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. Many people want to blame fast …show more content…
Another study done showed results that with a fast-food restaurant within a quarter mile of a school, resulted in a 5.2 percent increase in the incidence of obesity at that school and implied an increased caloric intake of around 30 to 100 calories per day. Another study done on pregnant women in close proximity of a fast-food restaurant showed an increase in the likelihood of gaining 20 kilograms (Currie, Dellavigna, Moretti, Pathania 2009). While the effects from these studies done in 2009 are still applicable today, I cannot help but think how the effects would not be amplified in our current society. People have only gotten busier and locations have only increased since then. Consuming the high calorie food served by fast-food restaurants on a regular basis can obviously lead to weight gain and eventually obesity. Some complications are not as obvious and can take people by surprise. Most people probably do not think of the long-term effects that can result from making regular trips to drive-thrus or stops at fast-food restaurants. Some more obvious consequences of obesity is cardiovascular complications and diabetes, but there are many consequences that people may not realize. It can lead to respiratory disorders, such as asthma. It can also lead to a numerous amount of different types of
Fast food restaurants should allow everyone to have healthier food choices. On top of that, these restaurants should also allow lower costs of salad, fruits, and other healthier food choices. The results of eating fast food or eating junk food every day is anyone can have disease called hemophilia. One source says, “Haemophiliacs have been shown to have a lower incidence of cardiovascular disease, most likely attributable to the hypocoagulable state that results from the clotting factor deficiency” (Majumdar 4). Also, another problem with fast restaurants is manager are going to get angry and will not compromise with anybody that their
Driving down the street no matter where you are it is almost a guarantee the you will see multiple fast food restaurants lined up on the side of the roads. On average 29% of American families eat at fast food restaurants at least twice a week. McDonald's is one of the most visited fast food chains in the world, let alone the United States, and their most popular meal item can have as many as 1340 calories. That is already more than half of the calories that nutrition labels use to determine the suggested serving size of foods, and it is only one meal of the day. This means that if the lower income areas are consuming an insane amount of calories in a day, which contributes to high levels of obesity in their
While everyone generally knows that fast food is not good for their health, however people still eat it for various reasons. Most people that buy fast food have low incomes, are uneducated, and/or are people just trying to save a couple of bucks. Most people trying to save money are buying fast food and it is costing their health in the long run. This will eventually end up costing people even more money.
Knowledge on fast food restaurants and a healthy nutrition has significantly increased over the years. Still obesity rates increase. Government regulations is the solution to combating the obesity epidemic. One concern impacting the United States is how for people in low income communities, fast food is appealing. According to recent studies, there are 71 fast food restaurants within five miles of a person’s home.
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.
Fast food has a harmful effect on society because it can cause obesity. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry believes obesity “Overweight children are much more likely to become overweight adults unless they adopt and maintain healthier patterns of eating and exercise.” (parag. 1).The causing and treating of obesity is complex but it is the most recognizable disease. Consistently eating fast food and a poor can lead to obesity in anyone. The risks of obesity include an increased risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease. According to the American Heart Association, fast food “Studies have shown that over the past four decades, consumption of food eaten away from home has also risen alarmingly” (parag. 8). This means that fast food is high in fat, sugar, salt, carbs, calories, saturated and trans fats. This type of eating leads to a higher body mass index or gained weight. Children and adolescents are at a
Fast food might be easy and cheap but people do not realize how harmful the food is for their bodies. The problem is the food that is served at these types of restaurants, especially McDonalds, are high in fat, salt, processed, and can have harmful ingredients included in the food. While home cooked food takes time to plan and make people know what they are eating, that isn’t the case at McDonalds: “McDonald’s burgers retain its fresh appearance for a very long time. This can easily fool customers who do not have a hint of this alteration in their burgers. The use of excessive preservatives is harmful for your health which McDonalds seems to overlook for gaining more and more
The issue of accessibility is very important, because without fast food being easily available for people to eat, we would not have nearly as many complications with health and obesity due to individuals over-eating foods which they should not. A study which had been done in Detroit to determine the frequency of residents going out, and dining at restaurants, and to show which of those trips were fast food establishments. Within this study it shows that, "Sixty percent of respondents reported traveling to a restaurant at least once per week, and the majority of those trips were to nearby fast food restaurants." (Eckert, Vojnovic). In this quote, it displays how many people truly dedicate the majority of their meals to fast food, only because that is the only thing which is easily accessible to them. Additionally, the availability of fast food to the consumer must be understood because in the They say I say article, "Don't blame the eater", the author similarly references the effect this has on society. The author writes, "Drive down any through frame 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). Essentially, this quote means that there is such an abundance of fast food restaurants throughout America, that it is more or less the only option that individuals will have to grab a quick bite to eat on a
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
After researching about fast food and understanding how the huge industry works. I can conclude that the effects of eating fast food on a day to day basis are
Now days, you can find a fast food restaurant every time you turn a corner. According to, Sarah Muntel, the Author of “Fast Food- Is It the Enemy,” you can choose from a variety of things to eat. You can get a greasy burger, crunchy tacos, or a drink that is filled with sugar. Why should we take the time go buy and prepare a meal when there are a variety of foods all around you? That is the problem that we are facing. Fast food is extremely cheap. You can order dollar cheeseburgers, dollar sodas, and you can even make those orders supersized just with pennies. People even claim that it is cheaper to eat at a restaurant than it is to prepare a meal in your own kitchen. Most Americans now days are having overscheduled and overcommitted jobs, which means that there is no free time in their daily lives to prepare their own meals. There is not anything easier than just going through the drive thru at your favorite fast food restaurant on your way home from work, or taking your child out for a milkshake if they do well in their baseball game. The problem is, people don’t look
Besides being overly convenient to obtain, fast food is also quite inexpensive. In today’s economy, an average American cannot afford to sit down at a nice
Tons of negative health effects come from eating fast food. First, obesity is a huge problem in America. The major cause of obesity comes from eating too much fast food. The obesity rates have skyrocketed over the years. Over seventy percent of Americans are overweight or obese. An author elaborated more by expressing their facts and arguing that, “Excess weight in children is a significant global public health issue: 10% of school aged children, and a further 22 million children over 5 years old estimated to be overweight or obese. Child obesity rate levels are rising across the globe”(Kelly 1). The concerns Kelly states specifically supports my point that obesity has gotten out of hand in the U.S. People
Fast food is exactly how it sounds: food that can be quickly produced for a simple meal. Although they may be satisfactory, they are anything but healthy. Eating fast food is appetizing which is one of the main reasons it is so popular. Not only does it taste good to many, but it is inexpensive, too! America is the number one place for fast food. There are over 160,000 fast food restaurants in the United States and over 50 million Americans are served fast food daily. The frequency of eating fast food is also a problem because according to statisticbrain.com 44 percent of Americans confessed to consuming fast food once per week. What people do not realize is the harm that fast food is doing to their body. Not only is fast food a
So on the way to work they will buy dinner at a fast food restaurant. Places such as McDonalds's, Burger King, and Taco Bell have begun to appear on every street corner. Fast food restaurants made an appearance in America in the 1960's. They have not been around for very long and already the effects are destroying the health of the people in America. This is because people go to what to tastes good and these foods taste good to the kids. When their parents grew up a trip to grandmas for Sunday dinner was a treat and a variety from the meals at home. Today the treat is going out to a fast food restaurant. These foods are usually inexpensive, prepared for the person, and they taste good. The downside to these places is that their food is greasy and high in fat. Both of these are contributors to high blood pressure and high frequency of heart attacks among the American population.