Why Do Fast Food Companies Cause Obesity?

As the obesity rate in America increases, people are pointing fingers at the fast-food industry. Teenagers, with the help of their parents, have filed lawsuits blaming fast-food restaurants like McDonald’s for their own health problems. However, parents, not the fast-food companies, are to blame for the amount of overweight children that are present today. They are the ones who teach their children eating and exercising habits, they are the ones who let their young consume unhealthy foods, they are the ones who allow their children to watch television and play on the computer for hours on end, it is obviously the parents fault for obesity in youth.

One reason for this cause is the parents’ lack of personal responsibility for their children’s health, making sure that they are eating healthy, and having the proper exercise they need to stay in shape. In the article by journalist Daniel Weintraub “The Battle Against Fast Foods Begins in the Home”, he argues that child obesity starts in the home, that parents are the reason why child obesity rates are booming by stating “ It’s the fault of parents who let their kids eat unhealthy foods and sit in front of the television or computer for hours at a time .” . Parents allow their children eat whatever they want, not knowing or caring how detrimental it may be for their health. Also, many parents don't encourage their children to go outside for physical activities for at least a half hour a day. Instead, many parents accuse video-games for the reason that their child is obese. Parents play a main role towards the cause of child obesity, even though fast food industries might seem like the culprit, one must understand all the factors that contribute to the obesity

Obese in American children has also grown because of the lack of work parents put in to avoid their child from being overweight. Some parents let their children into manipulating them into getting what they want, an example of this statement would be a child gets a tantrum because they want to eat McDonalds instead of putting a firm foot down and keeping the answer no, parents tend to give in to the child’s tantrum. In teens it has become common because many of them choose to stay home overeating while watching TV instead of going outside to play a sport with their friends or joining a gym to exercise. This disease is also genetic so many parents should be aware of their family health back ground and know that their children are in danger of developing obesity or being overweight. As parents we need to learn to introduce our children to a healthier life such as eating well and exercising more. Another good thing for parents to do is to join support groups with their children to help them help their child. Parents can help their children better by saying no to fast food and giving them a fruit or vegetable instead.

In the past three decades, rates of childhood obesity have increased precipitously. Between the years and 1980 and 2000, the prevalence of obesity has increased from 6.5% to 19.6% among 6 to 11 year old children and 5.0% to 18.1% among 12 to 19 year old adolescents x(National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 2010). This condition is accompanied by many physical and psychological consequences for these children. There are two common postions in the debate about the causes of this condition. One belief of the cause of childhood obesity is that it is a question of “personal responsibility” or in the case of children, of “parental responsibility.” That is, increasing rates of obesity are due to

The question that has been debated for years is who is responsible for the children’s weight. In the articles that where researched during this paper the parents were responsible. The reason that they were responsible was because the decisions that parent make about their family and the lifestyle that they live affects their child’s health and it can also affect their health in the future. When you move out of your parent’s house you tend to mimic things that they did such as if they always bought Tide as their laundry soap when you got out on your own you probably bought Tide. Now when you were in a pinch one time you may have tried another brand because it was cheaper but for the most part you revert back to what you know. As a parent you should want your children to be as healthy as they can be a lot of parents that where talked to while researching the subject of childhood obesity seemed to just not have the knowledge about obesity.

Childhood obesity is not just an issue in United States- it is an growing epidemic. Obesity epidemic in kids has increased by alarming rate just in last few decades. Nearly one in every five child is obese in the United States. If the pattern of obesity continued on most of America’s children will be living with diabetes, heart disease, and dying young due to obesity. The American Heart Association reported this year that childhood obesity is the top health concern among parents in the United States, beating out smoking and drug abuse. My own younger siblings suffer with child obesity. Their craving for fast food and very limited physical activity has made them overweight and currently they suffer from health problems. Is this the future of our young generation? How much contribution should a parent have in their child’s diet? Fast food has taken over American diet and it has lead to poor nutritional diet among American youth. Fast food companies spend billion of dollars every year on commercials, convincing youth to love and eat their product. It’s just not our eating habits that has lead our young generation into obesity, lack of physical workout has also played a major role in obesity epidemic. TV, computer, video games and other technology entertainment has contributed to children getting no exercise. Obesity in children can put them in high risks of developing chronic and serious illness. Unhealthy weight leads to having weaker lungs, poor blood quality, heart

I agree with Daniel Weintraub, that parents are responsible for having overweight children. Parents have all the responsibility over what their children eat and do. In paragraph 5, Weintraub states,” It’s the fault of parents who let their kids eat unhealthy foods and sit in front of the television or computer for hours at a time.” The adults are the ones who are responsible of the children. They are they ones who pay for the fast food. They can easily say no for their child’s own

As the Obesity rate in America is steadily increasing, people will continue to point fingers right at the fast food industries, but is that who really to blame or is it your parents for poor food choices(Weintraub)? Parents are a huge role in their child’s life and if you just let your children sit on the couch all day play on the computer, they will end up nowhere in life that is just my opinion. Research says 30 percent of our country’s residents are overweight, which means people are still not being healthy that’s when parents need to take matters into their own hands and buy actual food and not be cheap go fast food all the time(Sloviter). Also type 1 and 2 diabetes are at record highs and still rising at some point will be at a state

For example, eating healthy and exercising regularly. However parents should also monitor their children daily nutrition intake; as well as visiting their primary care physician annually. If parents had their children and family on a consistent routine with eating healthier such as limiting food portion for the entire family and getting everyone physically active; these steps will create a life styling change in getting entire family healthier. Moreover, a major factor for parents dealing with overweight children, is managing their diets. Mainly, because the enormous influence that fast food industries have on America children. Statics have shown that three out of four children eat a fast-food meal once or multiple times a day. If it's a prove fact that' children are growing up thinking that massive amounts of fat, sugar, and sodium equal normal serving portion. Than obviously parents should limit the amount of fast-food intake of their children, and give them portions sizes of veggies, fruits, whole grains, and protein; which will most likely decrease childhood obesity in America alone. Many children don’t have opportunities to exercise. Communities have few athletic programs in place, which leave kids spending large amounts of time in their homes. A lot of kids around America are influenced by electronic entertainment such as cable TV, Facebook, YouTube, and videos games. In addition, parents need to

We are all guilty of spending five dollars a meal from McDonalds or Burger King instead of taking a little time the day before and making our self our own meal, but let’s keep in mind that just because is made home doesn’t mean is healthy. According to the article “The state of obesity” by better policies of America more than one third of adults (34.9) are obese in the United States. But why is there so much obesity in the United States and who is there to blame? We can go ahead and blame the fast food restaurants or we can blame the people itself. Individuals are the ones to blame for the obesity in the United States because they have this idea of eating fast and easy, but just cause is fast does not mean healthy. Fast food are part of our daily life but is does not forces us to eat it.

The people who stand in this position believe that an individual should have choices in the items he or she buy, and be guilt-free. In the article “Childhood Obesity: A Global Public Health Issue” published in International Journal of Preventive Medicine”, writer Amar Kanekar states that the main cause of childhood obesity in today’s public health crisis in both developed and underdeveloped countries is because of the disproportion between the child’s caloric intake and the calories effectively used for growth/development and physical activities. To these people, what we eat is not the sole reason of the cause of obesity; genetic, behavioral, and environmental are all constituents of childhood obesity. Moreover, many health-related risks are present when a child is obese; negative body-image and low self-esteem inevitably result in psychological and social issues. Cardiovascular disease, increased cholesterol levels, and high blood pressure are all possible potential health risks involved and that there is, indeed, “preventive programs that help regulate obesity by educating individuals about healthy nutrition and diseases” (Kanekar 2). According to a report presented from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, in the years of 2007-2008, there was an estimation that “16.9% of children and adolescent in the age group of 2-19 years were obese…The data collected for the same period shows that the adolescent (age group 12-19 years)

In the article the “ The Battle Against Fast Food Begins At Home “ the author, Daniel Weintraub believes that the problem with obesity is the parents fault. The fast food industry are not the main culprit here. He supports these claims by showing statistics and data from studies done by scientists. He shows that if parents take action the restaurants can’t stop them. This is clear through the adults that take action and the ones who don’t.

Today, many people eat fast food instead of home made food. The reason is that fast food is fast, cheap and convenient. However, at the same time, fast food is contributing to a big social problem in the U.S., which is obesity, and recently some people are beginning to sue the fast food companies for causing their obesity. Should the fast food companies have responsibility for American's obesity? My answer for this argument is "No". I think that whether people eat fast food or not is an individual choice. There are many people who eat fast food, but aren't obese. They may do some exercises for burning calories, or try not to eat fast food as much as they can, caring for their health. Moreover, some fast food companies serve relatively

David Zinckenko argues in his article “don’t blame the eater”, that it is a matter of personal responsibility but can sympathize with the obese individuals as there is a lack of alternatives and information regarding fast food consumption. Society in the United States has raised concern about healthy diets, providing alternatives sources of food but unfortunately at a cost. The increased cost for a healthy diet dissuades teenagers from eating healthier food thus without a change of environment it can result in a lifetime of obesity.

In order to impede the epidemic of childhood obesity, the actual causes of the problem need to be evaluated and dissected. Obesity in children is becoming a huge problem in American society. In the past three decades, the rate of overweight children has increased by 300%. This is an alarming rate that is only climbing higher. Every member in society should take steps to becoming healthier. This would help the present generations as well as future generations to come. The lifestyle of Americans keeps us too busy to be a healthy society.