Have you ever dreamed of moving out of the city and living with your wife, husband, or children on about an acre of land. Well, if your dream comes true, then you are participating in Urban Sprawl. Urban sprawl is the expansion of a city onto its rural territory with single-family homes in low-density neighborhoods. Low-density neighborhoods, without transportation options, are driving up energy costs. My cure is multi-storey housing within the city. Urban sprawl is bad because it causes bad effects on society's health and environment. Urban sprawl can cause poor health conditions such as obesity, which is linked to diabetes and can reduce a person's life expectancy. 78% of Americans do not meet recommendations for basic activity levels, and there has been a 76% increase in type II diabetes in adults aged 30 to 40 years since 1990 in America (Collins). In 1962, research statistics showed that the obesity rate in the American population was 13%. In 1980 it rose to 15% – in 1994 to 23% – and in 2000 the progression of obesity in America reached an unprecedented level of 31% (American Sports Data). Now, over a 20-year period (1970-1990), the 100 largest urbanized areas in the United States have expanded over an additional 14,545 square miles. That's more than 9 million acres of wildlife habitat, farmland, and other rural spaces (Key Statistics Of Urban Sprawl). As you can see, as urban sprawl increases, obesity also increases. With the conversion of all this land into cities and neighborhoods, the natural environment is being destroyed. Where do all the animals that lived in this space go? They are simply left to die or live in a denser population somewhere that hasn't been developed yet. By city...... middle of paper...... City statistics." Weight Statistics Adults Children, Obesity-Related Diseases. 2007. November 20, 2008 .Hu, Pat. "Americans and Their Vehicles ." NHTS Logo 2003. Oak Ridge National Laboratory. 20 November 2008. "Key Statistics on Urban Sprawl." McDonald's. 20 November 2008. Singh, Mike "Recommended Calorie Intake" 2008. Ezinearticles.com. 2008 .