The Extraordinary Science Of Addictive Junk Food Summary

Michael Moss a investigative reporter for New York Times also the author. The Extraordinary Science of Junk Food was first appeared in the New York Times Magazine on February 24, 2013. On April 8, 1999, C.E.O from Nestle, Kraft and Nabisco, General Mills, Procter and Gamble, Coca-Cola, and Mars gathered to talk on the obesity epidemic. The vice president of kraft named Michael Mudd. Mudd gave a presentation about obesity, he told them to cut the use of sugar, salt, and fats. Also to change the manner they advertise their products. After the presentation was over the C.E.O of General Mills rose and said that people chose freely that if they wanted a healthy product then there it was.

Michael Moss, an investigative reporter who enjoys reporting on food, wrote: “The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food” (pages 471-494). This article reports on the ways that prepackaged food, especially junk food, is being designed to fit the customers’ needs and wants, as well as being something that the body craves. Moss provides multiple accounts throughout the reading in which people who have worked for or created corporate companies design foods just so they will sell. Moss expresses his thought in a clear manner to the reader so he or she will understand that Moss worries about the growing obesity in America and places the blame on junk food corporations. Though junk food corporations have a great part in the growing obesity,

David H. Freedman, a consulting editor for John Hopkins and author of several books, writes in “How Junk food can End Obesity” about the dangers of ruling out Fast Food as a way to decrease obesity in society. He argues that using nutrients to gauge the healthiness of a food is an adequate way to increase health in society, and that most “healthy” foods contain a lot of unhealthy ingredients that do not promote health. He also advocates small changes of about 50-100 calories in meals to encourage people to stay on their diets and promote long-term weight loss. He also points out the severe monetary difference between health foods and fast food. He ultimately wants to promote using the forum of food in society to decrease obesity in society, rather than making the large leap from junk food to whole, natural foods.

In the article “The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food”, the writer Michael Moss mentioned that growing weight problem happened in America has become a major health crisis issue. While people are talking about obesity, they care more about how much sugar, salt and fat they consume during a day, which kind of processed food does harm to their body. It seems that food companies have an inalienable relationship with consumers’ health conditions, because they provide us with what we eat. These companies made their food taste better (putting sugar, salt and fat in product) for attracting more customers, and also tried to protect their individual customers from the “obesity epidemic”, which is named by Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Moss, 260), without losing market share. It put them a moral judgment of creating food that customers like or be good to customers’ health. However, another writer Ethan Watters describe a story in his article “The Mega-Marketing of Depression in Japan” that in the market of the depressant drug in Japan, pharmaceutical companies faced a dilemma. They found it so hard to construct a Western-view concept of “depression” among a large-scale demographic of Japanese people, to contribute to their mental health problem, and to make a profit for sure. In the former case, food companies applied multiple marketing strategies to collective demographics to create more individuals’ desire of consumption, while they were striving to protect

Throughout the articles, each one discussed the author’s perspective on food industries. Two articles argued whether the food companies should be blamed for the health epidemics or it should be a personal responsibility for consumers. While others discussed how food industries manipulate consumers into buying more of their food. Along the same lines, all the articles mentioned how the health epidemic is increasing and who must be fault for the growth. As well as finding a solution and who should help. Although the articles emphasize how obesity rate has grown, the public seems to blame food companies for manipulating consumers and others insist it is a consumer’s personal responsibility.

In “Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food” by Michael Moss is about the rising numbers of obesity in both adults and children throughout the United States. On the Evening of April 8, 1999, some of the biggest food industries CEO’s ad company presidents come together for a rare, private meeting. Discussing the emerging obesity epidemic and how they should deal with it. Big time companies food is lacking the nutrients that a person needs and is more concentrated on how to make it more desired. Keeping the customers coming for more. While the industries are gaining a profit, the customers are gaining a big belly.

After reading "The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food," one thing became very clear to me. Big brand name companies don't care about your health in any way shape or form. The only thing that sparks their interest is money and how they can make more of it. Don't you dare go in to one of those companies and try to change their food formulas to something more health conscious, because you'll either get shot down or fired. Personally I believe companies should not be able to market junk food without restrictions. For example, large junk food manufacturers like to push the marketing of their products in poorer areas of America. They know that if the product is tasty, convenient, and inexpensive that no one really

In the article, “How The Food Industry Manipulates Taste Buds With 'Salt Sugar Fat'” it talks about the frightening truth that has been going on in the past few years with obesity and diabetes. Americans tend to have a huge addiction when it comes to food made with sugar, fat, salt, and as well as

It’s no secret, Americans love their processed, energy-rich foods. And undeniably, this love affair has led to an obesity epidemic. In spite of the evidence against processed food, however, there are some who believe the problem may hold the key to the solution. David Freedman, author of “How Junk Food Could End Obesity,” criticizes Michael Pollan for his argument in support of unprocessed, local foods due its impracticality. Freedman’s criticism is based on the idea that “It makes a lot more sense to look for small, beneficial changes in food than it does to hold out for big changes in what people eat that have no realistic chance of happening” (Freedman Sec. 1). He contends that processed foods already play a big part in our diets, so instead of trying to expand the wholesome food business, we should try to make processed foods healthier. Freedman’s argument, however, overlooks many negative effects of processed foods and conventional farming. Michael Pollan’s wholesome food movements takes into account not only the obesity problem, but also the quality of the environment and the rights of farmers. Although Pollan’s solution to obesity may not seem the most efficient or time effective, the trades offs it provides in terms of environmental sustainability and the well-being of farmers outweigh the loss of efficiency.

It’s been said in multiple states across America that the junk food sold in schools is causing many problems. Problems such as unhealthy habits, affecting the brain, and childhood obesity. The government and many school districts have done multiple things to reduce/stop the problem. They have done research dealing with the junk food and tried banning junk food, which many school districts did not continue with. Junk food should not be banned in schools because the root of childhood obesity is not the snacks sold in schools, school loses money if they do not sell snacks, and the government should not dictate what children eat.

example, Michael Pollan, the author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, exposes the true nature of our

Further expanding on the idea that food companies impose health risks on its consumers, there are many other negative aspects of the production process as well. For instance, Moss explains another harmful tactic used by companies, “What I found, over four years of research and reporting, was a conscious effort - taking place in labs and marketing meetings – to get people hooked on foods that are convenient and inexpensive.” (Moss 262). In this case, companies have complete control over its consumers. With an addictive sense for a specific product within a consumer, their demand soars as well as the company’s profit. Overall, this represents the unethical tactics being it manipulates people to keep buying foods that are unhealthy and cheap, giving them a distorted sense that, since they are saving money, it is the best product for them. As a college student, I understand where these people are coming from considering, on a tight budget, there are only a select amount of foods that are available, most being unhealthy. To add, people are subject to “play the game” of these companies in that, in some cases, when

I really enjoyed this, and want to know more. It's definitely a story with a good premise. I like the opening paragraph, descriptive, makes me curious, and with the technical business had me feeling like I was in a professional's hands.

Last week as I was driving home from my Biology lab at 5 o’clock, I saw the McDonald’s drive thru was extremely busy. The line wrapped around the building twice, and I found that shocking because the cars were directed to do so. The lines forming lanes on the pavement were painted, meaning the McDonald’s company must be used to it being so busy that they needed to make space. When I examined the line for a little while I thought to myself, “Do these people know that they are eating nothing good for them?” Eating is one of the greatest pleasures in life, especially when it can be done while still being buckled in. With the way fast food is typically advertised, Americans will eat a lot of it. Fast food is food that is prepared and served within a brief period of time. It is cheap, conveniently fast, and delicious. However, it can be hurtful to someone’s health because of the high-refined sugars, saturated fats, and sodium that these meals contain. Not only can an excess amount of these contents lead to obesity, diabetes, and cardiac issues but the fast-paced system can cause psychological effects such as impatience. However, before examining the health concerns, a look at fast food’s history is necessary.

Often, if what we are accustomed to is disturbed, we tend to develop a defence mechanism that leads to either the destruction of our surroundings or new concepts in ways to make the situation better. In Michael Moss’s The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food, he reports on the growing obesity epidemic in the United States as a result of food manufacturers “conscious effort… to get people hooked on foods that are convenient and inexpensive” (Moss 262). Whereas, in An Elephant Crackup?, by Charles Siebert, we assimilate the fact that “elephant behavior is entirely congruent with what we know about humans and other mammals” (Siebert 357). The dynamics of a “precipitous collapse of elephant culture” or “crackup” described by Charles Siebert, in An Elephant Crackup?, can be used to analyze and understand America’s relationship with processed food because elephants are observed through an anthropomorphized lens. It can be acknowledged that the encroachment, exploitation, and the economical and political instabilities that affect the elephants, serve as an interrelationship with what keeps consumers under the firm hold of major food industries.