their own meaning of the words.  I thought the first two definitions were good from this dictionary.