Summary: The case study on McDonald’s and obesity discusses how McDonald’s is a big part on why Americans are obese. McDonald’s is the most famous, successful fast food restaurant not only in the United States, but worldwide. This is because McDonald’s is convenient, affordable, fast, and located literally everywhere. Many individuals blame McDonald’s for being the ultimate cause of obesity in the United States. This is because McDonald’s targets young children by creating the happy meals and adding a little toy. McDonald’s also uses Ronald McDonald in order to be used in advertising and for Ronald to engage with the consumers. This article also discusses the changes that many other countries around the world are making to stop serving …show more content…
McDonald’s added some healthy alternatives to the menu such as, porridge, smoothies, and chicken wraps. With that being said, the purpose of this article is that McDonald’s is one reason why obesity is increasing in the United States, especially in children. Many countries are taking action, and now it is time for the United States to take action.
McDonald’s and Obesity:
The fast food restaurant industry is one of the largest profits in the economy. The obesity epidemic Americans face today is a rising problem that moves more than half of the population in the United States. With growing physique sizes and serious medical problems connected with obesity, it is a problem that needs to be talked about and improved within the health department and fast food restaurants. No one would dispute that obesity, specifically in children, is not a problem. On the other hand, the source of childhood obesity is profoundly debated (Molly, 2010). Society claims that fast-food restaurants are to fault, especially McDonald’s, which is the most growing fast-food chain that is not only national, but international. McDonald’s has been under pressure regarding their menu for many years, due to the fact of how unhealthy it is and how it is a huge risk factor for children. There have been many debates whether McDonald’s is responsible in childhood obesity or not. Many sources, including the
McDonald’s has worked very hard in developing ways to do our part to help fight obesity. We have assembled Global Advisory Council to help guide us. The Council is comprised of international independent nutritional experts. With their ongoing guidance, we have been prepared a widespread promotional plan to incorporate nutritional
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.
Did you know that “every day 1 in 4 Americans visit a fast food restaurant? If that’s not alarming to you, then consider this, left unabated, obesity will surpass smoking as the leading cause of preventable death in America.” (Clark, Charles) Fast food has become a part of American culture. With the way the world is today who wouldn’t want to eat somewhere that can have you in and out in five minutes for fewer than five dollars? It has been made very clear that Americans love to eat as we rank number one most years as the world’s most obese nation, but it’s not just America. In his documentary, Morgan Spurlock notes that, “Popular fast food chains like McDonalds, now operate in more than 126 countries in six continents having more than 31,000 restaurants globally.” (Spurlock 2004) The most alarming part about all of these statistics is the groups they most affect. The catchy advertisements and addictive qualities of the food is what has everyone coming back for more. Fast food companies advertisements targeting the young and lower classes are the cause for the obesity epidemic in America.
As narrator Paul Feine shows different perspectives of how McDonalds is viewed from different countries, one can decide who is to blame.
In David Zinczenko’s article “Don’t Blame the Eater” he focuses on the fast food industry and their role in the increasing health and obesity issues of our nation’s children, as well as these issues potentially becoming a serious problem that we will all have to deal with if we collectively don’t do something about it now. When it comes to the topic of fast food, most of us can agree that it is not the best source of nutrition. It is unhealthy and can be the cause of many serious health issues with our children such as obesity related Type 2 diabetes, stomach ulcers and even heart disease, high cholesterol, sleep apnea or even cancer. We can even agree that fast-food diets are a major contributing factor to
The article “Don’t Blame the Eater", by David Zinczenko talks about how a group of people are suing McDonald’s for making them fat. Zinczenko shares his experience on how fast food has effect his childhood and teenage years. He explains how teenagers can put on weight with a fast food and part of the problem is the lack in nutritional information about fast food. In addition, he speaks about fast food and the companies behind it.
McDonald’s is killing Americans, at least that is what Morgan Spurlock believes. In his documentary Super Size Me he embarks on a quest to not only describe and use himself as an example of the growing obesity trend, but to offer the viewers with base-line nutritional knowledge that will allow them to draw their own informed conclusions. Spurlock's primary intention is to prove through self-experimentation that eating solely McDonald's food is dangerous. His secondary intention is to denounce the rising obesity rate in American by using statistics, his own research, and the opinions of experts. His broader message is for a general audience while he tailors select chapters towards more specific demographics such as parents or McDonald's
Obesity has become increasingly more prominent in American society. It is also a major health issue affecting many adults and children in the US every year. In his article "Don't Blame the Eater," David Zinczenko sympathizes with children who are suing McDonald’s making them fat. In his own experience as a “latchkey kid”, he knows how easily fast food makes teenagers put on weight with a steady diet of fast food meals. Zinczenko argues that both lack of fast food alternative companies and lack of providing nutrition information contribute to childhood obesity.
In the article “Don’t Blame the Eater”, author David Zinczenko, the editor -in-chief of Men’s Health magazine comments on the lawsuit against McDonald’s which is initiated by the overweight children’s parents. He claims that fast-food industry should accept full responsibility for a serious public problem: leading American kids to obesity. Zinczenko supports his claim with his personal experience to show how the fast-food chains marketing on them with low price. He also said it is not easy for those obese kids to turn their lives back. He believes this should be considered as a public health problem because their obesity causes the society huge public health losses. Zinczenko insists that if fast-food industry doesn’t take actions quickly, it is only a matter of time for them to become the next tobacco industry.
We find foods everywhere we look; sitting along the roadsides, calling at you in bright colors from grocery store shelves, glowing in vending machines down the hallway. There is no way to escape the never-ending advertisements from fast food restaurant. This is where obesity begins; consuming more food portions than your body needs People need to set limits and health plans early in their life to overcome this new threat. In this research, journalist Erica Goode tries to evaluate the local and global influence of the fast food industry of the United States.
With playgrounds, Ronald McDonald the clown, and a friendly environment, it’s inevitable that fast food is a huge influence to the obesity epidemic. The Journal of Law and Economics says how even advertising places such as McDonalds influences kids on television even if they don’t know it: by treating advertising as a complementary good, consumers may simply derive more utility from consuming a more advertised good. The problem with America is the accessibility and convenience of fast food. There is now an option to supersize what is already more than a portion size. This heavily impacts obesity: your body's metabolism slowly stops to work as fast, you feel sick, and most of all losing the weight is more challenging than gaining it.
•In the recent times McDonalds has been blamed for the high fat content in its products and many consumers perceive that the food served at their outlets is not healthy. Also, the consumers are becoming increasingly health conscious these days. McDonalds
According to the http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/27/business/mcdonalds-moves-toward-a-healthier-menu.html?_r=0, the New York Times published a story on why McDonalds wanted to add healthier meals to their menus. ““Companies like McDonald’s play a powerful role in shaping the culture and environment that influences the health-related behaviors of young people,” said Howell Wechsler, chief executive of the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, an organization set up by the Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association to reduce obesity in children, which has reached epidemic levels in the United States and is growing globally.
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
Obesity is probably the most significant issue facing the McDonald’s Company today. The corporation has been severally blamed for the menace due to its wide range of junk foods. As the world’s largest fast food company, it has become a target of most health related films such as Super Size Me. This is because the public blames the company for failing to give nutritional information concerning the items on its menu (Baron, 2010).