Our Children and The Danger of Fast Food The popularity of fast food is spreading rapidly among many people, mostly due to the following three main reasons: good taste, convenience, and price. Also, fast food companies are smart in placing themselves in many different countries around the world. Regardless of location on the globe, fast food restaurants are available anywhere with similar food. There is no doubt that eating fast food has become a regular part of the diet. These meals contain high levels of calories and are devoid of nutrients, causing a lot of very serious health damage. Fast food plays a key role in diseases of this era, as it has been growing significantly during the last few years. It is also a fundamental reason for obesity, tooth decay, and intellectual deterioration, especially in children. Therefore, parents must take responsibly for how much fast food their children are consuming. One of the main diseases caused by fast food is childhood obesity, which is increasing among children day by day. A child will often run to all kinds of ready-made cuisine, from chips, soda, and sweets, as well as fast food, which tends to be taken up with his friends after lessons or when leaving with them. Childhood obesity is evolving as a major public health problem, which increases the risk of Type II Diabetes. Studies showed a link of being overweight with eating junk food, in addition to increasing the risk of Type II Diabetes, as a result of the
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.
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
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
Poor nutrition and unhealthy eating habits are the primary reason precipitating obesity in children. Research in the United States documents that most children eat processed junk foods, fast foods, candy, baked or fried foods, and juices/sodas that contain high amounts of sugar and calories. As a result of all of this, their bodies absorb excess calories and fat that are stored resulting in them becoming obese. Most of the children who are obese are taking in more calories than they burn. “Adolescents aged 12-17 who are overweight are consuming between 700-1,000 more calories per day than what is needed for the growth, physical activity and body function of a healthy weight teen.” These factors are extremely important to the health of a child and should be taken seriously by all means.
In the 21 century, people are suffering from all kinds of diseases and over 85% of them are caused by, an unhealthy, diet. In the United States, 25% of Americans eat fast food every day, which can cause heart disease, hypertension and diabetes, starting with overweight. McDonalds, Taco Bell, Wendy’s, and Burger King are very popular, fast food restaurant selling their burgers and fries in the airport, street shop, next to Wal-Mart and college.
People’s ignorance is leading the society to a period where obesity will be the norm and healthy living an unwanted lifestyle. Therefore, it is high time when people realized their mistakes and started living a healthy life. Healthy feeding is one’s responsibility despite the factors that may force one to turn to fast foods. In addition, it is the parent’s responsibility to encourage their children to lead a healthy lifestyle and help them embrace the fact that eating fast foods regularly is unhealthy and may cause obesity.
Around 160,000 fast food franchises have been opened all over America. America is the most obese country in this world. Healthy food is supplement rich, yet fast food has a tendency to be poor in nutrients and high in calories. Know that fast food can satisfy our day by day calories requirements; not only it gives us calories, but it also harms our health with other ingredients. For instance, fast food is high in soaked fats and trans fats. In addition, it has additives, chemicals, and artificial flavors. Fast food impacts our health and causes infections, for example, heart disease, diabetes, high blood sugar and high blood pressure. On the other hand, healthy food provides the best nutrients and protects our body from sickness, since it contains vitamins, proteins, and minerals. Fast food is addictive and unhealthy. (Obesity in America) (Chronic
Over time America has become bigger. Not just in population size, but also in pant size. Obesity has been on the rise and children are now being affected at an alarming rate. Obesity can be defined as having an unhealthy amount of body fat. The rise of childhood obesity can be linked to bad diets, family, and a lack of exercise. Being obese as a child can cause serious consequences later in life. Bad diets are a major cause of obesity, especially in youth. Consuming unhealthy food often is linked to weight gain. Food that is high in fat, sugar, and calories are the staples of an unhealthy diet. Fast food has all three. According to studies “adolescents associate junk food with pleasure, independence, and convenience” (Sahoo Par 12). Fast food
In the last decade, obesity has become an out of control epidemic. America has been ranked number one in a top ten list of the world 's most obese countries. Fast food restaurants are one of the main causes due to the unhealthy, addictive food it provides to its customers. Since fast food franchises have been expanding at such a rapid rate, it now makes it harder to live a healthy dietary lifestyle. Fast food has affected many societies in positive and negative ways. Its innovation prolonged these effects and may be worse to certain societies from a health and social standpoint. Due to the increase in popularity of the fast food norm, obesity percentages have risen, along with other health-related illness and overall activity in the daily
Fast food has without a doubt changed the way people eat in America, and is partly to blame for diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. According to Murray (40) more than 300, 000 every year are related to obesity. Individuals should know what they are consuming and how it is prepared or made; they should spend their hard earned money on restaurants that make healthy food. So why is fast food unhealthy? Fast food may look tasty and appealing, however, they contain a myriad of hidden health hazards that are dangerous if consumed in large quantities and are a primary cause of obesity, particularly in children. The effects of eating fast food on a person’s health are: increase in blood pressure, a delay in the metabolic rate, increase in the levels of bad cholesterol, destabilization of blood sugar levels, and weakening of the immune system. Furthermore, the effects of fast food include obesity, nutritional deficiencies, and cardiac problems among other health hazards. No one is forcing individuals to eat fast food, but the fact is that fast food restaurants will change when consumers demand changes. Even if three percent of Americans complained about fast food, it would make a substantial drop in
Food companies make millions just from advertising junk food to kids. Food companies advertise using very known cartoon characters to appeal to kids that contain high-sugar levels that can cause many different disorders that can affect them in a server way. Kids tend to beg their parents for junk food and other types of foods just for seeing that they would receive a toy. In the article “10 Things the Food industry Doesn’t Want You to Know” states “On TV alone, the average child sees about 5,500 food commercials a year.” With these advertisements, kids can get the idea of going to eat in places that have unhealthy food. Advertisement like these can cause children to view fast food as something they can be constantly eating without having any problems.
The fast food industry provides quick, cheap, and easy access to foods that in the customers opinion, is very delicious, and affordable, however this food which millions of people around the world are constantly consuming, could actually cause major health problems, and weight gain in the long run. Major fast food companies throughout the world know what they are doing when it comes to marketing towards all types of people. Some people will find numerous different things to blame for the epidemic of fast food making individuals overweight. In recent research on, or discussions of the fast food industry having an effect on people's health, a controversial issue has been raised, and that is the fact that this problem affects not only
As they continue to eat the unhealthy meal from that fast food chain, children may become obese and are then at risk of developing dangerous diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. Sadly, the number of kids who are obese has increased over the years and will continue to if these ads are present. As Wellard stated, "Foods purchased from fast food chains are frequently consumed by both children and adults worldwide, and are generally high in energy, total, and saturated fat, sugar, and sodium." But, as kids grow up, they continue to eat at that fast food chain because they are accustomed to it already. They are not even aware of the problems that could arise from simply eating that unhealthy food. As Eric Schlosser stated in Fast Food Nation, "The growth in children's advertising has been driven by efforts to increase not just current, but also future, consumption." They become used to seeing that specific brand and they keep it close. It can be very difficult to stop eating unhealthy because of the diseases in the long-run and the possible addiction that may have been made by eating fast food so
Fast food tastes best when they are fresh out of the restaurant. No matter how big the portion is, fast food can be hardly eaten as leftovers. So children have gradually trained their stomachs-adults likewise-to hold fattier, oily, sugary foods that come in super sizes. The initial issue seemed to be just being overweight and obese, as these children who consume more fatty foods than necessary grew up to be a fat generation of adults. But now, the fast food monster has grown bigger and wilder that it brings children critical health issues at much younger ages.
A study of The Annals of Internal Medicine indicates that more than 70% of men and more than 60% of women have extra pounds because of the consumption of fast food in large amounts. In kids the problem gets more extreme. If kids consume too much fast food they could have high cholesterol and obesity, then they would have higher risks of cardiovascular issues, diabetes and heart diseases. Parents should prevent those kinds of health issues in their kids because it will be reflected in them as adults.