Chew On This Book Review

In America almost two thirds of the nation is overweight. That is about 79.6 million people who are obese. Fast food is without a doubt the problem why these statistics are so high. According to Shannon Brownlee, a journalist for the Sacramento Bee “ It’s Portion Distortion That Makes America Fat” she mentions how fast food corporations are luring buyers into their offers . In another article by David Weintraub “The Battle Against Fast Food Begins in the Home” he focus more on self responsibility rather than fast food restaurants being convenient everywhere you go. In America, the obesity epidemic is caused by the lack of parent not taking full responsibility for their childrens health, as well as fast food industries distorting portion sizes in order to make more

In today’s society a huge issue is that we constantly hear about the food industry in America. We often hear in the news that obesity rates have increased, or that Americans have many diseases that contribute to being obese. “What You Eat is Your Business” by Radley Balko expresses that people are at fault for making such unhealthy food choices. Others argue that the food industry is to blame for being so unhealthy. According to David Zinczenko in “Don’t Blame the Eater” he blames the fast food industry as well as the consumer. Zinczenko asks “shouldn’t we know better than to eat two meals a day in fast food restaurant’s?” (392). So, who is to blame for American’s eating so much unhealthy food? Should it be the consumers’ burden or the fast food companies? On one hand, as consumers we continue to purchase foods that we know are making us overweight. On the other hand, fast food companies continue to offer high in calories foods.

Zinczenko’s rhetorical comments on the fast food industry are spaced throughout his piece. Zinczenko also states that alternative options are hard to find when fast food is readily available. “Drive down any thoroughfare in America, and I guarantee you’ll see one of our country’s more than 13,000 McDonald’s restaurants. Now, drive back up the block and try to find someplace to buy a grapefruit” (Zinczenko 463). This strong statement proves Zinczenko’s irritated tone throughout his piece. Zinczenko’s stand that the fast food industry is responsible for obesity.

In the article “don’t blame the eater”, David Zinczenko focuses on the reason behind the obesity problem that the modern young generations are facing. According to him, the large chains of fast-food restaurants given their availability around the country and low prices are the ones causing this problem. He brings in his own life experience and tells the story of becoming a 212 pound teenager highlighting that he had to rely on these fast food chains for everyday meal. With a single mother, who worked long hours he had no other alternatives to this like many other American teens. The lack of information about the calorie content of the dishes on these restaurants was one other main concern. Most of these restaurants do not provide enough data about the calorie content of their dishes, and even if they do so its mostly vague and deceiving. To show the gravity of the problem he pulls out a statistics of an increase of 30% in type 2 diabetes resulting in an expense of hundreds of billions of dollars in healthcare. Zinczenko implies that this impact is as serious as smoking. Hence, fast food should have a warning label to raise awareness among the consumers. He addresses these food chains as vulnerable and warns these restaurants that they will find themselves in trouble unless they look out for their consumers. He also adds the further effects these food habits can have in our society.

In the essay David Zinczenko wrote about how fast food chains are making it easy for people to become obese especially in children. Zinczenko makes some very good points throughout his essay. At the beginning of his paper Zinczenko stated “I tend to sympathize with these portly, fast-food patrons, though. Maybe that’s because I use to be one of them.”

Throughout the years in the United States, fast food has become the prominent diet of citizens. Many people do not realize the harmful effects of eating fast food on a daily basis. Many people in the United States are use to consuming foods that are processed with sugars and other chemicals, without being aware of eating a unhealthy diet can increase the risks of being obese ;as well as, having numerous health issues. Although people try their best to eat healthy and more productive they do not know what foods to eat or whether if it is healthy for them. In the articles “Don’t Blame the Eater by David Zincekino and “Escape from the Western Diet” by Michael Pollan. There were a number of similarities and differences in the details highlighted in these two articles.

David Zinczenko’s essay, “Don’t Blame the Eater,” explains the similarities between obese children and fast-food restaurants. In Zinczenko’s childhood, he had certain foods he could eat also as seen as limited food choices, both at home and in public or other such places. By consuming food, twice a day, at fast-food places, David was now obese. He knows that by participating in the health and fitness corporation, his life was starting to turn around.

Many studies have shown that obesity is not only around but it’s here to stay and it’s on the rise. In (the obesity blame game 2006) Lorraine Heller explained that “being overweight comes down to a simple balance: energy intake versus energy burned and a fundamental Change in lifestyle has resulted in the last part of the equation being increasingly ignored”. In today’s society many Americans want to have someone to blame, shoving bad food into one’s body at a fast food restaurant isn’t the peoples fault, it’s the fast food industries fault. Now that doesn’t sound right, now a days many people prefer to eat out in America people are always busy. When hungry and in a hurry there are many fast, convenient, and healthy items available. Many people who insist that fast-food chains are a main cause of obesity in America because there are a plethora of fast-food restaurants on every block with few healthy alternatives, are not looking at the whole picture. Mark Bittman stated “in 2010 the average American, regardless of weekly earnings, watched no less than an hour and a half of television per day. The time is there” (is junk food really cheaper?

After a long stress filled day, the sweet aroma of a double decker cheeseburger and perfectly seasoned fries fills the air with convenience. The fast food industry has engulfed today’s generation turning accessibility, advertisement, and affordability into addiction. The prevention of obesity is a rapid growing controversial topic in America. Some would argue this to be the fast food industries’ fault, as where David Zinczenko stands. On the other side of the spectrum, there are people, like Radley Balko, who believe it to be the consumer’s fault for lack of alternatives and self-responsibility. Is fast food the new tobacco? If so, who’s to point the chubby finger at?

Fast food franchises are not to blame for America’s obesity dilemma, the consumers are. Over one third of all adults are obese and 17% of teenagers are either overweight or obese. Numbers have significantly risen since 1990. On a state level, in 1990, obesity was 15% or lower. In 2000, it rose as high as 25% in some states says CNN, a highly respected news source which was founded in 1980. Obesity can increase the risk of all types of medical issues including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer, and many more. America is becoming much too big and it cannot just continue to be overlooked. No one wants to lose a loved one due to Obesity related health problems. Consumers

There’s an appalling epidemic in today’s society sweeping across not only the United States, but all across the globe. This horrible epidemic isn’t the bird flu, or any type of sickness, rather obesity. Today, obesity rates are at an all time high in America. This disease, obesity, is being passed down the family both genetically, and by the terrible eating habits developing in the US. Kids growing up in this generation are facing frightening issues such as increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, etc., the list goes on. Zinczenko proves this in his text Don’t Blame the Eater, when he says, “Before 1994, diabetes in children was generally caused by a genetic disorder - Only about 5 percent of childhood causes were obesity-related, or Type 2, diabetes. Today, according to the National Institute of Health, Type 2 diabetes accounts for at least 30 percent of all new childhood cases of diabetes in this country.” (Zinczenko 463) The sad part about it, is these kids more time than not, are born into these types of situations. There’s no surprise that obesity rates in America are directly correlated with the increasing amount of fast food chains popping up on every street corner. These fast food restaurants are masters of the art of advertising, and are using it as the strongest way of increasing sales. This is very dangerous because not all advertisements are true, despite what the common American might think, and it can be used to sway people’s thoughts

One out of every three Americans is obese and the majority of these obese people in the United States have eaten regularly at fast food restaurants. As the obesity rate increases, the number of fast food restaurants goes up as well. Although it is not certain, many believe that obesity in the United States is correlated to eating fast food. Since the United States has the highest obesity rate out of any country, it is important for Americans to monitor the fast food industry that may be causing obesity. With the pressure to get things done in a timely manner, fast food became a big necessity. However, when creating fast food restaurants, the industries were not thinking about the negative effects such as obesity. Other than obesity, other

Fast food restaurants have emerged to be a major issue for people in the United States, they have been around since the late 18th century and the fast food industry have only increased parallel to obesity rates in America. Fast food restaurants contribute to the drastic rise in obesity rate in the past 3 decades. “More than 9 million US children and adolescents are obese, and just as many are at risk of becoming obese"(Davis 505). At first fast food impacted people in a positive way, for example because it was convenient and it was a sporadic option for a meal. Currently, the American society has relied more on fast food restaurants than they did years ago. Serious health problems have surfaced from the increased consumption of fast foods in children and adults. Fast food has lead obesity to become a major issue in the United States. Obesity has highly increased over the years, “Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years” (CDC). In the past three decades fast food has contributed to obesity because of its convenience, cost, ingredients, portion sizes, and advertisements.

The consumption of fast food has become an incredibly controversial topic over the last few decades. Fast food companies have gained a lot of fame and finance for their food. Consumers now have quick access to all of their favorite fast food restaurants, which provoke them to buy it more. Although getting fast food is now easier than ever, there are several consequences which may come from eating too much of it. Several studies investigate the potential correlation of fast food and obesity. In “Burgers, Fries, and Lawyers: The Beef Behind Obesity Laws”, Todd. G Buchholz challenges the claim in which fast food companies are responsible for obesity and this aligns with my current point of view of fast food not being the cause of obesity. Obesity has become a common disease all over the world and due to fast foods use of unhealthy substances, such as grease, they are driven towards each other. Obesity is caused over a period of time due to many different factors, such as genetics and health problems.

In this article published by the International Journal of Obesity, S. Rice, Department of Nutrition and Food Science, EJ McAllister, Human Nutrition and Food Division, and NV. Dhurandhar, Department of Infections and Obesity, evaluate the effects of fast food in society. Fast food is vastly blamed for the rising obesity epidemic, which as discussed in the article is fictional. Depending on the income of a household, the age group of the consumers, or someone always on the go, fast food is something people rely on every day as their source of food. This article discusses how fast food is often blamed for obesity, but in fact has little, to nothing to deal with obesity rates. I will be using this article in my research as a scholarly source to show how obesity rates are not to be blamed on fast food.