While you're driving and you pass a McDonalds, have you ever had the urge to eat everything in sight? I have, and so have many other kids. It's hard to resist that feeling of hunger, even if you have just eaten a three course meal.

Obesity is becoming a global epidemic among the young people in today's society. It's not just a simple eating disorder anymore, it's growing into a chronic disease. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 129.6 million Americans, or 64 percent, are overweight or obese. Obesity and overweight have been shown to increase the odds of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, some forms of cancer, and other medical conditions. Obesity is also reported to be disabling children as young as 16 years old. The leading causes of disability are mental illness and chronic back pain--both linked to obesity. I guess it's because it's very cheap to eat and very expensive to exercise. Obesity is overtaking smoking as the leading cause of preventable death in America.

That's exactly what obesity is, preventable. The problem with most obese children is that they weren't introduced to exercise at an early age. Instead of running around with other kids, they were sitting in front of the TV. Studies show that children who joined an exercise class or a sports team were generally less open to becoming obese. I play soccer and lacrosse, so it keeps me in shape. If you don't want to join sports, run around your block a couple of times and eat a healthy diet consisting of fruits and vegetables.

America is a unique country where people die from eating too much than eating too little. The eating habits cannot stay the same if we wish to back away from the massive health problem of the future.