{"id":1701,"date":"2012-10-03T21:37:23","date_gmt":"2012-10-03T21:37:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/skinnygeneproject.dreamhosters.com\/?p=1701"},"modified":"2012-10-03T21:37:23","modified_gmt":"2012-10-03T21:37:23","slug":"an-asian-perspective-american-culture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.skinnygeneproject.org\/an-asian-perspective-american-culture\/","title":{"rendered":"An Asian Perspective on American Culture"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Hello. \u00a0I\u2019m Minwoo Kim from South Korea. I am 27 years old and have been studying at\u00a0Intrax<\/a>\u00a0language school in San Diego for approximately 1 year. While living here,\u00a0I have learned and observed many interesting cultural differences between the U.S. and South Korea. \u00a0I have been curious as to why\u00a0diabetes and obesity are growing global issues.\u00a0In particular,\u00a0why obesity is a bigger problem in the U.S. than South Korea.<\/span><\/p>\n

Through<\/span> my internship with the\u00a0Skinny Gene Project<\/a>, I had the opportunity to obtain a \u00a0better understanding of theses issues,\u00a0and I\u2018d like to share my thoughts with you.<\/p>\n

I\u2019d like to begin with why I came to the U.S.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In South Korea I worked as a Process Engineer at a Pharmaceutical company. I wanted to change my profession and work for a global company, and to do so, I needed to improve my English. So I enrolled in the Intrax language school, because I could improve my English and gain experience interning at a U.S. company.<\/p>\n

Life in San Diego<\/h3>\n

Living in San Diego has allowed me to create many memorable experiences that I wouldn\u2019t have had in South Korea. \u00a0For example, San Diego keeps such a temperate climate throughout the year, it\u2019s easy to take advantage of the ocean and go surfing, kayaking, and snorkeling.<\/p>\n

Difference in Culture<\/h3>\n

From the moment I arrived here, the people were so friendly and hospitable to me all the time. This was very unexpected because, especially in my city, Seoul, it is not easy to imagine greeting strangers as if they have already known each other for a long time. What\u2019s more, I couldn’t imagine a person I didn’t know approaching me and saying, \u201cHello\u201d. I would think \u201cwhy say hello to me? What is your intention?\u201d<\/p>\n

With its weather and friendly people, I see why everyone likes San Diego.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Blended Culture<\/h3>\n

When I studied about American cultures, to prepare to come to San Diego, I heard that diabetes had become a growing issue in the U.S. Of course, diabetes is a big problem in South Korea, as well. The main reason Koreans think diabetes is a growing issue is because the Korean lifestyle is getting similar to the American\u2019s lifestyle. Even we are consuming more foods like hamburgers, pizza and other fatty dishes, so we are starting to get some of the same health problems.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m curious, why do Americans have a bigger problem with obesity and diabetes than other countries?<\/strong><\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In my opinion, I found two reasons to explain this. The first one, as mentioned above, is the \u201cdiet\u201d.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve had the unique experience of discussing the American diet with my friends from Intrax. It was surprising to hear their perspective, because the students are all from diverse countries like Brazil, Turkey, Korea, Japan, Germany and Taiwan etc., yet we all had the same opinion.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, nobody I spoke to thought “American foods” were healthy. My classmates said that most “American foods” had too much oil, and they believed many Americans eat these \u201cgreasy\u201d foods all the time. Not sometimes. This way of eating appears to be a part of the American culture. This is the definite difference between the U.S and my country. It sounds like this is \u00a0also the difference between the states and my friend\u2019s countries too.<\/p>\n

In my country, we also enjoy something “oily”, but it can\u2019t be always. It\u2019s okay to eat in moderation<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The second reason why I believe Americans may have a bigger problem with obesity and diabetes is a lower level of physical activity. The U.S. has one of the best car markets in the world, which is why automotive companies from around the world love to sell to the U.S. \u00a0In other words, I think the driving culture is so well developed in the U.S. that it is easy to get anywhere by car. Whereas, in other countries, like South Korea, walking and public transportation are the main methods of transportation. Having a car seems nice, but on the contrary, I think it might be the core reason for the decreased level of exercise in the U.S.<\/p>\n

Different Steps<\/h3>\n

In doing some research, I found an interesting fact.<\/p>\n

According to the Pedometer Test<\/a>, Americans take over 4,000 fewer steps (walking) a day than other countries<\/strong><\/em><\/span>. \u00a0This gap is equal to\u00a0about 30 to 40 minutes of walking each day.\u00a0It is recommended that people \u00a0in the U.S take at least 10,000 steps a day to maintain good health, which is approximately five miles of walking. The study showed that \u00a0on average Americans are only taking 5,117 steps a day<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

This study surprised me, because it means American are getting half of the exercise they need to live a healthy lifestyle<\/strong> and prevent things like heart disease, obesity and diabetes.<\/p>\n

Doing some quick math, I realized that these missing 4,000 + steps can really accumulate, causing a person to gain an extra 21 pounds a year<\/strong>. \u00a0These additional pounds can be the tipping point between a person being healthy and becoming overweight, getting \u00a0high blood pressure, or having \u00a0high\u00a0cholesterol.\u00a0 Or, it could even be the difference between a person with prediabetes\u00a0developing full blown type 2 diabetes, or preventing it all together<\/strong><\/em><\/span>.<\/em><\/p>\n

New Perspective<\/h3>\n

During the internship, I\u2019ve been taught a lot of things that I\u2019d not known and had misunderstood about obesity and diabetes. Especially, it was a good chance to learn the distinction between type 1 and type 2 diabetes, the important role diet and exercise can play in diabetes prevention, and most importantly that diabetes is no longer the disease for the older generation. People my age, late 20\u2019s, need to start being more careful of their health and live a healthier lifestyle, if we want to prevent diabetes from continuing to attack our generation. It is becoming a global issue, but we don\u2019t necessarily need a \u201cbig solution\u201d. What I figured out from the research and lessons are that we can slow the growth of obesity and diabetes by taking small steps<\/strong>, 10,000 of them to be specific, to improve the health of all nations.<\/p>\n

Before concluding my story, I want to say that San Diego is AWESOME. It not only helped me to achieve my prospective goals, but also provided a bunch of ways to broaden my horizons. I believe that all the experiences that I had in San Diego are invaluable and never forgettable.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hello. \u00a0I\u2019m Minwoo Kim from South Korea. I am 27 years old and have been studying at\u00a0Intrax\u00a0language school in San Diego for approximately 1 year. While living here,\u00a0I have learned and observed many interesting cultural differences between the U.S. and South Korea. \u00a0I have been curious as to why\u00a0diabetes and obesity are growing global issues.\u00a0In… <\/p>\n

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