This shocking video will change the way you think about obesity

Obesity has been a well-known, preventable health epidemic for decades now. This is part of the reason why the condition can be so frustrating to talk about. Couldn't people suffering from obesity just stop overeating, jump on the treadmill and walk valiantly on the path to good health? This powerful video aims to challenge that mentality by showing that, unfortunately, obese habits are tough to break.

The video, posted by a fitness and nutrition club, depicts an obese man being wheeled into a hospital's surgery room after suffering a heart attack. The doctor rhetorically wonders "how the hell did that happen." Suddenly, the obese man's life flashes in reverse, revealing years of fatty meals and lack of exercise stemming all the way back to poor eating habits during his childhood. For this man, obesity was a natural process. A candy bar here, some french fries there, all small, sugar-coated steps that lead to a dead end at the hospital.

Society often casts blame on obese people for not ditching the fatty foods and heading to the gym to improve their lives. But this video shows that deeply ingrained within many obese people are poor dietary habits that they've carried since childhood. 17% of children in the U.S. are obese, and 20.5% of 12-to-19 year olds are obese, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association.

There's a huge socioeconomic influence behind obesity as well. Those from lower-income families in the U.S. often can't afford to pursue healthy food options, instead having to head to fast food restaurants to get the most calorie value for their buck.

The video is eye-opening and shouldn't be taken as a bold warning to never feed your children hamburgers or chocolate bars ever again. But it does illuminate the cycle in which obesity begins, and in the process shows strategies that could help defeat childhood obesity.