Disneyland's historic ride It's a Small World, which has been a staple theme park experience since 1963, will be closed for nearly 10 months to replace the boats and the winding fume they travel along.

It's sad to think that Disneyland aficionados won't be able to hear that famous never-ending song. However, Americans really should be concerned about the reason behind the refurbishment.

Al Lutz, from MiceAge.com, claimed that the real reason behind the closure "isn't very flattering to the modern American psyche." He said the ride is being closed due to damage from America's growing problem with weight, according to The New York Times.

Lutz said that when the ride was commissioned in the mid-1960s, the average adult male weighed 175 pounds, whereas the average adult woman weighed 130 pounds.

"Average Americans" are no longer quite that lean in stature. Lutz attributes the damage throughout It's a Small World to the average American's massive weight gain. The boats and the flume they move through were simply not designed to handle people who weigh more than 200 pounds. A Disney spokesperson asserted that the refurbishment is necessary due to normal wear-and-tear.

According to "Diet Wars," a PBS Frontline special, it is an irrefutable fact that Americans are the fattest people in the world.

"America has become the fattest nation on earth. About two-thirds of the American population is overweight, and of those, half are already obese. The diet industry is the visible sign of a looming public health problem," Frontline correspondent Steve Talbot said.

Ironically, American popular culture has become inundated with ways to improve health. Numerous reality television programs such as The Biggest Loser and Celebrity Fit Club depict the achievement of healthy lifestyles. Despite the proliferation of celebrity weight loss stories and diet programs and the fashion industry's obsession with skinny models, Americans just seem to be getting bigger and bigger.

It is true that for medical and genetic reasons, some people are naturally overweight. For example, 2 percent of the world's population suffers from hypothyroidism. The thyroid helps to regulate the body's metabolism, so when a person suffers from hypothyroidism, his or her metabolism slows down, often causing weight gain.

However, for the rest of Americans, it is time to turn off the TV, get motivated and exercise. Laziness is not a legitimate justification for putting one's health at risk.

Gaining weight is a progressive problem, not an instant ailment. So it's hard to understand why Americans lack the ability to realize when they are gaining weight. Many people use food as an emotional crutch for their personal problems, which is why it is important for people to own up to their shortcomings and face their issues head on.

Obesity is not only damaging to be detrimental to self esteem. While people should be judged solely on their achievements and contributions to society, the reality is that Americans are surreptitiously superficial and fickle. Obesity and "fatness" are accompanied with numerous negative stigmas that are difficult to escape.

While an optimist would try to change societal views, a realist accepts that one cannot change other people. You can only change yourself.

A person should not be forced to live by the standards of others, but obesity is clearly unhealthy and obviously not normal. It is a hard lesson to learn, but first impressions are everything in our society, and people should always desire to put their absolute best foot forward. America's growing problem with weight definitely conflicts with that cultural idiom.

Americans have an insatiable appetite when it comes to all things consumed. We like big houses, expensive cars, fancy clothes and large amounts of food. Perhaps it is time for Americans to reign in their overindulgent behavior.After all, it's a small world.

[Reach columnist Chris Heide at opinion@thedaily.washington.edu.]