Fast Food And Obesity Epidemic

Being overweight, eating poorly, and not exercising are becoming an epidemic in America, especially among college students. Most of the research on it states the same things, however the first research article I found speaks more to the behavior and its current affects on college students’ health. A slew of doctors and Jesse S. Morrell wrote an article about “Risk Factors Among College Men and Women” in relationship to obesity. The opening of this article stated that “an estimated 300,000 deaths each year are attributable to obesity… and young adults have experienced dramatic increases in obesity rates,” (Morrell, 2012, pg. 82). This statistic is what really got the research going and helped the researchers focus specifically on college-aged individuals. Upon diving into their research, the authors found more alarming statistics and related diseases. This included a recognizable relationship between obesity in young people and chronic disease risk, especially diabetes and cardiovascular disease (Morrell, 2012, pg. 82). In fact, CVD was the second leading cause of death in the US in that college-age group showing that our generation is at a greater risk for health problems than ever before due to our lack of exercise and healthy diets. Researchers then took to college campuses to examine students and their habits and provide risk assessments to promote healthier lifestyles and hopefully decrease the probability of CVD and DM through the metabolic syndrome system,

For many years fast food has made a huge impact on people's lives causing many serious problems. However, there are ways to make healthier decisions when choosing what to eat. In this paper, all of the problems that come along with eating fast food will be discussed, as well as the ways to help these problems.

Obesity within adults is a prevalent problem in the United States, with over 51% of all adults suffering from obesity by the year 2030 (Joyner et al. 217). Obesity, or the state of being excessively overweight, is sometimes a result from what is known as food addiction. Much like an addiction to a substance, to be addicted to food is to constantly crave a certain food item (Joyner et al. 217). Obesity and food addiction tend to coincide with each other. That coexistence is shown primarily in the documentary Super Size Me, in which director Morgan Spurlock focuses on the way fast food and food addiction affect the human body.

In the United States, a crisis is breaking out known as the Obesity epidemic. For the first time in history, it is possible for the children of this generation to have a lower life expectancy than their parents. Millions of Americans are exposed to ads that are luring them into eating the cheap, fast food of billion dollar companies such as McDonald’s. Obesity has established itself as the fastest growing disease in the nation and continues to make an impact on the general population. The issue of Obesity is directly related to todays technology through television, cell phones, video games and all of sorts of new gadgets.

Spurlock’s appeal to logos shows the audience the severity of obesity with fact based information from doctors and professionals, research studies, and shows the counter arguments being made. With his film, Spurlock hopes to inspire change among people who eat fast food, the fast food companies who manipulate their customers, and create a healthier country with less preventable

There is an issue in America, if not across all nations, which begs discussion. The issue plaguing society is the fast food industry. It matters not if you are young, old, rich or poor; the fast food industry is almost impossible to ignore in this era. One may raise the question of what exactly is fast food. Merriam-Webster defines defines fast-food as food “designed for ready availability, use, or consumption and with little consideration given to quality or significance” (1). Diving deeper into this issue beyond the significant lack of nutritional value, lies not only the consumption of fast food but also the constant bombardment of advertising society as a whole is exposed to. Think about it: how long can a person watch a popular television channel without seeing a commercial for a popular fast food chain? How long can one listen to a favored radio station without hearing about the latest and greatest hamburger? In addition, a person cannot spend much time on the internet without seeing an advertisement for fried chicken. The concept of the fast food industry and the tremendous effects their advertising schemes can have on our subconscious will be the main focus of this essay.

In today's society, fast food has become a large part of many American's lives. With the rising numbers of obese people, it is hard not to draw a correlation between the increase in fast food and obesity. Most obese people don’t want to be obese and wish they could lose weight, yet they continue to struggle with their fast food intake and obesity. This is due to the advertising done on the consumers, the highly addictive food itself, and most importantly, how advertising and addiction combine with children to form habits that are kept once they become adults. These factors are the reasons that fast food restaurants are to blame for the rising obesity and health risks across America. The government needs to step in and place regulations on

Obesity has become an epidemic in today’s society. Today around 50% of America is now considered to be over weight. Fast-food consumption has been a major contributor to the debate of the twenty-first century. Chapter thirteen, titled “Is Fast-Food the New Tobacco,” in the They Say I Say book, consists of authors discussing the debate of fast-food’s link to obesity. Authors debate the government’s effects on the fast-food industry, along with whether or not the fast-food industry is to blame for the rise in obesity throughout America. While some people blame the fast food industry for the rise in obesity, others believe it is a matter of personal responsibility to watch what someone eats and make sure they get the proper exercise.

Kids love fast food. And the fast-food industry loves kids: it couldn't survive without them. They are, after all, the industry's biggest consumers. In the national bestseller Chew on This, available in paperback April 2007, the award-winning journalists Eric Schlosser and Charles Wilson share with young readers the fascinating and sometimes frightening truth about what lurks behind those sesame seed buns. Addressing the same issues as Schlosser's groundbreaking Fast Food Nation, the authors focus on the aspects that will interest preteens the most — the nonconformist entrepreneurs who founded the industry; the mistreatment of animals in slaughterhouses and of employees in restaurants; the shocking effects that too much fast food can have on

Fast-food restaurants are very cheap and convenient way to get a quick meal and also in quick, convenient areas. Whether someone is in a hurry or just need something to eat, pulling through a drive through is very simple and a way to get food almost instantly. Obesity is a significant issue in the United States and having America plastered in fast-food chain restaurants does not help the fact, but we can not put them to blame. People need education on nutrition to learn what they need to eat and what they can enjoy in moderation. We also need many more healthy options in busy areas that also offer quick and simple meals at a reasonable price that give people the option to get a wholesome, nutritious meal.

America is the number one country with the highest obesity rate, as well as many others struggle with this. Obesity can be stopped and controlled by the consumers, but why blame it on them when the food industry is really the ones to accuse. This food is being handed to the consumers, healthy or unhealthy it is still given. Many different food industries are at fault for obesity, by the food proportions increasing to low cost food being unhealthy.

The underlying physiological, psychological, and social causes for this epidemic are complex and not fully understood. Yet, from a nutritional point of view, obesity is clearly the end result of a sustained imbalance between food intake and energy expended. The extra caloric input is primarily converted into glycogen and triglycerides (fat), which are stored in the liver and adipose tissue, respectively. In response to changing energy demands hepatic glycogen is converted into

country alone, 17% of all children and adolescents are now obese, triple the rate from

Several studies have shown that the increase in fast food restaurants over the past few decades has resulted in a negative impact on the already outrageous obesity rate.According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, the number of fast food restaurants over the past thirty years has tripled, which equates to about three hundred thousand establishments in the United States alone. During this time the number of children, ages six to nineteen classified as obese, has risen from five percent to seventeen percent. The percentage of adults classified as obese has risen from half to two-thirds the population. Although fast food restaurants may be a contributing factor to the increasing obesity rate in the United States, people are

The fast food industry promotes childhood obesity by manipulating the young mind, putting them at risk for health complications such as hypertension and diabetes. The super-sizing of America is been a frequently talked about subject lately. Especially since it is seem to have negative effects on the health of children and adults alike through massive consumption of fast food. Health providers and other authority figures are now concerned about children’s obesity rates shown during the past 3-4 decades. They have now drawn a close connection between fast food and obesity and identified a childhood obesity epidemic with increased negative health factors. According to the American journal of public health, 2005 September issue, fast food